Konoha: Who's the good guy?

The night was deep, and thick clouds and fog obscured the already dim moonlight, making the night even darker.

Thirty kilometers southwest of Kumogakure in the Land of Lightning, a bustling town called Crescent Moon Street is brightly lit.

Even though it was almost midnight, the noise, shouting, and playing were still incessant.

This place is similar to Adofuku Street near Konoha; it's a place for ninjas to relax and rest during their missions.

However, due to its special geographical location, it was a necessary stop on the north-south trade route, and the frequent passing merchants made this town far more prosperous than Adofos Street.

Fighting rings, izakayas (Japanese pubs), entertainment districts, hot spring resorts, shopping streets...

It must be said that although the Land of Lightning's geographical location is not as advantageous as the Land of Fire's, the current daimyo is a skilled administrator.

At least in terms of boosting the national economy, it is the best among the five major countries.

Amidst the bustling crowd.

A young girl wearing black-rimmed glasses, with a gentle and charming demeanor, and who looked quite young, seemed to have come here to relax after finishing her mission.

With her left hand carrying a full shopping bag, humming an unknown tune, she walked briskly into the dark alley.

In the izakayas along the street, many drunken men regretfully turned their gaze away.

Young, great figure, and such a cute face...

If he weren't a ninja...

In this particular era, ninjas were often synonymous with ruthless killing.

They may not enjoy the most prestigious status, but they possess power that ordinary people cannot attain.

Even the most powerful nobles who flaunt their power in the capital, unless they are extremely foolish, would not easily offend a ninja.

Not to mention, these were merely merchants with modest wealth.

It twists and turns in the dark alleyways.

A moment later, the girl arrived at a rather old-looking mansion.

Seeing five small pebbles arranged in a 3-1-1 pattern on the left side of the door, Yakushi Nonou confirmed the meeting place and listened with a grim expression to the faint, decadent music coming from inside the courtyard.

It's normal for ninjas to have desires.

Every ninja will release their inner pressure through various means after the mission is over.

However, his indulgence during the mission made Yakushi Nonou very suspicious of whether he was a qualified ninja.

This mission is extremely important.

If Konoha's current situation cannot be changed, it will become the primary target of other ninja villages once war breaks out.

At this critical juncture, she could understand why it wasn't Root ninjas who arrived.

But the other party is so dissolute...

Could it be Jiraiya, the legendary womanizer who's said to be a lecherous monster?

If it were him, it would seem normal?

huh~

A small pebble flew to my feet, rolled twice on the ground, and disturbed the five pebbles placed at the doorway.

Yakushi Nonou felt goosebumps all over her body, and her body stiffened slightly.

She wore a serene smile.

She feigned surprise and turned to look in the direction from which the pebble had come.

A middle-aged ninja, who looked to be nearly forty and had a stubble beard, was standing in the shadows of the house, looking at her with suspicion.

"Mukai, what are you doing here?"

"Senior Cissai? I never expected to see you here. I was just shopping and I think I got lost."

Yakushi Nonou scratched her head with an embarrassed smile.

He portrayed the character of a clueless ninja who respects his seniors with remarkable skill.

He quickly recalled the information about Cissei in his mind.

A Chunin from Kumogakure, a member of the Magnet Release: Troy Squad, he is cautious and experienced in missions. He lost his wife a few years ago and has a son named Musai, who has just graduated from the Ninja Academy and become a Genin.

It seems this guy has become suspicious of her!

Approaching forty and still not having become a Jonin, his strength is probably a major weakness. As long as the traces are dealt with properly, silencing him is the best way to handle the situation!

"Tsk~ I have a cat at home that can do backflips, Mukai, would you like to see it?"

Cisse's gaze roamed unabashedly over Yakushi Nonou's figure.

The greasy feeling of that middle-aged man assaulted Yakushi Nonou's senses.

"...Ninja cats? I've heard that in Konoha, the Uchiha and Izu clans have close ties with ninja cats."

Yakushi Nono's eye twitched slightly.

On the surface, however, she pretended to be innocent and tilted her head.

Seemingly drawn to the topic, he subconsciously moved closer to Cissé.

"That's the Izuno clan."

Even after transforming into Cicey, Yamanaka still sported the greasy expression of a middle-aged man, with a malicious glint in his triangular eyes.

"Huh? Did I remember wrong?"

Swish~!

Yakushi Nonou's previously empty right hand shimmered with a pale blue chakra light.

The sharp chakra scalpel aimed straight at Yamanaka Kei's throat.

The next moment, Yakushi Nonou stood frozen in place, and then her chakra scalpel dissipated uncontrollably, and she returned to her obedient and cute girl form.

"Hey sis, I've already given you the code, isn't this a bit impolite of you?"

Yamanaka Kei looked at Yakushi Nonou with a helpless expression.

Phrases like "My cat can do backflips" and "Izu, Izuno" are pre-arranged codes.

Nonou was able to use the code to indicate that his identity had been confirmed.

To lay a hand on him like that is going too far!

"Mountain secret techniques? What's wrong with your appearance...? This isn't a transformation technique!"

Yakushi Nonou was controlled by the Mind Confusion Technique and had basically confirmed that the person in front of her was indeed a Konoha ninja.

But this transformation technique left no trace of alteration; he reeked of middle-aged sweat and had the decadent air of someone who had done bad things...

"Face-copying technique, a secret technique of the Kidauin clan of the Land of Fire, can completely imitate the face and aura of the target, so much so that even ninja dogs cannot distinguish it. The drawback is that the target must be nearby, and the casting time is rather long."

Yamanaka Kei shrugged and explained the secret technique he had used.

The Kidouin clan is quite famous in the Land of Fire, but they did not join any ninja villages. Instead, they became guests of honor of many nobles by relying on their family's secret techniques.

The ninja world has never lacked assassinations.

The Kedain family, capable of becoming perfect Stands, has always been the best choice for nobles due to their excellent reputation.

The reason he knows this secret technique is...

This is because the Konoha Police Force once captured a member of the Kidouin clan who had disguised himself as someone else's husband.

That guy is quite talented.

Because he had taken a fancy to someone else's wife, he sabotaged her when she left the village and then took her place.

As a result, on his very second day in Konoha, he was reported by a woman and immediately arrested and taken to the Konoha interrogation room.

According to the woman, her husband lasts at least thirty minutes at a time.

But this man couldn't even last thirty seconds!

What is the problem if not this?

"Qida Academy...Analysis Class, Mountain Scenery?"

Yakushi Nonou frowned slightly, thought for a moment, and then directly said the name of Yamanaka Kei.

"No, am I that famous?"

The mountain scenery was somewhat taken aback.

Are professional spies this terrifying these days?

He only said a few words, how did they guess his identity?

"...I've happened to hear that before."

Yakushi Nonou's eye twitched again.

Ordinary people may not know these things, but back then, the Kidaku clan agreed to a series of conditions from Konoha in order to redeem this clansman.

One of the measures is to train members of the secret service training organization in disguise and transformation for a period of time.

The "30-second incident" was a topic of conversation among many training participants at the time.

The story behind it was also thoroughly investigated.

She remarked at the time that the memory-reading technique was truly a ninjutsu perfectly suited for spies.

Unfortunately, her mental strength is insufficient to meet the requirements, so she cannot learn this technique!