Naruto evolution system

Chapter 244: Infiltration (Part 1)

"Just as I thought!"

Looking into the man's dazed and unfocused eyes, Kakashi murmured quietly.

He had already sensed something was off about this man's condition.

Now that he was looking at him up close, his suspicions were confirmed—the man was under a genjutsu.

With this realization, Kakashi formed a seal with his hands and whispered:

"Release!"

"Hmm…"

The middle-aged man mumbled in confusion as he slowly woke from his trance.

But the moment he opened his eyes, he was met with a masked figure staring directly at him.

"Ah!"

A short, startled scream escaped his lips.

However, as soon as he locked eyes with Kakashi's cold gaze, his fear immediately silenced him.

Seeing that the man understood the situation, Kakashi nodded in satisfaction and proceeded with his questioning.

"Where is the person who was in this room just now?"

Hearing this, the middle-aged man looked confused.

"W-What person?"

"You don't know?"

The man shook his head, puzzled.

Judging from his expression, he didn't seem to be lying.

Kakashi's heart sank slightly.

But he wasn't ready to give up just yet.

Taking a few steps toward the door, he gestured to his team.

Within moments, the rest of the ANBU squad entered the room.

"Captain."

"Hmm."

Kakashi nodded before turning to one of his subordinates.

"Aka, prepare for the Time Reversal Technique."

"Understood, Captain!"

Following the command, Aka moved toward the middle-aged man and formed a series of rapid hand seals.

Looking into the man's anxious gaze, he spoke in a calm, hypnotic tone:

"Relax. Close your eyes. Take a deep breath."

His voice was gentle and soothing, making it difficult to resist.

Within seconds, the middle-aged man's body loosened, and he entered a trance-like state.

Seeing that the technique was working, Aka gently placed two fingers on the man's forehead, then turned to Kakashi and nodded.

This process was necessary for safety reasons.

They had previously encountered Baishi's subordinates before.

But due to the 'Mental Seed' he implanted in them, attempting to forcefully extract memories led to severe mental backlash.

From that point on, the ANBU team had adopted a more delicate approach when interrogating possible associates of Baishi—one of those methods was the Time Reversal Technique.

---

"Let's begin."

Following Kakashi's signal, Aka began the process.

Using a soft, persuasive tone, he asked:

"Tell me, what is your name?"

"Ōi Yūki."

The middle-aged man mumbled drowsily.

"Your age?"

"Forty-one."

"Your occupation?"

"Fur merchant."

"Merchant…"

Hearing this, Aka carefully examined the man's body.

Confirming that he had no traces of shinobi training, Aka nodded before continuing.

"Now, let's go back in time. Think back to one minute ago."

Ōi Yūki's facial expression shifted slightly.

Seeing this, Aka paused for a moment, then continued.

"Now, two minutes ago…"

The man's expression changed again—this time, he looked startled, just like when he had first seen Kakashi.

Step by step, Aka continued guiding him deeper into his memories, slowly rewinding time.

Soon, they reached the point where Baishi had been in the room.

"Tell me, what do you see?"

Aka asked.

For a moment, the man was silent.

Then, he slowly replied:

"Nothing… I see nothing."

"Huh?"

Aka frowned before turning to his teammate, Kuro, who specialized in tracking via insects.

"Kuro, are you certain his scent disappeared here?"

"Positive."

Kuro responded succinctly.

Hearing this, Kakashi's expression darkened slightly.

His instincts told him that this operation would likely be another dead end.

But he wasn't ready to give up yet.

Turning back to Aka, he ordered:

"Ask about the events leading up to and following that moment."

"Understood, Captain!"

At this point, they were grasping at straws.

But no matter how hard they tried, Baishi had completely erased any relevant memories from the man's mind.

Thus, their efforts were doomed to fail.

---

Meanwhile.

Somewhere in the Land of Earth.

Baishi sat calmly, listening to Moonlight Hayate's report on the past three months.

Although the Eight-Tails incident had created tensions between Cloud Village and Stone Village, and Deidara's involvement had further strained relations, the Five Kage Summit still proceeded as planned.

In the end, the five great villages reached an agreement—both Baishi and the Akatsuki would be considered primary targets for elimination.

"Good thing I didn't reveal myself earlier. That would've been a nightmare."

Baishi muttered.

But then, he suddenly paused, a thought crossing his mind.

"Then again… does it even make a difference?"

Even though he had avoided exposing his location, removing the Flying Thunder God mark from Hayate was already a clear message.

The moment Konoha realized the seal was gone, they would immediately suspect him.

At this rate, it was only a matter of time before the entire ninja world was chasing him.

"If that's the case… I might as well act quickly."

Having made up his mind, he turned to Hayate and instructed:

"Leave now. Find a way to reveal your presence subtly. You know what to do to attract Konoha's ANBU, don't you?"

After thinking for a moment, Hayate smirked confidently.

"Don't worry, my lord. I know exactly how to get their attention."

Baishi nodded in satisfaction and waved him off.

"Good. Now go."

"Yes, my lord!"

Without hesitation, Hayate vanished from the scene.

---

The Next Day.

After receiving Hayate's signal, Baishi immediately set off for Iwagakure.

Yes—this time, his target was Stone Village.

The reason for this choice was simple—Iwagakure had plenty of high-quality candidates for his experiment.

Although anyone implanted with his latest version of the 'Mental Seed' could provide the emotional stimulation needed to boost his intelligence and mental fortitude, some individuals were simply more suitable than others.

What makes an ideal candidate?

In the ninja world, shinobi were naturally the best choices.

Compared to ordinary civilians, their mental resilience and spiritual energy were far superior.

And among shinobi, those with exceptional willpower tended to also be stronger in combat.

Coincidentally, Iwagakure had quite a few of these individuals.

Baishi had already identified his next set of targets.

Now, it was just a matter of getting close enough to plant the seeds.

---

Read up to 20 chapter ahead of time on patreon.com/Legendryweeb

{please give this novel 5 Star review and power stone}

*Thank you*