The five-man squad consisted entirely of Chunin from the Hidden Cloud Village.
Because Kumogakure was situated high in the treacherous mountain ranges, its shinobi were famously built like brick houses, boasting incredibly muscular, rugged physiques.
“Man, when are we actually going to see some action?” one of the Cloud ninja groaned, stretching his thick arms.
“We’ve been patrolling this border for a whole month.”
“Give it a rest,” another replied, rolling his eyes.
“Lord Raikage is already in talks with the Daimyo to smooth things over.”
The five of them continued to banter, completely oblivious to the fact that someone had just slipped right into their perimeter.
Since their mission was strictly reconnaissance and routine patrol, they had grown thoroughly bored.
Senzan channeled chakra into the soles of his feet to completely muffle his footsteps.
Leaning casually against a nearby tree, he silently eavesdropped on their conversation.
He had pulled off this exact infiltration tactic countless times by now; the chances of him making a mistake were virtually zero.
And even if things did go south, he had already left a jutsu formula with Heiichi Yamanaka.
At the first sign of trouble, he could trigger the Flying Thunder God and teleport back instantly.
“Yeah, yeah, I know.
I’m just venting,” the first ninja sighed.
“But seriously, did the Land of Hot Water really disband its entire military?
There are so many pending missions that they have to outsource the work to foreign ninja.”
“Lord Third is pretty clever,” a third chimed in.
“Using these outsourced missions as a cover to quietly station us inside the country was a great move.”
‘Huh?
The Third Raikage?’ Senzan raised an eyebrow in surprise.
‘That musclehead actually has a tactical brain?
Ignoring his own country’s mission queues to station his troops in the Land of Hot Water under the guise of taking odd jobs…
isn’t he worried his Daimyo is going to throw a fit?’
“Heh, say what you want about this place, but the hot springs here are absolutely top-tier,” one of the ninja smirked deviously.
“How about we hit up the baths together once this shift is over?”
Judging by his grin, his focus clearly wasn’t on the soothing properties of the water.
“Knock it off.
We’re still on active duty, save your fantasies for later,” the oldest and most seasoned ninja of the group reprimanded sharply.
His words commanded immediate respect, and the others nodded in agreement.
“The special snatch squad failed their mission recently, and the target slipped away.
Command has us running these patrols precisely because they’re worried the Leaf might retaliate.”
They had been itching to strike at the Hidden Leaf for a long time.
If it hadn’t been for the fragile armistice treaty, they would have marched on the village ages ago.
‘Hey, kid,’ Chomei’s voice echoed in Senzan’s mind.
‘Who’s this target they’re talking about?’
‘An old friend of yours.’
‘Hmm?
The Nine-Tails Jinchuriki?’
‘Yeah.
Well, not yet, but she’s going to be,’ Senzan replied telepathically.
‘I’m guessing the Cloud targeted her because of her special Uzumaki physique and wanted to abduct her.
Looks like Kumogakure is really gearing up to start a war with the Leaf.’
Although he couldn’t speak out loud, Senzan was never truly alone anymore.
With his new partner inside him, the two of them chatted happily away in his mindscape.
But Chomei wasn’t content just sitting back and watching the show.
It wanted to stretch its wings.
Just standing here eavesdropping is boring!’
‘Make a move?
This is a stealth recon mission.
If I attack, I blow my cover,’ Senzan argued.
He was already preparing to slip away.
He had gathered enough intel, and it matched the Third Hokage’s suspicions perfectly.
But just as he lifted his foot to leave, Chomei’s next words stopped him dead in his tracks.
‘Who said anything about blowing your cover?
We can do it stealthily!’ Chomei boasted.
‘Let me tell you, my scale powder is incredibly versatile.
You name it, I’ve got it!
Lethal?
Hallucinogenic?
Toxic?
Paralyzing?
Just say the word, and it’s yours!’
Senzan’s eyes widened.
‘Wait, seriously?
It does all that?!’
‘Hehehe, you bet it does.
Back when I was chained up in that damp cave, playing with my scale powder was my only source of entertainment.
I’d use my chakra to synthesize it, blow it out the cave entrance, and use my thermal bug-eyes to watch how it messed with the poor bastards outside.
It was a great time!’
‘Holy crap.
This bug is an absolute menace,’ Senzan muttered inwardly.
‘So?
What do you say, Senzan?
Wanna do a little hit-and-run?’
‘Let’s do it.
How about the paralysis powder?’ Senzan suggested, a wicked smirk curling on his lips.
‘Are you sure you don’t just want to kill them?
I’ve never actually killed anyone with it yet, but I’m absolutely certain my powder can do the job!’
Looking at the five Cloud ninja, Senzan chuckled silently.
They were practically served up on a silver platter; it would be a waste not to test his new toy.
If this scale powder really was as effective as Chomei claimed, it would become an absolute travel essential.
‘Paralysis first.
Let’s do it.’
‘Alright!
I’ll transmit the method to synthesize the powder right now.
Just use your chakra to catalyze it inside your body.’
Following Chomei’s instructions, Senzan quietly repositioned himself upwind of the squad.
He focused his chakra, channeling it exactly as the Tailed Beast directed.
A moment later, he felt a strange, heavy sensation building in his chest and throat.
‘Is this the powder?’ Senzan asked.
‘Yep!
What effects do you want?’
‘Heavy paralysis, preferably with temporary blindness.’
‘You got it!
Treating the technique exactly like a Fire Style jutsu, Senzan clasped his hands together in a tiger seal, took a deep breath, and exhaled violently.
Whoosh!
A massive, entirely invisible cloud of scale powder blasted outward like a shockwave, sweeping directly over the five Cloud ninja.
‘What the hell are you doing?!’ Chomei shrieked in absolute horror.
‘Do you think my scale powder is cheap flour?!
You don’t just blast it out all at once!’
‘What?!’
‘You’re supposed to slightly part your lips and let it drift gently into the wind!’ Chomei ranted.
‘Do you have any idea how much chakra it took to synthesize that much powder?!
And you just blew it all in one breath?!’
It was an absolute waste of premium resources!
Who on earth dispersed poison like a flamethrower?!
‘How was I supposed to know?!
You literally just said ‘blow it out’!’
A sudden, intense wave of exhaustion washed over Senzan.
His chakra reserves, which had just been significantly boosted by the system, had instantly plummeted by more than half.
The hollow, draining sensation left him feeling completely sick to his stomach.
But the powder was already in the wind; there was no taking it back now.
‘Chomei, with a dose this huge…
are they going to die?
If they die, this is going to turn into a massive diplomatic incident!’
It wasn’t that Senzan was a saint.
Having lived in this brutal ninja world for years, he was no stranger to death.
But he was currently on a highly sensitive reconnaissance mission.
If he accidentally triggered a full-blown war and got himself killed in the crossfire, it absolutely wouldn’t be worth it.
Sure, he had his Transparency, his Flying Thunder God, and the ability to fly now, making him incredibly hard to kill—unless the enemy sent out a top-tier powerhouse—but he still preferred to play it safe.
‘Nah, they won’t die,’ Chomei replied dismissively.
‘The paralysis effect is just going to be multiplied by several magnitudes.
A normal drift of powder would keep them paralyzed for half a day.
With the ridiculous amount you just dumped on them…
they’ll be completely immobilized for at least two days.’
‘Two days…
holy crap.
I need to get out of here right now.’
Down in the clearing, the five Cloud ninja suddenly felt a strange, powdery substance brush against their skin and enter their lungs.
In the very next second, sheer tragedy struck.
“Gah!” “What is—?!”
The shouts of alarm lasted for exactly one second before they were abruptly silenced.
The overwhelming paralysis effect instantly flooded their nervous systems, aggressively numbing their entire bodies—right down to their tongues.
At the exact same time, their vision plunged into pitch darkness.
Thud!
Thud!
Under the weight of the severe, total-body paralysis, all five heavily muscled ninja collapsed to the forest floor like felled trees.
Senzan and Chomei fell completely silent, staring at the five men aggressively twitching and convulsing in the dirt.
‘…Does an overdose normally do this, Chomei?’
‘…Honestly, this is my first time seeing humans twitch like that.
It’s…
kinda funny, actually.’