Chapter 319: Investigating the Daimyo
In Konoha Village, the position of Jounin held a great deal of prestige.
Ino didn't break Kakashi's record of becoming a Jounin at age 12, but in the world of female ninjas, she was the equivalent of a female Kakashi. It's worth remembering that even Tsunade became a Jounin after the age of 20.
Her peers were all incredibly stressed by her achievements.
The classmates gathered for a celebratory dinner. Naruto loudly proclaimed that he would also become a Jounin, only to be met with various forms of mockery from Sakura and Sasuke.
Ino specially invited Asuma and Kurenai for a meal, but only Asuma came. He said Kurenai was feeling a bit unwell. Ino didn't think much of it.
Afterward, the Ino-Shika-Cho families began their celebration. Inoichi engaged in a session of humble-bragging with Shikaku and Choza. Rino, along with Shikamaru's and Choji's mothers, shared their secrets to successfully raising a daughter, making the other two mothers want to stuff their sons back into their wombs and have a daughter instead.
Not to mention familiar faces like Tsunade, Shizune, and Hinata, she received so many gifts her hands went numb. Even Danzo sent Fu Yamanaka to deliver a congratulatory gift.
Ino partied wildly for half a month before things finally settled down.
Ino believed that Senior Brother Minato was a man of his word. After receiving her new Jounin vest, she went straight home to sleep.
Previously, for the sake of promotion, she had been grinding missions, squeezing them in whenever she could, just to complete a few more and become a Jounin sooner. Now that she was a Jounin, completing a thousand more missions wouldn't make her Hokage. She had reached the top. So what was the point of doing them anymore? Let the comrades who needed them take care of the miscellaneous tasks.
The Ōtsutsuki clan were all innate masters; they could absorb and convert energy from the outside world, surviving on air alone.
Ino could not; she was still fumbling around in the acquired realm.
The slow growth of her ocular power and the gradual optimization of her eye genes both required the consumption of her own body's energy.
The body was fundamental, but the efficiency of converting body energy was low, and there were daily consumptions. What to do?
Her solution was to eat more and exercise less. Don't move if you don't have to!
Don't ask. If asked, she was in "secluded training" at home.
After three days of "secluded training."
Tonton came to her with a mission scroll in its mouth. She was huddled in her blanket and didn't move. The pig's snout nudged her twice. Very annoyed, she grabbed the pearl necklace around Tonton's neck and threw the pet pig out.
About five minutes passed.
"Ino, wake up… Ino? Stop sleeping," Hinata knelt beside her, holding Tonton, and whispered softly into her ear.
Ino covered her head with the blanket, her voice muffled. "Don't bother me, I'm dead tired…"
Hinata? Hmph, let alone Hinata, even if Kaguya Ōtsutsuki herself came, she wouldn't wake up!
As the saying goes, "Unless the universe explodes, I'm not getting out of bed. Unless the Earth reboots, I'm not getting up early!"
If you want me to get up, the sun will have to rise from the west.
"Ino, please, it's really important. The village has a mission."
Ino, still under the blanket, muttered a few words, "I'm already a Jounin, don't bother me with small missions."
Hinata looked left and right, saw no one else in the room, and reached her hand into the quilt, pinching a smooth spot.
"Ouch! Where are you pinching?!"
"Get up quickly, this is a mission from Lord Hokage!" Hinata was very familiar with her now, and her attitude had become a bit more assertive.
Ino groggily stuck a hand out from under the covers. There were no outsiders here, so there was no issue of indecent exposure. She opened one eye and glanced at the mission document.
"Find the lost pet cat, Tora, for the Daimyo's wife?"
The information circled in her mind for a couple of rounds, and then she flew into a rage. What a joke! I'm a Jounin, a Jounin! How can I still be doing missions to find cats? The higher I get promoted, the more I regress, is that it?
"Get out here, you! Get out!" Hinata grabbed her arm, using her legs, waist, and back all at once.
She forcefully dragged her out of the quilt, served her like a great lord by helping her get dressed, wash her face, brush her teeth, and comb her hair. After bringing her breakfast, she finally explained the mission details.
Finding the cat for the Daimyo's wife was just a pretext. In reality, Konoha wanted them to investigate the situation with the Land of Fire's Daimyo.
Previously, the Daimyo had supported Danzo for Hokage. After Jiraiya became the Fifth, he had been creating obstacles and making excuses, dragging his feet on providing necessary funds. Many missions that should have been given to Konoha were completed by ninjas hired by other daimyo.
Jiraiya, after seeing Shisui control Chiyo, felt that there was also a problem with the Daimyo. He didn't suspect Kotoamatsukami but wanted to investigate whether the Daimyo was being controlled by ninjutsu.
Ino closed her eyes and focused, thinking. The matter of the Daimyo was really not easy to handle.
She guessed that the Daimyo had probably been controlled by Danzo with Kotoamatsukami before. But now, both of Kotoamatsukami's eyes were with her. If this was exposed, explaining things would be too complicated. To prevent complications, she had to help cover for Danzo, at least to muddle through the situation.
Now, both the Cloud Village and the Stone Village were preparing for war, and Konoha had to keep up.
What is war fought with? For a military organization like a hidden village, it's fought with money. Without money, you simply can't fight.
Ninjas don't engage in production; they only know how to burn, kill, and plunder, and are completely clueless when it comes to creating wealth.
The current cooperation model of the Daimyo providing the money and the hidden village providing the manpower was rather dysfunctional, but there was no helping it; this was the reality.
To obtain more funds for war preparations, at this very moment, they absolutely could not afford for the Daimyo to drop the ball.
Although Ino was young, she had a wealth of methods and was worldly-wise, with friends in both the mortal and nether worlds. She was perfectly suited to be in charge of this mission.
Her age could also divert some people's attention.
Hinata was from a noble family. The Hyuga clan, not to mention their own ninja heritage, just in terms of history, was a top-tier noble family. Their status allowed them to get close to the Daimyo and his wife, making the investigation most convenient.
Hinata had prepared a full box of food. At this moment, she was feeding Ino breakfast while watching her study the mission, and from time to time, like a mother hen, she would find clean clothes for her. After all, this was a long trip, and many things needed to be prepared.
The Daimyo of the Land of Fire lived in the capital city, and his wife naturally lived there too.
This mission required meticulousness and discretion. That afternoon, a yawning Ino and Hinata left the village and headed for the capital.
On the way, it was always Ino walking in front, with Hinata following like a little wife. When they reached the capital, their roles switched slightly.
Hinata changed into the extremely cumbersome attire of a noble lady, which made it difficult to even walk. Ino wore a conical hat and acted as her samurai guard.
This couldn't be helped. Ino's wild spirit just couldn't pretend to be a lady. In a backwater place like the Land of Honey, she could manage, but not in the capital of the Land of Fire. The people here were well-traveled and knowledgeable. A person like her… no matter how you looked at it, she didn't seem like a refined person.
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