"What? Hippo Squad Leader is dead?"
A week after the Nine-Tailed's seal transfer, news spread within the Anbu base.
Hippo Squad Leader of the Yellow Dog Squad had died during a mission in the Land of Fire.
Hippo Squad Leader was very strong, just a step away from becoming a Jonin.
On the night of the Nine-Tailed's seal transfer, Hippo was also one of the Squad Leaders who followed Yellow Dog to the Nine-Tailed.
Many Ninja in Anbu had died, but the crucial point was that from Hippo's corpse, it appeared he was ambushed and killed from behind by a subordinate.
Anbu having a Spy was truly shocking.
In the following days, Anbu members frequently died, all killed by their subordinates or Captains, causing a state of alarm within the Death Forest base.
In a forest somewhere in the Land of Fire.
The Fox Squad appeared one after another using Body Flicker Technique.
Three small squads formed a circle, some standing on the ground, some on rocks, and some on tree trunks.
On the ground in the center of the squads were two corpses.
Two Anbu corpses.
The atmosphere was extremely heavy.
This was the second Anbu infighting incident the Fox Squad had investigated recently.
After carefully examining the bodies, Purple Cat came to report to Night Light:
"Captain, the deceased are two members of our Yellow Dog Squad's Yak Squad.
One ambushed the other from behind, piercing the other's lung with a Ninja blade.
After a brief struggle, both died."
Night Light asked, "Are both of them new recruits recently sent by Root?"
If Root's vetting was lax and a Spy had infiltrated Anbu, it was possible for the Spy to suddenly attack for information.
Purple Cat said, "The person who was ambushed is a new recruit, but the person who attacked from behind cannot be considered new; he has served in Anbu for over six months."
"Six months, then we can rule out the possibility of a Spy."
Bai Yang raised his eyebrow slightly from the side. Could a six-month tenure rule out a Spy? The Fox Squad Leader had been serving in Anbu for about a year.
Night Light looked at Purple Cat and said:
"Since the Nine-Tailed's seal transfer, our squad alone has investigated two incidents of Anbu infighting.
I don't know about other squads, but I estimate there are more.
This is not a coincidence. Besides the possibility of a Spy, the Nara Clan's Shadow Manipulation Secret Technique, the Yamanaka Clan's Mind Body Switch Technique, and some forbidden techniques can all control others to kill each other.
Can we rule out the suspicion of the Nara Clan or the Yamanaka Clan?"
Purple Cat said:
"The final blows from both sides were Kunai to the eyes, directly into the brain. The brains were destroyed, so no information could be extracted from the corpses' brains.
However, we can rule out Shadow Manipulation Technique.
Anyone affected by Shadow Manipulation Technique will unconsciously exert force with their feet to try and break free from control, so the soil beneath their feet will be disturbed during the struggle, leaving deep footprints.
As for Mind Body Switch Technique… I cannot rule it out."
Night Light also had no solution; this investigation mission again came to nothing.
Last time, three Anbu Ninja acted to assassinate a Land of Fire noble, but ended up dying in the noble's garden. Not only did the mission fail, but it also almost caused a diplomatic incident.
This time, two Anbu went to the front lines in the Land of Grass to deliver intelligence, but died halfway.
Crucially, both deaths were due to mutual killing, which was extremely rare for Anbu.
"Bring the bodies back to the Village. Let's see if the Interrogation Department can extract any information."
After returning to Anbu, as soon as Night Light sent the bodies to the Interrogation Department, the Yellow Dog Captain's assistant said that the Captain wanted to see him.
Entering the Captain's office, Night Light saw over a dozen scrolls haphazardly thrown on the desk.
Yellow Dog said:
"After the Nine-Tailed's seal transfer, Anbu suffered considerable casualties. Recently, there have been more than ten incidents of Anbu infighting. People have died in all six Anbu squads.
What are your investigation results today?"
Night Light replied:
"Sorry, just like last time, I found nothing.
The brains of the corpses were all destroyed, making it impossible to determine if it was genuine infighting or infighting under the control of Genjutsu, Secret Technique, or Forbidden Technique.
Within a few hundred meters of the area, no traces of enemy concealment or lurking were found."
Yellow Dog pushed his mask, indicating his own anxiety at the moment. He said:
"Anbu members are dying after leaving the Village, so the enemy is likely outside the Village.
The investigation near the Village yielded no results. Fox, take your squad to the Land of Rain to investigate an Anbu death incident.
Your squad includes members of the Yamanaka Clan and Hyuga Clan, making its capabilities more comprehensive.
Going to the Land of Rain is, firstly, for the death of the Anbu squad, and secondly, for Lord Danzo to monitor the battle situation in the Land of Rain.
Lord Danzo has decided to enter the Land of Rain within the next half-month or one month.
Currently, the most intense fighting is against the Hidden Rain Village.
The Half-God Salamander Hanzo is renowned; perhaps the Anbu deaths are a result of his behind-the-lines sabotage."
Night Light nodded and asked again, "What about the mission to monitor the escalating conflict between the Senju Clan and the Uchiha Clan?"
Yellow Dog said, "I will assign that to other squads in the Village."
The Senju Clan and the Uchiha Clan had constant friction, and bloodshed had occurred.
The greatly weakened Senju Clan, instead, became aggressive, constantly provoking the Uchiha Clan.
The Uchiha Clan could not explain the Sharingan on the night of the Nine-Tailed's seal transfer, and being unable to defend themselves, they had been enduring it.
Night Light left Konoha Village with his squad that day, heading to the Land of Rain.
Along the way, Night Light was very cautious, guarding against his surroundings and every Anbu member behind him, especially the new recruits.
Who exactly was killing Anbu?
A name surfaced in Night Light's mind.
Could it be him?
Kato Dan?
Kato Dan's involvement wouldn't be strange, but directly executing Anbu, that was a bit odd.
Had the Senju Clan abandoned their naivety and started resorting to ruthless means against Anbu?
Upon arriving in the Land of Rain, Night Light led his squad to report to the front-line command post.
General Commander Homura Mitokado did not have the authority to command Anbu, but he needed to know all the forces on the front line, including Anbu, to avoid misjudgments.
In the Anbu tent, Night Light saw many Jonin.
Orochimaru, Jiraiya, Tsunade, Kato Dan, and others.
A small Jonin meeting seemed to have just ended here.
Night Light glanced at Tsunade; the tragic situation of the Nine-Tailed's seal transfer had already reached the front lines.
Tsunade looked tired and sorrowful, with most of her clan dying during the Nine-Tailed's sealing, her mood was extremely poor.
Night Light then scanned Orochimaru. Danzo's Sharingan must have been transplanted by Orochimaru.
He had once helped Orochimaru dispose of post-experiment corpses; the eyes of a Shimura Clan boy were removed.
He wondered if any Shimura Clan members later became experimental subjects because of Danzo.
As for Jiraiya, there was no point in looking; he was only focused on clinging to Tsunade, and nothing could be discerned from him.
These three did not notice Night Light, an Anbu, but Night Light clearly felt Kato Dan give him an extra look.
Turning his head slightly to watch Kato Dan's retreating back, Night Light was pensive.
Homura Mitokado said, "Fox, the Anbu squad that died mysteriously, their bodies are still in the medical area's corpse storage tent. You can go investigate."
"Understood, Lord Homura Mitokado."
Upon arriving at the medical tent area, Night Light saw Tsunade again.
Tsunade, wearing the First Hokage's necklace she had retrieved from Nawaki, was busy in the medical area.
The Hidden Rain Village bred Salamander, whose venom was very potent, and there were many poisoned Ninja in the medical area.
Fortunately, Tsunade was here; otherwise, these poisoned Ninja would slowly die.
As Night Light led Purple Cat and Bai Yang towards the morgue tent, he saw Kato Dan coming to find Tsunade again.
Kato Dan was followed by two Ninja, who were the guards the Senju Clan had assigned to him.
As he passed Kato Dan, Night Light carefully observed all of Kato Dan's details.
His body muscles were very relaxed, showing no signs of tensing up upon seeing an enemy.
Night Light felt somewhat puzzled. Had he been mistaken?
There was also a possibility that this Squad Leader, Fox, was not worth Kato Dan's tension