"Is this Tatashina? We shouldn't have arrived yet, right!"
Yahiko stopped in his tracks, staring in disbelief at the scene before him.
The Tatashina before his eyes was completely different from what he had imagined.
The peace and tranquility of Kikyōhara had given him a genuine fantasy about Tatashina as well.
With its abundant supply of herbs and poisons, Tatashina should have been far more developed than Kikyōhara.
But what lay before him was Tatashina in ruins, devastated beyond imagination.
Everywhere there were broken walls and collapsed structures; here and there stood a few barely habitable buildings. The ground was littered with trash and rubble, and among the crumbled lime walls, one could still spot corpses clutching kunai, shuriken, and other weapons.
"Let's go," Shiratori said to Yahiko.
By now, the twilight had already faded into complete darkness, and not a single shadow could be seen on the streets.
Yahiko walked up beside Shiratori. The night air of Tatashina carried a biting chill. He rubbed his arms and asked, "Why is it like this?"
"Herbs and poisons are resources needed for war. Without ninjas to protect it, Tatashina naturally became a target for plunder," Shiratori explained.
Yahiko pressed his lips together and fell into a deep silence.
"If it were another country, even if they had resources, they wouldn't be plundered."
"Because their nations are strong. And beyond that, they have their own ninjas to protect them."
"That's why founding a ninja village is necessary. Making the Land of Rain strong enough to no longer be bullied at will is also necessary."
Shiratori's voice echoed in Yahiko's ears. Everything Hanzō had done so far held important meaning. He turned his head to look at Shiratori, nodding heavily. "You're right! But from now on, we'll take another path, to make war vanish completely!"
He clenched his fist tightly, his eyes shining with determination.
Shiratori kept smiling and nodded in approval. "That's right. Akatsuki exists to end war through peaceful means."
On Yahiko's grave expression, a smile bloomed again.
"Up ahead, it looks like there's an inn…"
Konan spoke softly, pointing to a two-story building ahead, lit with lanterns, as she addressed Shiratori and Yahiko.
"Let's go take a look."
Shiratori took the lead, walking in that direction.
The building was already somewhat dilapidated; the walls and steps at the entrance bore marks of age. Even the lanterns were tattered, and at the doorway, a broken wooden board displayed the prices.
"So expensive!"
Konan clicked her tongue at the marked price.
She rarely stayed in inns, but she knew that this one cost far more than an ordinary inn.
"This area has suffered constant war. Higher prices are only natural."
Shiratori wasn't short on money. Beyond the allowance Hanzō regularly gave him, his greatest source of income came from looting, stripping money from the bodies of ninjas he had slain on the battlefield. In this way, his purse quickly swelled.
Konan and Yahiko both nodded.
They followed Shiratori into the inn.
Behind the counter stood the figure of an elderly woman, her face looking very kind.
"Oh? Here to stay, are you? Where did you come from? Got money?"
Before Shiratori and the others could speak, the owner kept chattering away.
Her eyes roved over the group, up and down.
He glanced at Yahiko and the others beside him. Without answering the owner's questions, he said directly, "We want one room, and bring up four servings of dinner."
He took out the amount of money listed on the board and placed it on the counter.
A flicker of surprise passed through the innkeeper's eyes. She quickly swept the coins into her pocket, nodded toward Shiratori, and said, "No problem, follow me."
She stepped out from behind the counter and led Shiratori and the others upstairs. Near the staircase, she opened the first room. Standing at the doorway without entering, she looked at the four of them and said, "You'll stay here. I'll go downstairs and prepare your dinner."
Then she turned and went back down.
The four of them entered the room, and Shiratori shut the door firmly.
"Don't eat the food later."
After inspecting the room carefully, Shiratori lowered his voice to Yahiko and the others.
They nodded first, then Yahiko asked why.
"The innkeeper will drug the food."
"Have you forgotten? This place is rich in herbs and poisons. Most people here know how to make simple toxins."
The crow's scouting had already confirmed his suspicions. The innkeeper had laced the meals with poison.
"Why would she want to harm us?" Konan asked in confusion.
Shiratori shook his head and told them, "When the food comes, we'll dump half of it in the washroom, then pretend to have collapsed. We'll see what she's planning."
Yahiko and the others nodded without hesitation.
Knock, knock, knock...
Someone rapped at the door.
Konan's heart tensed instantly.
Shiratori gave her a glance, his eyes filled with reassurance.
She took a deep breath, and the tension eased away.
Shiratori stepped forward and opened the door. The innkeeper stood there with a tray in her hands, smiling at him.
"Dinner's ready."
He stepped aside to let her in.
She set the four servings from the tray onto the low table, gave them a smile, and said, "Please enjoy."
Then she slowly withdrew from the room.
Shiratori closed the door and looked at Yahiko and the others. They all nodded in unison. The innkeeper glanced back toward their room once, then began walking down the stairs step by step. Her smile faded. Her eyes turned vacant. Closing them briefly, she started counting silently in her heart.
One, two, three…
Twenty, twenty-one, twenty-two…
Ninety-eight, ninety-nine, one hundred.
The innkeeper took a deep breath and turned back toward the stairs. She stopped at the door of the first room, curled her fingers, and knocked.
"I've come to clear away the dishes."
No sound came from inside. She repeated the words twice more, but still no response.
Creak.
The old wooden door groaned as she pushed it open. Her footsteps landed noiselessly on the floorboards of the room.
On the tatami mats, the four children lay collapsed around the low table, fainted in different postures.
A crow flew to the inn and perched on the railing of the second-floor corridor. It gently pecked at its jet-black feathers, its dark pupils fixed on the room with the open door.
Inside the room, the innkeeper stood by the tatami, silently staring at four children who had fainted.
Her face was calm, her eyes showing no hint of emotion.
From the room at the end of the corridor, a figure emerged. He was tall, his footsteps light, humming a tune as if in a good mood, heading straight toward the first room of the corridor.
"Did you get them?"
The man leaned against the doorway, staring at the back of the innkeeper inside.
The crow tilted its head, watching the scene before it as if nothing was unusual.
The innkeeper gave no reply. The man's lips curled downward, as though unsurprised by her reaction.
He strode in, walked up to the tatami, and examined the four children.
"This batch is pretty good."
The man stroked his chin and nodded in satisfaction.
He glanced back at the innkeeper, saw her lifeless expression, and spat in disgust.
"Quit making that rotten face! Makes me sick! If you've got any backbone, then don't do it at all! Go tell Ryūga-sama later, tell him you're not willing to do these things anymore!"
His expression shifted from disdain to malicious glee, as if he already knew what fate awaited the innkeeper.
The innkeeper's face paled, but she said nothing.
Seeing this, the man sneered, "Spineless coward!"
He stepped forward, lifted up two of the nearby children, and naturally left the other two for the innkeeper.
The innkeeper's brow twitched, but she still reached out and picked up the remaining two children.
"Let's go!"
"We'll hand them over to Ryūga-sama, see what he decides!"
The man strode downstairs.
The innkeeper followed behind him.
Neither of them paid the slightest attention to the crow in the corridor. Once their figures disappeared into the stairwell, the crow flapped its wings and took flight.
With eyes closed and body relaxed, Shiratori borrowed the crow's sight, watching clearly the movements of the innkeeper and the stranger.
The innkeeper and the tall man slipped out of the back door of the inn, running deep into Tatashina.
From the stranger's words and the crow's observations, this "Ryūga" was a ninja hiding within Tatashina.
Under Ryūga's threats, all the residents of Tatashina had become his subordinates, forced to carry out unspeakable deeds for him.
Carrying Shiratori and the others, the innkeeper and the man darted quickly through the streets of Tatashina. After an unknown amount of time, they finally stopped in front of a tall building.
This building was no different from the ones around it, its walls likewise scarred by the traces of war.
The innkeeper and the man stopped at the entrance and knocked on the door.
Footsteps came from inside, and the door cracked open. A pair of cold eyes fell upon them, the gaze shifting down to the children in their arms.
"Come in."
"Many thanks, Ryūga-sama!"
The man bowed obsequiously and entered the room.
The innkeeper followed behind him.
After they stepped inside, the man called Ranga shut the door.
He strode toward the sofa in the middle of the room. Seated there was a rugged-faced man, his visage marred by a hideous scar that stretched across like a centipede, as if tearing his face into two halves. Ranga stood respectfully behind him.
"Ryūga-sama!"
The moment they saw the scarred man, both the innkeeper and the stranger cried out in fear.
Ryūga leaned forward slightly, his gaze falling on the four children in their arms.
"Where did these brats come from?"
Ryūga narrowed his eyes and asked.
"Ryūga-sama, these are four kids who came to stay at the inn. We haven't yet figured out their identities."
The innkeeper's throat tightened, her voice sharp and strained.
"Put them here."
Ryūga patted the sofa beside him.
The innkeeper and the man immediately stepped forward, laying the four children on the sofa.
"They look to have decent potential. If they've got talent, we'll train them as ninjas. If not…"
Ryūga paused. "Then use them for drug testing."
"Yes."
Ranga, who stood behind him, nodded.
"What did you give them?" Ryūga's eyes flicked toward the innkeeper.
"J-just a normal sleeping drug… They should wake in about two hours," the innkeeper quickly replied.
Ryūga gave a small nod, his gaze sweeping across the children.
Suddenly, his eyes met a pair of calm blue irises. Those eyes were like a still lake, calm to the point of being terrifying.
Ryūga nearly jumped from his seat, but he forced down the impulse.
It was just a brat, why should he be afraid?
Shiratori sat upright on the sofa, staring directly at the scarred man.
"You… how are you awake?! That drug shouldn't wear off for at least two hours!"
The innkeeper pointed at Shiratori in shock.
Seeing him awaken, Yahiko and the others also opened their eyes, watching the four adults in the room with sharp vigilance.
"Who are you people?"
Ryūga saw no trace of fear on their faces. These were no ordinary children.
Shiratori fixed his gaze on him.
"Who are you? You know the Land of Rain forbids ninjas from other villages to linger within its borders, yet you ignore it? Do you want Hanzō-sama to deal with you himself?"
Ryūga's expression shifted rapidly, changing again and again.
"You're ninjas from Ame?"
He was stunned and uncertain.
Had Hanzō already discovered him?
Shiratori gave silent confirmation.
Ryūga's shock gradually twisted into seething killing intent.
[Killing Intent detected: Ryūga +3000 points]
[Curse Growth - Killing Intent: 1.8%]
If he killed them here, who would ever know of his existence?
He narrowed his eyes.
"Blame your own bad luck!"
A tearing sound cut through the air.
In an instant, sharp hooked claws unfurled before Shiratori, gleaming with a chilling light, their tips slashing toward his throat.
"Shiratori!"