Chapter 312: The Terrified Lei Huche Begins to Grow Excited!

Yamato didn’t waste words; he pulled out half of a dark seal.

This was a specialized communication device crafted by the Hidden Leaf’s sealing techniques—half kept by the Leaf, the other half by the spy.

Whoever produced this half-seal could directly activate the corresponding spy.

Lei Huche: “...”

Upon seeing the half-seal before him, his mind went utterly blank.

The Hidden Leaf? Anbu?

His face turned instantly pale, his whole body trembling slightly.

But...

He quickly recovered, and with a trembling right hand, pulled out half a dark seal from his chest.

Clearly.

He knew full well that if the Hidden Leaf Anbu had come for him, denial was impossible—the consequence of spy betrayal was only complete death.

The only difference was whether he died at the Hidden Leaf’s hands or the Hidden Cloud’s.

So, despite his deep reluctance, he said nothing and immediately produced the seal.

Then.

When the two halves of the seal joined, intricate runes began to flow and erupted in brilliant white light.

“Good. Baihai, listen.”

“From today, Itachi are activated by the Anbu. I am the Captain of the First Platoon, Second Battalion of the Hidden Leaf Anbu—Yamato!”

“Your mission is to rise to the position of Hidden Cloud Anbu Chief within two months. Our squad will accompany Itachi 24/7 to help Itachi ascend quickly and eliminate all your rivals...”

“Of course, don’t worry!”

“They will all die by accident—guaranteed not to hinder your promotion.”

“This is your first mission—and your last.”

“After this mission is completed, Itachi, your family, and your children may return to live in the Hidden Leaf.”

“Itachi need not worry about life after returning to the Leaf—Itachi know that our current Hokage, Uchiha Jin, is not like the old Leaf’s Hiruzen Sarutobi.”

“The current Hidden Leaf does not demand blind sacrifice; it upholds the principle that effort equals reward.”

“Your mission difficulty is S-class. Upon returning to the Leaf, Itachi will receive ten million silver taels, 12,000 contribution points, and any mid-level platoon leader position in any department.”

After confirming the seal was correct, Yamato began his briefing.

Of course.

Unlike the old Hidden Leaf’s approach to spies, Yamato laid out responsibilities and rewards openly.

Hokage Uchiha Jin does not demand blind sacrifice.

Complete the mission, and Itachi receive equal reward!

Meanwhile, on the other side.

After hearing this, Lei Huche froze in place.

What?

There’s a reward?

And this reward sounded extraordinarily generous.

He was a Hidden Cloud Anbu—he knew well the current state of the Hidden Leaf. Contribution points were valuable there. Twelve thousand points?

And a mid-level platoon leader position in the Leaf was no small thing.

Thinking of this, his breathing quickened.

If this reward was real, he certainly wanted to return to the Hidden Leaf.

After all, in truth:

The current Hidden Leaf was the strongest ninja village in the world—even the Akatsuki feared it deeply. And once he returned, he’d become a mid-level leader.

Thinking of this, Lei Huche’s eyes lit up: “If I complete the mission, there’s really this much reward?”

“Of course. Don’t doubt it.” Yamato’s expression remained calm as he spoke slowly: “Itachi’re a Hidden Cloud Anbu, aren’t Itachi?”

“Don’t Itachi know the current laws and rules of the Hidden Leaf?”

“And don’t forget one thing—our current Hokage is Uchiha Jin!”

“Jin’s reputation is known throughout the ninja world.”

“Has he ever broken a promise?”

Hearing Yamato’s words, Lei Huche finally exhaled.

That’s right!

If this reward had been promised by Hiruzen Sarutobi or Danzo, he might have hesitated—after all, spies who served the old Leaf usually met terrible ends.

But Uchiha Jin was completely different!

Even as a Hidden Cloud Anbu, he knew Uchiha Jin’s reputation well—whenever he made a promise, he kept it.

Still, the Uchiha... that made sense.

So upon recalling the Uchiha’s reputation, his anxiety vanished instantly.

“Fine. I’ll do it.”

“I’ll fully cooperate with your demands. But could Itachi tell me the ultimate goal?”

“Of course.”

“If it’s inconvenient, just pretend I didn’t ask.”

Lei Huche relaxed, invited everyone to sit, sent his wife and children back inside, poured tea for them, and asked.

As for this:

Yamato had no secrets—he would be monitoring Lei Huche constantly anyway, so revealing the truth made no difference.

“To peacefully transform the Hidden Cloud and bring it to voluntarily submit to the Hidden Leaf!”

“All Hidden Cloud spies have been activated— Itachi’re just one among many.”

“Our Hidden Leaf Anbu deployed a full platoon for this mission. Our goal is to exploit the chaos following the Fifth Raikage’s death and help Itachi spies seize the highest positions in the Hidden Cloud.”

“Once Itachi’ve taken control, Itachi can publicly advocate for the Hidden Cloud’s merger with the Hidden Leaf.”

“In the past, success would’ve been unlikely.”

“Now, it’s different.”

“The Hidden Leaf is immensely powerful. The entire ninja world is in chaos. The Hidden Cloud has lost too many strong figures. It’s a shadow of its former self—its people are lost.”

“At this moment, if the Hidden Cloud’s leadership raises the banner, and our Anbu stirs unrest from the shadows, convincing the populace won’t be difficult.”

Yamato shrugged, sipping tea as he spoke.

Hiss!

Hearing the true objective of this mission, Lei Huche sucked in a sharp breath.

Damn!

Their new Hokage had enormous ambition—this time, they wanted to fully swallow the Hidden Cloud. No wonder they assigned him this mission.

Yet, likewise:

After understanding the Hidden Leaf’s goal, he realized the chance of success was extremely high.

The reason? Simple.

He’d lived in the Hidden Cloud for years—he knew well the fear and uncertainty among its people, especially after the deaths of the Fourth Raikage and the Eight-Tails Jinchuriki, and now the Fifth Raikage...

Now was the perfect time to strike. It could succeed.