I just returned to Konoha and found that all my clan members were gone.

After Sasuke left, the atmosphere of what was originally a pleasant mission became depressed again.

Shikamaru returned to his usual gloomy self. When they arrived at the capital of the Iron Kingdom, Choji did not go out for a big meal. Everyone began to think about their own things.

Asuma felt something was wrong, but as an adult he would not be easily defeated by words, so he began to liven up the atmosphere for his students.

It was easy to fool Choji and Ino, but Shikamaru was the most difficult to deal with.

"Checkmate."

Shikamaru looked at the chessboard. Asuma insisted on playing chess with him even though he was clearly no match for him. He really couldn't feel any sense of accomplishment from defeating such an opponent.

"I lost again! Shikamaru, your chess skills have improved again."

Asuma rubbed his head and said that this was the only way he could think of to communicate with Shikamaru.

But this kid is really ruthless. After all, I am his teacher, so I can't give in to him.

"You didn't come to me just to play chess, did you?"

After arriving in the Iron Kingdom, they did not return immediately. The mission had been completed and there was still plenty of time. Asuma simply suggested taking a rest and they were still staying in the hotel for the time being.

Shikamaru rearranged the chess pieces and stared at the board somewhat absentmindedly.

"Actually, you don't have to take Sasuke's words to heart."

Asuma saw that it was almost time and that Shikamaru must be in a better mood after winning a few games, so he spoke.

"If you don't even have the courage to open your ears and listen, how can you face the facts?"

Shikamaru asked back, choking Asuma so much that he was speechless.

"Asuma, what Senior Ye Lan said at the meeting was all true, right?"

Asuma knew that he could no longer hide it. With Shikamaru's intelligence, he must have already determined this matter. He asked himself just to get an attitude.

In the end, he nodded helplessly.

"I knew it. It seems that Senior Ye Lan's departure is reasonable..."

Shikamaru used the word "leave" instead of "defect", which made Asuma feel uncomfortable.

"Shikamaru, you have to understand that Ye Lan is already an S-rank traitor to the village. It's impossible for him to return to the village."

Unlike Sasuke, Ye Lan directly tore open the faces of Konoha's top brass and exposed the dark side of Konoha. There is no way Ye Lan will return to Konoha no matter what.

"If Senior Ye Lan makes another big fuss, what will you do?"

"Why do you say that?"

"Oh, I forgot that you just got out of the hospital. The Hokage now has two more advisors. To be more precise, they have been reinstated."

Shikamaru believed that if Ye Lan knew about this, he would definitely attack again. How should he deal with it then?

"Why...Why did the Hokage make this decision?"

Asuma almost dropped the cigarette in his mouth. Who on earth came up with such a stupid idea?

"This was decided at the same time by other temporary consultants."

Shikamaru said dimly, he couldn't understand why his father would agree to the request of those two old guys, was it really just for that little deer farm?

Asuma finally understood why Shikamaru became like this. He really didn't know where to start persuading him in this matter. He thought for a long time before he uttered a sentence.

"Perhaps Shikaku-senpai has his own ideas."

After listening to this, Shikamaru couldn't help but sneer, waved his hand and said, "Asuma, let's play chess."

...

"Do you want to eat this? I heard it tastes good."

Kisame placed a dessert in front of Sasuke. They were a little aimless after coming to the Land of Iron, and recruiting people was not an easy thing to do.

Sasuke frowned for once, "I hate sweets, I'll just eat some rice balls."

Sasuke picked up an eel rice ball and started eating it with relish.

"Really? That's a pity..."

Kisame became even more certain in his heart that Sasuke and Itachi were completely different.

Having said that, they changed into ordinary attire after entering the capital. The black robe with red clouds was too conspicuous and not conducive to their mission.

However, even ordinary attire could not conceal their outstanding temperament, and few people in the restaurant dared to approach them.

"Master Samurai, please take another look at my work. I believe this kind of thing will surely make the glory of the samurai appear again!"

There was a noisy sound at the door of the restaurant, and the attention of Kisame and Sasuke was drawn over there.

Two warriors in heavy armor looked impatiently at the middle-aged man who was pulling them, and they were not interested in what the man said at all.

"I've given you so many chances, but what else can you do besides wasting money? I don't know how many times I've been scolded by my boss because of you."

One warrior was a little angry. It seemed that he was very familiar with this middle-aged man. He spoke in a tone of disappointment.

"Why not just make armor? Why make something so messy?"

"If the warriors continue to stand still, they will definitely be eliminated in the future. If they want to regain the glory of the warriors, they must make changes!"

The middle-aged man had a sharp and determined look in his eyes.

Perhaps feeling uncomfortable with the other person's gaze, the warrior turned his head away and said, "After saying so much, it still costs a lot of money and has no effect at all."

"This is the last time, just help me!"

"That's what you said last time!"

The warrior hardened his heart and pushed the other person away, saying fiercely, "Don't look for me again, or I will do it!"

When the man saw the other person's expression, he knew it was futile and left the restaurant in despair.

"Kisame, stop eating and go up and take a look."

Sasuke thought for a moment and decided to follow the man, then turned to Kisame.

"Hmm? Is there anything special about that man?"

Kisame noticed that Sasuke was interested in the middle-aged man and couldn't help but ask.

"Understanding it first may help our mission."

"You mean? I can sense that man is probably not even a Genin."

He really didn't think highly of this kind of creature that Kisame could kill ten of with one strike.

"Don't forget that Yuyin has restarted the factory. Scorpion has gone over to help. From the tone of his voice, he should be a blacksmith or something like that. He should be helpful to the organization."

Sasuke stood up, ready to move.

"All right..."

Kisame looked at the food he had half eaten and said reluctantly.

After leaving the restaurant, they no longer found any trace of the man. Sasuke closed his eyes and sensed something, then pointed out a direction.

It didn't take long before he discovered the other party. It turned out that the other party had not given up yet. After failing to seek help from the warrior just now, he went to harass other people. Some of them with hot tempers even punched him twice.

Even so, he shamelessly rescued more people and did not return to his home until the evening.

Sasuke and Kisame had been following each other silently. They were also amazed by each other's shamelessness. Even Naruto in Sasuke's impression was nothing compared to him.

This man's residence is in a relatively remote area of ​​the capital, but it is quite large, comparable to Sasuke's childhood residence. From time to time, the sound of iron hammering can be heard from the house.

The man paused when he reached the door of his house and suddenly spoke loudly.

"Master Ninja has been following me for a long time. What is going on?"