Kirigakure, as one of the Five Great Shinobi Villages, naturally placed great importance on its Tailed Beast. In fact, they had dispatched search teams into the Land of Fire long ago to investigate the Three-Tails' whereabouts. However, despite their efforts, they had yet to achieve any results.
The Three-Tails had been dead for four or five years; logically, it should have revived by now. So why hadn't it? Kirigakure wasn't foolish; they quickly realized the reason – the Three-Tails had revived, but they hadn't been able to find it.
And if you asked why they hadn't found it… well, no need to ask. Just go to Konoha.
Konoha, to its credit, was being quite reasonable, showing a considerable amount of respect to Kirigakure. Since they had inquired, Konoha had decided to return the Three-Tails… Studying it for a while was fine, but keeping too many Tailed Beasts was ultimately useless and could easily backfire.
Thus, Habara took on the mission of returning the Three-Tails.
As for the minor damage to the Three-Tails, Kirigakure surely wouldn't mind.
Habara hadn't actually wanted to make a trip to the Land of Water. At this point, he truly wanted to focus on development within Konoha. In the proposal he had submitted earlier, he had hoped that the Hokage would release a portion of commonly usable ninjutsu for general ninja to learn… Whether through a points exchange, merit exchange, or some other method, the goal was to provide a more systematic learning pathway for ninja.
Konoha's Ninja Academy taught only the very basics; the content truly related to ninjutsu and elemental techniques was minimal. A ninja's real period of rapid growth was after graduation, when they joined a team and received instruction from their captain.
Theoretically, this kind of small-group instruction should be an excellent method of nurturing talent. However, in this situation, a ninja's growth depended entirely on the level of their team leader. If the leader was a Jonin, their instruction might be excellent, but what if the leader was a Chunin?
Moreover, not all Jonin were suited to being teachers. Did Kakashi teach Naruto much during his time leading Team 7…? In the team phase, the captain's instruction, frankly, wasn't about increasing the team members' strength; it was about teaching the rookies how to be ninja. There's a significant difference between the two.
Habara's plan to achieve a wider dissemination of techniques actually targeted not the newly graduated Genin, but the more mature Chunin. In terms of age, this would primarily assist ninja over the age of 20… More mature ninja already understood their strengths and weaknesses, and they knew what they should and shouldn't learn, rather than studying haphazardly.
Chunin, in theory, could learn many techniques. Even Mizuki dared to plot to steal the Scroll of Seals, demonstrating that everyone had grand ambitions. So the question was, Konoha's overall strength increasing was clearly a good thing, so, why was the Third Hokage so cautious when considering Habara's suggestion?
He probably thought it would affect Konoha's stability. Habara had his plans, and the Hokage had his considerations.
In any case, this matter had to be put aside for the time being. Habara began to think about how to maintain the security of a certain off-site base… It didn't matter if Daigo's main body wasn't in Konoha; as long as her chakra extended to a location, her clones could operate there. The key issue was the off-site security.
A barrier array was, of course, a given. Beyond that, this barrier had to be concealed… Habara's thinking was quite clear.
"Habara, it's almost time to go," Kakashi called out, the three-man team escorting the Three-Tails having assembled.
"Coming."
Habara slung his sword case over his shoulder and hurried downstairs. Then, at his front door, he saw Kakashi and Tenzo… This was a reunion of the previous envoy team.
However, compared to their previous "kindergarten" dynamic, now, two years later, due to their increased age, this three-man team looked much more normal… Well, looked.
After a quick glance, Habara noticed that the container holding the Three-Tails was currently being carried on Tenzo's back. This seemed a bit like the bigger ones bullying the smaller one.
Who carries the load? Whoever's the weakest, of course.
Noticing Habara's gaze, Kakashi said, "Wood Style users can suppress Tailed Beast chakra. If Tenzo carries the Three-Tails, he can immediately detect any abnormalities."
It would have been better if he hadn't explained. This explanation made it clear that he was just being lazy; nobody wants to carry a jar on their back.
"Kakashi, the more you say, the more mistakes you make," Habara said.
Tenzo's expression became even more resigned.
Habara casually closed his front door without locking it, and Tenzo saw him walking over… Tenzo thought Habara was coming to take the sealing container, but Habara simply reached out and patted him on the shoulder, saying, "Tenzo, you're still a Genin, right? All the hard and tiring work is for the Genin."
Tenzo: "…"
Okay, he fully understood the law of the jungle today.
So, Tenzo had to carry the load, Habara "led" Kakashi, and the three of them escorted the Three-Tails, heading east.
......
After leaving the Land of Fire and reaching the sea, Habara and his team shed their relaxed mood and became tense and alert… The Great War had only ended a few years ago; even Kakashi wouldn't have forgotten the feeling of the battlefield.
"It's getting foggy. Everyone, be careful," Habara said.
The closer they got to the Land of Water, the thicker the fog on the sea became, severely limiting visibility. Moreover, they were now in enemy territory, so caution was definitely warranted.
In the ninja world, there were many who, relying on their strength, had fallen into traps. Even Pain could be taken down by the Genin Konohamaru; Habara didn't want that to happen to him.
As they continued, Habara suddenly raised his hand, signaling for them to stop.
"Kirigakure ninja? If you're here to welcome us, please act more openly. If you're planning to ambush us, you need to hide better." Habara spoke to the empty, ethereal, and eerie fog.
He could sense people ahead, which was normal. However, for a Konoha ninja to come up and tell Kirigakure ninja how to do their jobs was incredibly audacious. If they encountered someone with a short temper, even if their original mission was to welcome them, it could easily turn into an ambush.
After Habara's voice faded, a while later, two figures began to coalesce in the fog. As they drew closer step by step, Kakashi's hand instinctively moved to the hilt of the short sword at his side… He also knew that Habara's words weren't exactly polite.
When they were almost face-to-face, Habara finally clearly saw the identities of the two Kirigakure ninja.
One of them was an "acquaintance" of Habara's: Hozuki Mangetsu of the Hozuki clan, currently wielding the Twin Swords: Kiba, one of the Seven Ninja Swordsmen's blades.
As for the other…
This person was even more familiar, because his name was Hoshigaki Kisame.
Habara's gaze flicked to Kisame's back. He was only carrying an ordinary weapon, which meant that the Samehada was still in the hands of Suikazan Fuguki. Fuguki was one of the surviving members of the original "Auspicious Trio"; he should still be alive now.
So, Kisame hadn't obtained the Samehada. What did that mean?
It meant that Uchiha Obito was very likely still hiding in Kirigakure.