It was another bright, peaceful afternoon in Kusagakure.
The village leader stood quietly in front of a wide floor-to-ceiling window, looking out over the streets and rooftops of his village.
Suddenly
BANG! BANG!
The office door shook under a series of frantic knocks.
The leader frowned.
Whoever that is clearly skipped basic manners, he thought. There's no need to pound on the door like that.
Still, he quickly composed himself.
"Come in."
If someone was knocking with that much urgency, something serious had likely happened.
The door burst open, and a Grass ninja rushed inside.
The leader glanced at him. The man's forehead was covered in sweat, and his legs trembled slightly clear signs that he had sprinted here at full speed.
After catching his breath, the ninja spoke urgently.
"Leader, bad news. A spy from Iwagakure has infiltrated the village!"
The leader's expression turned strange.
A spy from Iwagakure?
Why would the Stone Village send a spy to Kusagakure?
There was nothing here worth stealing.
If the Stone Village wanted intelligence, they'd aim for a major power like Konohagakure.
Everyone in the shinobi world knew Kusagakure had a reputation for siding with whoever was strongest at the time. Sending spies here would be a waste of manpower.
"Calm down," the leader said evenly. "Start from the beginning."
The ninja gathered his thoughts before continuing.
"Lord Aonuma returned to the village injured after a mission and was receiving treatment at the hospital. While he was in the ward, a ninja disguised as an Iwagakure shinobi suddenly appeared."
"Fortunately, Lord Aonuma sensed the intruder's chakra before the attack began. Otherwise, he might have been caught off guard."
"The infiltrator fled after being discovered. Lord Aonuma feared the spy might have accomplices and ordered me to report directly to you."
The leader fell silent.
Something about the story felt… off.
"Did you notice what techniques the spy used?" he asked. "Or the design of his weapons?"
Kunai and shuriken varied slightly between villages, small differences in shape or craftsmanship could reveal their origin.
The messenger thought for a moment.
"He didn't use any weapons," he replied. "Only one jutsu. It was a Lightning-style technique."
The leader didn't say anything for a moment.
Lightning Release?
The number of Iwagakure ninja skilled in Lightning Release was about as common as Fire Release specialists among the Hokage.
In other words, almost nonexistent.
At that point, the leader was nearly certain the "Stone ninja" was an impostor.
The lightning technique was one clue.
The real issue, however, was motive.
Iwagakure had no reason to spy on Kusagakure.
So which village is behind this?
The leader narrowed his eyes.
Several of the Five Great Nations had the resources for something like this.
But only one had a clear reason.
Not long ago, he had refused a proposal from Root, the covert faction led by Danzō Shimura.
For now, it was only a suspicion.
He would wait for more evidence.
Still, he acted immediately.
Orders were sent across the village, mobilizing every available shinobi.
Even the ANBU units were activated.
Inside the ANBU Headquarters
When Aaron received the mobilization order within the ANBU base, he didn't yet have the memories from his shadow clone.
But he quickly guessed what had happened.
That "Iwagakure spy" must be Kakashi.
To help his clone carry out the planned attack, Aaron became extremely enthusiastic about the search effort.
He dispatched a large number of ANBU agents to patrol the village.
"We will find that spy," he declared firmly.
One squad captain looked concerned.
"Sending so many agents out might not be wise," he warned. "If someone attacks the ANBU headquarters while we're understaffed—"
Aaron smiled confidently.
"The truly sensitive areas are already guarded by our strongest shinobi," he replied. "Anyone foolish enough to attack ANBU headquarters would be walking straight into a trap."
He placed a hand dramatically over his chest.
"Besides… Lord Aonuma is one of Kusagakure's most valuable ninja. The fact that he was attacked fills me with grief."
"I swear I'll capture that Iwagakure spy and make him pay."
His passionate speech moved the surrounding ANBU.
One of them clapped admiringly.
"If Kusagakure had more ninja like Lord Morishita, we'd rival the Five Great Nations in no time!"
Another nodded enthusiastically.
"No one cares more about this village than he does."
Aaron only smiled politely.
More ninja like me? he thought.
If that happened, the entire Land of Grass would probably collapse.
Near the ANBU Base
Guided by Aaron's shadow clone, Kakashi, kenshi, and Midori quickly reached the outskirts of Kusagakure's ANBU headquarters.
The base was unusually quiet.
Most of the ANBU forces had already been deployed around the village.
Only a handful remained to guard sensitive areas.
The four intruders made no attempt to hide.
They walked directly into view of the guards.
The moment the two sentries spotted four ninja dressed like shinobi from Iwagakure, they reacted instantly.
One slammed a hand onto an alarm switch.
BEEP! BEEP! BEEP!
A piercing alarm echoed across the compound.
Before the guards could even begin forming hand seals—
Aaron's shadow clone moved.
WHOOSH!
With two explosive steps, he vanished from their sight.
BAM! BAM!
A split second later, both guards felt a crushing impact slam into their backs.
CRASH!
They were sent flying across the courtyard, smashing through a wall and scattering chunks of stone everywhere.
Dust filled the air.
Watching the display of strength, both Kakashi and kenshi felt a surge of shock.
If this had been Aaron's real body, such power would have made sense.
But this
This was just a shadow clone.
If a clone is this strong… how powerful is the original? Kakashi wondered silently.
kenshi had a similar thought.
Perhaps they had both underestimated Aaron's true strength.
"Let's move," the clone said calmly. "Just focus on protecting him."
He gestured toward Kakashi.
"He's only a shadow clone."
"I'll handle myself."
Midori puffed out her chest confidently.
"Don't worry! If anyone attacks him, I'll block it!"
Aaron's clone looked even more concerned after hearing that.
"…Actually, that's not necessary," he said quickly.
"If the attack is too strong, let him take the hit himself. He's a shadow clone, if he gets destroyed, it's not the end of the world."
Shadow-clone Kakashi: …Seriously?
Inside the Base
The alarm sent the remaining ANBU into action.
Within moments, the few ninja still inside the facility had gathered near the entrance checkpoint.
The only squad captain present began issuing orders rapidly.
"You take the emergency tunnel and report to the village leader. We need reinforcements."
"The rest of you, hold the entrance. No one gets past us."
The ANBU headquarters had taken years of work and enormous resources to build.
Even if the attackers failed to steal any intelligence, the damage to the facility alone would be painful.
The captain clenched his teeth.
"Of all days… why today?"
Both the chief and deputy chief of ANBU were absent.
Another captain had been summoned by the village leader.
And Morishita had taken three squads out on patrol.
At that moment
Kusagakure's ANBU headquarters was at its weakest.
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