NOVEL NEXT Chapter 24: Rogue Ninja
That very day, the detailed report of the skirmish had landed on Tobirama Senju's desk. As he reviewed the information, an unusual smile tugged at his lips.
Hui hadn’t disappointed him. During the battle, Hui demonstrated the qualities a top-tier ninja should possess. However, Tobirama knew it wasn’t enough.
After some contemplation, he turned to the Anbu squad leader beside him. "Send Squad Four to the Heichuan Line. The mission... protect the supply convoy."
"Yes, sir!" the squad leader responded without hesitation.
The Heichuan Line was one of the logistical routes that connected Konoha to the Mist Village's battlefield. Located within the Fire Country, it was a vital route leading toward the nation's borders.
This area was already fraught with danger. Transporting supplies here often meant running the risk of encountering rogue ninjas or enemy village scouts.
But this route wasn’t excessively dangerous—it was still deep within the Land of Fire’s borders. Even if they encountered enemies, they wouldn’t face large groups—most likely just small scouting squads. More frequently, the danger would come from rogue ninjas, and wandering outlaws scraping by in the war-torn lands.
It was the perfect place for Hui's next step of growth.
When Hui received this mission, he wasn’t surprised in the slightest.
As he had expected, after completing the first mission where danger was present, a more dangerous task had arrived shortly after. He had already mentally prepared himself for it.
Unlike the weather in the area where Sakumo Hatake and the others were stationed, the Heichuan Line was frequently gloomy and misty.
The skies were often overcast, casting a grey pall over everything and giving the land an oppressive atmosphere. The constant dampness seemed to seep into one's soul, bringing a sense of unease and depression.
Hui didn’t particularly like this kind of weather. But as a ninja, he worked hard to adapt, turning the negative emotions brought on by this environment into another form of mental training.
On the third day of their mission, escorting the supply convoy silently as they moved along the route, Hui suddenly stopped in his tracks.
Bear, who was accompanying him on this side of the convoy, also halted. "What is it?"
"Two o'clock direction, around five hundred meters out. Six of them. One Chūnin, five Genin," Hui said quietly, his senses tingling with the presence of chakra.
Hui's sensory ability allowed him to detect chakra signatures, and he had just picked up the presence of six enemies in the distance.
Bear nodded, then gestured to Wind and Lightning on the other side of the convoy. Once they gathered, Bear repeated Hui's findings before directing Hui to lead the way.
The four of them moved swiftly and silently toward the indicated direction.
When they arrived, Hui’s sharp eyes quickly found the six figures hidden within the forest.
From their attire, there were no visible insignias to indicate they were from any particular village. These were likely rogue ninjas, and the odds were high.
Their bodies were thin and malnourished, their clothing mismatched and tattered, giving the impression that they had been wandering like this for a long time.
Moreover, their ambush technique lacked the precision and coordination typical of the village-trained ninjas. Rogue ninjas often had a rougher, more desperate approach.
Typically, village ninjas would take up ideal positions for ambushes, carefully considering both attack and escape routes. But these six had all clustered together in a small area, all on one side of the road.
Worse, they were chatting quietly among themselves when they should’ve been focused on the approaching target.
"Are we really going to attack Konoha’s supply convoy, Kimura? We’ll get killed doing this!" one of the ninjas, dark-skinned and scrawny, spoke in a trembling voice.
"I know we can’t afford to cross Konoha," Kimura, the apparent leader, responded in a gruff voice laced with frustration. "But if we don’t do something, we’re going to starve to death anyway!"
The wars had ravaged the land, and the Hidden Mist Village wasn’t known for leaving anything behind when they invaded.
They pillaged all available resources, leaving civilians and weaker rogue ninjas without food or supplies.
These six, clearly of weak standing, had no choice but to look toward Konoha's convoys as their last hope for survival.
The irony wasn't lost on Hui and his team. Konoha had spared these rogue ninjas, not plundering their meager resources, but now, driven by desperation, they had become the targets of these same rogues.
"Kimura’s right. If we don’t act now, we’re done for," the dark-skinned rogue fell silent, unable to argue with the grim truth.
Bear’s eyes glinted coldly as he listened to the conversation below. He signaled to Hui, Wind, and Lightning with a simple gesture—eliminate them.
Without a word, the four of them vanished, blending into the shadows, preparing to strike.
For the rogue ninjas, this would be the last mistake they ever made.