Two days later.
On a highland somewhere in the Land of Rain.
Kaede, wearing a bamboo hat and a raincoat, slowly climbed the slope. His foot stepped into a puddle, yet not a single drop of water splashed, only a gentle ripple spread outward.
He ascended to the highest point and swept his gaze across the surrounding area. There wasn't a soul in sight, only faint traces of an abandoned encampment.
"So... where is everyone?"
Kaede stepped forward and crouched down to inspect a set of tracks.
The intel had described a sizable camp. Did it just vanish by the time he got here?
After obtaining the precise location of the Rain ninja encampment from Orochimaru, he had immediately set out from Konoha's base to this location, only to find it completely empty.
Just as Kaede furrowed his brow, a figure suddenly appeared in the distance, swiftly approaching and stopping a short distance away.
The figure wore an eerie animal mask and attire resembling that of Konoha's Anbu, though the mask bore more intricate patterns than those of a standard Anbu operative.
"A Root ninja?" Kaede asked calmly, glancing sideways.
The Root ninja gave a slight bow. After confirming Kaede's identity, he reported, "Danzo-sama ordered me to monitor the Rain ninja camp from afar. The Rain forces withdrew completely two days ago. I was instructed to stay here and wait for you."
"They withdrew?"
Kaede frowned. "Which direction did they go?"
The Root ninja replied in a low voice, "My comrades continued to track them, but we haven't received any intel in over a day. They may have been discovered… Based on the last report we received yesterday, it appears the Rain forces are heading back toward Amegakure."
Returning to Amegakure?
Kaede's eyes narrowed slightly in thought.
It was unlikely that Hanzō had prior knowledge of his arrival and retreated just to avoid him. More likely, he simply didn't want to stay in one place too long.
Rain is just a minor village, with no more than about 2,000 ninjas total. After accounting for forces needed to defend the village, Hanzō could at most deploy around 1,500 ninjas. Stationing that number near the border of the Land of Rain, it made sense he'd fear a sudden encirclement by Konoha.
"Do you have a detailed path of their retreat?"
Kaede turned into the Root ninja.
The ninja replied, "Only their route as of a day ago…"
As he spoke, he tossed a scroll to Kaede. Inside was a map of the Land of Rain with the Rain Ninja's known movements marked out.
Kaede glanced over it and nodded. "Got it."
The Root ninja crouched and then vanished with a puff of white smoke, using a Body Flicker Technique.
Watching him disappear, Kaede examined the route on the map once more, assessed his current location, and set off in the direction the Rain forces had taken.
…
Konoha Camp
Orochimaru stood before a terrain map in the center of the command tent. He placed a small flag down on it and said, "Classic Hanzō. Looks like after negotiations failed with you, he didn't waste any time retreating from his camp. He didn't want to give us even the slimmest chance to strike."
Seated to the side, Danzō calmly replied, "I would've done the same."
Orochimaru stared at the map a moment longer. "Judging from what we know about him, he's likely retreating all the way to Amegakure to wait for his next opportunity. Seems Kaede's assassination plan might be halted halfway."
Unless Kaede could intercept Hanzō en route, once the latter reached Amegakure, assassination would become nearly impossible.
Temporary camps rarely had sensory barriers set up, but hidden villages definitely did, Konoha had one, and Amegakure would as well.
Penetrating those sensory barriers undetected was extremely difficult. Once Kaede entered Amegakure's range, he'd be noticed immediately, making a stealth kill virtually impossible.
"Mm," Danzō nodded. "But Kaede isn't giving up. He's still in pursuit."
Rain's forces had already been gone for two days. It wasn't likely Kaede would catch up mid-route, especially since they weren't traveling in a straight line. A slight deviation could send him in the wrong direction. And the tracking ninja Danzō had dispatched had already gone silent.
To guarantee an encounter, Kaede would have to head straight for Amegakure. But attacking outside the village was equally unlikely, Hanzō wasn't the type to get carried home asleep by his subordinates.
"Young ninjas are always so persistent."
Orochimaru chuckled and shrugged.
Though Kaede was young and confident, his actions were typically cautious. If he sensed no opportunity, he wouldn't act rashly. Worst case, it would just be a wasted trip.
…
Land of Rain
Kaede followed the Rain Ninja's trail to the last known location, then selected a direction based on the map and continued chasing. But after half a day, he still found no sign of them.
Looks like he picked the wrong path.
Rather than continue searching blindly, Kaede altered his route and headed straight for Amegakure. After all, Hanzō's end goal was to return there.
As for the sensory barriers, infiltration, or assassination... he hadn't considered any of that from the start.
Just like Orochimaru and Danzō had assumed, Hanzō was an extremely cautious individual. Even while sleeping, his defenses were airtight. An ambush was virtually impossible.
Kaede had never intended to ambush him.
A direct confrontation would suffice!
The number of Rain Ninjas didn't matter, just like when he fought the Third and Fourth Raikage one-on-one. Anyone too slow to keep up might as well not be there.
It was the same with Hanzō. Aside from him, the rest of the Rain forces were basically cannon fodder, not worth paying attention to. It was like clearing a dungeon: no need to fight the mobs, just go straight for the final boss.
Kaede wasn't in a rush to reach Amegakure.
At full speed, he could arrive within half a day, while Hanzō, leading his forces in a roundabout path, would likely take three to four days to get back.
If he arrived too early, he'd just be standing in the rain outside the village for days. Might as well find a nearby town, lay low for a while, and wait until Hanzō was almost back before making his move.
"This place will do."
Kaede checked his map and selected the closest town.
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