Loose Ends * Business

Tamaro had just killed someone, and his murderous aura hadn't completely dissipated.

Blood dripped from the knife down the sickle blade, staining the gravel at his feet and spreading a small patch of dark red.

He wiped the blade with his sleeve, put the scythe behind his back, and was about to go to Tamamo-no-Mae to ask about the next steps when he looked up and saw the Tsuchigumo Clan Head leading Shinzo towards them.

The Clan Head walked steadily, a faint smile on his face.

Two Tsuchigumo attendants followed him, keeping a half-step behind, heads down, their steps a little dragging, looking rather unwilling.

Tamaro stood still, waiting for him to come to him.

The Clan Head approached and bowed slightly, saying, "This must be Tamaro? I am the Clan Head of the Tsuchigumo Clan."

"Clan Head Chief," Tamaro returned the greeting, his tone neither warm nor cold.

"I've heard so much about you." The Clan Head sized him up. "Meeting you today, you are indeed a man of exceptional talent. My daughter is fortunate to have won your favor."

Tamaro politely replied, "Not at all, it's too kind of you, Miss."

The Clan Head waved his hand. "Oh, no need for 'young lady' or 'young lady,' we're all family from now on, just call each other by name."

He tilted his head. "Really."

Zhen bowed his head meekly to Tamaro and said, "Mr. Tamaro."

Tamaro nodded, then looked at the middle-aged man again.

The Clan Head continued, "I've heard that you have a close relationship with Hiroyama Boss? Seeing you working in Ise today, it seems you're someone Lord Haruto trusts."

Tamaro finally understood.

This person is probing him, trying to see who's behind him and how many connections he can make.

He didn't show anything on his face, and responded to the Clan Head's words by saying that he worked under Hiroyama and had some dealings with Ise, but they were all ordinary jobs and not worth the Clan Head's concern.

The Clan Head didn't really take his words seriously, but Tamaro was wary of him, so he didn't press the matter further. Instead, he changed the subject. "Speaking of which, our Tsuchigumo Clan is quite unfamiliar with the Land of Hot Water this time. We'll be counting on Tamaro's help in the future. Now that our two families are related by marriage, we're practically one family."

The Clan Head patted Tamaro on the shoulder, his tone becoming even warmer. "Once things settle down here, I'll host a dinner for Hiroyama Boss and Lord Tamaro to come to the clan. We can have a good chat about the future."

Tamaro replied, "Alright, then I'll trouble Tsuchigumo Clan Head."

The Clan Head nodded in satisfaction, exchanged a few more pleasantries, and then led his entourage toward Hiroyama, seemingly intending to strike while the iron was hot and make contact.

Zhen stood a few steps away, bowed slightly to Tamaro, then turned and quickly caught up with the Clan Head leader.

Tamaro watched her retreating figure, a mix of emotions welling up inside him.

When he spoke with the Clan Head just now, he found that the man spoke eloquently and acted with propriety, and there was not a single fault to be found in him.

Using polite conversation to get in touch with Hiroyama was a natural progression, revealing the familiar rules of the adult world—both polite and familiar, testing the waters and knowing when to back down.

This suggests that while he might not be a doting father, he must be a competent Clan Head.

That means that if someone is truly bullied by members of their own clan, it doesn't necessarily mean that the Clan Head is being unfair.

In the secular world, daughters are not usually favored by their parents. As the eldest daughter of a clan, she was forced to do tasks to beg for money. Perhaps the father wanted his daughter to do simple tasks to gain experience, but the people in the clan were used to guessing what their superiors wanted, so they naturally did not take the eldest daughter seriously.

That's why we have the current situation.

Tamaro looked at Zhen, noticing her lowered golden head, playing the role of an obedient daughter.

Once I marry her, I'll have to treat her well.

As Tamaro was thinking, Tamamo-no-Mae walked up to him at some point and looked ahead in the direction he was looking.

Is it really good-looking?

Tamaro withdrew her gaze. "I wasn't looking at her."

Tamamo-no-Mae tilted her head to look at him and teased, "But you're really considering marriage, that's good."

Tamaro sighed and rubbed the back of her neck. "Tell me, why did she fall for me...?"

"Brother, don't take your good fortune for granted." Tamamo-no-Mae patted his arm. "Didn't she say she'd have huge breasts when she grows up—"

Tamaro glared at her. "Tamamo-no-Mae!"

"If you don't want to touch it, then wait until you're a little older."

"Don't say that!" Tamaro was even more exasperated. "She's still just a young girl; she should watch her mouth."

Tamamo-no-Mae teasing him, stopped laughing, and glanced in the direction where the Clan Head and Hiroyama were talking.

"This Clan Head is quite the smooth operator," she said. "He gave his own clansmen a good dressing down as soon as he landed, and then turned around and started currying favor with you. He's got it all figured out perfectly."

Tamaro grunted in agreement. "It seems the Land of Hot Water is about to descend into chaos again."

"Speaking of which, why did you suddenly decide to go to Ise? Did Mr. Haruto give you advance notice?"

"Regarding this, I actually went to find the real thing at first," Tamaro said.

Tamamo-no-Mae's eyes lit up. "You're serious? Could it be—"

Tamaro rolled his eyes. "I'm her future husband, after all. The Summer Festival is such a big event, I have to invite her out. Otherwise, what kind of rumors will her clan spread about her?"

Tamamo-no-Mae was deeply moved, covering her mouth and exclaiming, "My God! You actually considered this! As expected of my brother, living in the Pleasure Quarters does have its advantages."

"Hey!" Tamaro glared at her.

"And then?" Tamamo-no-Mae pressed with a smile, "How did you meet the Ise Clan Head?"

"I didn't notice anything wrong at first. The people at the door invited me in and then told me to wait. Well, I guess I'll wait. After all, it's a lot of trouble for you girls to get dressed, I know my place."

Tamamo-no-Mae nodded, signaling him to continue.

"Then I was drugged." Tamaro's tone was calm. "If I hadn't eaten unclean things since I was a child and my stomach hadn't been able to handle it, I would have really passed out on the spot."

Tamamo-no-Mae's smile vanished.

"I decided to play along and see where they were taking me. They took me to a dark, gloomy basement. That's where I met Haruto."

Tamamo-no-Mae frowned. "Is it about the Jashin Cult?"

"Right."

Tamamo-no-Mae -Mae gasped, "I never imagined the Ise Clan was colluding with the Jashin Cult."

"It's not just the Ise Clan," Tamaro said. "I saw the other clans too. Their goal this time is to kill everyone at the Summer Festival and Sacrifices to the Evil God, so that he will descend."

Tamamo-no-Mae's face darkened. "She's gone mad..."

"They even said they wanted to brainwash us. Anyway, a lot happened. I took advantage of their absence and escaped with Haruto, and then rushed here to find you."

"But you were still brainwashed in the end." Tamamo-no-Mae frowned. "What did they do to you? Could Haruto be doing the same now...?"

"I don't know." Tamaro shook his head. "I didn't open my eyes to look."

He paused, then added, "As for Haruto... I'm not sure."

Tamamo-no-Mae a moment.

"Haruto is now the Clan Head of the Ise clan," she said, her voice lower than before. "He can't be harmed. Let's visit Lord Izuna later; it seems only he can help you break free from the brainwashing."

Tamaro nodded.

When it was lunchtime, Madara called Izuna out from under the tree.

Izuna was fast asleep when he was shaken awake without even opening his eyes. He mumbled something incoherently. Madara sighed and started rubbing Izuna's face until Izuna got annoyed and got up.

Izuna rubbed his face, glared at Madara, then yawned, rubbed his eyes, and followed Madara into the shed.

Several rows of benches were set up in the shed, and large pots of mixed soup and divided Rice Balls were placed on the tables.

Hashirama was already sitting there, slurping down a bowl of soup. When he saw Izuna come in, he gestured for him to sit down.

Tobirama sat next to Hashirama, silently munching on Rice Ball.

It was at this time that she was "allowed" to leave her father's side.

The Tsuchigumo Clan Head was chatting enthusiastically with Hiroyama when he waved her off to go eat by herself. Feeling as if she had been granted a pardon, she turned and left the room where they were talking.

She scanned the open space and spotted Enma's red head at a glance, then immediately walked over.

Enma, Luotai, and Jōtarō sat in the open air. Rice Balls and soup were on the table, but none of them touched their chopsticks. Enma and Luotai were huddled together, talking animatedly in low voices.

Shin plopped down next to Enma, grabbed a Rice Ball, took a bite, and mumbled, "What are you saying?"

"Making money." Enma didn't even look up.

Luotai added from the side, "A fortune."

Jōtarō held the teacup, slowly blew away the foam, and looked completely at ease.

Enma said, "Did you see what happened this morning? The Barrier Ninjutsu I set up withstood the storm all night and didn't dissipate until dawn! That's the strength of our Land of Whirlpools! A living testament to our strength!"

He nodded, chewing his Rice Ball.

"What's the state of the Land of Hot Water now? It's a Ruins. The nobles and merchants have money, but they don't feel safe. They're most afraid of something like what happened last night happening again," Enma said. "Right now, whoever has something that can save their life can command a high price."

Jōtarō picked up the conversation. "I just came from the lord's place. He was surrounded by nobles and merchants from the Land of Hot Water, all of them wanting to know about Barrier Ninjutsu."

Enma blinked. "The king isn't impatient? He didn't ask you to take the blame?"

Jōtarō raised an eyebrow. "So what if he's impatient? This is a life-saving order. Since he's already come to the Land of Hot Water, let him handle it."

Luotai and Zhen were utterly perplexed. Wasn't the Land of Whirlpools' ruler... a little too lacking in authority?

Jōtarō coughed when he saw their gaze and changed the subject. "So in the next few days, orders from the Land of Hot Water will be pouring in like snowflakes, but the Land of Whirlpools can't possibly do this with the entire country. Luotai, haven't you always wanted to climb the ranks in the Hiroyama Family? Once this batch of orders is completed, you'll have your own clients, and the Hiroyama family will naturally look at you more favorably."

Luotai nodded, unable to suppress the smile on his face.

"As for me," Enma patted his chest, "I'm in charge of the orders from the Land of Hot Water; this position is mine."

Jōtarō hummed in agreement. "If we can secure the deal for the Land of Hot Water this time, we'll all benefit."

Listening to their words, even the food in my hand lost its flavor. "So, the three of you got together because you're going to get rich?"

"We're going to make a fortune," Enma said.

It's truly lamentable, "Why didn't this kind of thing happen to me...?"

Enma turned to look at Zhen, still chewing on Rice Ball, and mumbled, "You can join too."

The Rice Ball in her hand stopped at her mouth, and her eyes lit up. "Really?"

Jōtarō paused, his hand holding the teacup still. "Enma."

Homura turned to him, swallowed the food in her mouth, and said in a more serious tone, "Uncle, don't be so quick to refuse. The Tsuchigumo clan migrated to the Land of Hot Springs precisely to form an alliance with our Uzumaki clan. If our Uzumaki clan becomes too powerful, we will always be feared, and in that case, we will still face certain death. But if the Tsuchigumo clan of the Land of Hot Springs joins us—"

"Sharing the pressure will prevent us from being easily targeted," Zhen continued.

Enma snapped his fingers, "That's right!" He then turned to Shin, "By the way, what can your Tsuchigumo Clan do?"

He put the Rice Ball down and started counting on his fingers. "The clan members know Writing Technique, they can write in mid-air to unleash Ninjutsu. There are also some secret techniques of the clan..."

Jōtarō watched the young people huddled together, chatting more and more enthusiastically, then shook his head, holding his teacup, and couldn't help but sigh.

I'm really getting old.

It's astonishing that even a junior doesn't understand this matter as clearly as someone else.

After Izuna finished eating and drinking, he stepped out of the tent and stood on the open ground.

He clapped his hands.

"Gentlemen."

Everyone in the open space looked up, and thousands of eyes turned to look.

Izuna glanced at the faces of these people and then spoke.

"We've eaten and rested enough," he said. "Now it's time to get down to business."

Someone muttered under their breath, "What important matter is it?"

Izuna didn't keep them in suspense. "Now you know who caused the chaos last night. Bishamonten and his Jashin Cult turned the entire Summer Festival upside down. They've been apprehended, but we haven't dealt with the root cause yet."

The Jurōjin frowned. "The root cause? You mean the Evil God?"

There was a moment of silence in the open space, followed by a buzzing sound.

"Evil God..."

"Isn't that thing just a legend?"

"But Bishamonten himself admitted it..."

Izuna raised his hand and pressed down, and the buzzing sound subsided a little.

"As long as that thing still exists, Bishamonten will keep popping up with a second and a third. You don't want to live in Tenten fear, worrying that a bunch of cockroach-like Jashin Cult followers will suddenly appear out of nowhere, do you?"

Someone in the crowd shouted, "But we're not Ninjas! How are we supposed to fight Evil God?"

"You don't need to fight," Izuna waved his hand. "I'll go."

"But if I go and beat up the Evil God by myself and come back, you might still have doubts and think I'm just exaggerating, that there's no such thing as Evil God at all, and then you'll start making up stories about me."

Some people shrank back sheepishly.

"That's why I'm taking you all with me," Izuna said. "You'll see with your own eyes how that thing disappeared, and you'll sleep soundly at night from now on."

The crowd erupted.

"Shall we go see?"

"Doesn't that thing eat people?!"

"Lord Izuna, you can manage alone, right...?"

What if you get hurt?

After they argued for a while, Izuna raised his voice again. "Those who are afraid of getting hurt, stay! Those who want to go, set off now!"