I founded the "Bragging Cult" in Naruto.

Chapter 395 The child was afraid to see the disappointment in his father's eyes, and the father was equally afraid that his child would be disappointed in him.

"That can't be, can it?"

Looking at the mission scroll in his hand, Yamanaka Satoru subconsciously rejected it, while Haramichi pursed his lips, not daring to utter a sound.

Looking at the three's reactions, Chenma calmly said, "The situation on the mission scroll is true. Of course, this is the result of my investigation. You can choose not to believe it. After all, my first piece of advice to you is not to trust others too much."

For a fleeting moment, Shinnosuke did think of that, but seeing Tatsuma's expression now, Shinnosuke was inclined to believe that Tatsuma hadn't lied to him.

In other words, the mission scroll was genuine. He spoke with a complicated tone, saying, "The Root ninjas are suspected of interfering in the internal affairs of other countries, selling Konoha's intelligence to the exchange for money, and profiting improperly from it. How could Father allow such a thing to happen?"

"Because there is no evidence, as I said, this is the result of my investigation, but I don't have any evidence. Your task is to confirm or refute my speculation."

Tatsuma explained that many things can be deduced by analogy. He extracted a significant portion of the trajectory from the Root ninjas' action logs and combined it with the financial reports Root submitted to the village, easily deriving the conclusions.

However, the conclusions drawn are just speculations until they are confirmed. To prove something, what is needed is not a reasonable inference, but evidence.

Konoha's ninja management system may not have evolved to the point of procedural justice, but it is impossible to convict someone based solely on Tatsuma's deductions; at least some solid evidence is needed.

If Tatsuma were to submit this evidence, then even if Hiruzen Sarutobi believed Tatsuma's reasoning and the evidence he presented, there was a high probability that Danzo would be punished with three cups of wine.

Because Hiruzen Sarutobi knew that Tatsuma had witnessed darkness and could endure it, and besides, this matter did not have a direct conflict of interest with Tatsuma himself, his voice might not be that useful.

However, it would be different if Shinnosuke were to submit it. Hiruzen Sarutobi is only Tatsuma's "Hokage-sama," but when facing Shinnosuke, Hiruzen Sarutobi has an additional identity: his father.

Children are afraid of seeing disappointment in their fathers' eyes, and fathers are equally afraid of seeing disappointment in their children's eyes.

No father wants his child to know that he has dabbled in the dark or even become deeply involved in it. So if Shinnosuke were to report it, even if he were dressed as Hiruzen Sarutobi, he would have to pretend to be irreconcilably opposed to these dark aspects.

If Hiruzen Sarutobi wanted to go further and protect Shinnosuke from experiencing darkness so quickly, he would investigate the matter more thoroughly, even if it was just to give Shinnosuke an explanation.

Furthermore, if Shikaku's guess is true, and Hiruzen Sarutobi really harbors resentment towards Danzo for faking his injury, then Hiruzen Sarutobi might take this opportunity to launch an attack against Danzo.

Of course, these are all byproducts of Tatsuma's main objective, which is to get Shinnosuke's team to uncover even darker things based on the directions he provides.

For example, the plot to murder a fellow villager.

Whether it's interfering in other countries' internal affairs or selling Konoha's intelligence, it hasn't actually crossed the red line yet. Unless Root is funding Konoha's hostile forces or selling Konoha's own intelligence or Konoha ninja information, Danzo's status means he'll face limited punishment.

However, Gen's intention to harm Sakumo Hatake is a matter that completely crosses the line. Every faction will inevitably have factions, and with factions, there will be struggles and exclusion.

However, these things will not be overt, and they only involve factional interests, not individuals. Moreover, the root of the problem is Sakumo Hatake. If Sakumo Hatake is lost, the village will inevitably suffer.

According to the theory of canyon relativity, the weaker I am, the stronger the enemy becomes. In other words, the root's behavior is aiding the enemy.

Tatsuma's main goal was to guide Shinnosuke and the others to discover and realize this. According to Tatsuma's observation, although Shinnosuke was not as perfect as his personal file suggested, he was indeed a well-trained boy.

Not only in terms of ninja skills, but also in terms of interpersonal relationships, he has clearly received excellent instruction. At this time, Shinnosuke is still a righteous young man with a bright and sunny heart.

If he discovers the filthy things Root did to Sakumo Hatake, and Hiruzen Sarutobi doesn't take action, then Shinnosuke will probably be the first to disagree.

Such qualities are not common in adults, and even those who possess them usually don't last long, so Chenma should seize this opportunity.

Shinnosuke finally processed the disbelief in his heart, glanced at Yamanaka Satoru and Harumichi who were nodding at him, and then looked up firmly and said, "Tatsuma-senpai, we will complete this mission well, even if it's not for the assessment."

If your hypothesis can be confirmed, then it will help the village eradicate the termites; if it can be disproven, that would be even better, wouldn't it?

Tatsuma nodded and said, "That's right. Whether it's confirmed or disproven, it's beneficial to the village. Since you've chosen to take on the mission, I also have some things I need to explain to you."

Tatsuma paused for a moment, and seeing that the three of them were looking at him intently, he continued, "This assessment is an Anbu assessment, not a child's play graduation assessment or a Chunin assessment that can be compared to it."

I believe that in the so-called "real-world assessments" you've experienced in the past, your examiners have all told you such nonsense as "If you don't take it seriously, you'll die."

You may already know in your hearts that this is just the examiner trying to scare you, but I will still say it: if you don't take it seriously, you could die.

This mission is purely for assessment purposes. After issuing the instructions at this moment, I will not interfere with your execution process. Even if you die because of the mission, it will be because you are not strong enough.

Don't try to gamble on whether my heart is hard enough, because you can't afford the cost of losing. Like I said, don't trust others too much. If you don't value your life, why should I value it more than you?

After he finished speaking, Shinnosuke was fine, but Yamanaka Satoru and Haramichi unconsciously lowered their heads to avoid Tatsuma's sweeping gaze. Clearly, they had also had the illusion that someone would cover for them.

After all, Chenma had already helped them once.

This is human nature's habitual way of thinking. The saying "a small favor is appreciated, but a large one breeds resentment" is based on this principle. When you do something for someone, they may take it for granted that you will help them.

Just because Tatsuma helped them once, they felt that Tatsuma would definitely help them again next time.

However, before their idea could take root, Tatsuma shattered their delusion. Turning his gaze away, Tatsuma looked at Shinnosuke and said, "If you are ready, you can set off at any time. You don't need to ask for my opinion, and I will not offer any further advice."

"Yes, Tatsuma-senpai."

Shinnosuke nodded, turned to face his two teammates, who immediately made a gesture indicating they were ready to depart at any moment. Shinnosuke, however, shook his head and said:

"We'll find a safe place to rest, at least ten kilometers away."

"rest?!"

Harumichi looked at Shinnosuke with surprise. When did they start having the habit of resting before a mission? At most, they would buy a cold drink. After all, they were young and energetic and didn't need to rest.

Yamanaka Satoru seemed to realize something, pursed his lips and remained silent. Shinnosuke looked at Haramichi and said seriously, "We have indeed always placed great emphasis on mission efficiency, which has even become our team's hallmark."

But we are no longer the same team we used to be. We will be part of Konoha's assassination tactics, ninjas who should lurk in the shadows. We should also shift our focus from efficiency to the quality of mission execution.

Get enough rest, prepare well, and execute effectively—that's what we need to do now.

"I see."

Harumichi nodded, and Tatsuma chimed in, "Fast isn't necessarily good. You can ask any adult man in the village when you get back, and they'll all give you the same answer."

Upon hearing this, Harumichi frowned, looking deep in thought, while Shinnosuke's serious expression almost crumbled.

After finally managing to straighten his expression, Shinnosuke nodded, then looked at Yamanaka Satoru, who had also finished sensing his surroundings, and said:

"There is no danger nearby, so we can move here first and then choose a suitable location later."

Shinnosuke nodded and began to lead the way. Tatsuma did not follow but stayed behind. After a while, he shook his head and muttered, "None of the three of them have ever trained in the morgue."

As he spoke, he stomped down heavily, and with the burst of superhuman strength, the ground shook, the earth cracked, and some buried things resurfaced, revealing building ruins and corpses.

After ruining the disguise that the three had worked so hard to create, Tatsuma finally formed hand seals.

"Earth Release! Earth Flow!"

After completing the hand seals, Chenma punched the ground, causing a slight tremor in the surrounding ground. The soil quickly crumbled and dissolved, turning into quicksand.

The corpses and building ruins continued to sink in the quicksand until they were completely swallowed by the earth. Only then did Tatsuma stop outputting chakra, and the ground gradually returned to its original state.

Immediately, Chenma clasped his hands together, then instantly transformed into the Si (巳) hand seal, mixing water and earth chakra, which was then channeled to the ground and into his body's energy.

Tatsuma didn't use any specific Wood Release ninjutsu; he simply used Wood Release chakra to stimulate the withered and even rotting plant seeds underground. Soon, a sparse layer of grass and a few scattered tree seedlings sprouted from the ground.

At this point, Tatsuma stopped transmitting chakra. His goal was simply to mislead others about the timing of the events here, pushing the timeline forward a small distance. That was enough.

If someone were to be born from the Sea of ​​Trees, even a fool would know there's something wrong. After all, the market has existed for many years, and the ninjas stationed there or passing through would occasionally send back intelligence.

If there are any major changes here, it will become more suspicious; just touch on it briefly.

He helped the three of them again, though he didn't mean it. Looking in the direction Shinnosuke and the others had left, Tatsuma thought to himself:

"Shin-chan, Shin-chan, don't disappoint me, or I'll definitely make things difficult for you."

(End of this chapter)