Chapter 152 - No Upper Limit
For ninja, unless it was a large-scale war, it was extremely rare to see such a massive combined unit move together like this — even more so when it involved three different villages joining forces.
Especially considering Iwagakure, which didn't get along well with any other village, and had even been long-standing enemies with Sunagakure.
Under such circumstances, it was already a blessing that they hadn't broken into open conflict. Mizuki wasn't expecting real cooperation when trouble arose either.
Of course, Mizuki had no intention of trying to mediate.
Konoha, despite being one of the involved parties, had contributed the fewest people and the weakest forces.
If Mizuki didn't throw in some odd, unexpected factors himself, the strongest member of the escort team would be Maki, followed by Akatsuchi, and then the likes of Suna's female ninja Jun, Yura, Yamashiro Aoba, and Mizuki himself — all about evenly matched.
These people would form the core combat force.
The others, when facing strong enemies, couldn't be relied on for direct confrontation, though some possessed useful support abilities.
Thus, it was practically impossible for such a patchwork team to truly act in concert.
Just like at the initial meeting — Mizuki, representing Konoha, negotiated the mission details with Maki and Akatsuchi — the discussion ended unpleasantly.
With each side harboring their own intentions, genuine cooperation was out of the question.
『Looks like I'll need to stay alert this time. Can't let myself be led around by the nose... And then there's Yura…』
This Yura — a jonin from Sunagakure — was, in truth, an infiltrator.
He had been completely brainwashed by Sasori's secret technique, the Puppet Curse.
In other words, among the three sides, Sunagakure — which had forcibly inserted itself into the operation — was the one most likely to leak information and bring danger to the team.
Still, nothing was absolute.
Would Sasori really risk exposing such a deeply planted spy just to rescue his former partner, Deidara?
It was a calculation he'd have to make carefully.
Returning to camp, Mizuki found Yamashiro Aoba and the two genin setting up tents.
Since the team was effectively split into three groups, naturally they didn't camp too closely together.
As long as they remained within visual range and could provide timely backup, Mizuki was content to keep some distance.
After all, within their ranks, there were two extremely dangerous individuals — Gaara and Deidara.
Under normal circumstances, Mizuki intended to stay as far away from them as possible.
Deidara had witnessed Mizuki's "disposable Rinnegan" trick firsthand.
It would be best to avoid encountering him again unless absolutely necessary.
Fortunately, Deidara was now tightly restrained, sealed off from external perceptions by powerful fūinjutsu.
Additionally, the three Suna genin had also seen Mizuki's Earth Gravitational Seal (Chibaku Tensei) in action.
Though they couldn't understand exactly what the jutsu was, it didn't stop them from being deeply wary of Mizuki.
When dealing with someone who could flip the board with terrifying moves at any moment, Sunagakure — being pragmatic — would not easily provoke a Konoha jonin ally like Mizuki.
"Mizuki, how's it going?"
Yamashiro Aoba asked as he noticed Mizuki returning with a heavy expression.
"Just average," Mizuki replied.
"If it weren't for my presence as a Konoha representative, they might have started fighting already."
"That serious?"
Aoba frowned — conflicts during a mission could spell disaster.
"It is what it is. As long as there's no immediate trouble, it's fine."
Mizuki understood the underlying reasons too:
Sunagakure, though one of the Five Great Nations, was relatively weaker.
Their mindset — small, cautious, insecure — was showing even more after their recent major defeat and the loss of their Kazekage.
Iwagakure, on the other hand, was traditionally unified and aggressive — traits that helped maintain its standing among the Great Nations.
Putting these two groups together was like mixing oil and water.
The team leaders — Akatsuchi, Maki, and Mizuki — all knew the true objective of the mission.
But the lower-ranked ninja did not, so tensions naturally flared.
Mizuki didn't intend to mediate — if the Akatsuki didn't show up, it was all good.
If powerful enemies did appear, the overwhelming pressure would shut everyone up anyway.
Once everything was set up, Mizuki gathered Yamashiro Aoba, Hyuga Neji, and Aburame Shino.
Sitting on the ground, he began:
"This mission must have raised a lot of doubts. I'll explain in a bit."
"First, can you tell me what the official mission description was?"
"A-rank escort mission," Neji answered first.
"Same here," said Shino with a nod.
"Mine too," added Aoba.
"But I figured it wouldn't be that simple."
"Alright, thanks for your honesty," Mizuki smiled, rubbing his forehead.
"Honestly, I think the Fifth Hokage was trying to minimize information leaks."
Mizuki checked his surroundings again to make sure they weren't overheard before continuing:
"Yes, it's an A-rank mission.
But it's only one part of a much larger operation.
I need you all to stay sharp — because as the team leader, I can tell you:
This mission carries massive uncertainty, and the chances of it being upgraded to S-rank are very high."
"S-rank?!"
Both Neji and Shino were shocked.
They knew they were talented, but they weren't arrogant enough to think they could handle an S-rank mission casually.
Even Aoba laughed bitterly:
"I had a bad feeling, but I didn't expect it to really turn into an S-rank."
As a Tokubetsu Jonin, Aoba had only participated in a handful of S-rank missions.
The last time had been at the Land of Waves — a mission that had almost ended badly due to underestimation, not the difficulty itself.
In terms of mission grading:
D, C, B, and A ranks had relatively predictable difficulty levels.
Missions were matched with ninja of appropriate rank and skill, making success highly probable — especially with Konoha's strong standards.
But S-rank missions were different.
It wasn't merely "a level above A-rank" — it meant the difficulty could not even be measured.
In other words:
S-rank = no upper limit.
Those three simple words carried terrifying implications.
Even jonin approached S-rank missions with extreme caution, and failure — even death — was a real possibility.
It made sense for Mizuki and Aoba to be here.
But for genin like Neji and Shino… it was still far too early.
However...
"I know it's risky.
But you need to understand — the village is short-handed.
Even many chunin aren't available.
Right now, Konoha is relying on its younger generation to step up."
Normally, only during wartime would genin be deployed to missions beyond their capability —
just like Hatake Kakashi, who made his name as a battlefield prodigy before adulthood.
Right now, although the situation wasn't as bad as full-scale war, Konoha was certainly close to the breaking point.
Having suffered far heavier losses than in the original timeline, the village was mobilizing every available force to deter lurking threats.
Thus, sending talented genin on higher-risk missions was inevitable.
"...Understood."
Despite their pride, Neji and Shino couldn't help feeling a trace of unease.
"Mizuki, don't scare them too much," Aoba chuckled.
"Don't worry, kids — as long as the two of us are still breathing, nothing will happen to you."
"Exactly," Mizuki nodded.
"Besides, we have the help of Suna and Iwa too.
And... we aren't the enemy's main targets."
"How do you know that?"
Aoba asked seriously.
"With all the attacks lately, anything could happen."
"Because we don't have any prisoners or tailed beasts here," Mizuki answered.
"We're not carrying anything worth attacking."
Yet as he said this, Mizuki suddenly remembered something —
and quickly covered it up without showing it on his face.
『Actually, maybe I was too confident...』
As he walked away to set up traps and barriers, Mizuki couldn't help reflecting.
———
The moon rose high into the sky.
Mizuki had long finished setting up defensive measures but remained outside, sensing natural energy and mulling over his worries.
『Maybe we are a target after all…』
It dawned on him that he had underestimated the danger.
『I should've asked Tsunade for another strong ally. Aoba alone is a bit too risky...』
Originally, he believed that Gaara and Deidara would be the primary targets.
But now... he realized he might become the third target.
『The Rinnegan... even if it was a disposable fake, it's impossible to ignore something like that.』
There were several possible threats:
Sasori:
Having witnessed Mizuki's powers firsthand, it made sense he might covet them.
Uchiha Obito and Zetsu:
The Rinnegan was crucial to their plans.
If Pain's body, transplanted with the Rinnegan, failed to adapt, they'd need alternatives.
Even if Mizuki wasn't someone they would consider a major threat normally,
with potential Rinnegan power involved, it was worth investigating.
『Will Sage Mode really be enough when the time comes?』
Although Mizuki had practiced extensively, there were limitations.
Activating Sage Mode still took time —
a vulnerability sharp-eyed opponents would quickly exploit.
His lack of inherited Senjutsu techniques left his arsenal incomplete.
He had cobbled together some nature-enhanced attacks, but they remained untested in real combat.
Without real battle trials, Mizuki could only hope that when it counted,
his self-taught techniques wouldn't let him down.
That said, the sheer boost to physical abilities that Sage Mode provided was no joke.
Even without fancy jutsu, sheer force might be enough to win.
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