After agreeing to convene at the village gates later, the temporary team dispersed. Renzou Uchiha, instead of heading home, took a familiar route to a ninja supply shop. Inside, the proprietor was meticulously polishing the counter. Hearing the bell above the door chime, he looked up. "Ah, welcome, esteemed guest! What can I assist you with today?"
"I need to procure some equipment this time," Renzou Uchiha replied with a nod and a smile, moving towards the shelves to make his selections. Kunai, shuriken, smoke bombs, soldier pills, and detonating tags were all neatly displayed. "Hmm…" "Boss, I'll take two of each of these, and I'll need a ninja pouch with more capacity." Renzou Uchiha indicated several items, finally pointing to his worn and slightly torn ninja bag. He'd been too indifferent to replace it before, but as a newly minted ninja, a tattered pouch felt unprofessional.
"Certainly! Please have a seat while I gather your items," the shopkeeper said cheerfully, disappearing into the back storage. Moments later, he returned with a brand-new, spacious ninja tool bag, presenting it to Renzou Uchiha at the counter. "Guest, everything is prepared as you requested. This batch of goods was recently transported from the Fire Country capital. This ninja pouch is exceptionally durable and breathable. The ninja tools you'll find in my shop are undoubtedly top-tier…"
"That'll do, thank you," Renzou Uchiha interjected, placing a banknote on the counter, cutting short the enthusiastic sales pitch.
"Ah, yes, that will be ten thousand ryō. Here is your change of three thousand. Come again soon!" The boss took the money, swiftly counted out the change, and handed it to Renzou Uchiha, his smile as bright as polished steel.
"Right, I'm off." Renzou Uchiha left the store, checked the time, and quickly made his way towards the village entrance. Upon arriving, he saw that Kai and Sarutobi Shinnosuke were already there, engaged in conversation.
"Sorry to keep you waiting," Renzou Uchiha said as he approached, nodding to Kai and then addressing Sarutobi Shinnosuke.
"No worries, we only just arrived ourselves," Sarutobi Shinnosuke waved off his apology before turning to address them both. "I'll brief you on the specifics en route. Let's move out."
"Yes! X2"
As they journeyed, Sarutobi Shinnosuke detailed the mission. A band of roughly sixty brigands had established themselves on Changpu Mountain, twenty kilometers north of Konoha, where they had been robbing and kidnapping young women from a village at the mountain's base. The desperate villagers had pooled their meager savings to issue a request in Konoha. The mission objective: total extermination of the bandits and the rescue of the abducted women.
Total annihilation? Perfect for us! The three ninjas hastened through the forest, reaching their destination around five o'clock in the afternoon. After entering the village and confirming the location of Changpu Mountain with the anxious villagers, they set their sights on the looming mountain, the villagers' hopeful gazes fixed on their backs.
As dusk settled, the three ninjas concealed themselves amongst the trees, observing the brightly lit cluster of cottages before them. On the makeshift watchtower outside, four or five bandits sat together, boisterously chatting and joking, drinking and eating meat, reveling in their lawless freedom. Meanwhile, the three Konoha Genin perched silently in the branches, chewing on soldier ration pills, awaiting their moment.
"Intelligence suggests approximately sixty bandits. We'll move in half an hour. The two of you are responsible for neutralizing the left and right guard towers, which will signal the start of the main operation. I will locate and secure the mission targets – the kidnapped women. After the mission is complete, we'll regroup here. Remember: the objective is complete annihilation!" Sarutobi Shinnosuke's voice was firm.
"Yes." With that, their temporary leader vanished in a swift flash, leaving Renzou Uchiha and Kai leaning against a tree trunk, silently checking their newly acquired ninja tools.
"You take the left, I'll take the right. Focus on the largest structures," Kai murmured.
"Understood." As night fully descended, the two Genin separated. Using the flickering torchlight on the watchtower, Renzou Uchiha easily pinpointed the positions of the three guards on duty. Two were visibly drinking inside the tower, while the third patrolled back and forth. Truly undisciplined. Moving stealthily through the darkness, Renzou Uchiha approached the base of the watchtower and began to climb silently. The tower was only about four or five meters high. Spotting the two bandits with their backs to him, engrossed in their drinks, Renzou Uchiha quietly drew two shuriken from his new pouch, aimed at their throats, and flicked his wrists. The projectiles flew silently and accurately.
Renzou Uchiha swiftly scaled the remaining distance. Before the patrolling bandit could react to the muffled thuds from above, a glinting kunai flashed across his throat. His eyes widened in shock at the sudden appearance of the figure before him. He barely managed to open his mouth, ready to shout, "Save…" but before the sound could escape, Renzou Uchiha's gaze hardened, and he plunged the kunai deeper into the bandit's neck. This time, the bandit was irrevocably silenced. The two inside the watchtower had long since been struck in the throat by Renzou Uchiha's shuriken, their bodies twitching spasmodically on the wooden floor, life rapidly ebbing away.
"Hoh… hoh…" One of the bandits inside the tower stared in horror at the approaching Renzou Uchiha, his eyes wide with terror. He tried to scream, but only a gurgling sound escaped his throat. Renzou Uchiha crouched down, retrieved his shuriken, and then used his kunai to deliver two more precise strikes, ensuring their demise. After confirming all three were dead, he wiped the shuriken and kunai clean on the dead bandit's clothes before standing up, ready to continue his grim task. Though a slight unease lingered from his first kills, Renzou Uchiha quickly suppressed it. As a ninja, taking lives would likely become commonplace. Kill or be killed. Sarutobi Hiruzen had likely assigned them this mission to blood them, to initiate them into the harsh realities of the ninja world.
Shifting his focus, Renzou Uchiha turned his attention to the cluster of cottages. There were over twenty rooms on each side. Assuming an average of two to three people per room, the large tiled house at the far end likely belonged to the bandit leader. The bandits were now presumably asleep, but Renzou Uchiha's mission had just begun. Quietly opening the door of the nearest cottage, he found three beds, each occupied by a snoring bandit, their loud respirations actually reducing the risk of him being detected.
"Umm…" One of the sleeping bandits' snoring abruptly ceased. His eyes snapped open, wide with alarm. Just as he was about to yell, a hand clamped firmly over his mouth. Seizing the opportunity, Renzou Uchiha swiftly used two kunai. Moments later, the mountain bandit lay still. Releasing his grip, Renzou Uchiha moved to the next bed, raised his kunai, and continued his silent, ruthless harvest of these criminals' lives.
"No, please don't do this!"
"Heh heh, you scream all you want. No one will come to save you, even if your throat is torn out!" Renzou Uchiha heard a woman's terrified cry and a man's cruel laughter emanating from behind a nearby door. Peeking through the crack, he saw two bandits and a bound woman inside. Under the cover of her continued screams, Renzou Uchiha gently pushed the door open. The woman's eyes widened with a flicker of hope as she saw him enter. She was about to cry out for help, but Renzou Uchiha silenced her with a quick "Don't make a sound" gesture. The woman seemed to understand, continuing her cries to maintain the distraction.
"Huh? Who are you? Enemy—" One of the bandits, momentarily turning away from the woman, caught sight of Renzou Uchiha. His expression twisted in shock as he saw the Konoha forehead protector. He opened his mouth to shout, but Renzou Uchiha's kunai swiftly pierced his throat, silencing him permanently.
"Hmm?" The other bandit, in the midst of tearing the woman's clothes, heard his companion's muffled gasp and began to turn back. But he suddenly felt a sharp pain in his neck, his hands flying up to clutch the wound. Before he could utter a word, Renzou Uchiha delivered another swift, fatal strike. The bandit slumped to the ground, lifeless.
"Put on these bandits' clothes and go find your sisters. Tell them to gather," Renzou Uchiha instructed the woman, glancing at her briefly before turning to leave.
"Thank you… thank you," he heard her whisper words behind him. Without stopping, Renzou Uchiha simply waved a hand towards the rear, then closed the door and continued towards the next house. The silent assassinations continued.
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End of Chapter 48