The next morning, a thin layer of morning mist enveloped the campsite.
The bonfire from last night had long burned out, leaving only a circle of blackened ashes, with a few dark red embers lying in the center.
Kakashi raised his head, closed the "special" book he had been engrossed in, and sighed softly.
"I really want to know what happens next, I only read one-third of it."
He silently calculated in his mind, wishing he could have more time to read.
For example, reading while walking, or even while training...
"What happens next?"
Nohara Rin's voice softly rang out. She had just awakened, her tone carrying a hint of drowsiness as she curiously looked at the book in Kakashi's hand.
"Rin, you're awake?" Kakashi froze.
"This was given to me by Shinji."
As soon as he spoke, a faint, elusive aura of killing intent quietly approached.
Kakashi stiffened all over, abruptly turning his head to look.
Shinji was smiling at him, but his eyes carried a clear warning.
"Kakashi, I didn't give you anything strange."
While Rin wasn't looking, Shinji quickly crossed his hands in front of his chest, making a gesture of denial.
Kakashi choked instantly, finally realizing he had made a mistake, and hurriedly stuffed the book into his chest.
This "special" book definitely couldn't be known by Rin.
"N-nothing, just a regular biography."
Nohara Rin looked confusedly between the two, feeling there was some secret between them she didn't know.
Shinji timely stepped forward, reaching out to pat Kakashi's shoulder.
"If there's something good, I'll naturally think of you next time."
"Really?"
"Of course!"
Kakashi immediately became delighted, anticipation rising in his eyes as he unconsciously touched the book in his chest.
Since reading the "special" book Shinji gave him last time, he felt like a new world had been opened, and he became completely devoted to such books.
It seemed Shinji would have new releases in the future!
Seeing that he had finally glossed over the matter and Rin seemed not suspicious, Shinji also secretly sighed in relief.
He immediately turned his head, forcibly changing the topic:
"It's not early anymore, let's pack up and return to the village."
The matter of giving Kakashi such books absolutely couldn't be known by Rin, otherwise his glorious image in Rin's heart would be completely ruined.
"Yeah yeah, we should go back."
Kakashi immediately stood up, desperately agreeing.
Nohara Rin lightly nodded, not pursuing further, but her gaze unconsciously fell on Shinji, a hint of tenderness rising in her eyes.
Too many things had happened during this mission; if Shinji hadn't been there, she probably wouldn't have been able to return to Konohagakure.
She softly replied:
"Yes, let's return to the village!"
...
The three quickly packed up the campsite and sped toward Konohagakure.
In less than half a day, the iconic outline of Konohagakure could faintly be seen in the distance.
But Shinji stopped first, looking at the two.
"Kakashi, Rin, you two go back first."
Kakashi snorted lightly: "You have your own way to sneak into the village, right?"
"After sneaking out for so many days, it seems you haven't been discovered yet."
Konohagakure never allowed ninjas to leave the village arbitrarily, this rule was especially strict for lower and middle-rank ninjas.
But for Jonin, this rule had considerable flexibility; for the likes of Tsunade and Jiraiya, the Sannin level, just a verbal report was enough, even if they stayed outside long-term, it wasn't considered desertion.
Shinji was now a Special Jonin, enjoying certain Jonin privileges, but this departure involved Madara Uchiha, belonging to a private village leave without mission or report.
He shrugged indifferently, replying: "Yes, a little trick."
"Then Rin and I will return normally." Kakashi nodded.
Nohara Rin also smiled and waved at Shinji.
"Shinji, see you later!"
"Goodbye."
Shinji lightly nodded, also waving goodbye to the two.
Only after Kakashi and Rin's figures completely disappeared at the edge of his vision did he look around again, confirming the surroundings were empty.
After confirming safety, Shinji walked toward Konohagakure.
As he walked, his figure began to fade into nothingness, gradually disappearing completely.
Transparent Escape: Invisibility!
He silently approached Konohagakure's gate, easily returning to the village without the gate guards noticing.
Half an hour later, Shinji finally returned to the clan grounds, canceled invisibility, and walked straight toward the house.
Pushing open the entrance door, stepping into the living room, his face darkened.
Shadow Clone Shinji was reclining on the sofa, one hand supporting his head, the other casually holding a medical book, looking extremely lazy.
Although Shadow Clones perfectly replicated everything about him, did he normally look so sloppy?
Hearing the noise, the Shadow Clone moved the book covering his face, meeting the original's gaze, and couldn't help lightly clicking his tongue.
He abruptly stood up, his tone full of complaint:
"You finally came back! Do you know how I've lived these days? Memorizing books every day, the dark circles are almost too heavy to cover!"
The Shadow Clone pointed at the dark circles under his eyes, looking aggrieved.
Shinji was momentarily speechless, only then remembering before leaving, he had instructed the Shadow Clone to help him complete Tsunade's assigned homework.
His gaze unconsciously fell on the box beside the low table.
The box was already open, piled with many unread books, and on the nearby low table were over ten books half-read.
Shinji roughly scanned, the progress was similar to his estimate; the Shadow Clone had completed nearly half the task for him.
He secretly felt relieved: Shadow Clone truly was an excellent Ninjutsu for learning and training.
Seeing the original return, the Shadow Clone casually threw the book in his hand onto the low table, walked forward and said: "Nothing major happened in the village recently, but there's something you need to pay attention to; the details will be clear after you receive the memories."
Shinji just wanted to raise his hand to ask more, but the Shadow Clone had already lightly formed a seal.
"Disperse."
Poof—
White smoke exploded, the Shadow Clone silently dissipated on the spot, without any attachment!
The next moment, countless fragmented memories and sensations surged into Shinji's mind like a tide.
There were daily chats with neighbors, scenes of going to the former Senju residence to report progress to Tsunade, encounters with Might Guy, Ebisu, and others in the village, and memories of Shisui and Itachi coming together to find him...
Shinji's figure violently swayed, kneeling on one knee, one hand supporting the floor.
A heavy throbbing pain came from his temples, as if he had been conducting high-intensity sprints for several nights consecutively.
Even with prior mental preparation, the burden of maintaining a Shadow Clone for a long time was unexpectedly heavy to this extent.
"Hiss, unless necessary, Shadow Clone shouldn't be used for long periods."
Shinji raised his hand, rubbing his temples, sucking in a cold breath.
While enduring the throbbing pain in his mind, he rapidly sorted through the memories left by the Shadow Clone, searching for the key information specifically reminded.
He closed his eyes, various scenes in his mind quickly repositioned, and the next moment he abruptly "remembered."
Yesterday, Shisui brought Itachi personally to his home to find him.
The memory told him, tonight he needed to go to Naka Shrine to attend the clan meeting.
"Tonight?" Shinji whispered, "Clan meeting?"
--Enjoying the story? Want more chapters? Check out my Patreon and support me for 40+ advance chapters.
Just search for "LegendaryTL" on Patreon!"
Thanks!