"So what you're saying is—this mission isn't about the Daimyō's mistress going missing, but about the Daimyō trying to retrieve something?"
Fox looked at Kazuki with interest. Kazuki nodded.
"I found these fragments wedged in the cabinet wall. Along with clear traces of chakra and ninjutsu use," he explained, holding out the scrap he'd picked up earlier.
Kakashi examined it. "Looks like part of an Explosive Tag," he muttered, though he added "looks like" since it was mostly destroyed.
Fox took it, examined it, and nodded. "Yeah. That's definitely tag residue."
Explosive Tags weren't cheap. Even among shinobi, most only carried a few for emergencies.
Of course, Konan was an exception. Her Paper Release jutsu let her summon a sea of tags, but that was a unique ability. Even Kakuzu working full-time, 24/7 on missions probably couldn't earn enough ryo to keep up with her tag bill.
And no way the Akatsuki spent their whole existence grinding missions just to fund Konan's paper bombs.
"So the Daimyō tried to cover up signs of ninja combat—and even erase them?" Fox mused.
Kazuki nodded. "It's likely the mistress got hold of something important. Something the Daimyō wanted hidden."
The Land of Fire's Daimyō had never been particularly clean. Kazuki knew that around this time, the Twelve Guardian Ninja were already being assembled.
That group didn't get much focus in the series—minor characters, modest power levels.
Officially, they protected the Daimyō. But if the Daimyō wasn't complicit in their ideology, then how the hell did someone like Hiruko manage to push beliefs like 'The Hokage shouldn't exist—shinobi should answer to the Daimyō'?
The Twelve Guardians were hand-picked. If Hiruko and other radicals made it in, it was clear: the Daimyō had his own ambitions.
He didn't just want protection. He wanted control—military and political power in one hand.
"Then why call ANBU?" Kakashi asked. "If the mistress had something dangerous, summoning ANBU increases the chance that info gets reported to the Hokage."
ANBU weren't mercs. They reported to the Hokage. Calling them in meant potentially exposing secrets to Konoha leadership.
"It could be a play," Kazuki speculated. "A roundabout way to leak intel to the Hokage—using us as the delivery system. Or maybe it's a misdirection. Right now, their true aim isn't clear."
What he did know: the Daimyō went out of his way to hide the fact there'd been a ninja battle. That alone said he had something to hide.
"Another option—someone stronger took what he wanted, and the Daimyō couldn't handle it. So now he's baiting us into handling it for him."
Kazuki's tone grew darker.
He leaned toward that theory more. The whole "covert message" idea seemed dumb and overly complicated. Unless the Hokage was an idiot, no one would believe a setup .
Considering the snake scales and lingering chakra traces, Kazuki was more inclined to believe: someone strong got involved, and the Daimyō had no way to handle it himself—so he called in Konoha.
"Whatever the case, let's keep investigating," Fox waved a hand. "Follow the trail long enough, the tail always slips out."
Kazuki subconsciously glanced at his captain.
"...I heard Red Stag also has a tail," Fox said flatly, catching the look.
Kazuki cleared his throat and moved on.
The trio searched the estate again, but no new clues surfaced. The scene had been completely compromised.
Destroyed on purpose.
Kazuki was more convinced than ever—the Daimyō wasn't looking for someone. He was covering something up. The disorganized, looted-room look was deliberate misdirection.
Any decent Konoha Police Force investigator would call it a textbook example of a botched crime scene.
Still, Fox managed to find a lead.
"White snake tracks," he said, pointing to the grass near a pathway.
Kazuki squinted. "Where?"
Just looked like... grass.
Definitely more to learn in the tracking department.
"Orochimaru?" Kakashi's tone tightened. That name always brought tension. One of the Legendary Sannin.
"Possibly," Fox replied. "Or someone trying to make us think it's Orochimaru."
Given Orochimaru's fame, planting a few signs—white snakes, unique jutsu—was easy misdirection. Plenty in the shinobi world knew his tactics.
They followed the trail.
The signs just stopped. Clean cut.
They scoured the nearby woods. Fox even dug through soil, checking for underground bunkers or labs.
"Red Stag, your thoughts?"
That evening, the three of them sat atop tree branches, chewing through bland rations. Fox looked to Kazuki.
Kazuki sipped water. Dry mouth. Konoha's field rations were criminal.
This case had never appeared in the anime, meaning it wasn't a high-impact event. Probably filler-tier.
"I think this mission's a pain. Every lead's been intentionally sabotaged. The only clues we do find are too perfect—like someone wants us to follow a script..."
"I've got an idea," Kazuki said.
Time to flip the damn table.