"Captain, what exactly are the usual duties of the Anbu?"
Along the wooded trail, Nara Kazuki’s eyes were unfocused, distant.
Honestly, he hadn’t expected Uchiha Shisui to be such a chatterbox. The guy was like a walking encyclopedia of Why?—and Kazuki was already getting tired of it.
In stark contrast was Uchiha Itachi. The kid, though still small, was unnervingly calm. Quiet the entire way.
Still, Kazuki noticed him sneaking snacks into his mouth every now and then. After a closer look, he realized they were just little treats.
Teenage boys, bottomless pits.
Kazuki let it slide. Itachi was still growing, after all. Though technically, so was Shisui—they were around the same age.
"Complete missions. Protect the village. Die," Kazuki sighed.
He knew if he didn’t give Shisui some kind of answer, the questions would just keep coming. The guy was insatiably curious about everything related to Anbu.
"Die?" Shisui blinked in surprise. Kazuki clapped a hand on his shoulder.
"Yeah, die. But honestly, that’s just being a shinobi."
He gave a small smile. He’d recently spent time poring over the clan’s archives—case studies and records restricted to those who’d reached a certain rank.
The Second and Third Great Ninja Wars had no shortage of squads assigned as decoys—without being told. They went out thinking it was a normal mission... and walked straight into ambushes, traps, slaughter.
If you survived, you got accolades. If you didn’t, well—you became another strategic casualty.
Shisui pursed his lips. So... Anbu missions weren’t anything to romanticize. And here he’d been, full of ambition.
"But Anbu missions do help you rack up achievements. Sometimes you’ll meet the Hokage, or even the Elders. Though Shimura Danzō... that man’s tricky. Lotta bad rumors," Kazuki added, making sure to smear Danzō a little more.
He didn’t know what angle Danzō was playing to recruit Shisui and Itachi into Root, but whatever it was, Kazuki was going to ruin it.
The moment gossip came up, Shisui’s interest skyrocketed. Even Itachi, pretending not to care, leaned in just enough to listen.
First impressions mattered.
Once someone was labeled—especially with things like character or morality—scrubbing that label off was nearly impossible. If it was looks or body shape, maybe you could fix it with effort. But personality? Once tagged, you were done.
"...Captain, Elder Danzō... isn’t he supposed to be a good person?" Shisui hesitated. "He even met with me once... said he had high hopes for the Uchiha..."
Kazuki’s pace faltered for a moment.
Seriously? That old bastard had already approached Shisui?
"Danzō was trained by the Second Hokage, Senju Tobirama. And you know how Tobirama felt about your clan," Kazuki said bluntly.
Strictly speaking, Tobirama distrusted every clan. He believed in strict classification and surveillance. But let’s be real—he was especially wary of the Uchiha. The phrase "Uchiha are born evil" basically summed up his stance.
And under that influence? Of course Hiruzen and Danzō ended up biased too.
He did know his clan’s history. He’d studied it, precisely because he wanted to bridge the gap between the Uchiha and the village. That’s why he’d clung to every opportunity.
Including the poisoned honey that Danzō offered—and which eventually turned him into a sacrificial pawn.
Beside him, Itachi’s young face wore a thoughtful look. Kazuki saw it and shook his head.
This world ate its young. Kids like Itachi shouldn’t have had to worry about the clan and the village .
With the Danzō-bashing session done, Kazuki led them to their destination: Sunset Town.
As its name implied, the town was built in the direction of the setting sun. A small, peaceful place—no stationed shinobi. Under normal circumstances, this kind of mission wouldn’t even reach Anbu. At best, it would be a low-rank job posted in the mission hall, and the townspeople would have to pay out of pocket.
But Sunset Town was one of the Land of Fire’s key grain suppliers.
Which made it... valuable.
"Funny how that works, huh? Usefulness equals protection," Kazuki muttered, shaking his head. Other towns had to scrape together funds to hire shinobi, but Sunset didn’t lift a finger and Anbu came running.
Life really wasn’t fair.
Near Sunset Town, it didn’t take long to track the rogue ninja. They found traces of their encampment easily.
They were just rogues, after all—not trained elite. Compared to Anbu? Laughably sloppy.
"...Initial assessment: three chūnin, five genin-level, and some bottom feeders," Kazuki murmured, watching the enemy camp from the trees.
Apparently these guys had fully embraced their life-on-the-line lifestyle. They were throwing a damn party.
A silver party, to be specific.
A freakin’ silver party.
And they didn’t even invite me?
"How do we handle this?" Shisui asked, voice tight. On the battlefield, he quieted down considerably. Itachi looked even more tense, clutching his shuriken—palms already slick with sweat.
Kazuki gave Itachi a sideways glance and nearly groaned aloud.
What the hell was Fugaku thinking?
Sending his tiny son into the Anbu? If Itachi weren’t so monstrously talented, he’d be little more than a mascot.
"Take out the three chūnin first. I’ll handle the center and left. White Crow, you take the right. Crow—tie up the genin," Kazuki ordered after thinking through their composition.
The Sharingan was powerful, sure—but it still needed to mature.
If he didn’t need to build up these two for public recognition back in the village, Kazuki would’ve just soloed the whole thing.
That was an 8% chakra buff waiting to happen.