The Insect Man looked at the message passed up with satisfaction and smiled as he spoke.
"The plan was a success, but it came with the cost of a large sum of money."
The Earth Man gave a bitter laugh, as the reason for the success of this operation was those Explosive Tags.
And Explosive Tags are pricey, one-use explosive ninja tools, with a single Explosive Tag having power not inferior to a regular Fire Style Jutsu. And the Explosive Tags thrown in last night within ten minutes...it was basically throwing money around, not fighting.
The interior buildings of Hozuki Castle indeed suffered considerable damage, but their losses were no small amount either.
"It's alright, the organization still has a considerable amount of freely disposable funds. Besides, if we run low on money, isn't Lord Ruri still around?"
The Insect Man said this.
"That's true."
The Earth Man thought of something and acknowledged it.
Thinking this way, the Explosive Tags thrown out last night didn't hurt as much.
One of the organization's elders was actually a top-tier rich man in the Ninja Realm, and for that lord, this is just a drop in the bucket.
"The bait has been laid out, the next target is the Hidden Grass Village."
The Insect Man stood on the cliff, gazing at the distant Hidden Grass Village, murmuring to himself.
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Weekend evening.
The dim sunlight shone into the woods.
This was a vast and deserted training ground, where only the sound of metal clashing could be heard as the Short Knife and Shadow Blade engaged in fierce combat.
Compared to one fully committed to the fight, exerting maximum strength and speed while their gaze revealed seriousness, the other was just fully committed to 'playing' with them.
Because this was a battle with a significant disparity in strength.
Kakashi held the White Fang Short Knife with a serious expression, looking at Hakushi ahead who had not moved from his spot the whole time. Around him, Shadow Blades materialized from the shadows, slowly rotating around Hakushi.
It was a kind of 'Absolute Defense' type of Shadow Realm.
No matter what angle or method was used, it would be blocked flawlessly and then repelled back.
Hakushi stood there with a relaxed posture, arms crossed, exerting absolute pressure on Kakashi just by having the Shadow Dancer in the shadow take action.
But that's only natural, the speed and power of the Shadow Dancer's blades would instantly kill even a Jonin if careless.
Moreover, who would have thought such an assassin would exist in his shadow?
The Shadow Dancer doesn't need sleep, as long as there is enough Chakra and Natural Energy, it can defend against any killer blow aimed at Hakushi anytime, even attacking back.
To those unfamiliar with him, the traps set by Hakushi were all deadly realms of certain death.
It was also Hakushi's proud creation.
Now the Shadow Dancer had practiced the prototype of Sage Mode, with the speed and power of the Shadow Blades, as well as their hardness, becoming even stronger than before.
The Shadow Blades fighting against Kakashi were merely manifested using standard Chakra.
If Sage Art Chakra were used to manifest the Shadow Blades, the White Fang Short Knife would likely be shattered instantly.
However, the fact that Kakashi managed to reach this level already made Hakushi quite satisfied.
Kakashi was only about seven or eight years old, after all, and he couldn't hold him to adult standards demanding too much.
Kakashi's golden age of fastest growth hadn't arrived yet.
Even so, Hakushi was confident that Kakashi could become a Jonin before the age of twelve.
With proper nurturing, his future achievements might surpass even his father—the Konoha White Fang.
Kakashi swung the White Fang Short Knife, its blade slicing the air, dividing the occasional falling leaves before his eyes neatly into two, carrying an extremely sharp aura as he continued to attack Hakushi.
Precision aside, the White Fang Swordsmanship was the most solid, and speed and power were among its strengths.
Paired with the exquisite Instantaneous Body Jutsu, it created the prestigious name of Konoha White Fang.
The simpler the move, the more terrifying its application became.
Kakashi's breathing was steady, and his gaze calm.
This was also the challenge given to him by Hakushi.
Initially, when he began training under Hakushi, he felt a slight nervousness, but as he got used to fighting him, that nervousness transformed into a constant drive to grow stronger.
His thoughts had shifted from considering how long he could hold out against Hakushi to contemplating how he could break through the Shadow Blade realm and attack Hakushi directly.
Hakushi had said that even Jonin skilled in Taijutsu would struggle to keep up with the speed and power of the Shadow Blades.
This meant that if his White Fang Short Knife could break through the Shadow Blade realm, he would possess the strength to fight a Jonin.
These days, the speed and power with which he executed the White Fang Swordsmanship had indeed improved considerably.
Under Hakushi's training, his strength was rapidly growing, consistently breaking through his own limits to reach higher realms.
The Shadow Blades could be long or short; they could transform into any weapon's shape. During attacks, noting the changes in the Shadow Blades was also training Kakashi's instant judgment in real combat, as well as his nervous system's response ability.
For any ninja proficient in Taijutsu and swordsmanship, neural response capability was a foundational skill that had to be honed.
According to what Hakushi knew, currently, the ninja with the strongest neural response capability in the Ninja Realm should be the Third Raikage of the Hidden Cloud Village.
Possessing the strongest spear and the strongest shield among ninjas.