Chapter 20 — You Stab Me, I Stab You
The man known as Okamoto instinctively furrowed his brow. "Why are you back again? Who are these two? And since when are you able to track Lord Gato's whereabouts?!"
"It's like this…"
The burly man quietly stepped closer and whispered a few words into his ear. Then, Okamoto's expression remained unchanged as he asked, "Where's the thing?"
"Here."
To everyone's surprise, the burly man produced the portrait of Gato.
Okamoto took it, nodded, and said, "Move. Take them down!"
Immediately, those nearby surged forward, brandishing all kinds of weapons, their faces twisted into vicious expressions as they closed in on Shinji and Hidan.
The burly man finally revealed his true colors—mocking, cruel, and seemingly eager to watch the two of them hacked to pieces.
But in the face of this, Shinji and Hidan showed not a flicker of emotion.
Perhaps the burly man had thought his poor acting had fooled them, but in reality, they had long noticed the ruse and simply went along with it.
Who in their right mind would carry a CEO's portrait to a job interview?
Clearly, only trouble-seekers would do such a thing.
This much, the burly man knew. Shinji and Hidan knew it too. Everyone assumed they would easily take down their target, which is why they all tacitly brought the act this far.
Now, the time of reckoning had come. Who would be the real hunter?
Hidan's sleeve slid open to reveal a kunai. Just as he stepped forward to massacre the idiots before him, he couldn't explain why, but instinctively he glanced back at Shinji. Only when Shinji nodded did he allow himself to reveal a gleeful, murderous grin and charge toward the larger group.
Such subtle shifts went unnoticed even by Hidan himself.
It was clear Shinji's training of Hidan was paying off. Along the journey to the Land of Waves, through coercion, persuasion, and careful guidance, he had repeatedly curbed Hidan's impulsive killings. One purpose was to reduce complications; the other was to gradually condition Hidan to follow his orders, lowering resistance.
Of course, simply restraining Hidan wasn't enough—he had to loosen the reins occasionally and let him enjoy a bit of blood-soaked satisfaction. Only then could Shinji achieve his ultimate goal.
While Shinji contemplated this, Hidan had already engaged the enemies.
"Kill! Kill!! Kill!!! Ahahaha!"
Hidan laughed maniacally, slicing the throat of one unlucky target, kicking another aside, and casually hoisting someone's head while stabbing repeatedly with his other kunai. In the blink of an eye, the man was reduced to a bloody pulp.
"Weak! Weak! Weak! Pathetic! You don't even deserve to be offered as a sacrifice!"
Hidan flung the mutilated body at his feet with disdain. The remaining men froze, stunned into inaction.
Okamoto's face darkened with rage. "What are you all afraid of?! There are only two of them! Attack together! Surround and cut them down!"
The stunned men snapped out of it, exchanging grim looks, and yelled as they swung their weapons from all sides. Those who couldn't get close stayed outside to prevent the bald man from escaping.
But Hidan had no intention of fleeing—he didn't even think about dodging.
He simply harvested the lives of the three men directly in front of him like a merciless killing machine, letting the remaining blades pierce his body without care.
Thunk!
Seeing this, even Okamoto, who had been shocked before, let out a relieved breath. He had been unlucky enough to face a reckless madman, costing him seven or eight men—what a curse!
Luckily, the opponent seemed somewhat dim-witted; otherwise, the losses could have been even worse.
Just as Okamoto couldn't decide whether to feel frustrated or relieved, his pupils suddenly constricted at the sight ahead.
"Hey, kid, stop twisting the knife! It hurts!"
The would-be condemned Hidan suddenly spoke, shocking everyone nearby. Then he sneered, reversed his grip on the kunai, and accurately pierced several men's hearts.
Clang, clang…
Hidan pulled out the knives embedded in his body, discarded them, stretched his neck, and grinned as he proclaimed his death sentence:
"No one escapes. I'll tear you all apart into pieces, shred, crush, and smear!"
With that, a one-sided massacre began.
No dodging, no defense. You stab me, I stab you—fair, just, and no favorites!
No matter how many times he was stabbed, Hidan remained full of life, showing no sign of death. The others, however, paid with their lives without exception.
These gangsters, not even trained ninjas, were instantly crushed under Hidan's merciless carnage.
"Mon...monster!"
"Somebody, save me!"
"I don't want to die!"
"Run!"
"I'll fight you! Ah!"
…
This time, Shinji made no move to stop Hidan, letting him vent the pent-up frustration from the journey.
It wasn't until he saw the man who brought them here, along with Okamoto, trying to escape amidst the chaos that Shinji acted, immediately giving chase.
"Why so eager to leave? Taking me to see Gato?"
Stopping them, Shinji cut straight to the point.
Okamoto's face darkened; it was ugly to see. He had expected his subordinates to bring him glory, not a life-taking demon.
Even this bald man was terrifying enough, and now this man, though not particularly muscular, clearly wasn't someone to be trifled with. If possible, he wished he could strangle this fool immediately.
"It's a misunderstanding. Really, it's just a misunderstanding," Okamoto forced a grim smile and hurriedly said. "I was deceived by this bastard too, and I have no idea where Gato is…"
"Brother Okamoto! You—"
"Shut up! Who's your brother! You idiot, clean up the mess you caused yourself. I'm leaving."
"Ha! When you had your eyes on my sister, you said one thing, now you flip your words! Fine, if you won't be fair, don't blame me for being ruthless! Don't think I don't know you're involved with the housekeeper's daughter—how could you not know where Gato is?!"
"Nonsense! I'll take you down first!"
Dog bites dog, all chaos.
Even Shinji hadn't anticipated the twisted nature of their relationship—and somehow ended up witnessing multiple ridiculous conflicts.
He casually crushed a small blood pack, transforming it into two ropes that shot straight toward the two men.
The burly man was bound and fell immediately, but Okamoto displayed unusually fast reflexes, jumping back to dodge and immediately forming hand seals.
This guy… was a ninja too?!