Notes:

The Land of Rice Fields was the first name of the Land of Sound, a neighboring country of the Land of Fire and relatively new in the political scene.

The Konoha ninjas settled in the Fire Temple and far from them, in the Underground Bounty Station of the Land of Rice Fields, Kakazu, a rogue ninja was collecting the pay after completing a bounty mission. Right now, he was busy counting the bills in front of a cashier.

For him, listening to the crisp banknotes was a melodious sound but the moment of delight did not affect his sharp eyes. Amid the counting, his movement paused. He took out a note from the bundle and instructed the staff member next to him, “This is a bit old, change it.”

“Yes, Kakazu-sama.” The staff member hastily replaced it with a new note.

At this moment, the person in charge of this bounty station came out from behind and cautiously whispered to Kakazu, “Kakazu-sama, a piece of news just came in… an S-ranked mission has been issued.”

Kakazu’s eyes sparkled with excitement. An S-ranked mission meant a big score. He asked, “How much?”

“15 million Ryo.”

Putting his money into a suitcase, Kakazu shut it carefully and said, “Give me the mission.”

The person in charge looked to be in a dilemma. He replied in a low voice, “This is a top-secret mission. If you see it, you have no choice but to accept it. Moreover, the employer has specific demands, one of which being each bounty station can only assign one person to take the mission.”

Kakazu waved his hand and said, “I’ll take it. You know my strength, I’ll be able to handle it.”

The person in charge nodded and took out a mission sheet. He handed it over to Kakazu along with the relevant details. “The assassination target is Fire Temple’s Master Chigo. The employer has a time requirement as well. The target must be assassinated only when he is leaving the Hot Water Temple. Most importantly, you must not let him enter the Land of Fire.”

The information confused Kakazu and he re-checked, “Is it just killing a monk?”

The person in charge nodded and said, “Yes, the monk himself must not be difficult to handle, but there’s a possibility there will be ninjas protecting him.”

After getting the confirmation, Kakazu took the mission sheet with satisfaction.

“15 million is enough. It just so happens there are two small fries in the Land of Hot Water as well. I can take care of them together on the way.”

……

Five days later, Namikaze Minato and his party arrived at the Rose Street of Hot Water Temple with Chigo. They hadn’t faced any obstacles making the journey smooth. The temple was built on the top of a hill not far from Rose Street.

At this moment, the street was bustling with different activities. Buddhist believers came from various regions to watch the debate. Seeing Chigo, they kowtowed on both sides of the street, their faces filled with devotion.

This place was Land of Hot Water’s inner region, making it practically a danger-free zone. Therefore, Minato let Chigo walk upfront and walked behind along with Uchiha Tonan and Hatake Kakashi.

Every few steps, Chigo would stop and return the believers’ greetings. Only after they arrived at the foot of the Hot Water Temple’s hill, they were able to shake off the fanatical followers.

Minato wiped the sweat from his forehead and remarked with a bright smile, “Master Chigo is very popular.”

Tonan nodded. Looking at Chigo’s back, he muttered, “Is this what it means to be a virtuous eminent monk? All these believers must acknowledge Master Chigo from the bottom of their hearts.”

Hearing this, Chigo calmly replied, “It’s not me but Buddha that they acknowledge.”

“Looks like becoming a Buddha is also not a bad idea!”

Tonan’s yearning resurfaced and as soon as that happened, Chigo, who was walking ahead, frowned. He senses the pure evil desire even more vividly.

Glancing at Tonan, he casually asked, “Young fellow, have you ever put any thought on the kind of person you want to become?”

Tonan adjusted his glasses and thought for a bit. He then replied, “Before my father passed away, he once instructed me to become a pure, virtuous person, who was free from vulgar fascinations.”

Minato smiled and rubbed Tonan’s head. “I believe in you, you can absolutely do it.”

Chigo was confused hearing Tonan’s answer. His ability to sense Tonan’s desires came from a spiritual perception called the heart-eye. While this was acquired by practicing Buddhism, what he perceived couldn’t be said to be completely accurate.

“You should often read the Buddhist scripture I gave you. And if you feel like you’re lost one day, you can come to the Fire Temple and meet me.”

By now, the group had arrived at the hilltop. They saw the Hot Water Temple monks standing there, welcoming Chigo with folded hands. The temple head, Eshu, took the initiative to respectfully greet, “Welcome, Master Chigo.”

“Greetings, Master Eshu.”

“We’ll hold the Buddhist debate tomorrow. Master Chigo, please rest in the temple tonight.”

“Excellent.”

At night, Tonan and Kakashi took turns to guard Chigo. Kakashi took the first half, and Tonan guarded in the second. The crescent moon was like a small boat anchored among the few and scattered branches.

In the monastery room, sitting cross-legged in front of a Buddha statue, Chigo was meditating. Outside his door, Tonan sat perfectly still. He was secretly controlling the white pigeons to monitor the area. In this world, one must never relax vigilance at any time.

The pigeons lurking in various places activated Sharingan. Under the Byakugan’s perception boost, the entire Rose Street was in Tonan’s full view. He could distinctly see the chakra coursing through many people. Most of these ought to be the Land of Hot Water’s ninjas, who especially came to maintain order.

Suddenly, a figure captured by a white pigeon entered Tonan’s vision.

“This amount of chakra… That’s!”

Tonan activated his three tomoe and used Mirror Heaven and Earth Change with full power, continuously narrowing the field of vision. A person’s figure appeared in his eyes, enlarging until it became clearer.

At this very moment, Kakazu, who was resting in an inn, felt like someone was peeking at him. He got up from the bed and looked out of the window but only saw an empty street. There was nothing.

“Was that my misperception?” Kakazu muttered to himself. He could no longer perceive that feeling, so he went back to sleep but decided to be more alert.

The moment Kakazu had gotten up, a white pigeon on the roof had already spread its wings and flown away.

“That guy is so sharp. Why is he here? It cannot be for me… there’s no bounty on my head.”

Tonan quietly deactivated the Sharingan.

Creak

At that moment, the door behind Tonan opened, shining a dim light on him. Tonan turned and saw Chigo looking at him with a solemn expression. Earlier, when Tonan had activated the Sharingan, Chigo felt an extremely evil power.

“Master Chigo, you haven’t slept yet,” Tonan inquired with a gentle look.

Chigo remained silent for a while. He walked over and sat down. Looking at the desolate crescent moon, he solemnly said, “I felt an evil aura just now.”

Tonan moved his gaze away from Chigo. He also looked at the night sky and muttered, “It was from me, right?”

Chigo nodded and replied in a low voice, “Since you’re a ninja, I shouldn’t worry myself. But I’m a monk after all. It’s my job to deliver all living beings from suffering.”

The chilly moonlight illuminated Tonan’s calm face. After a long silence, he slowly opened his mouth and asked, “Are you trying to convert me, Master Chigo?”