064: Kumogakure's Delegation, Secret Visit to the Ninja Academy!

It was Saturday, and classes at the Konoha Ninja Academy ended at noon. 

By afternoon, the entire school was deserted.

Inside one of the academy buildings, a room previously used for storage had just been cleared out. 

"From today onwards, our Dimensional End's Congregation will have its own headquarters..." Natsuki announced from a makeshift podium. 

Thunderous applause erupted immediately after he finished speaking.

Seated below the podium were several familiar young faces: Hinata, Ino, Choji, Shikamaru, Sasuke, and Naruto.

"So cool! How did you manage to get permission from the school for this place, Natsuki?" Choji asked, his eyes sparkling. "Now we have a place to skip class, sleep in, and nap!"

"Ahem," Natsuki coughed, adopting a serious expression. "Well, you see, constantly maintaining dimensional stability and safeguarding the peace of the academy is tiring work... We naturally require a secure place to recuperate."

"Oh!" The children nodded in unison, completely convinced.

In reality, Iruka had initially refused Natsuki's request. 

Such an obviously unreliable-sounding club couldn't possibly be safeguarding any kind of peace, let alone the 'dimensional' kind. 

However, when Natsuki yelled, "Super Invincible Thunderbolt," Iruka immediately slammed his hand on the table and agreed. 

At the very least, they could help maintain peace within the academy and prevent the children from fighting.

"From now on, this will be one of our bases. Today, we must make sure it's thoroughly cleaned." Natsuki declared. "But before that, let's welcome two new members to the Congregation: Sasuke and Naruto!"

Just then, as if sensing something, Natsuki's eyes glowed with a faint red light. A slight smile crept onto his lips. 

Sealing Barrier: Activate!

Instantly, an invisible energy field enveloped the entire academy.

...

Meanwhile...

"Lady Samui, are you sure we should investigate the academy now?" A Cloud ninja asked the blonde girl leading their small group. 

They were all members of the Kumogakure envoy visiting Konoha.

"Of course. Dusk is when security is most lax. Many guard posts change shifts at this time." Samui replied. "Besides, we're here to investigate the academy's ghost stories and to see if we can obtain some mystical power. If nothing happens, wouldn't this trip be a waste?" 

There was an undeniable glint of excitement in her eyes. 

She wasn't one to sit still. Besides, if they were discovered by Konoha ninja, they could easily make up an excuse. 

In Konoha's current state, would they dare start a war? A few years ago, they had endured the Kumogakure's blatant provocation and even sacrificed a high-ranking Hyuga member for peace.

"Alright," the three remaining team members nodded. Since their captain had made the decision, they couldn't object.

The four of them stealthily bypassed the nearby Konoha ninja and scaled the wall surrounding the academy. 

As soon as they landed, they headed towards the most prominent building, the main teaching building.

However, halfway there, a thick fog began to roll in throughout the academy.

"What's going on...?"

"How can fog form in this weather?"

Before entering, they had clearly seen a clear sky and a beautiful sunset. How could fog appear so suddenly once they were inside the school grounds?

"Be careful, this isn't normal fog," a tall, thin team member said calmly. "It's likely the academy's guards or teachers have discovered us. This fog is probably caused by a Ninjutsu."

"Makes sense! Everyone, be on guard!" Samui nodded.

The four cautiously proceeded towards the teaching building but encountered nothing along the way.

"Tch, what was that? I didn't sense any killing intent, and nothing happened. Maybe it really was just the weird weather," grumbled the largest member of the group, a hulking man with bulging muscles. "Besides, what danger could a bunch of brats and some Chunin teachers who've barely seen battle pose?"

"We've already bypassed the guards outside," he continued. "There's no need to be so cautious here. We should hurry up and check this place out. See if we can find that glowing magic circle or whatever the stories say." He believed in direct action and overwhelming force. 

No matter the enemy, his philosophy was to just smash through them.

"Ootori has a point," Samui agreed. "There are two teaching buildings, at north and south. Let's split into two teams and investigate both buildings simultaneously. Use a bird call as a signal if you encounter anything." She also didn't believe there was any real danger here. 

While Konoha had many ghost stories, few resulted in actual harm. And they were ninja, not ignorant villagers.

"I'll... I'll go with Lady Samui," a small, bespectacled girl in the group quickly said.

"Then Ootori and Karasu will investigate the north building," Samui decided, referring to the large man and the thin one.

"Hai!"

The teams split up. Ootori and Karasu headed north, disappearing into the thickening fog.

Now, the fog was so dense that the last rays of the setting sun couldn't penetrate it. The bespectacled girl, Kumo Usagi, tugged on Samui's sleeve, feeling uneasy. "Samui-sis, I think we should be more careful..."

"Relax, Usagi," Samui said confidently. "I'll lead the way; you just follow close behind."

Samui led the way, striding confidently forward. 

Usagi, glancing back at the path slowly being swallowed by the fog, shivered and hurried to keep up.

They reached the second floor of the teaching building. 

A quiet corridor stretched before them, each classroom door firmly shut. After all, classes had ended at noon, leaving the building empty.

They opened two classrooms in a row. 

The chairs were neatly arranged inside. Everything seemed perfectly normal.

"See? Nothing's wrong. It's just an ordinary school. What's there to be afraid of?" Samui turned back to reassure Usagi with a smile.

"I was hoping something would be wrong... Otherwise, what's the point of coming here...?"

Before she could finish her sentence, a loud crash echoed from the next room.

Usagi jumped, her heart leaping into her throat, living up to the meaning of her name, Kumo Usagi(Cloud Rabbit).

As a sensory ninja, she wasn't strong in combat but possessed heightened senses and, unfortunately, a rather timid nature.

Samui stomped on the ground and, with a burst of speed, flashed into the next classroom. 

She found a shattered window and a broom lying on the floor.

"Tch, who's so inconsiderate?" Samui exclaimed, her kumo upbringing, where resources were scarce, making her immediately indignant. "Throwing a broom around like that... Don't they know that repairing public property costs money?" 

Then, remembering that this was the wealthy Konoha, she felt indignant that they hadn't broken a few more windows.

"The broom flew in from the north," Usagi observed, looking at the broken window. "Could Ootori and Karasu be in danger?"

"No way," Samui dismissed the idea. "If they were in danger, they would have used the signal. They wouldn't just throw a broom. Come on, this is boring. There are seven floors in this building, and we're only on the second. Let's pick up the pace. For classrooms that seem normal, we'll just glance inside as we pass."

Samui casually examined the broom and the area around the window.

Finding nothing amiss, she continued down the hallway with Usagi in tow. They quickly traversed the rest of the corridor without any further incidents.

Reaching the staircase, they were about to head up to the third floor when something familiar caught Samui's eye. 

Lying on the floor near the stairs was another broom.

"What the...?" Samui frowned. "Usagi, did you bring this thing with us?"

"No, no! I've been right behind you the entire time," Usagi insisted, shaking her head vehemently. 

Then, recalling one of the academy's ghost stories, she added, "Could it be... that self-cleaning broom that moves on its own...?" She gulped, nervously glancing around.

"Nonsense," Samui scoffed. "This is the ninja world. Someone's definitely playing a prank with this broom. When I catch them, I'll turn their face into a pig's!

"But...if there really is some kind of mysterious power, even better! I'll claim it for myself!"

Samui strode forward and examined the broom. She even checked for invisible strings but found nothing out of the ordinary.

"I just used my sensory jutsu," Kumo Usagi said, her voice barely above a whisper. "There's no one else nearby... Um... Shouldn't we just leave?

"Fine, let's go."

This time, without further discussion, they hurried up the stairs. 

They climbed quickly, ascending countless steps and turning dozens of corners without realizing how far they had traveled.

"This isn't right," Samui said, finally noticing the discrepancy. 

"There's no way the stairs should be this long. It didn't take nearly this long to get from the first floor to the second. We should have climbed a dozen floors by now!"

Just as this thought crossed their minds, they saw two small children, each carrying a bucket, sitting on the handrail and effortlessly gliding upwards towards the third floor. 

The children gave them a curious look as they passed.

Yes, they were sitting on the stationary concrete handrail.

Then, with a turn, they vanished from sight.

"Hahaha, Sasuke, did you see that? Those two idiots are sitting on the handrail staring at their feet! Hilarious!"

"Be quiet, Naruto you idiot!" another voice hissed. "They might be new teachers. We'll be in trouble if they hear us!"

Their laughter echoed down from above.

Samui's face flushed with anger. 

Those two brats were clearly gliding on the railing, and they dared call them idiots for trying?

Ignoring Usagi, she charged up the stairs, to catch the little pipsqueak who dared to mock them.

However, after rounding a corner, she found Usagi, who should have been behind her, now standing in front of her...

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