Chapter 3: ...steady is the only word

Three days later.

Mizunuki Ryosuke lay in the Hidden Mist hospital, looking half-dead (it was faked).

Ever since the life-and-death battle two days ago against the invading Hidden Rock ninja known as "Stone-Crusher" Tatsuo, Mizunuki Ryosuke had been recuperating.

During this time, many ninjas in the village who were familiar with Mizunuki Ryosuke came to visit him.

Ryosuke kept pretending to be half-dead from physical exhaustion after the hard battle, without revealing a single flaw.

This also fit Mizunuki Ryosuke's consistent image within the Hidden Mist Village.

To outsiders, the course of events was naturally clear at a glance.

It turned out that a few days ago, the Hidden Mist Village received intelligence.

Unusual activity was discovered in the deep mountains dozens of kilometers away from the village, though the cause was unknown.

Thus, the Hidden Mist authorities sent the team led by Mizunuki Ryosuke to perform a reconnaissance mission near the village.

Unexpectedly, an elite Hidden Rock team was lurking in the deep mountains.

The ninja team model was first innovated and invented by the Second Hokage, Senju Tobirama; generally, it consists of one veteran ninja leading three ordinary ninjas.

Once the ninja team model appeared, it was imitated by all major ninja villages due to its outstanding effectiveness.

Ninja teams are generally divided into two types: elite teams and ordinary teams.

An ordinary team is like Mizunuki Ryosuke's: one Chunin leading three Genin.

An elite team is like this Hidden Rock team: one Jonin leading three Chunin.

An ordinary team against an elite team, with the opponent led by a Jonin—under normal circumstances, the result goes without saying.

But unexpectedly, Mizunuki Ryosuke had counter-killed the enemy Jonin.

It must be said that Mizunuki Ryosuke usually had good relationships in the village.

Visitors came in an endless stream. Finally, after sending away the last visitor, he let out a slow sigh of relief.

"Knock, knock!"

Just then, the hospital room door was knocked on again. The sound was very loud; one could hear the impatience of the person outside just from the sound.

Before Mizunuki Ryosuke could respond, the person outside pushed the door open and entered.

Seeing the visitor, Mizunuki Ryosuke showed no surprise, as if he had anticipated everything.

"Mizunuki Ryosuke, I am acting under the orders of the Mizukage to investigate the incident where your team encountered Hidden Rock ninjas in the mountains."

"Please cooperate."

This person's tone was extremely cold, devoid of any emotion.

There were three people in the investigation group, all wearing masks that concealed their faces.

The three were ninjas from the Mist Anbu.

"Understood."

Mizunuki Ryosuke nodded faintly, his expression calm.

"You don't need to be nervous; we are just asking about some basic facts."

At this time, another Anbu member wearing a dog-face mask spoke up, their tone much gentler.

Hearing this, Mizunuki Ryosuke just smiled and nodded to the dog-faced Anbu, as if he already knew the other's identity.

"Mizunuki Ryosuke, please describe the course of the mission."

"Do not omit any details."

Another Anbu wearing a purple mask continued to ask.

Hearing this, Mizunuki Ryosuke nodded slowly and began to narrate.

"Three days ago, I led the team to the mission location as required."

"After arriving at the location, we began searching for suspicious targets according to the mission requirements."

"Soon, thanks to the ability of team member Genin Takeda Yoichi, we discovered suspicious traces."

Speaking of this, Mizunuki Ryosuke's expression became somewhat somber, as if he had fallen into bad memories.

Takeda Yoichi, a member of Mizunuki Ryosuke's team, was a sensory-type ninja.

"Following the tracks, we found one member of this Hidden Rock team."

"At the time, we mistakenly thought it was just a lone Hidden Rock scout."

"We immediately engaged in battle, but soon the opponent's reinforcements arrived: one Jonin and two Chunin."

"At that moment, I made the decision to disperse and break through."

"So I drew the enemy Jonin away and ordered the team members to return to the village immediately to report the situation."

"Then, by exhausting all my strength, I luckily killed the enemy Jonin."

"That is how it happened; I know nothing else."

Soon, Mizunuki Ryosuke finished his narration.

The three Anbu ninjas looked at each other.

"Mizunuki Ryosuke, how did you kill the Hidden Rock Jonin?"

"Based on our intelligence on you, no matter how we calculate it, your win rate was less than twenty percent."

"I hope you can give us an explanation."

The lead Anbu ninja continued to ask, and this was actually the biggest mystery of this mission.

A Jonin is an elite existence in a village, and the opponent was a somewhat famous Hidden Rock Jonin.

A great reputation is never without substance; the opponent was definitely not a weakling who could be easily killed by a Chunin.

Any ninja who can become a Jonin is someone who has been baptized in blood.

The high-level ninjutsu mastered by a Jonin is definitely not something a half-baked Chunin can rival.

Not to mention that in terms of attributes, the Earth Release ninjutsu mastered by Hidden Rock ninjas to a certain extent counters the Water Release that Mizunuki Ryosuke excels in.

"This..."

Mizunuki Ryosuke showed hesitation. After a moment, he slowly extended a hand.

Several transparent ice crystals condensed on Mizunuki Ryosuke's fingertips.

"Ice Release!"

The dog-faced Anbu said loudly, his tone carrying a hint of joy.

"Good, good, good!"

The dog-faced Anbu said "good" three times in a row.

"Cough, cough."

"Watch your emotions, Dog-Face."

The lead Anbu reminded the dog-faced Anbu on the side.

"So that's it. But since you have awakened the Ice Release Kekkei Genkai..."

"Why didn't you report it to the village?"

The lead Anbu continued to press.

It turned out that even if born into a Kekkei Genkai family, not everyone can awaken their own bloodline.

Every ninja with a bloodline is a scarce talent for a ninja village.

"I only just awakened Ice Release and intended to familiarize myself with it for a while before reporting it to the clan."

"But I didn't expect..."

Speaking of this, Mizunuki Ryosuke's tone paused abruptly, leaving enough room for imagination.

For a ninja with a special bloodline, killing an enemy above one's rank is not impossible.

Facing Mizunuki Ryosuke's prevarication, the few Anbu did not speak; after all, this was the Mizunuki clan's own business, and they had no right to interfere.

"Mizunuki Ryosuke, are you aware that two of your subordinates have been killed in action?"