Chapter 20: A-Rank Mission

The next day.

Today was another rare day with no assignments for Team Six.

At the Puppet Corps' base, Shimizu was currently on the roofed training ground, practicing puppet techniques using public training puppets.

This was one of the many perks of being part of the Puppet Corps.

The two puppets he was using were heavy-duty models, each weighing over 100 kilograms and equipped with non-lethal weapons.

Right now, Shimizu was controlling both puppets in combat against each other to hone his manipulation skills.

Sasori wasn't particularly interested in this aspect. With his natural talent, such techniques were easy for him to pick up and master with just minimal effort—his true passion lay in researching and building puppets.

Miyuki, meanwhile, sat under the eaves reading a book.

That was when Miba suddenly appeared on the training ground.

"Brother, why are you here?"

Miyuki asked curiously.

"You have fifteen minutes to prepare. Meet me at the village gate. I'll explain more on the way."

Miba's tone was unusually serious.

"No need. Our puppets are right here. If it's a mission, we can depart immediately."

Shimizu retracted his chakra threads and wiped the sweat from his brow.

"I'll go get Sasori!"

Miyuki darted into the building and called Sasori, who was still tinkering with a puppet.

"I'll keep it short," Miba said as Sasori emerged.

"A squad of elite Konoha ninjas has broken through the border and infiltrated the Land of Wind. One day ago, they destroyed the black iron mine in Black Sand City and then disappeared. The village leadership has ordered the Puppet Corps to assist border forces in tracking them down."

"Right now, we're the only puppet unit available for immediate deployment. If found, capture alive is the top priority. Mission rank: A!"

His stern expression left no room for doubt.

"An A-rank mission? That means... there's a jōnin among the enemy..."

Miyuki said hesitantly.

She didn't believe a special jōnin and a chūnin could complete an A-rank mission with just two genin.

"We're supposed to capture a jōnin alive?"

Shimizu said with a strained expression, pointing to himself.

"The target isn't the enemy jōnin," Miba explained.

"According to intelligence, one of the infiltrators is a Uchiha with an awakened Sharingan. The jōnin-level opponent will be handled by Captain Ishido and the border stationed jōnin."

That made sense.

Even if Wood Release was absent, Sharingan was still the most coveted kekkei genkai in the ninja world. Its combat potential was enormous.

Every village aside from Konoha desperately coveted the Sharingan, and if that Uchiha were captured by Sunagakure, he'd end up as a breeding tool.

Sasori's eyes lit up with excitement.

Uchiha, huh?

If only I could make him into a human puppet…

Unfortunately, current puppet technology couldn't preserve a puppet's kekkei genkai post-mortem, which was a bit of a letdown.

"We're moving out now. Our rendezvous point is with Captain Ishido at Ichisen Gorge. Destination: Black Sand City!"

"Yes!" ×3

Minutes later, Shimizu's team arrived at the gates of Sunagakure—Ichisen Gorge.

Ichisen Gorge was Sunagakure's most critical and final line of defense—also the main gateway to the village.

It was an extremely narrow canyon, appearing as if a mountain had been cleaved in half, leaving just enough space for two carts to pass side-by-side.

"A single warrior could hold the pass against ten thousand" perfectly described this terrain.

If a Kage-level ninja were stationed here with a few elite jōnin, it would be nearly impossible for outsiders to invade.

However, the strongest fortress is often breached from within.

In the future, Sasori and Deidara would manage to infiltrate Sunagakure only because Sasori had used Shallow Brain Control Sand to manipulate the village elder Yura—allowing them to bypass Ichisen Gorge with ease.

But this same path also severely hindered the village's economic development—a double-edged sword.

After verifying their mission documents with the gate guards, the team quickly departed, heading straight for Black Sand City.

Ninjas traveled fast. The mission was issued just after lunch, and before the sun had set, the team had already arrived.

"Support's finally here?"

A stationed Suna ninja—tasked with coordinating with the Puppet Corps—breathed a sigh of relief upon seeing them.

"What's the situation?"

Captain Ishido asked without wasting any time.

"Jōnin Kuichi is tracking the Konoha team with a sensor ninja. Meanwhile, the Leaf support unit waiting near the border was already repelled by Jōnin Rasa. As long as we gather enough strength, we can wipe out that Konoha squad."

The coordinating chūnin reported respectfully.

"Assign someone to guide us—we're moving out immediately!"

"I can lead the way!" the chūnin said, biting his thumb and forming hand seals.

Seconds later, a small desert lizard was summoned via Summoning Technique, a scroll tied to its leg.

He opened the scroll, read its contents, and then handed it to Ishido.

"Move out!"

Ishido ordered with a wave of his hand.

Meanwhile, elsewhere in the desert…

"Tch! What kind of idiotic command was this from HQ? Asking us to disrupt the Land of Wind's supply lines? This whole place is desert—what the hell is there to disrupt?!"

On top of a dune, a young man in black wearing the Uchiha clan's red-and-white fan emblem wiped the sand from his face and spat.

"It's your fault, Uchiha Sen!"

"Captain told you to use your Sharingan genjutsu to hypnotize the Suna shinobi so we could infiltrate. But you killed them instead—now we've been exposed!"

A teammate in a green flak jacket snapped at him.

"What are you saying?! I saved your ass! If I didn't act, we'd all be dead. Typical low-born ninja—no vision whatsoever!"

Uchiha Sen glared back with his red Sharingan blazing, barking at the other ninja.

"Sigh…"

Their squad leader, Nara Hirano, a Konoha jōnin, couldn't help but let out a long sigh.

The rift between the Uchiha clan and the rest of Konoha was growing sharper by the day—not just between Uchiha and the civilians, but between them and the other noble clans too.

The Military Police Force's violent tactics didn't care about background. Civilians or noble-born, everyone got arrested the same, then interrogated under genjutsu.

Now, even among the shinobi ranks, these tensions were starting to spread.

"Enough. The mission to sabotage Sunagakure's logistics is likely a failure."

"Our priority now is to break through the Land of Wind's border. The blockade is strong, but I've contacted Lord Sakumo through my summon. He'll try to lead an elite team to breach the Suna lines and retrieve us."

"Until then, our objective is simple—survive until the White Fang arrives!"

Nara Hirano concluded firmly, rallying his squad.

(End of Chapter)