On the way to the Land of Vegetables.
The young noble, as the client, specifically purchased two carriages, one of which he intended for Shinji and his group.
Having completed so many missions, this was the first time Shinji had seen an employer spend so much money.
He ignored it and refused the kind offer. After all, compared to a carriage, their usual travel speed was faster.
Seeing this, the young noble did not press further.
The two carriages and Shinji's team followed alongside them, heading towards the Land of Vegetables.
This was Neji's first time leaving the village, but he didn't show any signs of curiosity. He traveled diligently the entire way, so much so that even Yushu and Koto didn't know how to start a conversation.
Shinji, as the captain, naturally noticed this and consciously started talking, and the group chatted as they traveled.
At night, at the foot of a mountain, Shinji's team was on alert, standing by.
By the campfire, the young noble glanced at Shinji and his group's position.
The campfire's light reflected in his eyes, and no one knew what he was thinking.
"Sensei, is this necessary when performing a mission?" Neji asked curiously.
After all, throughout the journey, Shinji had barely interacted with the client, except during necessary rest periods.
"Well, this time is a bit special." Shinji waved his hand, saying carelessly.
From the very first meeting, this client had been intentionally trying to make contact with them. Although he did it quite convincingly, Shinji had no interest in responding.
He probably wanted to get acquainted with Konoha ninjas to gain some support from influential figures upon his return.
However, since Hiruzen hadn't given any instructions, Shinji naturally wouldn't do such a thing. After all, this was already beyond their scope.
If he were an heir, an invitation from a small country to the Land of Fire would be one thing. But he was just a collateral relative.
Shinji had no interest in getting involved in such messy affairs.
If it succeeded, it wouldn't help Konoha at all. Instead, their name would be used to do things everywhere.
At that time, would Konoha acknowledge it or not?
So, it was better to ignore it. That young noble couldn't do anything he wanted. They, on the other hand, only needed to complete the mission.
Neji nodded thoughtfully. Although he acted indifferently about his first mission, he still wanted to get familiar with it as quickly as possible, hoping to meet Shinji's requirements soon.
"Yushu, Koto. You two go rest first. Neji and I will stand guard for the first half of the night."
Shinji said to Yushu and Koto, who nodded and then closed their eyes to rest.
Shinji then turned to Neji and said, "When performing a mission, you generally follow the Jonin's orders. Since this is your first time out, you'll take the night watch."
"After all, if Yushu and I had to do everything ourselves, you wouldn't learn anything."
"No problem, sensei." Neji nodded, stood up, and went to a hidden position to begin his watch.
Shinji nodded at this. At least Neji did these superficial things almost perfectly.
The watch post also had requirements. It had to allow observation of the surroundings and enable immediate alerting of teammates.
Ignoring it, Shinji also sat cross-legged in place.
Time passed quietly, with the campfire occasionally crackling, and the surroundings were silent.
In the latter half of the night, it was supposedly when people were most relaxed.
However, Shinji, who was sitting cross-legged on the ground, suddenly opened his eyes without any movement.
And Neji, who had been observing from his position, suddenly became alert, quietly pulling a thread.
Yushu and Koto, alerted by this action, immediately stood up and went to the perimeter of the carriage.
The warned young noble and his attendants quickly hid in the carriage, while Shinji stood up and looked in one direction.
Neji leaped to Shinji's side and said, "Sensei, six people. Judging by their attire, they should be the Kiri ninjas mentioned in the books."
"Well, I wondered how we were discovered. So, there's a Byakugan in their team." A sinister voice rang out, eerily echoing all around.
This made Neji pause. This was the first time he had encountered such a method.
Shinji, however, ignored it. He turned, and threw a shuriken in the direction of the flank.
Whoosh—
The shuriken cut through the air, and two figures immediately scattered.
Seeing this, Shinji's fingers moved slightly, and the shuriken suddenly changed direction.
The two figures clearly did not react to the shuriken's sudden change of direction.
One figure had his throat cut, while the other narrowly dodged, but still sustained injuries.
"Be careful, this guy is not simple." A warning sounded from the forest, but no figures appeared.
Kirigakure ninja's usual style leaned more towards fighting in environments that confused vision.
Sure enough, in the next instant, a mist suddenly rose from the ground.
"Neji, be careful."
Shinji spoke to remind Neji, as the Byakugan was a good Kekkei Genkai for all countries.
"Yes." Neji nodded in response, cautiously observing his surroundings.
"Deal with that Byakugan brat first."
With the presence of the Byakugan, these Kiri ninjas lost their advantage, so they immediately set their target.
The increasingly dense mist permeated the entire area. Even within half a meter around them, visibility was gone.
"Heh heh, Byakugan brat, I'll take your eyes." A figure suddenly appeared behind Neji, and a cold glint burst forth.
Eight Trigrams: Vacuum Palm!
As soon as the shadow appeared behind him, Neji instantly moved. He raised his hand and launched a Chakra shockwave.
Boom!
"Knowing I can see you, yet still charging in so directly, it's simply idiotic."
The usually silent Neji couldn't help but question the intelligence of these Kiri ninjas.
"I can tell you're very confident, brat."
In the mist, the voices became exceptionally eerie, as if coming from all directions.
Neji frowned for the first time because he couldn't observe the enemy's figure.
Hiss—
A cold glint directly broke through the ground, stabbing downwards towards Neji's throat.
"Brat! Go repent in hell!"
Neji stomped his foot and quickly retreated, holding a kunai to immediately block the spiky weapon attacking him. He then quickly struck the opponent's vital points with his fingers, and the sounds of impact echoed continuously.
As he landed, Neji looked at the figure before him, his expression turning ugly, "A clone?"
(End of Chapter)
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