When the two brothers, Yuta and Yuto, saw their captain again, they didn't rush forward in anger to question him; instead, they fell into a deep state of confusion, their spirits extremely low.
In their unsuccessful Ninja careers, this was yet another heavy blow.
Not only that, but since their captain was a spy, they would be implicated. A trip to the Anbu for tea was inevitable, and they might not even be allowed to be Ninjas anymore.
Higashino Shin, on the other hand, felt that this might be a good thing for them. In his view, the brothers really weren't suited to be ninjas; whatever they did in the future would be better than this.
The Ninja World is extremely demanding regarding mental and physical talent. The role of a powerful Bloodline is to push these talents to their absolute limit, and the two brothers clearly had neither.
They were nearly adults, yet their Chakra capacity was pitifully small. They could only use the Three Basic Jutsu and throw shuriken. Even the 9-year-old Yūgao Uzuki could take on ten 'Seniors' like them by herself.
The two brothers realized that perhaps it was time to face a choice. The dream they shouted about in school—of growing up to become Hokage—had ultimately succumbed to ruthless reality.
In their eyes, Captain Ritsu, who had decent strength, had been tied up like a dog by the roadside by a junior who had just graduated. Meanwhile, when the explosive tags in the cave went off, Higashino Shin had easily led them out using Ninjutsu they couldn't even comprehend.
Just like Inuzuka Kiba among the later konoha 12, no matter how much he refused to accept Uzumaki Naruto, he had to face the gap between them. He didn't have the Uzumaki Physique, the Nine-Tailed cheat, a Sannin master, the status of an Ashura Chakra Reincarnation, or the permissions granted by the Six Paths Sage.
He started with only a dog, and by the end, he was still just a man with a dog.
After a while, Gekko Yun Jian finally appeared. Not only that, but he was followed by two Ninjas wearing animal masks.
This was the Anbu. They nodded to Higashino Shin and the others, acknowledging the contribution of this rookie team, then took Ritsu away, along with Yuta and Yuto, back to Konoha.
Being associated with a spy, whether knowingly or not, meant they definitely had to go through the Anbu's procedures.
"Well done, I am very satisfied with your response!" Gekko Yun Jian gave his students a thumbs up.
Higashino Shin only gave a slight smile, while Gekkō Hayate was somewhat excited; he had finally received a word of recognition from his father.
Yūgao Uzuki deliberately put on an angry face: "Teacher, was this your goal all along? Accompanying us on d-rank missions was just a side note?"
"Oh, Yūgao seems unhappy. But sorry, you've got it backwards. Your growth is what's truly important. As for today's events, it was an accident, just an accident."
"Then what exactly happened?"
Gekko Yun Jian thought for a moment and explained: "Well, a while ago, the Anbu caught a high-level Iwagakure spy in the Village. But that guy committed suicide ahead of time, destroying his brain so no intel could be read, cutting off the clues to his spy network."
"Quite a few people had contact with him, and Ritsu's team was one of them. But since it's wartime, the Anbu doesn't have enough manpower for a full investigation, and it's not suitable to make too much noise."
"The Anbu knew I was leading a Genin team, so they asked me to investigate if I encountered certain suspects. As you saw, that fellow Ritsu indeed had problems."
"Weren't you afraid we'd be in danger?"
"If someone like that could take you out, it would mean you've reached your limit anyway." Gekko Yun Jian looked seriously at Yūgao Uzuki: "What do you think a Ninja is? A Ninja must maintain sharp intuition at all times, able to detect and be wary of anything unusual immediately."
"Alright, so do we get credit for this?"
"Of course. This counts as a standard B-rank mission."
"Great!" Yūgao Uzuki excitedly waved her small fist. Now, her Genin record would have a mid-to-high-level mission to show off.
"Alright, Yūgao. Teacher was actually secretly protecting us the whole time."
"I knew I couldn't hide it from you, Shin. Sensory abilities are quite useful. But don't get cocky; I can't be by your side forever. Grow up quickly so you can be someone your comrades can rely on, and more importantly, so you can rely on yourself."
Gekkō Hayate asked: "Teacher, are we continuing today's mission?"
"Of course. One must finish what they start. Cherish your time doing d-rank missions; this is our last scheduled day. The next time you want to do a d-rank mission, it might have to wait until you grow up and become a Jonin leader yourselves."
---
After the mission ended, Team Three received two days of rest.
In two days, they would officially leave the Village to execute missions and face new challenges.
This was Konoha's final bit of kindness. Even if manpower was short and children had to be thrown onto the battlefield, they had to be given a period of time, long or short, to adapt.
On this point, every Village had its own way of doing things, mostly similar, except for the Hidden Mist which was the most unique. Their Ninjas had already gained enough killing experience from their own comrades before ever stepping out the door.
Since those without talent were just 'experience packs' anyway, they might as well let their own people farm them first.
Thus, the Hidden Mist Village had three nicknames: the Village of many maniacs, many perverts, and many Rogue Ninjas.
During the two-day break, Higashino Shin enjoyed a rare period of leisure. Besides his fixed daily Cultivation, he spent his days either looking at the scenery of Konoha from the Hokage Rock or soaking up the warm spring sun by the river.
Life needs leisure to enjoy time in addition to cultivation; only then can one truly feel the joy of being alive.
For someone who had died once, this was especially important.
Cultivating is to ensure one can keep living; being a Ninja is to make life more exciting and wonderful. These are not contradictory.
After all, he wasn't like those Senior Transmigration protagonists who were either born into the Uchiha family, constantly worrying about their lack of strength and being stabbed to death by Itachi on the Night of the Massacre.
Or born into the Hyuga branch house, struggling all day against the Caged Bird seal on their foreheads.
Or being an orphan, afraid that if they performed too well, they'd end up in Danzo's little notebook, leading to a classic 'you regret, I Hokage' dialogue in the Hokage Office.
He certainly wouldn't go looking for trouble just to change the so-called Ninja World or someone's fate.
In the 9 years since coming to the Ninja World, the only thing he had probably changed were the three people he grew up with. Uchiha Shisui had awakened his Sharingan because of him; as for the future, he'd deal with it when it came.
Gekkō Hayate? He certainly wouldn't let him die young.
Finally, Higashino Shin had once subtly asked his parents and confirmed he had no Senju Bloodline. He was a pure commoner through and through, with no need to struggle to restore the glory of the Senju.
If not for his Natural Energy cheat, his limit in this life would be an ordinary Jonin, just like Higashino Jiro. Facing the 'gods' of the Fourth War, he would be nothing more than a dog by the road.
If that were the case, he would probably have started the life-sacrificing path of the Eight Gates or risked contacting Orochimaru to see if he could change his fate through scientific research.
To be honest, both paths were unfriendly to him. The ceiling of the Eight Gates was high, but there was only one chance to bloom.
As for research, he had self-awareness; he wasn't that kind of material. Research requires not only a deep theoretical foundation but, most importantly, that spark of creative Genius.
How does the saying go? Genius is 1% inspiration and 99% perspiration.
He had the 99% perspiration, but the 1% talent was a bit too much to ask of him.
So his current hard work was entirely dependent on his 'cheat'—there was nothing to be ashamed of. In this world, only those with 'cheats' have a future.
Regarding his current strength, the development of his offensive and defensive means had temporarily reached a plateau, as had his second-stage training in Medical Ninjutsu and Chakra; all had reached the limit of this body.
The advancement of his Chakra toward the Yin and Yang poles had almost completely stalled.
This was no longer a matter of effort; his instinct told him that forcing it further might be dangerous.
Kurama Yakumo and Uchiha Itachi's genjutsu abilities were unparalleled, so why did their bodies deteriorate so quickly? Kimimaro's regenerative abilities were powerful, yet he couldn't cure his Bloodline Disease.
The most ridiculous case was Senju Hashirama, who possessed the most ultimate life force of any Ninja, yet died before reaching the age of 60.
Thus, Higashino Shin guessed that without an extraordinary Physique, forcing the Yin and Yang attributes higher was not a good thing.
Everything would have to wait until his White Natural Energy cultivation reached the third stage, and his body entered a constant Sage Mode, before things might change.
As for his current strength? Higashino Shin really wasn't sure; you only know after a fight. Regardless, a Jonin like Gekko Yun Jian posed absolutely no threat to him.
As for Kage-level Ninjas? Maybe he should try putting a sack over Hiruzen Sarutobi's head one day to test it out?