When it comes to shinobi missions, they might sound cool, but the actual experience can be incredibly boring, tedious, and dull.
Hibari, on his first mission, was currently enduring this very feeling.
Once the traps were set, you naturally couldn't just stand there waiting for someone to fall into them; that would be too foolish. Anyone with half a brain wouldn't fall for such an obvious trap anyway.
Therefore, after finishing the earlier tasks, Hibari, Hiruzen, and Sasuke found a spot with a good view, a small wooded hill, and concealed themselves.
When in stealth, one naturally couldn't make too much noise, so the shinobi had to stay there quietly, waiting.
Hibari and his companions' objective was to wait for the enemy to arrive, react as needed, or wait for Hashirama, the Hokage of Konohagakure, to make his appearance.
Hiruzen and Sasuke, as veteran shinobi and village experts, naturally had no strong aversion to such stealth operations; it was more accurate to say they were already accustomed to them.
But it was Hibari's first time, and being forced to stay put in one place, unmoving, truly made him restless.
"I say, Sasuke-jiisan, it's been two days. How much longer are we going to wait? Why don't I go ahead and check the situation, or observe Chomei's movements in the valley? What if Hokage-sama arrives only to find that Chomei has long since vanished?" Hibari looked around, quietly suggesting to Sasuke, who was lying not far from him.
Hearing Hibari's words, Sasuke first chuckled, then carefully observed their surroundings before replying in an equally low voice, "What's wrong? Can't handle just two days? It seems you haven't mentally prepared to be a shinobi yet. Back when I first went on a stealth mission like this, I was buried in the dark ground for five days. Eating, drinking, and relieving myself all had to be in one pit. When I came out, the smell... tsk tsk, and that was considered good! So stop your complaining, kid."
No sooner had Sasuke's voice fallen than Hiruzen, hidden at another point, also chuckled softly, "Exactly, Hibari, it's only been two days! If you can't even endure this, how are we supposed to give you important missions in the future? Do you really think all our missions as shinobi are so thrilling? Sometimes, enduring loneliness is the most important thing! As for going ahead to check, one wrong move and these two days of stealth will be for naught. And going to observe Chomei? Don't joke around, we truly don't trust your strength that much. After all, that's a Tailed Beast, so just stay here and wait patiently!"
"I thought I'd get to see some grand spectacle, but I didn't expect it to turn out like this. I should've just waited for Hashirama-jiisan and left with him..." Hibari muttered, somewhat helplessly.
Sasuke chuckled and said, "Based on experience, missions like this usually require two to three days of stealth. Even if a third party does get involved, they wouldn't arrive too late; otherwise, everything would be for naught. And didn't you both say earlier? Hokage-sama would depart two days later, so calculating the time, he should be arriving soon. This stealth operation will be over shortly, so just bear with it, Hibari, and don't cause any trouble at the last minute..."
"I was just saying that casually. I understand the saying that 'one who walks a hundred miles considers ninety miles as half.' Since Sasuke-jiisan says there should be a change soon, I'll just keep waiting. It's only a few more days anyway!" Hibari chuckled, nodding in agreement.
After hearing Hibari's words, Hiruzen was just about to make a playful remark when his expression suddenly changed. At the same time, Sasuke, who had been in a relaxed state, also instantly entered a state of alert, completely suppressing his presence.
Although Hibari wasn't as perceptive as them, upon noticing the obvious change, he also quickly suppressed his presence and stopped speaking, looking expectantly at the area where they had set their traps.
Not long after, just as the experienced Sasuke had predicted, the 'enemies' appeared right on schedule. In Hibari's line of sight, four individuals, without any shinobi identification, suddenly emerged from the dense forest.
Just as the four of them were about to reach the pond Hibari had created, the leading ninja suddenly stopped, frowned at the water's surface not far ahead, and asked, "Has it rained around here these past two days?"
"Captain, I don't think so..." one of the shinobi behind him replied.
"It's strange that a pond would appear here when it hasn't rained. There might be a trick. Be careful, everyone." The leading ninja said.
As his words fell, the other three also became alert, carefully searching their surroundings.
Soon after, one of the team members stopped and said, "Captain, there's a trigger trap here..."
Watching this scene from a distance, Hibari's face showed a hint of helplessness. 'Sure enough, I'm still too young and inexperienced. I didn't consider the weather when setting up the trap, which allowed these seasoned shinobi to spot the anomaly.'
However, he was only slightly annoyed. Fortunately, he had the formidable Sasuke by his side. The mistakes Hibari might make, this experienced veteran shinobi would not.
Therefore, even though the trap was discovered, Hibari's lips curved slightly.
Meanwhile, the shinobi who had discovered the trigger trap also asked, "Captain, should we disarm it?"
The team leader was clearly a veteran himself. He frowned, scanned the surroundings, and quickly fixed his gaze on the small hill where Hibari and the others were hidden. Then he said, "Don't touch it carelessly. Such an obvious trigger trap is either set by a rookie, or it's... a diversion, with further continuous methods. We also heard from that guy earlier that Konoha is involved in this matter, so these things are likely traps set by Sasuke Sarutobi. Do you think he's a rookie? Perhaps... he's observing us from somewhere right now."
It had to be said, this guy was indeed a very experienced shinobi. His words essentially covered most of the situation.
However, he never expected that this trap was actually set by a rookie, and it was a very 'novel' trap, one that even Tobirama had fallen for before.
He thought for a moment and said, "Generally speaking, for a pond to appear so suddenly, and for the trap to be discovered so easily, either the enemy is lurking here, or they are deliberately warning us. This pond couldn't possibly suddenly explode, could it?"
After speaking, he paused and then said, "This should be a warning to us, but we're on a mission and can't just retreat because of a warning..."
At this point, he turned to the two shinobi behind him and said, "You two, go check if there's anything unusual about that pond. Be careful not to touch the trap, and also probe to see if there are any enemies hidden in the water."
Upon hearing his command, the two shinobi behind him did not hesitate. They quickly walked to the edge of the pond. Since the pond Hibari created wasn't very deep, it was easy to see the bottom.
That wasn't all. After confirming that there was no one in the water, the two shinobi decisively pulled out some ninja tools and swiftly threw them all into the water, confirming once again that no one was lurking inside, before turning to their leader and saying, "Captain, there are no enemies in this pond. Perhaps it really is just a warning..."
At this moment, the shinobi who had discovered the trigger trap earlier chuckled and said, "Maybe it really was set by a rookie?"
No sooner had he spoken than the leader's expression suddenly changed. He looked at the trigger trap near the ninja and exclaimed, "Damn it, you idiot! This is remote-controlled!"
The next second, Sasuke, lurking on the hill, had a smile playing on his lips and quietly said, "A good shinobi, but unfortunately, your subordinates are quite foolish... They misled your judgment."
That's right, Sasuke had long since changed Hibari's trigger trap to a remote-controlled one; it just still looked like a trigger trap. And this method was extremely ingenious.
If the first ninja to discover it had been the leader, he might have figured it out. But unfortunately, it was his subordinate who, at the very beginning, told him it was a 'trigger' trap that had been discovered, misleading the leader's thinking and preventing him from overthinking it...
By the time he noticed this, it was already too late, because Sasuke had already released a jutsu formula. The next second, the Thunderstorm seal Hibari had set was triggered.
A piercing electrical sound suddenly filled the ears of the four shinobi. However, the flash of electricity came and went, leaving nothing behind, which greatly confused the leading ninja.
'Could they really have gone to all this trouble just to warn us?'
Though confused, he instinctively leaped backward, creating distance. This action also warned his other three subordinates. The ninja closer to him also quickly retreated. In contrast, the other two who had gone to the pond were not so lucky.
Just as they were about to leave the vicinity, an explosive tag detonated not far away.
Before they could even wonder why the explosive tag had exploded from such a distance, a shocking scene unfolded before their eyes: the surface of the lake was ignited by the explosive tag.
Before they could even gasp, a violent explosion instantly swept through the entire area...
In the final moments of their lives, both of them simultaneously recalled their captain's earlier remark, "This pond couldn't possibly suddenly explode, could it?"
'What the... This water actually could explode?!'
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