Even though he had already guessed it,
Hyuga Arin still leveled his bronze blade at the man—
even knowing full well this was an opponent he absolutely couldn't defeat.
"Who are you people?"
"Rain Hidden Village jōnin, Murakami Hana."
The moment the words fell, the man vanished from where he stood.
Hyuga Arin could barely catch a trace of his speed as Murakami Hana reappeared behind him, wrenching one of his arms up and twisting it behind his back.
Hyuga Arin could only lower his body to reduce the pain.
Crack.
A crisp sound rang out.
Intense pain surged from his arm—
the bone had snapped.
The pain itself didn't affect him much.
Neurophin allowed him to ignore it, so his expression barely changed.
He lay half-prone on the ground, searching for an opening.
The gap between them was simply too great.
A jōnin was not something Hyuga Arin could contend with at his current level.
"Remember this," Murakami Hana said softly by his ear.
"In the Rain Hidden Village, you show respect to those stronger than you."
Only then did he release his grip.
Hyuga Arin rolled forward, turned to face Murakami Hana, and crouched on one knee.
One arm hung limply at his side.
The bronze blade vanished from his hand.
He placed his good hand on the broken arm.
Crack, crack.
With two sharp sounds, the bone was forced back into place.
He clenched his fist experimentally.
Barely usable—but usable.
At that moment, another person jumped in through the window.
A head was casually tossed onto the floor at Hyuga Arin's feet.
It belonged to one of the genin who had escaped earlier—
both of them.
"Still bullying newcomers, senior?"
A slightly obese man wearing a breathing mask walked up beside Murakami Hana.
On the surface, it sounded like he was standing up for Hyuga Arin—
but those tiny, beady eyes gleamed with unmistakable malice.
"Since he'll be working for Lord Hanzo from now on,"
Murakami Hana said with a fox-like smile,
"it's only right that he learns some rules."
Hearing Hanzo's name from Murakami Hana's mouth,
Hyuga Arin grew even quieter, carefully listening for what would come next.
"Then leave it to me, senior."
"Sure."
Murakami Hana didn't object.
He merely smiled as he watched the fat man walk toward Hyuga Arin.
"Kid."
The obese man's voice dripped with malice as he raised his foot, about to stomp down on Hyuga Arin.
But in the next instant—
He stepped on nothing.
The moment the man lifted his foot, Hyuga Arin darted sideways, slipping into his blind spot as if he had vanished, and appeared behind him, swinging the bronze blade.
The man looked fat, but his movements were anything but slow.
He whipped out a kunai and spun around to block.
"I'm not like those useless trash."
He caught Hyuga Arin's blade—
But the flames coating the bronze blade unleashed searing heat.
The kunai was severed almost instantly.
The obese man's expression changed dramatically.
He kicked off the ground and leapt backward, narrowly dodging the follow-up slash.
"You bastard!!!
You actually made me embarrass myself like this!!!"
The one who was supposed to be humiliated—
had dared to fight back.
Hyuga Arin lifted his head.
His grin stretched nearly to his ears, baring stark white teeth—
like a beast spotting prey,
or a killer who had finally locked onto his target.
The obese man involuntarily took a step back.
This guy…
wasn't right.
Hyuga Arin slammed his foot down.
His body shot forward like an arrow, instantly closing the distance.
He leapt into a full three-hundred-and-sixty-degree spin and slammed his foot into the man's face.
The force shattered the breathing mask,
his facial fat rippling violently.
Boom!
The obese man smashed into the wall.
Hyuga Arin had no intention of letting him go.
He stepped in again, raising the blade high, about to bring it down—
Bang!
Hyuga Arin was suddenly blasted backward, crashing into the wall and sliding down.
Murakami Hana stood in front of the obese man, smiling faintly.
"If you kill him," he said calmly,
"I'll have a hard time explaining it."
Hyuga Arin clutched his chest, his gaze burning as he stared at Murakami Hana.
The difference in strength was simply too great.
The enemy's boss level was far too high—
not something he could farm right now.
Later, when I'm stronger…
Maybe I'll come back and farm this mini-boss.
Seeing the faintly feverish look in Hyuga Arin's eyes,
Murakami Hana's smile stiffened slightly.
This guy…
was seriously wrong.
"Ahem."
Murakami Hana cleared his throat.
"He's here to replace you.
After that, you'll come with me to meet Lord Hanzo."
Hyuga Arin glanced regretfully at the obese man as he struggled back to his feet.
The man hadn't lost combat capability completely—
which meant no experience for him.
He wondered if he'd get a chance to deal with him before leaving.
Still, upon hearing Murakami Hana's words, Hyuga Arin knew—
He had gambled right.
Hanzo had indeed extended an olive branch.
And these two definitely hadn't arrived today.
They had been here for some time already.
Hyuga Arin didn't ask further questions.
He simply looked at Murakami Hana and asked,
"When do we leave?"
The fox-like smile on Murakami Hana's face slowly faded.
After some thought, he replied,
"The day after tomorrow.
You'll have two days to hand over your duties."
They truly hadn't arrived today.
They had been here for two days, gathering intelligence on Mu Yu.
After all, this was about meeting Hanzo.
They couldn't allow any uncertainty.
Who knew if this man might be one of Shozo's agents?
The Rain Hidden Village's leader, Shozo,
had been searching relentlessly for a chance to kill Hanzo.
Only with Hanzo dead would Shozo truly become the unquestioned leader.
As long as Hanzo lived, not only was he a threat—
his existence also pushed the Rain Hidden Village closer to open division.
Shozo had been constantly trying to locate Hanzo's hiding place.
As for Mu Yu—
There weren't many suspicious points.
He wasn't a native of the Rain Hidden Village, but rather a local civilian from the Land of Rain who had shown some talent and been absorbed into the village.
After several years of training, he'd been assigned under Kusomori for a few more years.
His interpersonal connections were essentially dead ends.
Aside from a civilian named Nagato, whom he seemed close to, there was nothing else noteworthy.
What ninTechnique he knew, what his exact combat strength was—
none of that was clear.
But there was no record of him ever contacting Shozo's people,
so he wasn't particularly dangerous.
Originally, Murakami Hana had planned to observe him for a while longer.
But unexpectedly, those genin had launched an assassination attempt.
Subordinates rebelling against a superior—
that was an absolute taboo, even if Mu Yu was only temporary.
That was why the two of them had intervened and killed the escapees.
Murakami Hana was quite curious—
Just what had Mu Yu done to push his subordinates
into choosing assassination as their only option?
Once such an incident was exposed,
those genin had only two fates—
Become missing-nin,
or die at the hands of the Rain Hidden Village.
Hyuga Arin ignored Murakami Hana's curiosity entirely.
Instead, he cast a provocative glance
at the obese ninja standing behind him.
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