110. Return to the Country of Grass

Sora had no brothers to help him awaken the Eternal Mangekyō Sharingan, and he had no plans to transplant Senju Hashirama's cells to avoid blindness.

The reason Senju Hashirama's cells could eliminate the side effects of the Mangekyō Sharingan wasn't because of Wood Release but because of Senju Hashirama's unusual body.

Senju Hashirama's body was full of life energy and could heal from injuries automatically without forming hand signs.

Uchiha Madara once said, "On the battlefield, no one can kill Hashirama."

And Senju Hashirama's body was a 'sage body.'

Even if Sora awakened the Wood Release Kekkei Genkai, he wouldn't develop a sage body. It seemed only Senju Hashirama possessed a sage body.

So, for now, Sora had no way to remove the side effects of the Mangekyō Sharingan quickly.

But this wasn't what Sora needed to worry about right now.

After all, Sora had just awakened the Mangekyō Sharingan, and his eyesight was still good, so there was no need to worry yet.

Right now, the most important thing is to solve the problem with Uzumaki Kushina.

After dealing with Uzumaki Kushina's situation, Sora would have plenty of time to fix these minor issues.

And as long as there were enough witnesses, these problems could be easily solved.

Sora returned his Mangekyō Sharingan to its normal state and left Orochimaru's hideout.

After awakening his Mangekyō Sharingan, Sora felt very happy. He bought a bowl of salty ramen that Uzumaki Kushina liked, as well as salt-grilled saury and miso eggplant that Kakashi enjoyed, then headed home.

The next day.

Sora went to the Hokage Building to see Hiruzen Sarutobi and told him that he and Kakashi were going to support the Land of Grass today.

Hiruzen Sarutobi agreed right away. After all, he himself wanted Sora to quickly go help the Land of Grass.

He was truly pleased that Kakashi would join them because as Kakashi grew stronger, Konoha would benefit.

After Sora and Kakashi packed their things, they came to Konoha's main gate.

Uzumaki Kushina told Kakashi, "Rely on your sensei when you're in danger, don't be stubborn, and eat well so you can grow taller and stronger."

Kakashi bit his lip under his mask.

Having just experienced the pain of losing his father, Kakashi was deeply touched by Uzumaki Kushina's concern.

"I will, Sensei's wife. I'm going to the Land of Grass with Sora-sensei, and you must take care of yourself, too."

Uzumaki Kushina smiled and gently patted Kakashi's head.

Then Uzumaki Kushina walked up to Sora and said just five words: "I'll wait for you to come back."

Sora smiled and replied, "Wait for me to come back."

Sora and Kakashi set out once more on their journey to the Land of Grass...

A few days later, Sora and Kakashi arrived at Konoha's headquarters in the Land of Grass.

Facing these former subordinates of Hatake Sakumo, Kakashi gave off an aura that kept others at a distance.

Sora took Kakashi to find Jiraiya.

This time, Jiraiya had come to the Land of Grass alone, without Minato Namikaze.

"Lord Jiraiya, we're here to support the Land of Grass mission," Sora said.

Jiraiya smiled when he saw Sora. Although they hadn't interacted much, he had seen Sora's performance in the Land of Hot Springs.

And Sora was very intelligent.

With Sora around, Jiraiya could have lifted much of his burden.

Jiraiya looked at Kakashi, his voice filled with regret: "I heard about what happened to Sakumo. I'm very sorry."

Kakashi replied without emotion: "My father broke Konoha's rules. There's nothing to regret. Thank you for your concern, Lord Jiraiya."

Jiraiya frowned.

He had met Kakashi before and remembered that the boy wasn't so cold.

From Kakashi's tone, it seemed like he thought Hatake Sakumo deserved his fate and that he didn't care at all.

Orochimaru was a very cold person.

Orochimaru's student Sora was also very cold.

Now Kakashi, who wasn't cold before, had become cold, too.

Why were these three masters and students like this?

Jiraiya felt it must be Orochimaru's fault.

After all, there's a saying: if the upper beam is crooked, the lower beam will be crooked, too.

Before Jiraiya could assign tasks to Sora and Kakashi, Sora took the initiative to ask if Jiraiya could give them a long-term mission.

Jiraiya was immediately stuck: "Long-term mission? I've only recently arrived in the Land of Grass, and I don't know much about the current situation here. Shinsuke, are there any suitable long-term missions for Sora and Kakashi right now?"

Jiraiya passed the question to Nara Shinsuke.

After thinking for a moment, Nara Shinsuke said: "There is one mission, but it's somewhat dangerous. If you're not careful, you might get surrounded by Iwa shinobi. However, with Sora's mobility, he's well-suited for it.

The Iwa shinobi are preparing to make their move. We're currently in a defensive position. We don't have clear information about Iwa's strategy, so someone needs to gather intelligence on the Iwa forces.

War depends on intelligence. If we can understand the current situation of the Iwa shinobi, it will greatly help us."

Sora nodded after listening: "Alright, we'll take this mission. Kakashi and I will handle it."

Nara Shinsuke frowned and said: "Sora, this mission is only suitable for you, not Kakashi. If I send Kakashi along, I'm worried..."

Sora interrupted him directly: "Don't worry. Kakashi is under my supervision now. He's more agile than most shinobi and won't slow me down."

Kakashi then said coldly, "If you're worried I'll be like my father and that Sora-sensei will abandon the mission to save me, you don't need to worry. If I face danger, I'll take my own life immediately and won't embarrass Sora-sensei."

Nara Shinsuke and Jiraiya's expressions froze at the same time.

They hadn't expected Kakashi to say such a thing.

It seemed that Hatake Sakumo's death had greatly affected Kakashi.

Sora spoke again, "You heard what Kakashi said, so please assign this mission to us."

After hearing this, Nara Shinsuke nodded and said, "I think this mission can be given to Sora and Kakashi. Lord Jiraiya, what do you think?"

The leadership had changed to Jiraiya, so the final decision had to come from him.

Jiraiya coughed and said seriously: "In that case, Sora and Kakashi, your next mission is to gather intelligence on the Iwagakure shinobi. Report to me or Shinsuke as soon as you obtain any information!"

"Yes, sir."

Sora and Kakashi didn't want to stay any longer and planned to leave immediately. While carrying out their mission, they would also search for Uzumaki Kushina's clan.

But just as Sora was about to leave with Kakashi, Jiraiya stopped him.

"Sora, wait a moment. Let's talk alone."

----------------

You can read advanced chapters here: patreon.com/GregariousLion