Shisui returned home after the meeting. Since his upcoming mission would last a month, the family took the day off to spend time with him and say their farewells. Even Naruto, who had been forced to attend the academy, had left behind a note wishing him well.
"I'll be fine, Mom. Don't worry too much," Shisui said, smiling at Hae.
"I know you'll be fine," she replied, her voice filled with motherly care and concern. "Because if anything happens to you, you won't like the consequences."
The recent news of an attack and the death of someone they knew had deeply affected Hae. As a mother, she constantly worried about her family, especially knowing how often they went on dangerous missions—let alone one as long as this.
"I promise, Mom. I'll take care of myself," Shisui assured her before turning to Kaida and Yomi.
"Take care of Mom and the house. They'll be in your care until I return. You too, Kenta," he added, glancing toward the bear, who was poking his head in from the backyard.
"Guah," Kenta let out a soft growl, acknowledging his role.
"Then I'll take my leave," Shisui said, bidding a final goodbye to his family as he made his way toward the village gate.
"Take care, brother, and be safe," Kaida called after him. Among those present, only he knew the true nature of Shisui's mission. But he couldn't tell Hae or the others—if they knew, they would never let him go. Regardless, Shisui had to follow the Hokage's orders, and the mission's secrecy prevented any discussion.
"I will," Shisui said as he left the house.
________________________________________
While Shisui was being farewelled by his whole family, Kakashi closed the door of his home alone, with no one there to say anything to him at all.
He had long since grown accustomed to his loneliness and had come to accept it. As he prepared to leave, he noticed a cloud of dust approaching from the distance. A small smile formed on his face—but before the dust cloud could reach him, he turned away and continued on his way.
"Kakashi! Waaaaait!"
A loud shout echoed from behind, prompting Kakashi to stop in his tracks. He turned around, already recognizing the voice.
"Oh, Guy. What are you doing here?"
"What do you mean, Kakashi?!" Guy exclaimed, striking his signature thumbs-up pose. "I've come to bid farewell to my eternal rival! Since you're heading off on a difficult mission, I won't be able to challenge you for that time period. So, I've decided to increase my training 2 times! That way, when you return, I'll defeat you without a doubt!"
Kakashi let out a small chuckle. "Hahaha, sure, sure. Do your best. But for now, I'm running late for my mission. See you soon, Guy."
With that, he turned away, leaving both his home and his friend behind.
Guy stood there, watching Kakashi's retreating figure with a big grin on his face. But aside from his usual demeanor, something else caught his eye—the short blade strapped to Kakashi's back. It was the very weapon once wielded by the legendary White Fang himself.
'Looks like you've finally decided to move forward... to grow beyond your past.'
His expression turned serious for a brief moment before shifting back into his usual enthusiasm.
'Then I can't afford to fall behind either! I may need to increase my training by 3 times just to keep up!'
Determined, Guy pulled out several more weighted seals and tied them to his arms. Then, without hesitation, he dropped into a handstand.
"Alright! Let's start with 20 laps around Konoha like this!" he declared, before launching into a sprint—on his hands—moving faster than most Genin, even some Chunin, could with both feet on the ground. And all while carrying tens of kilograms of extra weight over his already extreme training regimen.
A true monster when it came to training. But that monster had increased his training because he knew one thing clearly: Kakashi Hatake, a genius among geniuses who had forgone any training and motivation after facing so many tragedies in his life, was able to keep up with him, even when he gave his all.
What will happen when such a person actually tried and started training? The progress will know no bounds. Any other person would be demotivated at such a scenario, but here we are talking about Might Guy.
Let alone being demotivated, he was rather now more motivated to train and increase his strength faster than before.
…
At the village gate, a fleet of shinobi stood ready to depart for the Fire Capital, prepared for the high-stakes mission assigned to them. The Fire Daimyo had spared no expense, hiring not just one but three S-rank ninjas from Konoha.
Even a single S-rank ninja would typically cost 3 to 4 million Ryo per week, but this mission required three—for an entire month. In total, the Fire Daimyo had paid a staggering 15 million Ryo just for their services.
A sum so massive that the Daimyos of smaller nations couldn't even dream of spending it in a year, let alone a month—further proving just how wealthy the Land of Fire truly was.
As the group set off, spies—who had risked their lives infiltrating the village—gathered near the gates, discreetly observing their departure before sending a signal to their handlers. Many of them silently thanked whatever gods they believed in that Konoha hadn't discovered their presence.
What they didn't know, however, was that numerous ANBU operatives hidden throughout the village were already watching them like hawks, tracking their every move.
While Konoha could have captured them all with ease, Hiruzen and Shikaku had agreed to let them be. After all, the only information they could gather was that the task force was heading toward the Fire Capital—exactly what Konoha wanted them to believe. Capturing them now would only raise suspicion among the other villages, and Konoha had no intention of drawing unnecessary attention.
Still, for credibility's sake, they did capture a few spies—the ones who had grown too bold, failing to cover their tracks properly.
Meanwhile, the remaining spies continued their mission, passing along intel to others stationed along the route to confirm the squad's travel path.
As a result, Kumogakure and Iwagakure soon received reports from their spies detailing the departure of the attack force—which included Jiraiya, Shisui, and Kakashi, accompanied by eight other ANBU captain-level ninjas.
The higher-ups in both villages, upon receiving this intel, visibly relaxed. They didn't even care about the news of a few spies being caught—after all, the key information had already been delivered.
While Kumo and Iwa relieved their built-up tension, Shikaku continued executing his strategy in the shadows. Instead of sending reinforcements all at once, he deployed multiple squads of ninja at different intervals, each heading toward their designated outposts.
By the time Shisui and Jiraiya arrived at their respective locations, every Konoha shinobi involved would already be in position, waiting.