"So many members of the Uchiha clan? That's... rather interesting."
Orochimaru remarked after watching squad after squad of Uchiha ninja entering the front-line camp. Although he tried to suppress his tone, excitement still leaked through his voice.
Haseo, who had already entered the camp earlier and reunited with Orochimaru and Jiraiya at the training field, without saying a word immediately delivered a sharp slap on Orochimaru's head. "Behave yourself. Interesting? I think you're just lusting after their bodies. Next..."
Well, that last part was going too far—the kid hadn't gotten to that point yet.
Orochimaru: "..."
Haseo understood the power of the Sharingan but couldn't quite grasp why the older Orochimaru became so obsessed with it. Truthfully, Orochimaru didn't really need the Sharingan for combat strength; his obsession likely stemmed mostly from the curiosity of a researcher toward his subject...
But those red-eyed guys clearly have liver problems and are prone to inflammation. Plus, judging by the pattern of their pupils, they might even have kidney issues causing urinary problems... The Uchiha already have rough lives and bad tempers—who needs to make things even worse for them?
If Orochimaru, at such a young age, had already started showing interest in organs, that definitely wasn't a good sign. He needed to suppress his curiosity—at least Haseo, as this temporary squad leader, didn't want any major troubles because of his temporary teammates.
Orochimaru, now subdued, could only glare angrily without daring to speak back.
Actually, if one really wanted to talk about genuine interest, right now he was much more intrigued by Haseo's [Multi-elemental Ninjutsu]—it was an unprecedented case, after all. Therefore, if he were being honest about lustful desires, compared to the Uchiha, he'd be significantly more envious of Haseo.
The problem was, Orochimaru couldn't show such research-oriented desire, or he risked facing unknown retaliation... While he probably wouldn't end up dead like a snake, maybe he'd become a half-dead snake, a snake with broken bones, or even a female snake.
Although Haseo considered himself open-minded, unselfish, and the wise guy of all wise guys, after spending so much time together, Orochimaru felt that all these were just illusions created by Haseo himself—the man was actually ruthless, manipulative, petty, and quick to retaliate.
"Now that the village's elite forces have gathered," Jiraiya said, looking down at the steady stream of people entering the camp, "I suppose the operation to take Amegakure will start soon enough."
Neither of them pressed him about why Haseo and Tsunade had returned to the village earlier. Perhaps they had already learned something, or maybe it was merely out of politeness. Either way, this "indifference" was actually a commendable form of kindness.
"It'll probably require further integration and organization," Haseo replied, not believing the process would go as smoothly as Jiraiya thought. "Final war preparations always take some time. Besides… Jiraiya, don't get your hopes up too high. As Genin squads, we'll probably just be hanging around the periphery doing minor tasks during the upcoming operations. Wanting to join the vanguard team to penetrate Amegakure? You deserve... no, wait, what I meant was—we deserve that?"
Haseo perfectly understood what Jiraiya was thinking, so he decisively shattered his illusion.
Elite Ninja—perhaps not all participants needed to be jonin, but at the very least they should be chunin, right? They absolutely had to be true Elite Ninja.
"That's not necessarily true. I think our squad has some combat power," Jiraiya muttered quietly, though clearly lacking confidence.
"Hmph," Haseo snorted disdainfully. How could such a possibility even exist? Yet, reality itself seemed to throw his words right back in his face.
...
The next day, Jiraiya excitedly rushed into Haseo's tent.
"Haseo, Haseo, do you know what? The Third approved our participation in the infiltration mission!"
"What? Impossible. Are you sleepwalking?"
Of course, Haseo didn't believe Jiraiya's exaggerated claims. Sending his inexperienced apprentices straight to the absolute front line of one of the deadliest battlefields—Infiltrating Amegakure was nothing like their previous cleanup missions inside the Land of Rain.
This mission would be extremely dangerous. Although one could argue that experiencing such warfare might greatly accelerate Jiraiya's growth, this kind of training method was like raising venomous insects together in a jar—only the strongest survive. This kind of cruel test was completely absurd! The Third Hokage was a rational man. He wasn't some cold-hearted fool; how could he put his own beloved apprentice through something like this?
Seeing Haseo's skepticism, Jiraiya wordlessly shoved a small note into his hands.
Haseo unfolded it and saw just one line written inside: "I leave my disciples in your care."
Despite its brevity, those few words conveyed an overwhelming message—and dealt heavy emotional damage to Haseo.
Undoubtedly, the handwriting belonged to the Third Hokage; there was no chance of forgery. Not that it was impossible to fake, but even if Jiraiya and others messed around sometimes, they would never go this far.
After verifying its authenticity, Haseo placed the note aside on the table, covering his face with both hands as tears silently flowed inward.
Why must it be so difficult? He was still just a child, only a genin.
This wasn't just pushing fledglings out of the nest anymore—it was tying lead weights to their legs before shoving them out... True enough, the Third Hokage wasn't the type who indulgently spoiled his apprentices. In a way, this decision deserved praise. However, the real issue was, even if the Third wanted to train his own apprentices, why did it feel like all those lead weights were tied to Haseo himself?
Go on, someone explain to him just what "I leave my disciples in your care" really means.
"Well then, fellow Genin," Haseo finally spoke, "before our upcoming mission begins, use whatever time remains to train hard."
What else could he say? Though the Third's tone was gentle, a mission remained a mission. Was he really going to negotiate whether or not to back out?
Logistical preparations, intelligence gathering, personnel arrangements—all kinds of pre-battle readiness activities quickly kicked off, including the efforts of Haseo and his team. Ultimately, the operation was scheduled for one month later.
According to the battle plan, only two hundred Konoha ninja were assigned for the first wave assault into Amegakure. And according to Haseo's analysis, there were actually just 196 combat-ready troops among them.
Since Haseo was part of this mission himself, he didn't know if Konoha would send more backup or support forces under the Third Hokage's orders. It wasn't clear yet whether they'd send more reinforcements or just count on these 200 men to finish the job—it all depended on how the battlefield looked.
Before departure, Haseo acted a bit strangely. He deliberately retied the bandages around his forehead, then put on a white mask with a single vertical pupil painted on it.
"Haseo, you're part of Anbu too?" Jiraiya watched Haseo's actions with surprise. It was strange enough that Haseo was part of Anbu—but even stranger that he was showing his face so openly.
"More or less... Our upcoming operation is clearly like lying in ambush at a water source and killing those who come to drink. To be honest, it's somewhat dishonorable, so I need to conceal my identity," Haseo explained.
"What about us then?"
"You guys... never had much reputation to begin with, so there's nothing left to lose—no need to bother hiding yourselves."
"... Hmm."
"Haseo, you seem a bit nervous."
"Yeah, I haven't participated in battles this big before. It's natural to feel nervous," Haseo's slightly muffled voice came out from behind the mask.
"No, that's not it..."
Orochimaru silently disagreed with Haseo's explanation. Haseo definitely had experience in large-scale battles—his participation in previous operations against Sunagakure was no secret. In sheer scale, those past battles were even bigger than this one.
Leaving aside such considerations, from a personality standpoint, what was there for Haseo to be nervous about?
Haseo was as ordinary a person as they come. Despite everything happening around him recently, even if he always pretended not to care, he couldn't truly remain indifferent inside. He simply chose not to speak of some things and buried them deep inside.
"Oh, so it's not nervousness after all. Probably just... eager anticipation."
Some things could be easily perceived by someone as perceptive as Orochimaru. Such emotions ultimately couldn't be hidden from someone like him.
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