Konoha cat breeder

Chapter 260: Reaching the Breaking Point

Tonari had previously operated on the battlefield in the Land of Hot Water, even infiltrating the Land of Lightning and Iwagakure.

Yet, he still couldn't confirm the exact location of the two valuable maps.

At this moment, he felt hesitant.

Should he carry out this mission?

It was far too dangerous—even with the intelligence provided by Danzo, he still couldn't determine the precise location of his target.

More importantly, he couldn't be certain if Danzo would truly go so far as to betray him outright.

He had two choices:

1. Abandon his perfect mission completion record since becoming a shinobi.

2. Take the risk and attempt it anyway.

The old Tonari wouldn't have hesitated—he would have simply gone through the motions, taken a quick look, and retreated at the first sign of trouble.

His safety had always been his top priority, and keeping up appearances with a 100% success rate was meaningless in comparison.

But now... things were different.

With his increasing strength, his mindset had also evolved.

In his own words—

> "A true strong person should act with dignity. If I retreat every time there's danger, how can I maintain my aura of dominance?"

So, after careful deliberation—

He made his decision.

"Screw it—I'm doing this."

If things went south, he could flee immediately.

With Flying Thunder God – First Step and Kamui Mangekyō Sharingan, escaping wouldn't be impossible.

---

Tonari headed for the battlefield without informing Jiraiya, who was commanding the Konoha forces in the Land of Hot Water.

He didn't have time to waste.

If the maps weren't in the Cloud Army's camp, then he'd have to infiltrate Kumogakure itself.

For Tonari, sneaking in wasn't difficult.

Using Orochimaru's "Face Stealing Technique" alongside Mangekyō Sharingan's Genjutsu to extract memories, he could impersonate a Cloud shinobi without issue.

The real problem was getting close to the Third Raikage's command tent.

According to intelligence, the Cloud forces had three major powerhouses on the battlefield:

Third Raikage

His son, A (future Fourth Raikage)

Killer Bee, the Eight-Tails Jinchūriki

If these three joined forces, even Tonari would be forced to flee.

---

After stealthily crossing several perimeter defenses, Tonari finally reached the Cloud Army's camp—rows of tents stretching endlessly before him.

The outer defenses were easy to bypass, but navigating through a high-density area of thousands of shinobi was an entirely different challenge.

Instead of rushing in, Tonari circled the camp twice before identifying a target.

It was a single tent on the outer edge of the camp.

The person living inside wasn't weak, but for some reason, they had chosen to reside alone.

Tonari waited until nightfall.

Once the patrols had settled into their shifts and most shinobi were asleep, he silently infiltrated the tent.

Without hesitation, he used Kamui to drag the sleeping shinobi into his dimension and placed them under Genjutsu to extract memories.

After finishing, he disposed of the body and took on the shinobi's identity.

---

The man's name was Vulyi.

He was a Cloud Jōnin, holding the position of a squad leader—a status high enough to move freely in the camp but not directly access the Raikage's tent.

As Tonari walked through the camp, a patrolling unit called out to him.

"Vulyi-sama, still awake at this hour?"

Tonari frowned slightly and glanced at them.

"Hmm."

With a simple grunt from his nose, he turned and walked away without another word.

Behind him, the patrolling shinobi muttered among themselves.

"Hah… What's he so arrogant about? Just because he was A-sama's classmate when they were kids?"

"He's got talent, I'll give him that—but his attitude stinks."

"Give the guy a break. His parents were killed by the Eight-Tails. Of course, he resents it."

"Tch..."

Tonari heard everything.

Apparently, Vulyi was not well-liked among his comrades, which worked in his favor—it meant fewer people would bother him.

His aloof personality perfectly suited Tonari's usual demeanor.

As long as he didn't talk too much, no one would suspect a thing.

Thanks to this "coincidence," he managed to reach deeper into the camp without issue.

However, as he tried to enter the inner camp, he was stopped.

"Vulyi, you're not authorized to be here at this time."

A dark-skinned shinobi in standard Cloud attire stood in his way.

Two more shinobi appeared at his sides, forming a defensive formation around Tonari.

Tonari's expression remained indifferent as he locked eyes with the lead guard.

"I have urgent information for the Third Raikage and A-sama."

The lead guard frowned.

"Urgent?"

If it was truly important, stopping him could have serious consequences.

"...Fine. Stay here. I'll notify A-sama."

He turned to leave.

At the same time, the two remaining guards relaxed their stance slightly.

Tonari's eyes narrowed.

A blade flashed.

In an instant, he struck.

"Kamui!"

Grabbing the lead guard's shoulder, he activated Kamui, pulling him into his pocket dimension before he could even react.

Swish!

Tonari immediately turned, seizing the remaining two guards before they could shout.

A chilling silver arc flashed under the moonlight.

A faint warmth spilled from their throats—they tried to speak, but no words came out.

Within moments, all three guards were gone.

Tonari sniffed the air—

The scent of blood was lingering.

His eyes narrowed.

"I'll have to move quickly."

---

Tonari advanced stealthily toward the center of the camp.

Surprisingly, internal patrols were lighter than expected.

It seemed the Cloud shinobi were overconfident—after all, who would be insane enough to infiltrate the heart of a 5,000-strong army?

> "Only a fool would attempt this."

> "Then again… Root does exist."

But even Danzo's agents wouldn't have been able to reach this deep.

For that, you needed Kamui.

Anyone who saw Tonari—no matter how "lucky"—was immediately erased into Kamui's dimension.

As he moved forward, he couldn't help but ridicule a certain someone.

> "Kakashi had the Kamui for years and barely used it properly."

> "By the time of the Fourth Ninja War, he could finally enter Kamui's dimension, but at that point, it was too little, too late."

> "A complete waste of potential."

Unlike Kakashi, Tonari knew exactly how to maximize Kamui's potential.

---

He finally arrived at the largest tent in the camp—the Third Raikage's headquarters.

If the maps were anywhere, it would be here.

Tonari hid in the shadows, forming a hand seal.

Boom!

A massive explosion erupted in the distance, sending flames soaring into the sky.

"Enemy attack!!"

The camp descended into chaos.

Tonari remained hidden, staring at the entrance of the Raikage's tent—waiting.

Thirty seconds passed.

No movement.

His eyes narrowed.

He formed another hand seal.

Boom!

A second explosion—on the opposite side of the camp.

Finally—

The tent flap lifted, and a towering, dark-skinned man emerged.

His red, bloodshot eyes burned with fury.

It was the Third Raikage.

Tonari tensed.

He had a bad feeling about this.

Something was wrong.

---

He slipped into the tent and saw a messy desk stacked with documents.

Rushing forward, he searched for the maps.

But as soon as he grabbed a scroll—

His expression darkened.

Something wasn't right.

He opened another file.

Same issue.

Then—his eyes landed on a central scroll.

A thin sheet of paper lay atop it.

Tonari picked it up.

Four words were freshly written—

"Been waiting for you, Konoha's Blue Cat."

Tonari's heart sank.

He turned—ready to flee.

But before he could—

A deafening roar erupted from outside.

"Lightning Release – Black Panther Strike!"

---

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