Late April.
Land of Tea, Canyon.
Steep and perilous cliffs on both sides formed a natural barrier.
On the road in the canyon, two groups of people were engaged in battle.
They wielded kunai and used ninja techniques, indicating both sides were ninjas.
One side was led by Insect Man, a cadre member of Hakushi's organization. As per Hakushi's orders, they were gathering intelligence in the Ninja Realm while also seeking talents to recruit.
Being bounty hunters perfectly suited the five of them.
While collecting intelligence and talent, they could also increase their extra income, expand their fame, attract more employers to hire them for tasks, and access more secrets.
This was a mission entrusted by a merchant from the Land of Tea, requiring them to eliminate an illegal ninja organization within its borders.
This ninja organization was from outside the Land of Tea, not belonging to the Five Great Nations, nor other smaller ninja villages, but a group of wanderer ninjas with no ninja village affiliation.
They survived by robbing passing merchants and travelers, prompting the Land of Tea merchants to place a bounty on the underground black market to eliminate this wanderer ninja group and restore stability to trade routes within the Land of Tea.
Truth be told, such a mission wasn't overly challenging for the five of them.
Their average strength was above Chunin level.
Not only were they endowed with strong physical attributes, great perception, and self-healing abilities, but under Hakushi's arrangement, they also mastered their own secret techniques.
The strength of their five-member team required at least three Jonin to defeat, yet even then, they couldn't be killed.
The roaming ninja organization's members were mostly Genin level, with their leader likely at Chunin level, as Jonin level was rare among the vast numbers of wanderer ninjas.
"What, what is this!?"
A ninja clad in green, with brown hair, used his arm to hold a wanderer ninja's neck from behind, immediately causing fierce sparks on his arm.
More accurately, his entire arm transformed into flames.
The wanderer ninja's throat was immediately charred, and he collapsed, lifeless.
Another wanderer ninja attempted to stab him from behind with a ninja blade, only to feel like he hit air, as the part struck turned into insubstantial flames.
The wanderer ninja was then engulfed in fire, emitting dreadful screams of terror.
He eventually reverted to his original form, with the brown-haired ninja maintaining a calm expression.
The battle could be described as child's play.
"Fire Man, your ninja techniques are as brutal as ever,"
remarked a ninja in purple-red attire, approaching with a smile.
"Nothing I can do, each of us has been granted a systematic ninja technique."
Emerging from the shadows of a stone, a man in yellow with black hair, seemed very satisfied with his acquired ability.
Fire Man's ninja technique was a secret technique derived from the Fire Attribute Chakra nature transformation.
His was a secret technique derived from Yin Attribute Chakra nature transformation, allowing him to freely navigate shadows, making him a fearsome assassin within the team.
The others resolved their assigned enemies as well.
"With this, the mission is complete. At our pace, we'll soon make a name for ourselves in the underground black market."
"That way, recruiting talent will also become much easier."
The completion of the wanderer ninja annihilation mission, entrusted by the Land of Tea merchants, meant another accomplishment in the black market for their team.
Accumulating such achievements, it wouldn't take long for them to become renowned in the underground black market, attracting more resources and talent.
"No matter who we face, just being cautious is enough."
Leader Insect Man came beside the corpses of the wanderer ninjas, searching the bodies as usual.
Sometimes, these wanderer ninjas carried interesting items, although Insect Man never encountered such a situation, he saw it as a way to bolster his personal stash.
Regardless, these wanderer ninjas were dead, and their wealth was now theirs.
This indeed was a lucrative task.
"Oh?"
Insect Man raised an eyebrow, finding a scroll on one of the wanderer ninja's corpse.
This wanderer ninja was remembered by Insect Man as the leader of the wanderer ninja organization.
The scroll appeared cheap in quality but was sealed with a jutsu, indicating it might contain some secret?
"What's inside?"
"Not sure. Can't rule out it being a trap."
After pondering for a moment, Insect Man decided to open it despite the risk, curious about its contents.
However, precautions needed to be taken.
After undoing the jutsu, Insect Man jumped back, ready for any trap jutsu inside the scroll.
But there was nothing on the scroll, only some scrawled writing indicating they planned to use a 'secret' to make a large sum of money.
The five could not fathom what 'secret' these wanderer ninjas were referring to that could fetch a high price.
From the handwriting, it seemed they had found a suitable buyer, and today was the day of the transaction.
Unluckily for them, they had been ambushed earlier, likely foiling the transaction.
"Boss, should we go see what this so-called 'secret' is?"