Now, with his abilities greatly improved, Shiki wanted out of the village again, mainly to seek the Gelel Ore Mine required to truly get started with Nirvana Seal: Transcendence.
So it was time to discuss with Mito about lifting the village confinement the Hokage had put on him, three entire years were more than enough time for things to cool down.
That said, it wasn't as if the boy planned to get back to his mission duties.
What he wanted to do outside the village was not something he wanted to let the village catch any hint of so he had no intention of taking missions in the area with his regular team as he had done before when he needed to go to a particular place outside the village.
It was not like he did not trust his team but that he required extra assurance and thus preferred to err on the side of caution.
Shinka's trust in the current Konoha leadership might be irreparably damaged but she is still very much loyal to the village and her clan.
Mei is extremely loyal to her clan and the Uchiha's problems with the village can be summed up as them not getting what they believe to deserve as one of Konoha's main founding clans, so forgoing the village's interest for Shiki's was not something the boy expected her to do.
As for Inori, sure, she might be a great partner for Yin Release and genjutsu development and Shiki did enjoy his discussions with her but as a high level village operative who didn't even get along particularly well with her own clan . . .
Even when she caught some flak due to their caravan mission, the boy could not dismiss the possibility that it might just be a ploy to create camaraderie in Team 6 so she could probe deeper into his secrets.
Needless to say, he did not want her coming along on his next planned trip to find the Gelel Ore Vein.
Unless he planned to go alone, Benihime was Shiki's only real option.
The girl, ever content to jutsu be his shadow and attend to him, cared nothing for Konoha or its people.
Her loyalty was only to Tomoe, Ema and Shiki himself so the boy did not have to worry about betrayal in the slightest as him getting stronger and acquiring powerful resources would only help him make good on his promise to help them with their clan problems, a promise Beni trusted him to keep.
'Having people who you can be so sure about is truly wonderful.' Shiki thought to himself as he walked toward Mito's study.
He knew many people in Konoha for a longer period of time than Benihime but he found his trust in the girl was the most solid if the Uzumaki matriarch herself was excluded as an exception.
After all, it was not like he could have Mito accompany him on his self serving errands now could he.
A brief moment later, Shiki had reached his mistress' study.
"Mito-sama. May I come in?" He politely asked as he knocked on her door, entering after confirmation.
"Still haven't taken the pill I gave you?" Mito asked with a raised eyebrow.
"I doubt you can go much further through your training, at least not for the next few years." The Uzumaki matriarch evaluated.
And she was right, Shiki's physical stats had capped out long ago and now, even his five basic elemental affinities seemed to have trouble crossing the 70% mark, only water and Wind which were his lowest at the beginning were still growing because they had yet to reach that point.
Yin and Yan capped out at 80% while without dedicated training, Nature Affinity capped out at 20%.
Until he gave more time for his body to grow and adapt, the only thing Shiki could do was learn and refine jutsu within his current limits.
Even then, the boy was undeterred.
"I am aware of that but I have my own plans, it is not the best time for that pill yet." He responded to his mistress.
"Very well, if you say so." Mito shook her head with a bit of exasperation.
"How about Roen? Need more advice on how to handle it?" The redhead inquired.
'Screw you, old shrew! Teaching the young generation to abuse chakra beasts!' A grave voice echoed within the Uzumaki matriarch with hatred in its tone.
She ignored it however.
"I doubt that is the case so I assume you want to break your village confinement." Mito deduced.
"Astute as always, Mito-sama!' Shiki smiled.
"You and your flattery. It was not that hard to figure out." She claimed but no one disliked compliments once in a while.
"Come then. Let us go speak with the Monkey and get the order cancelled." Mito spoke.
"Right behind you, Mito-sama." Shiki replied and the pair set off from the Uzumaki mansion, heading towards the Hokage building.
Walking in silence, the two did not discuss any matters during their walk.
In a Hidden Village, there were countless methods to pick up on somebody's words when they were not adequately prepared and protected.
But that did not stop the two enjoying the journey in silence.
Shiki always enjoyed the reassurance of Mito's presence, he was too paranoid to lower his guard when she was not close by.
As for the Uzumaki matriarch, she enjoyed keeping her senses mostly focused on the boy, his special aura which, unbeknownst to her, originated from his enlightenment trait of Trikaya, soothed her spirit from the wear of sensing the squirming darkness in the village.
Soon enough, they arrived at the Hokage building and nobody stopped them, or even asked questions for that matter, as they entered and headed towards the Hokage's office.
Mito's presence was nearly impossible to miss unless she was deliberately hiding it so Hiruzen was naturally aware and ready when the Uzumaki matriarch finally entered his office and, the moment he noticed Shiki's presence at her side, the reason for the visit became apparent.
"Monkey. I came to discuss the lifting of the confinement order put on my ward." Mito unceremoniously cut to the chase the very moment she spoke.
"Yes . . . I suppose enough time has passed since the incident with Kumo and they are likely not to target him any longer despite the rough negotiations." Hiruzen responded.
"Though I must insist for young Shiki to remain away from the Land of Lightning, even the bordering Land of Frost should be avoided . . . Perhaps that area of the World in general." The Hokage added.
"Not to worry, I plan to stay well away from Kumo and their minions." Shiki assured.
"Excellent! Team 6 will once again be fully ready for action I hope?" Hiruzen responded with an inquiry.
"Ah . . . Not just yet." The boy spoke.
The Hokage's eyebrow rose in questioning.
"Shiki and his friend have an errand of a more personal nature to take care of so I came to request a pass to leave the village for the both of them." Mito spoke.
"His friend?" Hiruzen questioned.
"Kurogane Benihime." Shiki elaborated.
"And not to worry, it does not involve the Land of Iron in any way." The boy added.
"Hmm . . . Very well." The Hokage replied.
But the machinations going on in his head . . . Those were anyone's guess.
+++++
Hey, Author here!
To promote the novel I will be releasing BONUS CHAPTERS on SUNDAYS based on the previous week's power stone count.
100 Power Stones = 1 Bonus Chapter
500 Power Stones = 2 Bonus Chapters
1000 Power Stones = 3 Bonus Chapters
Every earned BONUS CHAPTER on Webnovel will also be posted on Scribble.
Just a reminder that you can read up to a FULL MONTH ahead of this site on pa-treon.
I'm trying to become a full time Author now and I'm not going to be starting any new novels just so I can make sure this one is properly completed.
Find those sweet advanced chapters on pa-treon.com/lusoba without the -