After handing the detailed plan for delivering the intelligence safely to Konohagakure's shinobi to the leader of Kusagakure, Aaron added a quiet warning.
"Leader, we turned down cooperation with Root. There's a chance they might hold a grudge and try to retaliate. It would be wise to stay cautious for a while."
The Grass leader gave a confident smile.
"Kusagakure may be a smaller village," he said calmly, "but we're not so fragile that a single department from Konoha can shake us."
Seeing how confident the man was, Aaron didn't argue further. He had already achieved his goal.
All he needed was to plant a seed of suspicion.
When trouble eventually appeared, the Grass leader would likely suspect Root and Danzō Shimura without anyone needing to point fingers. The idea had already taken root in his subconscious.
The Grass leader then reviewed the plan Aaron had written.
After reading it carefully, he nodded in approval.
"It's not flawless," he admitted, "but it's clever."
According to the plan, Aaron would send a shinobi to pose as a close friend of the four missing Grass ninjas. That person would deliberately act suspiciously around the village, drawing the attention of Konoha spies.
While those spies investigated the "friend," Aaron would gradually leak additional clues, guiding them step by step.
Eventually, their search would lead them to a hidden records room.
Inside, they would find files related to the four missing Grass shinobi. Everything else in the room would be harmless or fabricated documents.
Aaron had even arranged for a few guards to patrol nearby to make the scene look convincing.
Hearing the praise, Aaron simply smiled faintly.
Please…
Back in his previous life he had played enough strategy games and detective-style missions to recognize a setup like this instantly. Creating a believable "trail of clues" like this was child's play.
After leaving the Grass leader's office, Aaron immediately began putting the plan into motion.
The fake friend was assigned.
The falsified documents were prepared.
Every detail was arranged carefully to make the situation look authentic.
Some ANBU members couldn't help praising the plan.
"Lord Morishita is incredible," one operative said admiringly. "Every step of this operation connects perfectly. The Konoha shinobi will probably think they uncovered the intel through their own skill."
Another laughed.
"Right. Turns out even ninja from the Five Great Nations can be fooled."
Aaron simply smiled politely at the compliments.
You think you're setting a trap for Konoha, he thought.
But in reality, you're the ones being played by a Konoha ninja.
The Next Morning
Early the next morning, Kakashi Hatake stepped out of the inn as usual.
But today he had an additional responsibility.
Protect Uzumaki Karin's mother.
Although the operation to disguise themselves as shinobi from Iwagakure and sabotage Kusagakure was still part of the mission, it wasn't time for that yet.
Those preparations required careful setup.
For now, Kenshi and Midori only needed to leave subtle traces of their presencesmall hints that would make the Grass ninja realize that Konoha operatives were somewhere in the village.
Over the past few days, Kakashi had practically explored the entire village.
He knew which roads people used to reach the hospital and which paths were the fastest.
Since he and the Uzumaki woman were essentially strangers, Kakashi decided it would be best to guard her from the shadows.
If a random ninja suddenly announced he was her personal bodyguard, it would obviously sound suspicious, especially to a civilian survivor of a destroyed clan.
So Kakashi moved quietly across the rooftops, scanning the streets for a familiar sight.
Fortunately, red hair was easy to spot.
Before long, he saw her walking through the crowd.
She looked anxious and was jogging lightly down the street. Her hair was slightly messy, nothing like the neat appearance she had yesterday.
Overslept, maybe? Kakashi guessed.
"Great… I'm definitely going to get scolded by Lady Inoue again," she muttered to herself.
The previous day she had spent hours cleaning the hospital and had been so exhausted that she overslept.
She barely had time to brush her hair before rushing out the door.
The house assigned to her by the village was on the outskirts, far from the hospital.
At this rate, being late seemed inevitable.
"Are you in a hurry?"
The familiar voice made her stop.
She quickly sensed the chakra signature; it belonged to the ninja who had helped her before.
Since she was already almost late anyway, she forced a small smile.
"It's nothing," she said. "I'm just running late for work. Kakato-sama… what a coincidence seeing you again."
The moment Kakashi heard the name Kakato, he felt a quiet wave of regret.
Why did I pick that name?
He could have made up anything.
Now if he brought her back to Konoha later, there was a good chance the truth would slip out during conversation.
He could already picture Midori laughing uncontrollably.
Well… maybe only Midori would laugh, he reassured himself.
Aaron and Kenshi are more mature than that.
"Ninja-sir?" she asked cautiously when she noticed him spacing out.
Kakashi quickly returned to his usual calm expression.
"I'm heading to the hospital as well," he said evenly. "Want a lift?"
She blinked.
"A lift? That's not necessary. I wouldn't want to slow you down."
"It's fine," Kakashi replied. "You don't need to worry about it. I'm not going out of my way; I have business at the hospital anyway."
Technically, that wasn't a lie.
His business there was protecting her.
She hesitated for a moment before finally nodding.
Her sensory ability allowed her to feel the emotions of those around her.
Unlike the Grass ninja she encountered daily, this man carried no hostility… no hidden desires.
Just genuine goodwill.
"Climb onto my back," Kakashi said after a moment.
"I'll carry you."
He didn't possess teleportation techniques like the Flying Thunder God Technique.
If he wanted to move fast, the only option was carrying someone while using high-speed movement.
She had seen how fast ninja could move, so she immediately understood what he meant.
It felt like a strange but interesting experience.
Once she climbed onto his back, Kakashi burst forward instantly, choosing quieter streets as he sprinted toward the hospital.
Wind roared past her ears as the buildings blurred by.
As she held on, her thoughts drifted.
Normally, she would never allow a stranger, especially someone she had only met twice to carry her like this.
But the harsh life she faced in Kusagakure had placed enormous pressure on her.
Kakashi's simple kindness lowered her guard.
Within moments, they reached the area near the hospital.
She quickly climbed down.
"Thank you very much," she said sincerely. "Someday I'll treat you to a meal to repay the favor."
After saying goodbye, she hurried into the hospital.
A short time later, Kakashi slipped inside through another entrance.
After all, he had volunteered for this responsibility.
Now he would see it through personally.
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