The Cover-Up
"Forget it," Jin muttered, shaking his head.
"This isn't necessary. Our mission is to transport supplies. No need to make things complicated."
Kazama nodded, but his eyes lingered on Jin with curiosity. Strange… this way of thinking feels more like a Nara than an Uchiha. He chuckled inwardly. Well, it didn't matter. Less trouble suited him just fine.
His gaze dropped to the unconscious Ishikawa Itsuki lying at his feet. Kazama sighed. Lucky idiot. How is he still alive?
Still, responsibility was responsibility.
"Ishikawa's breathing. Let's treat him."
Jin frowned but eventually nodded. Annoying as Itsuki was, leaving him to die outright wasn't an option. Together, they hauled him onto a carriage, stuffed him with herbs and a soldier pill, then promptly stopped caring. Without a medic, his fate now rested on whether he lasted until the camp.
Kazama broke the silence, his eyes calculating.
"Jin, what are we going to say later?"
Jin narrowed his eyes. "Tell the truth. What else?"
Kazama gave him a flat look. This guy's pretending to be dense. He's sharper than that. Still, since he'd raised it, he had no choice but to spell things out.
"Exposing our strength will only bring us trouble. I think you're like me—someone who hates trouble." He leaned in slightly. "So let's be honest."
Jin's lips twitched. The kid was too clever. "What do you propose?"
Kazama didn't waste words.
"The captain's drained and can't sense outside. Itsuki's unconscious. The civilians are dead. That means it's just us."
"We'll each take one of the three wagons. If you don't have a storage scroll, I'll give you one."
"The Kirigakure bodies? We seal them up and deal with them later. When the captain wakes, we say we barely held the line—only one cart survived. The other two?" Kazama shrugged. "Stolen by the enemy."
He continued smoothly, "As for Itsuki—we tell them he was arrogant, refused our warnings, and rushed in. Got injured. We both had to fight to drag him out alive."
Jin stared, then let out a low whistle. Damn. This guy thinks like an arms dealer. Hide their strength, profit on the side, and shift blame neatly onto someone else. Treacherous. But brilliant.
And Jin liked it.
"Fine," Jin agreed. "But let's move quickly, before something goes wrong."
They split up—Jin collected the Mist corpses with the scroll, while Kazama dealt with the wagons.
Three minutes later, they regrouped. Kazama's grin was sharp.
"I checked. One cart of medicinal herbs, one cart of explosive tags. Together, about thirty million ryō. The third cart was just kunai—worthless. I left that one for the mission."
"And don't worry. I used a Nara clan sealing technique. No one will notice the other carts are missing."
Jin sucked in a sharp breath. Thirty million? Just from this small assignment?
No wonder wars never stopped. No wonder people profited off them.
He couldn't help but grin. "Good job."