Chapter 72
Mizukuchi Town.
By the time Haneda and his team returned, the sky was already bathed in crimson, and the sun was about to set.
Inside a small inn, Haneda gathered pale green chakra in his hands and began healing Kakashi and the others, one by one. Minato, watching from the side, looked a bit surprised and said:
"I didn't expect you to know medical ninjutsu on top of your excellent lightning release skills."
"I only know a little bit," Haneda replied, his hands still moving. Soon, Kakashi and the others began to regain consciousness.
When Kakashi opened his eyes and saw Haneda, he smiled faintly.
"This time, it's your turn to protect me, Haneda."
"Don't say that. Minato-sensei and Obito helped too," Haneda said, his eyes shifting to the side.
Hearing their conversation, Minato smiled and added:
"It was Haneda who broke through the Steel Release defense. Speaking of which, I've always lacked attacking methods in combination with the Flying Thunder God."
'Rasengan?' Haneda recalled Minato's earlier attack on Ichiro. Instead of using Rasengan, Minato had infused his kunai with wind chakra, not the iconic Rasengan that Naruto later popularized.
In a way, Minato invented the Rasengan to complement his Flying Thunder God technique. After all, Minato's speed was so fast that only a jutsu with no hand signs could keep up.
As Haneda pondered this, Obito loudly interrupted:
"That's right, Kakashi! I also played a big role in protecting you!"
Obito activated his double tomoe Sharingan, pointing to his eyes and boasting:
"Look at this! These are my double tomoe Sharingan, and they'll be carved on the Hokage Rock one day!"
"I've fulfilled my promise, you idiot, Kakashi!" Obito continued, proudly.
"Even with your Sharingan, you're still at the bottom of the class, Obito. In the end, it was Haneda who had to protect you," Kakashi retorted, continuing his habit of teasing.
"You idiot, Kakashi! I should've let you fend for yourself!" Obito huffed.
As the two bickered, Haneda and Minato exchanged a helpless smile. These two never stopped arguing, which was always a headache.
Seeing that Kakashi was fine, Haneda suddenly remembered Ichiro's body. He was puzzled as to how Ichiro knew about his three-tomoe Sharingan and his proficiency in genjutsu. Moreover, how did Ichiro break free from Haneda's Binding Illusion?
The Binding Illusion was an advanced application of the hypnotic eye, one of the top-tier techniques in the realm of genjutsu. Haneda had trained for five years to master it!
"Minato-sensei, has Ichiro's body been sent back to Konoha yet?" Haneda asked.
"That matter…" Minato said, "I sent it to Mount Myoboku for Jiraiya-sensei to hand over to the autopsy team. We should have results soon."
…
Far away in the Hidden Mist, inside Madara's secret underground hideout, Black Zetsu and White Zetsu emerged from the ground.
"Lord Madara."
Black Zetsu's voice woke the slumbering Madara.
Because of his advanced age, Madara relied on the Gedo Statue to sustain his life. To live until the day the Moon's Eye plan could be realized, he spent most of his time in a deep sleep, leaving his plans to Black Zetsu and White Zetsu.
"How is the plan progressing?" Madara asked slowly, opening his eyes.
"Lord Madara, Ichiro died at the hands of Haneda and Namikaze Minato. He nearly perished at the hands of Haneda and Kakashi together. If I hadn't intervened to release Ichiro from Haneda's genjutsu, he would have surely died," Black Zetsu reported respectfully.
"And Obito?" Madara asked in a low voice.
"He successfully awakened the Sharingan, and it's already a double tomoe Sharingan," Black Zetsu said.
"It seems his attachment to Rin, Haneda, and Kakashi is quite deep," Madara mused, his fingers tapping the stone chair rhythmically.
*Thud… Thud… Thud…*
After a few moments of silence, Madara spoke again:
"Obito might only need one more step to awaken the Mangekyo Sharingan. His most cherished person is Rin Nohara, correct?"
"Arrange for his best friends, Haneda or Kakashi, to kill Rin right in front of him."
Madara paused before adding, "As for Haneda… arrange for Sakumo to die during a mission, preferably in front of Haneda. Let him watch his teacher die, or even better, have him kill Sakumo himself."
"Afterward, let Konoha handle the fallout. Danzo's ROOT organization will play a key role here, and they already have a grudge against him," Madara said with finality.
Black Zetsu immediately fawned over him:
"Hehehe, Lord Madara's plan is flawless. That boy, Haneda, will never suspect that everything is your doing!"
"Hiruzen Sarutobi, that Hokage, will surely protect Danzo, and we can use Haneda's thirst for revenge to bring him to our side!"
…
Two and a half days later, Haneda's group returned to Konoha.
At the Hokage's office, the Third Hokage quietly took a puff from his pipe as Haneda and the others entered.
The Third never imagined that what started as a B-rank mission would escalate into an S-rank one. Originally, he had just wanted to strengthen the bond between Haneda and the Hokage's faction, but it had almost cost them their lives.
Nonetheless, both Haneda and Kakashi's performance had greatly surprised him. Ichiro, a bounty hunter with dual Kekkei Genkai for speed and defense, had power that rivaled elite jonin or even Kage-level shinobi.
That such a formidable individual had nearly been defeated by two genin—Haneda and Kakashi—left even the Third Hokage astonished. Despite his prior expectations for Haneda's abilities, the outcome still shocked him. Given time, Haneda might truly become the next Kagami..
"Hokage-sama, this is the mission's detailed report," Sakumo said, handing a scroll to the Third Hokage.
After scanning it briefly, the Third Hokage spoke:
"Well done. This Ichiro was a notorious bounty hunter from the black market, specializing in assassinations."
"It seems he targeted Haneda for his three-tomoe Sharingan and my son Asuma for his bounty. According to the autopsy team's report, Ichiro's body had been tampered with. At the moment of his death, his brain was completely destroyed."
"It's likely the black market didn't want any secrets leaking and rigged his body beforehand."
…
Listening to the Third Hokage's explanation, Haneda's mind raced. It was plausible that the black market had known about him, but the likelihood was low. During his mission in the Land of Waves, he had swiftly dealt with the enemies without witnesses, making it unlikely that anyone had found out.
More puzzling was how Ichiro had broken free from the Binding Illusion. He had seemingly accepted his fate—could he have had a split personality?
Suddenly, Haneda recalled a sinister laugh during the fight. The evil laughter didn't match Ichiro's typically hearty demeanor.
At that moment, a bold suspicion formed in his mind.
'Could it have been Black Zetsu?'
Had Haneda, Uchiha Haneda, caught the attention of Madara and Black Zetsu, the masterminds behind the shinobi world?
***
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