A New Mission

"Whether it was sympathy or a sense of guilt, he posed no threat to me now. A Demon Lord would not care about an ant."

"If he lived his life properly, then so be it. But if he harbored killing intent toward me again next time..."

Jiang Rui smiled, looked at his hand, and walked out of the room, continuing his conversation with Great Sage in his mind.

"Then there would be no helping it. After all, the debt he owed had already been wiped clean by me sparing him."

"I do not understand. Why would sparing him make up for the hatred from you killing his parents?"

Jiang Rui nodded in agreement.

It was indeed rather unreasonable.

This was also known as the villain's logic.

Its simplest principle was this: Not killing you was the greatest mercy.

Of course, that was getting off topic. His thoughts were simple.

Though he was no longer kind, he was not cruel enough to spare no mercy even for a child.

The boy was innocent. What his parents had done did not need to be repaid by him.

If one really got to the root of it, how many Mist children's parents had been killed by the intelligence his parents had passed to Konoha?

"...I do not understand... But even so, he will not be able to survive. Kirigakure will most likely not spare him."

"So from your perspective, I still believe killing him would be the most beneficial choice for you."

Whether he could survive or not...

That was his own problem.

Jiang Rui looked up at the sky, where red clouds filled the horizon.

Only after stepping outside did Jiang Rui discover that Ito Rei had long been waiting by the door.

As usual, she lazily leaned against the wall. Her scarf covered everything below her nose, and beneath her amber eyes, she exuded both mystery and gallantry.

"You're out?" she asked.

"Mm." Jiang Rui said nothing more. He simply walked over, removed the mask, and handed it to her.

Her eyes blinked as her tall figure suddenly gave off an oppressive presence.

Jiang Rui sadly realized that he was not even as tall as her chest.

But her waist was really pretty.

"Did you fail?" She did not take the mask, merely looking at him.

Jiang Rui shook his head.

She smiled, took the mask, and casually placed it back on Jiang Rui's head.

"That's my mask. Keep it. It looks good on you."

"Huh?"

Jiang Rui blinked, somewhat dumbfounded.

Ito Rei stretched lazily, and only then did Jiang Rui notice the enormous blade strapped to her back.

Kubikiribōchō?

Ito Rei was one of the Seven Ninja Swordsmen?!!!

Jiang Rui felt as if his worldview had been insulted.

He could not imagine a husky swinging around a giant sword.

Ito Rei pulled her scarf down slightly, revealing her delicate chin. She nodded with a smile, clearly in a good mood.

"Back then, I wore this mask while carrying out missions... Then I abandoned that mission and withdrew from the assassination unit."

She touched the mask, smiling sweetly. "But Teacher never took it back."

"It's yours now!"

"I'm heading out on a mission tomorrow! Come on, big sis is treating you to barbecue today!"

Half an hour later.

"Is it really okay for me not to report the mission like this?"

Jiang Rui frowned, stuffing food into his mouth like mad while asking worriedly.

"It's fine." Ito Rei shook her head. "Nothing that happens in the village can be hidden from Teacher. Since he didn't send anyone to call you, it means everything is fine."

"Even so, you should still go see Lord Water Shadow tomorrow." Beside them, Ishikawa Tatsuya unceremoniously picked up a piece of grilled meat and put it in his mouth.

Tsk, to think he would live to see the day Ito Rei treated someone to a meal.

Not easy.

"Then why are you two here?!" Ito Rei demanded unhappily.

Faced with her question, Ishikawa Tatsuya merely spread his hands without a care. Karatachi Yagura, however, looked a little embarrassed and answered seriously, "Rimuru said you'll be leaving on a mission soon, so he told me to come get together with you."

"What's the big deal?" Jiang Rui casually picked up a piece of grilled meat and placed it on Ito Rei's plate, looking like a good child telling her not to complain since he was giving her meat.

"You make it sound so easy. Why don't you pay, then?" Ito Rei viciously stuffed the meat into her mouth and bit down hard twice. Oh, it was a little hot.

"Oh, listen to you. What's so difficult about that?" Jiang Rui said dismissively. "I don't have that kind of money either."

Ito Rei could only roll her eyes.

"By the way, after submitting this mission, Ruru will count as a ninja too." Ishikawa Tatsuya glanced at the mask on Jiang Rui's head and paused. "You'll probably be carrying out missions as well, right?"

"Mm." Jiang Rui nodded.

He could not get into the Anbu—at least, not for the time being. But the village would not just let a ninja like him freely take missions and loaf around.

He just did not know which department he would be assigned to...

Sigh.

After chatting for a while longer, Ishikawa Tatsuya seemed to have misunderstood and thought he was joining the Anbu, so he told him quite a few things to watch out for in the Anbu.

By the time they parted ways, the sky outside was already full of starlight.

Jiang Rui stopped by the roadside and paused slightly.

"Lord Water Shadow wants to see you."

In the shadows, red cloud patterns flickered faintly across a mask.

"Understood."

Jiang Rui touched the mask atop his head and nodded.

In an instant, the other person's presence vanished from his senses.

What was coming would come sooner or later.

With a sigh, Jiang Rui leaped away several times and disappeared from the spot.

"Lord Water Shadow."

It's so late. You still aren't resting, old man?

The Third Mizukage said nothing. In the dim room, the lamplight flickered, casting long shadows.

He watched Jiang Rui for a while before picking up a scroll and handing it over.

"This is a sealing scroll. It can seal a small number of items inside."

Oh, good stuff!

Though he did not seem to need it...

Uh, had he passed the test?

"Your forehead protector is in there too. Starting tomorrow, you will act together with Karatachi Yagura and the others."

Jiang Rui froze, then quickly understood. He had guessed yesterday that Ishikawa Tatsuya was actually Anbu, since anyone outside the Anbu would not know so many precautions.

Then Karatachi Yagura, who had always been led around by Ishikawa Tatsuya, was clearly a senior assigned to guide a newcomer.

One veteran and one rookie. Aside from clearly designated group missions and ninja squads, people generally worked in pairs.

Most Ninja Villages that had not yet established ninja academies basically operated this way.

So here came the question.

What was he supposed to be if he joined them?!

Was he being sent in as a third wheel??

Or was he being paired with Karatachi Yagura because neither of them looked clearly male or female?!

Jiang Rui was completely thrown into chaos. No, what exactly were they planning? Were they still going to train him as Anbu, or did they not want him anymore?!

Could they just give him a straight answer?

Seemingly noticing Jiang Rui's baffled expression, the Third Mizukage explained, "Tomorrow, you will temporarily be assigned to a team to carry out a mission."

"What mission?"

Jiang Rui blurted it out, then froze as he realized he probably should not have asked.

But the Third Mizukage answered without concern, "The war has begun."

???

There was not much description of the Second Shinobi World War.

Jiang Rui only knew that the war revolved around Amegakure. The Three Sannin led three forces in succession to fight the Sand Shinobi.

Then the Earth Shinobi took advantage of the opening, and Orochimaru led a team to meet them in battle.

So Jiang Rui truly had no idea what role Kirigakure played in all this.

But he knew one thing: Kirigakure definitely lost in the end.

Otherwise, it would not have suffered another crushing blow and shut itself away completely.

The current Karatachi Yagura was also quite adorable, nothing like the paranoid tyrant described in the stories.

After returning home, Jiang Rui sighed. He stopped thinking about it, fell straight onto the bed, and closed his eyes.

He sighed inwardly, feeling a little sorry for himself.

Heavens bear witness, I'm still just a child.

An extra chapter today. These past couple of days are a transition before they head to the battlefield. Honestly, I rewrote these chapters several times. Originally, I planned to alternate Anbu scenes with daily life, gradually highlighting Rimuru's change in mindset, and write another ten chapters or so.

Unfortunately, my writing skills were not up to it, so I'll stick to the kind of story I'm better at writing.

Also, shamelessly asking for votes, w

And please vote.