When Hatake Sakumo received the order, he was slightly surprised.
He had just finished a mission and hadn't returned to the village yet.
It wasn't until the order signed by the Hokage reached his hands that he realized such a thing had happened.
Ever since Asuna became one of the Twelve Guardian Ninja, Hatake Sakumo had volunteered to be in charge of missions in the capital region, intending to be the first to provide support if any situation arose.
Now, the moment Hatake Sakumo had been anticipating had finally arrived.
Over the years, he occasionally went to the capital and met with Asuna.
Compared to the past, Asuna had undoubtedly matured, grown stronger, and gained more extensive combat experience.
Even so, hearing that Asuna, Mizuki, and Tobi were going to investigate together, Hatake Sakumo couldn't help but feel worried.
He hadn't seen Tobi fight with his own eyes, but he knew that Asuna had nearly died in her battle with Tobi.
Regardless of the methods Tobi used, it proved how dangerous this person was.
"Lord Sakumo, what's wrong?" a portly man beside Hatake Sakumo asked.
He was a member of the Akimichi clan named Akimichi Hiroshi, currently serving under Hatake Sakumo.
"I've received a new assignment.
You all go back first; I need to wait here for the others," Hatake Sakumo said, putting away the assignment letter and glancing at everyone.
"Huh?" Hatake Sakumo's subordinates were very surprised.
However, Hatake Sakumo was a rising young talent in the village, so receiving missions at any time was not unusual, and they didn't ask what kind of mission it was.
If it was a mission he could talk about, Hatake Sakumo would have told them immediately.
The fact that he put away the assignment letter meant the mission had a certain level of secrecy, and as experienced ninja, Hatake Sakumo's subordinates were not so foolish as to ask.
"Is it a troublesome mission?" Although they couldn't ask for specific details, some brief information could still be revealed, so Akimichi Hiroshi asked.
"It's quite troublesome.
Don't worry, I'll do my best to handle it," Hatake Sakumo smiled.
"With Lord Sakumo's ability, there's no mission that can stump him," one of his female subordinates said with a smile, showing full confidence in Hatake Sakumo.
"Don't say that, there are many things I can't solve," Hatake Sakumo shook his head and said, "I can't give you the promised celebration banquet immediately, but I will when I get back."
"Oh, in that case, Lord Sakumo, don't forget it," everyone expressed understanding, chatted happily for a while, and then left noisily.
Afterward, Hatake Sakumo's subordinates returned to the village, while Hatake Sakumo remained in a nearby Leaf Village outpost, waiting for two of his elders to arrive—Inuzuka Shigeru and Yamanaka Takuma, both of whom had fought alongside their teacher, Fumori masaki, and were highly regarded in the village.
Hatake Sakumo waited for two days, and then Inuzuka Shigeru and Yamanaka Takuma arrived.
They had been delayed a bit by discussions about certain matters, and after settling them, they rushed over.
"Mr. Shigeru, Mr. Takuma," Hatake Sakumo shook hands with the two and led them to a private room, asking, "Are there any new clues regarding this matter?"
"No, everything will only be known once we reach the lord's estate," Inuzuka Shigeru said.
"In any case, our goal is to prevent their scheme from succeeding as much as possible, and to make them appear in the wrong, so the village will have a reason to condemn them."
Hatake Sakumo understood the thoughts of the village's higher-ups to some extent and nodded slightly, saying, "Alright, then let's go meet Asuna and the others first."
"Asuna, it's been a long time.
She must be a young woman now," Inuzuka Shigeru showed a nostalgic expression and said to Hatake Sakumo, "You must occasionally see her when you go to the capital, right?"
"Yes, Asuna has indeed grown up," Hatake Sakumo nodded slightly in response.
"A girl her age, it's about time she found someone, but Lord Hokage doesn't seem to have any clear intentions."
Inuzuka Shigeru paused mid-sentence, suddenly noticing Hatake Sakumo's somewhat unusual expression, and asked, "What's wrong?"
"Nothing," Hatake Sakumo quickly shook his head, a wry smile in his heart.
He didn't know when his feelings for Asuna had changed slightly.
When he realized it, he felt very embarrassed because there was a significant age gap between him and Asuna.
Despite the age difference, Hatake Sakumo harbored different feelings for Asuna, which even he found somewhat incredible.
In the past, Asuna was just a little sister, and he certainly hadn't thought so much then, but things changed after Asuna became his subordinate.
Through their daily interactions, Asuna's inner qualities gradually attracted Hatake Sakumo.
Perhaps that's why Hatake Sakumo's feelings changed, and the catalyst might have been when Asuna almost died from the backlash of overusing a secret technique.
However, due to factors of age and status, even knowing his feelings for Asuna, Hatake Sakumo remained hesitant, yet he had no intention of giving up.
Over the years, he hadn't sought out any other women.
Hatake Sakumo's father had always wondered why his son hadn't found a girlfriend, even though he had such good qualities and didn't need to actively pursue anyone; people were willing to throw themselves at him, but Hatake Sakumo simply didn't.
Later, Fumori masaki seemed to have noticed Hatake Sakumo's intentions, hinting at it in several conversations, which made Hatake Sakumo very embarrassed but also gave him a sense of being acknowledged, making him less hesitant than before.
However, not many people knew about this, and Inuzuka Shigeru bringing it up in front of Hatake Sakumo left him somewhat speechless.
Before the two could press further, Hatake Sakumo changed the subject, stating that it was time to meet Asuna and the others.
Seeing this, the two didn't say anything more.
The three headed together to the agreed location.
At the same time, the Daimyo's representatives from the capital also set off.
After bidding farewell to everyone, Asuna and Mizuki slowly walked behind Tobi.
"I heard the representative from the Hidden Leaf Village is Hatake Sakumo.
You two should know him, right?
He's the Third Hokage's student, so you couldn't possibly not know him, could you?" Tobi suddenly asked, seemingly bored on the way.
"We know him.
We've completed missions together before," Asuna replied quietly.
"He's apparently called the White Fang, tsk tsk.
I didn't expect your village to send someone like that, which shows how seriously you're taking this incident," Tobi said.
"Of course we're taking it seriously.
If the local nobles are involved with Evil God Believer, that would be a huge problem.
We, the Hidden Leaf Village, absolutely cannot condone such a phenomenon," Mizuki said sternly.
"Heh heh, they have a cooperative relationship with your Hidden Leaf Village.
With the strength of your Hidden Leaf Village, if they were truly involved with the Evil God Cultists and you didn't notice, that would truly be a loss of face," Tobi said with a chuckle.
"There's no evidence yet, so don't make wild guesses.
Besides, I believe that lord is innocent," Asuna said, looking at Tobi's back.
"Whether he's innocent or not isn't up to you to decide, it's up to the evidence," Tobi shrugged.
"Since there's no evidence now, don't treat him as a criminal.
He's a local noble, and guarding the region is a meritorious act," Asuna said calmly.
"Little girl, your words are quite unforgiving.
Well, let's see if that Lord is truly innocent," Tobi snorted softly.
Not far from the capital, the three stopped.
This was the agreed meeting place.
Tobi went to the side as if admiring the scenery, while Asuna and Mizuki, being close to Tobi, dared not be careless and maintained their vigilance.
"Don't be so tense, there's no danger here," Tobi said, turning his head slightly, sensing the emotions of the two girls behind him.
"Always maintaining a combat-ready state is the mark of the best ninja," Mizuki said, her eyes turning red as she used this topic to activate her Sharingan.
Mizuki immediately looked at Tobi, and Tobi's body moved slightly, precisely blocking the blind spot of the Sharingan's vision, preventing Mizuki from seeing what was behind his mask's holes.
"If you're always so tense, a girl's skin will get wrinkles," the other party said playfully, as if it were incredibly humorous.
"You're right," Mizuki nodded, her eyes returning to black.
She exchanged a brief glance with Asuna.
From his recent actions, it was clear that Tobi was indeed avoiding the Sharingan's observation.
They wondered what he was hiding.
Now that they thought about it, Tobi seemed to have always deliberately prevented others from probing him.
Whenever he appeared with the Daimyo, neither Mizuki nor Hyuga Hiashi could use their doujutsu to observe him in front of the Daimyo.
Although Hyuga Hiashi had used his Byakugan a few times before, considering that Tobi had suggested it, it was possible that he had hidden his secrets when Hyuga Hiashi used his Byakugan.
In other words, could Tobi's secrets be activated or deactivated at will?
While Asuna and Mizuki were pondering, Tobi—who was Uchiha Kokuya—was also thinking.
From Mizuki's recent actions, he vaguely judged that the two were probing something.
He wanted to preserve the Sharingan as a trump card as much as possible, as it might prove surprisingly effective at certain times, but now the other party had already noticed.
However, Uchiha Kokuya was confident that he could prevent the other party from discovering his secret during this time.
Anyway, the final battle was getting closer and closer, and then there would be no need for secrecy.
The three people present, each with their own thoughts, waited quietly.
Time passed minute by minute, and suddenly they heard the sound of someone rapidly approaching.
The three immediately looked over and saw Hatake Sakumo and the others emerging from the woods.
Asuna saw Hatake Sakumo nod towards her and Mizuki, and her heart secretly rejoiced.
It had been a long time since she had seen Hatake Sakumo.
Then, Asuna saw Inuzuka Shigeru and Yamanaka Takuma behind Hatake Sakumo.
These two were also her elders, and she couldn't help but wave and greet them.
"Long time no see, Asuna, Mizuki."
After the three landed, they quickly stepped forward.
Inuzuka Shigeru smiled kindly at Asuna.
Although Inuzuka Shigeru had the unique wildness of the Inuzuka clan, as he aged, this wildness gradually subsided.
"Long time no see, Uncle Shigeru, Uncle Takuma," Asuna and Mizuki both greeted the two, expressing their joy.
After the greetings, Hatake Sakumo's gaze shifted to Uchiha Kokuya.
He knew this person was Tobi, whom the village was wary of, and indeed, he was dressed in a mysterious attire.
At the same time, Hatake Sakumo could also sense a hint of danger from this person, secretly becoming vigilant in his heart, but on the surface, he still had to be friendly.
"You are Hatake Sakumo, known as the White Fang, aren't you?" Uchiha Kokuya nodded lightly.
"Indeed, just as the rumors say, you are full of sharpness.
Not simple at all."
"You flatter me.
You are highly regarded by the Daimyo.
Compared to you, I still have a significant gap," Hatake Sakumo smiled.
"Haha, too modest," Uchiha Kokuya waved his hand and said, "Alright, let's end the pleasantries here.
Since everyone is present, it's about time we set off for our destination."
"You're right, without further ado, let's go quickly," Hatake Sakumo said, glancing at the others and seeing that no one had any objections.
The group immediately headed towards the lord's residence at their destination.
The lord there had already been notified of this matter.
Because there was no evidence, it was impossible to arrest a noble; he was merely asked to be monitored and have his movements restricted.
This was a reasonable request, although from the lord's perspective, being treated this way for no apparent reason was truly unfair.
And as he paced in his room, perhaps due to his overly anxious mood, somehow, a nearby vase suddenly toppled towards him.
The lord was caught off guard and quickly stepped back.
With a crash, the vase shattered.
He suddenly slipped, fell, and cried out in pain.
People from outside rushed in and saw the floor covered in vase shards, and the lord's palms were covered in blood.
They immediately turned pale with fright, came forward to help the lord up, and called for a physician to assist.
Amidst the commotion, no one noticed a shadow emerging from the ground, taking a portion of the lord's blood, and then quickly disappearing back into the ground, as if it had never appeared at all.