"Spacing out again? I'm talking to you!"
In an unknown forest in the Land of Fire, Minato patted Nawaki's shoulder.
"Huh?"
"Sorry, I zoned out for a second."
Nawaki snapped back to reality. It had only been less than a week since they'd left the village, but he already missed Misaki.
"Sentimental mush. Not even remotely impressive."
Minato gave him a look full of disappointment, as if he were iron that refused to be shaped properly.
"Senior Minato, didn't you just mention Kushina Sister earlier?"
Konan couldn't help but tease—she just couldn't go a day without stirring up trouble.
"What? No way. You must've misheard."
Minato got those telltale dark lines across his forehead, trying to play dumb.
"I heard it too."
Nagato's calm voice drifted over, ruining Minato's plan.
"Oh come on—that part doesn't matter."
"The mission target is in the town ahead."
"When are we making our move?"
Minato quickly changed the subject, steering things back on track.
"I'll head in first and scout around. See if there's an opportunity."
A melodic voice cut in—it was Nonou Yakushi.
Sitting beside Nagato, she volunteered herself for the task.
This mission involved numerous targets, so Sakumo had assigned them an extra squad alongside Nawaki's team.
Now they had three squads totaling twelve members.
"Are you confident going alone?"
"How about we send someone else with you for backup?"
Nawaki suggested this out of concern for safety—he considered Nonou's strength to be mediocre at best.
"Then let Pain come with me."
Nonou didn't refuse; she directly requested Nagato accompany her.
"Fine."
Minato agreed readily—nothing wrong with that plan.
With Nagato's abilities, even if discovered, they could easily escape unharmed.
"Aren't you going to ask me what I think about this?"
Nagato looked at Minato with slight helplessness—he hadn't even asked him yet.
"Don't worry, you've got senior here guiding you."
Minato pointed toward Nonou. She was excellent at gathering information.
"Don't worry, I've got it covered."
Nonou patted her chest confidently.
"All right then."
Since everyone had spoken so clearly, Nagato could only agree.
"Just be careful. Don't make any moves inside the town."
Nawaki reminded them both—they also needed to keep civilians safe.
If they fought in the town, civilians could get hurt.
All they needed was to confirm when the targets would leave the town.
The targets would definitely cross the border eventually—they wouldn't stay holed up in the town forever.
"Yes."
Both Nonou and Nagato responded before getting up and heading toward the town.
"Nonou seems to remember Pain quite well."
Only now did Nonou's captain speak, his tone laced with amusement.
He'd been present on the day of the Intelligence Department Selection and had clearly witnessed everything between Nonou and Nagato.
"Really? I hadn't noticed at all."
Minato laughed it off. What Nagato did sounded bad, no matter how you put it.
To someone unfamiliar, one might actually think he was harassing—a guy grabbing straight for the chest without hesitation?
Even giving CPR to a drowning victim can draw criticism!
"Let's not bring up old stuff."
"Now let's wait for them to return before deciding on the next plan."
Nagato asserted his leadership and ended the discussion.
Looking at the retreating figures of Nagato and Nonou, a faint smile flickered across his lips.
If these two could actually make it work, he would at least deserve some credit.
"Are we really just going in like this?"
Nonou stopped Nagato. They were already approaching the town.
"Sorry, I forgot."
Nagato looked slightly embarrassed. In their current appearance, they wouldn't just fail to gather information—they'd immediately draw suspicion as soon as they entered.
But this wasn't entirely his fault. His usual approach during missions was straightforward brute force, with little subtlety involved.
"Let's decide on our identities first."
"Couple or siblings?"
Under her mask, Nonou was clearly wearing a teasing smile.
"Ah~"
"Well then, siblings it is."
Nagato was an honest guy—strictly sticking to the two choices given.
Someone like Kawaki would likely think of a third option entirely.
Like husband and wife, shopkeeper and mistress.
Those would also work as good disguises.
"Alright."
Nonou performed the Transformation Jutsu. Before Nagato stood a woman with delicate features, tall and curvaceous.
Nagato carefully examined her, his expression remained completely serious and calm.
Then he performed the same Transformation Jutsu based on Nonou's appearance.
Judging by appearances, the two actually looked somewhat alike.
Nagato had even taken care with the small details.
"Great, let's go."
Nonou was quite satisfied with Nagato's performance.
Looks like he really didn't get romance at all, not that she wasn't attractive enough.
Nagato followed right behind her, and the two entered the small town just like any normal pair of siblings.
"Can you sense where they are?"
Nonou knew about Nagato's excellent sensing ability.
Knowing teammates' capabilities was basic requirement.
"Yes."
Nagato extended his sensing ability and quickly locked onto three locations with large gatherings of mission targets.
"How is it?"
Nonou whispered while continuing to walk forward normally.
"There are three spots. Should we check them all first?"
Nagato didn't take initiative to make decisions here—he admitted Nonou was superior.
"Mm, let's go to the nearest one first."
Nonou made the decision without hesitation. Given that they had to stay together, they had to pick the most suitable location.
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"Okay."
Nagato quickly moved ahead of Nonou and walked toward the first location.
It was a restaurant—evidently rented entirely by the mission targets.
The place was packed with burly men, all wearing wary expressions.
"This won't work."
Nonou didn't even consider entering the restaurant.
"Yeah."
Nagato agreed with her and the two headed toward the next spot.
This was a gambling house. The other location was not far away.
Nagato subtly pointed it out.
Nonou turned her head to look. It was a pleasure establishment.
She wore a slightly disdainful expression—that kind of place could also be ruled out.
She led Nagato inside, but they couldn't help drawing attention.
Since when do people bring their own company to a pleasure establishment?
"Let's check out the gambling house."
Nonou made the decision and walked in with Nagato behind her.
Inside the gambling house, the air was thick with smoke and chaos—nothing out of the ordinary would have been surprising. Yet their arrival drew barely a glance.
Nonou skillfully exchanged chips while Nagato silently followed behind.
He knew his teacher's wife loved gambling, though he'd never set foot in a place like this before. He felt a quiet curiosity about everything around him and kept glancing around with a scrutinizing gaze.
Nonou had a clear purpose, casually strolling around for a bit. Then, as if it were the most natural thing in the world, she took Nagato's hand and guided him toward the table where their mission target sat.
This was Tsunade's favorite game—Sic Bo (a dice game where players bet on "Big" or "Small"). Ninjas seemed to favor this simple, rough-and-tumble form of gambling.
Nonou pulled Nagato up to the gaming table and scanned the scene first. Several targets were seated there, faces flushed with excitement. Their chip stacks loomed high, while the dealer's expression had gone sour. Nine times out of ten, these guys probably used ninja tricks.
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