Just Send Her Away

In the Wind Country, silver moonlight spilled across the desert.

Within an abandoned village in the endless wasteland, Hidezawa and the other two were hiding here to rest, while Pakura lay unconscious on the ground beside them.

"Senpai, wasn't that a little too heavy-handed?"

Hidezawa glanced at the still-unconscious Pakura and could not help shaking his head at Shisui beside him.

"She still hasn't woken up. We can't interrogate her for any intelligence like this."

"Uh..."

Hearing Hidezawa's words, Shisui opened his mouth, but the words died on his lips.

Even Yugao, who was tending to Pakura nearby, could not help looking up at Hidezawa with a somewhat strange expression.

Their ambush on Pakura's squad had gone rather smoothly. After all, that squad had just been through a battle, only for Hidezawa's group to swoop in and reap the benefits.

Hidezawa in particular had played an unbelievable role!

The enormous Earth Dragon he had unleashed had truly shaken everyone to the core, and the destruction it caused fully lived up to its appearance.

That violent impact and terrifying power had practically wiped out those Sand Ninja in an instant!

This had allowed Hidezawa and Yugao to swiftly coordinate with Shisui and surround Pakura, who had likewise been left reeling by the Earth Dragon.

Granted, Shisui had always been the main attacker against Pakura, and her unconsciousness was largely due to Shisui's genjutsu.

But in Shisui and Yugao's memories, the one who had truly thrown heavy punches at Pakura seemed to have been Hidezawa, right?

"Sorry. Maybe I really did hit her a bit too hard."

Still, Shisui was fairly honest. After hesitating for a moment, he awkwardly nodded, and Yugao could no longer stand watching from the side.

"You should know when to stop too. Just how were you trained?"

"The training I received was very, very strict."

Hidezawa raised a brow, then smiled.

More than strict—it had been downright lethal!

Still, Hidezawa had to admit one thing: Danzo was a bastard, but that training had let Hidezawa keep grinding until he gained the abilities he had now.

"It must have been strict. Otherwise, you wouldn't be this strong..."

Yugao pursed her lips, though she was also rather curious.

"Where did you train before? You're about the same age as us, but I don't think I ever saw you at the Academy."

"Well..."

Hidezawa blinked. That was probably something he could not tell them, right?

"Cough, cough, cough..."

Just then, Pakura suddenly began coughing nearby, which made Hidezawa breathe a sigh of relief.

Although the Cursed Seal no longer affected him, and it only prevented him from revealing information about Danzo—his name could still be spoken.

But since Hidezawa intended to betray Danzo, he naturally had to be more careful.

"She's awake. Let's hurry up and get down to Serious Business."

"Mm."

Although they had not gotten an answer, Shisui and Yugao both turned their gazes toward Pakura.

The sooner they settled this, the sooner they could complete their mission.

Pakura felt an agonizing pain in her head, and her body was terribly weak as well.

However, as a ninja, she immediately recalled everything that had happened before, and her gaze instantly became alert.

She swiftly surveyed her surroundings and found herself seemingly inside a dilapidated house. The three people who had attacked her were here as well!

But she was tightly bound, and her fingers had been deliberately dislocated. Even the slightest touch sent piercing pain through her body.

"They didn't kill me, so..."

Pakura was a powerful ninja, after all. Enduring the pain, her expression gradually darkened.

She knew these people wanted intelligence!

Even if she did not know what kind of intelligence they wanted, the fact that they had targeted her showed that they were after something significant.

Most importantly, the genjutsu that had brought her down did not seem ordinary...

"You're awake?"

At that moment, a crisp voice rang out. Turning her head, she saw a masked figure walking over.

Pakura recognized that mask. This was the one who had unleashed that terrifying Earth Dragon!

"Who are you people, and why did you capture me?"

Pakura stared coldly at the figure before her. Though she had her suspicions, she still asked in a low voice.

"Our reason for capturing you is simple. We want to learn about some of your village's deployments and arrangements."

The one speaking was naturally Hidezawa. Shisui could have handled the interrogation directly; his genjutsu was quite reliable.

But Hidezawa had volunteered to give it a try because he had some ideas of his own.

Shisui had agreed without hesitation. In any case, he could step in if needed.

"To be frank, you're currently facing Iwagakure while also guarding against Kirigakure. If the situation worsens further, it won't be good for anyone, so..."

"Are you idiots?"

After hearing Hidezawa's words, Pakura revealed a scornful smile.

"How would I know about the village's troop deployments and arrangements? I don't know the policies either. I'm a combatant, and even if I did know, why would you think I'd tell you?"

Yet as she spoke, Pakura discreetly glanced in Shisui's direction. Still, she did not seem particularly afraid.

"It seems you haven't realized the gravity of the situation."

Hidezawa raised a brow. Of course he knew this woman knew next to nothing, or she would not have been tricked into being sent away.

Still, he had to keep up appearances. There were things Hidezawa wanted to know as well.

"Your current situation is extremely dangerous. If this continues and something bad happens, it won't affect Sunagakure alone."

"So which village are you from?"

Pakura remained unmoved, continuing to stare coldly at Hidezawa.

"Are you from Iwagakure, here to gather intelligence? Are you from Kirigakure, trying to learn more information? Or Cloud Village? Or perhaps Konohagakure?"

"Looks like she isn't very cooperative?"

Shisui had already walked over as well. Seeing that Hidezawa's "interrogation" was not going very smoothly, he asked softly.

"Do you need me to take over? A ninja like her has a strong will. Conventional methods will probably have trouble getting any intelligence out of her."

"I understand, but I still want to try."

Hidezawa understood Shisui's good intentions, but he smiled and shook his head.

"Besides, Captain, have you ever considered something?"

"Hm?"

Shisui was somewhat baffled. Wasn't Hidezawa supposed to be interrogating Pakura? Why had he suddenly turned around to ask him a question?

Yugao also came over. With Shadow Clones handling the outer perimeter, they naturally did not need to go outside themselves. Hearing Hidezawa's words, she could not help speaking up as well.

"What is it?"

"Actually, I've been thinking along the way. If I were the Kazekage, how would I handle the current situation?"

Hidezawa glanced at Pakura, who was staring at them with a grim face. He did not care and continued in a low voice.

"At first, I couldn't come up with an answer. But after seeing her, I think I have an idea."

"Hm?"

Shisui had no idea what Hidezawa was trying to pull, but Yugao readily played along and asked.

"What idea?"

"It's simple..."

Hidezawa raised a finger and pointed at Pakura as he spoke quietly.

"Why not just send her to Kirigakure?"

"??!!"