“This is your teammate for this mission—Kurenai Yūhi.”
So it really was Kurenai!
Shinsuke’s heart immediately stirred.
As one of the most beloved female shinobi in Naruto, Kurenai would undoubtedly meet the system’s requirements.
According to the original storyline, she would eventually become Asuma Sarutobi’s wife.
But now…
There was no way Shinsuke intended to let things follow the original plot.
As for what would happen to Asuma after he stole Kurenai away…
Shinsuke could only think,
‘Sorry, Asuma.’
Kurenai stopped before him, meeting his gaze as a faint smile curved across her lips.
Shinsuke politely stepped forward and offered his hand.
“Hello.
I’m Uchiha Shinsuke.”
“I’ve heard quite a bit about you.
I’m Kurenai Yūhi.”
As their hands met, Shinsuke noticed how cool and incredibly soft her hand felt.
Standing this close, he could also catch a delicate floral fragrance drifting from her.
“Manpower within the village is severely limited.
Most of our shinobi have already been deployed to the front lines, so for now I can only assign you one teammate.”
Hiruzen explained.
“However, Kurenai has been a Chūnin for many years, and she specializes in genjutsu.
Her abilities should complement your Sharingan well.”
“In any case, the situation is urgent.
Once the two of you have familiarized yourselves with each other, depart immediately.”
“Yes, Lord Hokage!”
The two accepted the order and left together.
After leaving the Hokage Tower, Shinsuke briefly explained the mission.
“Our objective is to investigate the unusual movements of Sunagakure shinobi around Kikyō Mountain.
Kikyō Mountain lies in the northwest of the Land of Fire.
It’s a strategic border location and the inevitable route for any invasion from Sunagakure.
It’ll take us about two to three days to get there.
We have one hour to prepare, then we’ll meet at the village gate.”
Kurenai listened attentively before nodding.
“Understood.”
An hour later, the two met outside Konoha fully prepared and immediately set off toward Kikyō Mountain.
During the journey, Kurenai wasn’t particularly talkative.
Wanting to build rapport between them, Shinsuke deliberately started a conversation.
“Since we’ll be traveling together for a while, why don’t we get to know each other’s abilities?”
He introduced himself first.
“I possess the Three Tomoe Sharingan, giving me solid skills in taijutsu, genjutsu, and battlefield observation.
As for ninjutsu, besides the basic techniques, I’m proficient in Fire Release and Lightning Release.
I also know medical ninjutsu and can provide emergency treatment.”
Kurenai looked at him with surprise.
She hadn’t expected her Uchiha captain to be not only handsome, but also so versatile.
Especially the fact that he knew medical ninjutsu.
After all, shinobi were inevitably injured during missions, and countless lives had been lost simply because wounds couldn’t be treated in time.
Having a medical ninja within a team was incredibly valuable.
However, medical shinobi were notoriously difficult to train, so not every squad had one assigned.
Without realizing it, Kurenai found herself viewing Shinsuke a little more favorably.
She began introducing herself as well.
“My greatest specialty is genjutsu.”
Realizing how brief her introduction sounded, a faint blush appeared on her cheeks.
Shinsuke immediately noticed the subtle change in her expression and reassured her.
“Our mission is primarily an intelligence gathering operation.
Your genjutsu will be invaluable.”
His praise wasn’t merely polite.
Setting bloodline abilities aside, Kurenai’s talent for genjutsu was genuinely among the very best.
After all, in the original story, she had even managed to exchange blows through genjutsu with Uchiha Itachi.
Of course…
How many exchanges she managed before losing was another matter entirely.
Although the current Kurenai was still young and hadn’t yet reached her future peak, she was more than capable of assisting him with intelligence gathering.
Thus, the two continued toward Kikyō Mountain while chatting along the way.
Under Shinsuke’s guidance, they gradually became more familiar with one another, and their conversations grew increasingly natural.
Three days later, they finally arrived in the Kikyō Mountain region.
“Stop.”
Shinsuke lowered his voice and motioned for Kurenai to conceal herself.
“The area ahead is Kikyō Mountain.
We shouldn’t investigate openly as Konoha shinobi.”
“Why?”
Kurenai asked curiously.
“If Sunagakure realizes Konoha has already become suspicious, they may be forced to act immediately.
Even if they haven’t finished preparing, they could launch their offensive ahead of schedule.”
“Konoha isn’t fully prepared yet, so we need to avoid that outcome as much as possible.”
Shinsuke took out a set of Iwagakure forehead protectors and uniforms that he had prepared beforehand.
“Put these on.
Even if we’re exposed, we’ll appear to be Iwagakure shinobi passing through the area instead of Konoha ninjas, reducing the chances of direct conflict.”
As he spoke, he handed Kurenai an Iwagakure uniform and forehead protector.
Agreeing with his reasoning, she accepted them and disappeared behind a tree to change.
Shinsuke also changed into the Iwagakure disguise he had prepared.
After disguising themselves, they followed Shinsuke’s plan by first circling around from the north, posing as Iwagakure shinobi arriving from the Land of Earth before carefully beginning their reconnaissance.
The Kikyō Mountain outpost was a complex of abandoned castles originally constructed during the era of the Second Hokage before gradually falling into ruin after the Second Shinobi World War.
They carefully searched both inside and outside the ruins but found no obvious traces.
Over the following days, they gradually expanded the search area.
Finally, on the third day, Shinsuke’s Sharingan noticed something unusual near the edge of a forest.
A patch of soil appeared to have been disturbed ever so slightly.
He signaled for Kurenai to stay alert before carefully digging away the surface with a kunai.
Beneath it lay a layer of completely cold ashes.
“Three to five people built a fire here roughly ten days ago.”
After examining the surrounding details, Kurenai reached her conclusion.
Shinsuke nodded before restoring everything exactly as it had been.
During missions, shinobi usually relied on military ration pills for sustenance.
Only during extended operations would they bother lighting fires.
That single trace already revealed a great deal.
Over the next two days, they discovered three more campsites with similar evidence.
Some had belonged to groups of only three people, while the largest appeared to have housed nearly ten.
Everything pointed toward the same conclusion.
A group of unidentified shinobi had been carrying out long term operations along the border of the Land of Fire.
As more clues emerged, Shinsuke had already narrowed down the enemy’s approximate area of activity.
A plan quickly formed in his mind.
…
That night, three figures dressed as Sunagakure shinobi silently moved through the dense forest.
Leading them was a sharp featured middle aged ninja.
As he advanced cautiously, he quietly complained to the companions behind him.
“Once I collect the reward for this mission, I’m spending several days enjoying myself at the Red Sand Tavern!”
“Fūshin, I heard you’re still a virgin.
This time I’ll definitely take you there so you can experience it properly.
The girls there are incredibly passionate.
You’ll never want to leave.”
But no one answered.
He suddenly turned around.
The two companions behind him had vanished without a trace.
The instincts of a veteran Chūnin instantly sent chills down his spine.
His right hand shot toward the signal launcher at his waist.
However, before his fingers could reach it, a soft feminine voice drifted gently into his ears.
“Demonic Illusion: False Surroundings Technique~”
‘Damn it…
Genjutsu!’
Alarm surged through his mind.
He desperately tried resisting the illusion while continuing to reach for the signal device.
Yet the sensation beneath his fingers made him freeze.
Instead of the cold, hard metal he expected, he felt something warm…
and unbelievably soft.
Lowering his head, he found a scantily dressed woman lying against him.
“Oh my~ Lord Iwasaki…
where exactly are your hands wandering~?”
Though her voice carried playful reproach, she made no effort to avoid him.
Instead, she deliberately leaned further into his touch, letting out a soft, suggestive moan.
Looking around in confusion, Iwasaki suddenly realized he was sitting inside a familiar private room within the Red Sand Tavern.
Soft, fragrant bodies surrounded him.
Four women dressed in revealing clothing leaned intimately against him.
Each struck a different seductive pose, their flirtatious smiles and inviting gazes igniting desires that had long been suppressed.
After so many months without a woman…
His blood began to boil.