CHAPTER 34

Bandit suppression missions are usually requested by local villagers when they suffer repeated attacks, and teams are expected to depart as soon as they accept the assignment.

Orochimaru led the Third Squad to the designated meeting point where they would connect with the mission issuer.

The rendezvous point wasn't far from the mission department, and the team arrived within minutes.

The person waiting for them was a young man, likely in his late twenties or early thirties, dressed in simple farmer's attire. His expression shifted uneasily when he saw Orochimaru approaching with three young shinobi. The moment he noticed their ages, he seemed ready to complain, but the words died in his throat the instant he locked eyes with Orochimaru. The unnerving aura, the snake-like vertical pupils, and the chilling presence were enough to silence any protest. Even though Orochimaru had suppressed his chakra to avoid intimidating a civilian, his appearance alone was enough to instill fear.

"Are you the one who issued the mission request? Explain the situation in detail," Orochimaru said, breaking the silence when the man hesitated to speak.

The farmer was still struggling to find his voice, his nervousness evident.

"Don't be concerned," the Chunin in charge of mission coordination interjected. "They may be young, but these three are fully qualified shinobi. More importantly, this is Lord Orochimaru, a Jōnin. You're getting an elite shinobi on a C-rank mission—that's more than you could've hoped for."

Hearing this, the farmer seemed to relax slightly. Realizing that he had unexpectedly secured the assistance of a Jōnin, he now felt lucky rather than apprehensive. Still, he remained wary of Orochimaru's presence. The legendary shinobi's demeanor was far from reassuring.

With a quick glance at Orochimaru, the farmer finally began his explanation.

"I'm a villager from Liuyue Village. Recently, a group of bandits has taken over the Green Hills near our settlement. Every few days, they descend upon the village to loot and cause havoc. We can't fight back, so the village pooled our resources to send me to Konoha for help. We also overheard some of them talking. Their leader seems to be a samurai."

"A samurai?" Uchiha Kiyo murmured, considering the information. "If he's fallen to the point of leading bandits, his skills likely aren't that impressive."

Orochimaru nodded in agreement. He had remained silent, wanting his students to assess the mission details on their own. This assignment was meant for them to handle independently; Orochimaru would only intervene if absolutely necessary.

"How many bandits are there? Have you been able to count them? Are there any other notable figures among them besides their leader? What do they typically do when they attack? Anything unusual about them?"

"No, we don't dare get that close to them," the farmer admitted, his voice tinged with fear. "Just sending me to request aid was already risky for the village. We are simple folk; we can't judge their actual strength. But I did overhear them mentioning something about 'three kings' and 'four kings.' I think they might be the leader's lieutenants or family members, so they must be strong."

"Anything else of importance?"

"Hmm… One thing stands out. None of us have actually seen their leader or those 'kings.' We only know about them because the lower-ranked bandits talk about them."

Uchiha Kiyo processed this information but didn't find it particularly useful. Given that the informant was just a civilian, it was understandable that he couldn't gather more precise details. It was clear that their team would have to conduct their own reconnaissance once they arrived.

"Alright, we understand the situation. Since you seem to be in a hurry, let's set out now," Uchiha Kiyo said.

Hearing this, the farmer expressed his gratitude repeatedly. Even though he was technically the one who had hired them, he knew he had no authority to rush a shinobi squad. He was simply fortunate to have encountered a team that was willing to act swiftly.

With that, their group of five departed.

At the gates of Konoha, they completed the necessary registration and then left the village.

The three members of the Third Squad were visibly excited—this was their first time outside the village. Even Sarutobi Shuo, usually more composed, was unable to hide his curiosity, glancing around constantly. Nawaki Senju, as expected, was the most restless, eagerly observing everything around them.

The farmer couldn't help but feel some doubt about their competence—these kids seemed too excited for a supposedly dangerous mission. But a single glance at Orochimaru reassured him. With someone of his caliber overseeing them, surely nothing could go wrong.

"Hmm… It doesn't seem all that different from the village," Nawaki muttered after some time. He had expected the outside world to be more… special.

"What did you expect?" Uchiha Kiyo asked with a chuckle. "We're still in the Land of Fire, and we're just traveling on a main road. The real differences appear when you visit other nations or unique settlements."

"Huh? How do you know all this?" Nawaki asked, narrowing his eyes. "I don't remember you ever leaving the village. You're talking like you've been everywhere."

Pushing Nawaki aside, Uchiha Kiyo calmly explained, "I haven't been anywhere, but I've read about it. The basics of geography and important locations are all in our textbooks."

At the mention of books, Nawaki instantly lost interest. He detested studying, and he was convinced that if he stuck around Uchiha Kiyo any longer, he'd be handed a book to read.

Liuyue Village wasn't far from Konoha, which was why the villagers had chosen to seek aid from the Hidden Leaf. If the village had been located much farther away, just traveling to request assistance would have been too dangerous.

However, something about this situation puzzled Uchiha Kiyo. Why would bandits establish themselves so close to Konoha? Only a day's journey separated Liuyue Village from the village of the Hidden Leaf. At a civilian's pace, that was roughly 100 kilometers. For trained shinobi, that distance could be covered in about five hours. Any experienced criminals would know that setting up camp so close to one of the Five Great Shinobi Villages was a foolish decision.

"Something about this doesn't add up," Uchiha Kiyo thought to himself. "Why would they stay here, knowing Konoha could send shinobi after them at any time? Unless they're hiding something, or they have backing that makes them feel safe?"

He shook his head, deciding not to overthink it for now. "Well, one thing's for sure—if they were ninja, Konoha would have detected signs of chakra use by now. Since that hasn't happened, we can assume they're just regular bandits, or at worst, rogue samurai."

Still, he remained alert as they traveled. Even though they were close to Konoha, there was always the possibility of an ambush. After all, if bandits were dumb enough to operate so near the village, he couldn't rule out the chance that they were reckless enough to attack a shinobi squad as well.

If an enemy attacked before they even reached their mission site and forced Orochimaru to intervene, their training exercise would be ruined. And if that happened, Uchiha Kiyo didn't even want to imagine what kind of punishment Orochimaru would impose when they returned to the village.

Fortunately, their journey remained uneventful. Konoha's surroundings were well-patrolled, and no rogue elements appeared. After several hours of travel, the five of them finally arrived at Liuyue Village.