Chapter 12: Almost Exposed Before Even Starting the Undercover Mission
Kamishiro, who had already broken free from the Hidden Brain Sand Manipulation, had regained all his memories.
But right now, Kamishiro was truly terrified.
Hey! Minato Namikaze! One of those well - known top ninjas in the ninja world!
If Minato wanted to kill him, he'd only need to wiggle his little finger.
Although Kamishiro had been forced to become an undercover agent, it was his first time doing such a job. He had no experience at all and didn't know what to do next.
The Third Kazekage said that after [The Plan] succeeded, he just needed to consider himself a Konoha ninja and then gather intelligence, ninjutsu, and secret techniques of Konoha and so on.
Pretending to be a Konoha ninja sounded easy, but it was incredibly difficult. Right now, he felt like a thief who'd just been caught red - handed. He simply couldn't convince himself that he was part of Konoha. His mind wasn't that tough.
As for gathering intelligence about Konoha, he'd have to get into Konoha first. And they hadn't even said he could join Konoha yet.
Suddenly, Kamishiro felt lost.
Originally, he thought being an undercover agent was better than going to the battlefield, but now it seems that going to the battlefield is actually a better choice than being an undercover agent.
The psychological pressure on Kamishiro was overwhelming. His life was out of his control, and he was face - to - face with an extremely powerful ninja. The pressure was so great that his brain almost shut down and he could hardly think.
Minato had been keeping an eye on Kamishiro. Seeing his state, Minato's eyes narrowed slightly.
There seemed to be a big difference in Kamishiro's behavior.
Just a moment ago, he'd been full of energy, begging for mercy. But after Yamanaka Syoichi had peeked into his memories, he suddenly looked lost and extremely nervous.
Minato asked, "Are you okay?"
Hearing Minato's question, Kamishiro looked up guiltily and stammered, "I, I'm okay."
Minato squinted at Kamishiro and said with a smile, "That's good."
Minato took out his Kunai and cut the ropes binding Kamishiro, freeing him.
Minato said to Yamanaka Syoichi, "Syoichi, report this matter to the Third Hokage right away."
"Yes, I'll go right now!"
Yamanaka Syoichi left immediately without wasting any time, eager to tell Hiruzen Sarutobi this almost - too - good - to - be - true news.
After Yamanaka Syoichi left, Minato asked, "What's your name?"
"Ka, Kamishiro."
"Kamishiro, huh? I think you already know that you've become a sacrifice in the alliance between Sunagakure Village and Iwagakure. And we Konoha ninjas intercepted you. What are your thoughts?"
When Minato asked for his thoughts, Kamishiro tried hard to calm himself down and think about how to answer.
After a short pause, Kamishiro replied with a 'frustrated' look on his face, "I'm so freaking angry! Mad as hell! I never thought Sunagakure Village would treat me like this! Since Lord Minato saved me, I'd like to ask Lord Minato to take me in! I don't want to go back to that inhumane village of Sunagakure anymore!"
Minato Namikaze was now quite certain in his heart that there was definitely something wrong with Kamishiro.
Currently, Kamishiro's expression was overly stiff, and the words he spoke were too flat. Although he deliberately emphasized a few words, there was hardly any sense of anger in them.
So... Kamishiro's anger was faked.
Although Minato didn't know how Kamishiro could deceive Yamanaka Syoichi's mind - reading technique, it's possible that Kamishiro was sent by Sunagakure Village on a mission to Iwagakure.
However, there was one thing that Minato Namikaze couldn't understand.
That's why Sunagakure Village chose this child, Kamishiro.
This child clearly had no experience at all and almost had 'I have a problem' written all over his face.
Minato Namikaze recalled all the details about Kamishiro after he and Yamanaka Syoichi entered the tent.
First, Kamishiro pleaded with them hoarsely, saying that he was willing to cooperate.
Then, after Yamanaka Syoichi read Kamishiro's memories, Kamishiro suddenly changed his personality completely. He stood there stunned for a long time and then looked extremely guilty.
Minato Namikaze thought of a possibility. The memories Yamanaka Syoichi read from Kamishiro were real.
But a part of Kamishiro's memories was missing and thus not read.
And that missing part of the memories might be the reason why Kamishiro was used as a sacrifice.
After Yamanaka Syoichi read Kamishiro's memories, Kamishiro remembered that missing part of the memories.
This might be the reason for Kamishiro's sudden change of personality.
Minato Namikaze then found another suspicious point: the trading location between Sunagakure Village and Iwagakure.
Why did they choose The Land of Rivers?
The Land of Rivers is on the left of the Land of Wind and on the right of The Land of Fire.
If they wanted to trade with Iwagakure, it would be safer to choose The Land of Birds, which connects the Land of Wind and the Land of Earth.
Minato Namikaze thought of another possibility, that is, Kamishiro might not want to enter Iwagakure to carry out any task. His real target could very well be Konoha!
The very intelligent Minato Namikaze's analysis was almost close to the truth.
Kamishiro was now extremely uneasy.
Because during the time when Minato Namikaze was silent, Minato's facial expression had changed several times.
Now, Minato suddenly looked at him with a scrutinizing look, which made Kamishiro tremble with fear.
Could it be that... he couldn't join Konoha?
But didn't that guy from the Yamanaka Clan say just now that he was of great value to Konoha?
Wasn't his value big enough? Was it so strict?
Kamishiro, unaware that his identity as an undercover agent was about to be exposed, was restlessly fidgeting.
Minato Namikaze remained silent for a while. Then, he said with a warm smile spreading across his face, "There's no need to rush to join Konoha. After all, you were a ninja from Sunagakure Village before. The procedure to join Konoha is quite complicated. Outsiders must make certain contributions to Konoha and be vouched for by someone."
"By the way, Yamanaka Syoichi said you're quite accomplished in the Magnet Ninja Art. Could you demonstrate it?"
Kamishiro trembled.
Could it be that Minato Namikaze wanted to assess his strength and then send him to The Battle to make contributions to Konoha?
No way! He became an undercover agent just to avoid going to The Battle!
If Minato Namikaze sent him to The Battle, wouldn't he have to both fight on the front lines and act as an undercover agent?
What was the point of coming here then?
He might as well have revealed his strength in front of the Third Kazekage and gone directly to The Battle back then.
But since Yamanaka Syoichi had read his memories, Minato Namikaze already knew that he wasn't weak. He couldn't even deceive Minato Namikaze.
Kamishiro looked on the verge of tears. With a long face, he said, "Lord Minato, I'm more of a technical type. I'm not cut out for The Battle. My ninjutsu may look flashy but is actually quite weak. It can't even kill anyone!"
Now Minato Namikaze was sure that Kamishiro was showing his true feelings this time. At the same time, he was even more convinced that the memories Yamanaka Syoichi had read from Kamishiro were real.
The memories Yamanaka Syoichi had read showed that Kamishiro was extremely afraid of The Battle. He was worried that the Third Kazekage would send him to The Battle after learning of his talent and strength, so he had always hidden his abilities.
It seemed that the Third Kazekage really had no idea about Kamishiro's talent. Otherwise, he wouldn't have sent a talented but completely inexperienced ninja like Kamishiro on a certain secret mission.
After all, if Kamishiro were a ninja with extremely poor talent, his death wouldn't have mattered to Sunagakure Village.