At an angle where no one else could see, Torifu turned his head and looked at Rain, who was standing at the door. He noticed that Rain's posture, movements, and expression were the same as before, completely unchanged.
"Something's very wrong with this Rain."
Ever since he had first arrived on the island, a sudden rain had fallen. Although Torifu had confirmed at the time that the rain didn't contain any chakra, he had later felt a mysterious, very faint chakra. It was so subtle that it was almost impossible to detect without a strong sensory ability. Torifu judged that it had quietly covered the entire beach by following the rain. They had entered the Land of Whirlpools secretly, and although a battle had occurred on the beach, it was still dawn, and very few people would have been awake. Yet, this Rain was waiting for him on the main road to Uzushiogakure.
That's why Torifu had tested him. If he were a ninja, his first reaction to being hit would have been to defend himself or find a way to minimize the damage. But Rain had just taken Torifu's attack head-on without showing any displeasure. He acted like a complete servant, his expression filled with flattery. The Land of Whirlpools might have a class system, but Torifu had walked around the streets and had not seen a single official's servant who was so obsequious. However, all of this could be explained away by assuming Rain was a masochist. After all, with the likes of Hidan as a precedent, Torifu hadn't found Rain to be particularly suspicious.
That was until tonight. The First Prince was happily chatting with Torifu, but when Rain's voice suddenly came from outside, the First Prince paused for a moment, looking confused. Then, just as quickly, the expression vanished. Torifu had thought he might have been seeing things, but Rain's behavior just now made the thought resurface. Connecting all these events led to one conclusion. The person Torifu had been interacting with for the past day might not be the First Prince at all, but someone who was being controlled by Rain.
"Is it a genjutsu? But I've never seen a genjutsu user who would also trap themselves."
It wasn't a good idea to stay here for long. To avoid being discovered, Torifu transformed into a cloud of mist, vaulted over the wall, and returned to his residence.
After Torifu left the Daimyō's residence, Rain's demeanor suddenly changed. He glanced at the spot where Torifu had stood, and the smile on his face twisted. "He's a smart one, just as my master needs him to be... I'm just a failed product." He then returned to his polite, servile look.
At that moment, the Second Prince also walked out of the hall.
"Farewell, Your Highness the Second Prince."
The Second Prince didn't even look at Rain and walked straight to the front gate.
After the Second Prince left, Rain tilted his head in a puzzled way. "You're an interesting one, too. Where did you come from? And what do you want?"
"Rain! Rain! Where are you!" The First Prince's voice called from inside the hall.
"I'm here! I'm here! What is your command, Your Highness!" Rain quickly scurried to the First Prince's side and gently massaged his shoulders.
"I could have sworn I saw my second brother walking out of here. Is my illness getting worse?"
Rain's grip on the First Prince's shoulders tightened slightly. "It's not, Your Highness. The doctor said that if you take your medicine on time, you'll be well soon."
The First Prince angrily slammed the table. "But I've been taking it for almost a month! Why hasn't it had any effect! This medicine is so bitter and astringent, it's unbearable! Those doctors are all quacks!" The First Prince's face was red from shouting, and the veins on his neck were slightly bulging.
Rain, meanwhile, smiled faintly, his hands continuously rubbing and pressing on the First Prince's temples. "Your Highness, you remember incorrectly. You've only been taking the medicine for two days."
The First Prince frowned slightly. "That's impossible. I remember it clearly. You came to the Land of Whirlpools a month ago. It was that day..."
"You really only took the medicine for two days, and I was taken in by you and have been serving you ever since..." Rain's voice was low and gentle, and every word seemed to carry a hypnotic murmur. The voice swirled through the main hall like mist, lingering for a long time. The ninja hidden in the shadows knew something was wrong and were about to make a move! But after hearing Rain's voice, they all momentarily lost their minds, and in the next second, they forgot what they had been about to do.
"Of course I know that. Is there any need to repeat it? I remember the day I met you very clearly, on the east coast of the Land of Whirlpools."
Rain smiled. "That's right, Your Highness. You often fall into a deep sleep, so you may have forgotten some things. I will recall them for you."
The First Prince closed his eyes and enjoyed Rain's massage. "Go on, I'm listening."
"Your father disappeared a month ago, and His Highness the Eighth Prince suddenly committed suicide. You wrote a letter to the Hidden Leaf for help, and they sent an elite Jōnin named Kumotsuru Torifu..." Rain's voice was gentle, like music playing from a vinyl record. The rhythmic cadence made people feel very relaxed. He systematically recounted everything that had happened in the past month to the First Prince. What was strange was that the First Prince didn't react at all to hearing about his father's disappearance and his brother's death.
If anyone could have resisted this all-encompassing whisper, they would have seen the First Prince's expression. His eyes were vacant and pitch-black, like two black holes. Rain's hands emitted a faint blue light that shimmered around the First Prince's head like layers of waves. His eyes also glowed with a blue light, and a few fish-like scales appeared on his arms before vanishing instantly.
"In three days, you will gather your brothers and hold a meeting of the Uzumaki clan. The goal is to resolve the conflicts between your brothers..."
As he spoke, the light-blue radiance around the First Prince's head burst open! The ethereal blue light swept across the entire hall. The flickering candlelight instantly went out, leaving only the electric lights still on. A moment later, the blue light faded, and Rain gently snapped his fingers, and the candles burned once more.
A few minutes later, the maids were the first to wake up. "His Highness the First Prince drank too much. Take him back to his chambers to rest."
The maids bowed. "As you command, Rain-dono." They then went out and called two guards to carry the First Prince on a palanquin and send him back to his chambers.
The main hall was brightly lit, but it was pitch black outside. It stood out in the endless darkness. Rain slowly walked to the entrance of the main hall, and in a few quick flashes, he was on the roof of the hall. He rolled up his sleeves and stroked his skin. "It's a little dry. It's time for it to rain."
With that, a light drizzle began to fall from the sky.
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Chapter End
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