Gacha System in Naruto 82 – Shopping Trip to Armageddon

---Ryouma's POV---

The command halted my steps on the cobblestone street. Hearing this, I could only helplessly turn around. "Is there sothing else?"

i crossed her arms, her index finger tapping repeatedly on her arm. Her eyes studied with the scrutiny of an experienced kunoichi. She still seed to feel that I was suspicious.

"I'm i. What's your na? I don't think I've seen you in Kiri before."

This is becoming troubleso. I weighed my options quickly. Drawing attention would compromise the objective, but acting too evasive might raise more suspicion.

I didn't want to get entangled with her, but since I was currently disguised as a commoner, I could only answer honestly. Might as well use a fitting na for this situation.

"My na is Tobi."

i closed her eyes and tried to recall. The slight furrow between her brows deepened as she searched her mory. I could tell from her expression that she'd never heard of .

Although Kiri was large and it wasn't unusual for her not to know everyone, just in case, so I should be safe.

I maintained my civilian facade as I continued my route through the village, adjusting my plans on the fly.

And just like that, another person joined on my marking mission.

Passing through a bustling comrcial street, I secretly planted another mark. Since i was watching , I had to rely on Shukaku to perform the Shadow Seal Manipulation discreetly from within my robes.

However...

I glanced at i, who was holding two skewers of dangos and happily devouring them. The sweet sauce dripped down the side of her mouth, which she wiped away with her sleeve.

Is this really the future Mizukage? I suppressed a smile, noting how her guard seed to drop around food.

I considered my own stealth to be good enough, but wasn't her being a bit too careless?

Ti passed slowly, and now accompanied by i, I had walked through nearly half of Kiri. The village architecture was a maze of circular buildings and arched bridges spanning crystal-clear canals.

As we strolled down a street bathed in the glow of the setting sun, at so point, all the people around us had quietly disappeared. The once-crowded marketplace emptied in re minutes.

No children running, no rchants calling, just silence.

Oh, they've made their move. I felt the air shift as chakra signatures converged around us.

Suddenly, i spoke: "Hey, Tobi."

I turned to look at her, half a step behind. "What is it?"

Her posture had changed, no longer casual.

"You seem like it's your first ti in Kiri. You're not from here, are you?"

I gave a bright smile. "Haha, didn't I tell you? I ca to Kiri with a rchant caravan to do business."

i returned an equally big smile. "Haha, you never told that."

As soon as the words fell, silence took over.

So this is how we're doing this. I shifted my weight imperceptibly, channeling chakra to my fingertips.

The next mont, i leaped backward, her fingers forming hand signs at lightning speed.

"Water Prison Technique!"

She spewed a torrent of water from her mouth, forming a stream that shot toward . The water twisted and expanded mid-air, aiming to engulf completely.

At the sa ti, many hidden Kiri ninjas revealed themselves and quickly surrounded . They dropped from rooftops and erged from shadows.

"Aa~"

The screech of my Chidori echoed through the street. Chakra surged through my arm, transford into crackling electricity.

Water and lightning collided in a spectacular display, creating a cloud of steam that montarily obscured everyone's vision. I used the cover to reposition myself, creating distance between and the closest attackers.

Her eyes widened slightly.

Frowning, she asked, "Who are you really? 'Tobi' isn't your real na, is it?"

Before I could respond, a short, baby-faced man appeared beside her with a Body Flicker. He stood firmly, his staff held at the ready as he said seriously, "White hair and powerful, no hand signs for the Lightning Release technique… you must be the Leaf's Gale, Ryouma."

"What?" i exclaid in surprise.

Many of the Kiri ninjas nearby were also visibly stirred by his words. So exchanged nervous glances while others gripped their weapons tighter.

It was inevitable. My na was no longer just so faceless na among the ranks.

From my first ti on the battlefield, I'd created astonishing results. Intelligence agencies from every village had already marked as one of their highest-priority targets.

Naturally, i was no exception. In fact, every new generation ninja of her ti had more or less heard about .

Since my identity had already been exposed, I figured I might as well stop pretending.

I straightened up, dropping the civilian act entirely. My chakra, previously suppressed, now flowed freely, creating a palpable pressure that made so of the weaker ninjas step back a bit.

Though there were still a few locations left unmarked, I had never intended to blow up the entire Kiri in one go.

Too much of anything was as bad as too little.

Like eating too much ice cream in sumr, the first bite refreshed, the dozen spoonful numbed your tongue, and by the end, you couldn't taste anything at all.

Destruction lost its purpose when it beca mindless consumption.

My goal now was simply to bring an end to the war between Konoha and Kiri as quickly as possible.

Yagura raised his iron staff horizontally and took a combat stance, his feet shifting on the wet cobblestones for better traction. His eyes never left mine as he loudly demanded, "What's your purpose for sneaking into Kiri?"

Honestly, he was asking such a pointless question. So, he was probably buying ti.

I sensed additional chakra signatures moving through the village, more teams, most likely.

Otherwise, the Third Mizukage wouldn't have issued the order to abandon all missions upon encountering . Space-ti ninjutsu was just too unreasonable, whether to flee or stay was entirely up to the user.

What seed to surprise Yagura, though, was that I actually answered him. "Since she spent so long walking around with , I'll tell you. You all know what I did to Suna, right?"

Yagura frowned slightly.

Back when I had just debuted and hadn't even learned space-ti ninjutsu yet, I had tead up with Minato to systematically bomb and destroy nurous key facilities in Suna.

The operation had been devastating.

Realizing what I ant, his pupils shrank. He should now understand my true intent.

Combined with the coded signals i had been subtly sending, likely about wandering around the village aimlessly, it all should make sense for him.

Yagura imdiately called over a Kiri ninja. "Hurry! Evacuate the villagers, all districts!"

The ninjas disappeared in a blur, racing to spread the warning. Around us, others maintained their defensive formation, ready to engage at the slightest provocation.

i stepped forward and asked, "And you're just kindly telling us your plan now?"

She had been shadowing under the guise of shopping, always keeping a close eye. Logically, I shouldn't have had the ti to plant tags or marks.

I shrugged helplessly, what a world, where even telling the truth wouldn't be believed.

"Well, fine. It's true I didn't tell you out of goodwill for her. The real reason... is because... I don't know know. Maybe I felt like being nice today?"

Let them evacuate the civilians. My quarrel wasn't with them.

And of course, Yagura didn't believe one bit, but since the villagers needed ti to evacuate, he had no choice but to try and stall , right?

I didn't mind either. My goal had always been to destroy Kiri's facilities, not to slaughter innocent civilians.

But standing around doing nothing was starting to feel dull, so I casually asked, "By the way, what's that sealing technique you guys secretly set up around the area? So of the nodes look familiar."

I glanced at the subtle chakra patterns forming beneath our feet. The seal was complex – concentric circles with interlocking kanji characters, designed to create a powerful containnt field.

Yagura's face twitched slightly. I thought he wouldn't give an answer, but surprisingly, he replied, "That's classified Kiri information. I'm afraid I can't tell you."

Though their seal had been exposed, the preparations were already complete. I was just a bit too late.

Yagura decisively raised his hand to issue the command.

Five Kiri ninjas stood at five positions and simultaneously ford hand signs. Their chakra surged in perfect synchronization, feeding the growing seal matrix.

The sealing formula spread from under the feet of each Kiri ninja, flowing like water and rapidly covering the area. Blue light rippled across the ground as the characters expanded and connected, converging into a massive seal that spanned the entire street.

Seeing the technique successfully activate, he let out a breath of relief.