Family is Most Important When Everyone is Together

As Kazeki pondered the upcoming route, movement was detected from her side. Indeed, two figures appeared in the forest not far away. One was completely wrapped in a dark green coat, even wearing inconspicuous dark sunglasses, giving off a very low-profile presence, much like that... right, much like that Yuuri Hermit.

The other figure was much more conspicuous. Anyone riding a large white dog on the road would have a similar effect. However, their target this time was not to debut as a group; they had only one objective on this trip: to rescue Hinata.

"Shino, is it this forest up ahead? What's that stench, I'm not smelling it. If you're sure it's there, let's go. Daring to snatch someone in front of this great me, those guys really don't have me in their eyes."

Kiba bared his teeth, unsatisfied with the previous battle. He believed Moriyue and the others had used underhanded tactics while he wasn't paying attention. Who would have thought that Moriyue, that unconventional fellow, would snatch Hinata during the fight? How sick in the head would someone have to be to do something like that?

"The bugs don't lie, it's right ahead." Shino nodded. He didn't say anything to Kiba; he just wanted to rescue Hinata. If he could snatch the opponent's scroll, that would be even better.

The two stepped into the forest one after another. It was fine when they didn't enter, but the moment Shino took his first step, he felt something was wrong with the ground beneath his feet. He realized he might have stepped on a trap and wanted to warn Kiba, but it was too late.

Flames and dust erupted from all around. The soil beneath their feet seemed to soften, and sand and stones mixed with water churned the already eroded ground into a mud soup. The surroundings were enveloped in black smoke, making it impossible to see anything. Shino, wearing sunglasses, was even more engulfed in darkness. However, he wasn't in a hurry; he still had his bugs for sensing...

"Insect repellent? Someone... used insect repellent..." Shino's face darkened. He never imagined someone would carry insect repellent during a mission. What use was insect repellent in this godforsaken place? To kill him?

"Aaaahhh! It stinks so bad, someone's cooking shit behind the scenes! Damn, I... I can't take it anymore..."

However, compared to Shino, Kiba was the one most impacted. His and Akamaru's noses were already very sensitive, and he relied on his keen sense of smell to track enemies. But whatever that thing was that had just exploded, the smell was extremely pungent.

It was as foolish as a prehistoric mammoth doing a Thomas swirl just to eat a bowl of gruel. Who would specifically create something like this, which had no distinctive features other than its stench!

In a daze, not only his sense of smell, but also his sight, taste, and finally even his hearing were completely deprived. Inuzuka Kiba and Akamaru, one person and one dog, collapsed onto the ground, gazing at the flawless sky shrouded in black smoke above, feeling themselves sinking deeper into the mire below. He seemed to see... heaven.

Inuzuka Kiba and Akamaru, out of combat, unable to rise again, reason: overwhelming stench.

"Kiba, Kiba! Wake up, if you fall asleep now, you won't wake up..."

Shino pulled Kiba up from the mud, but the other was already unconscious and had lost the ability to fight. He wore an incredibly simple smile on his face, making anyone want to buy him some sunflower seeds at first glance.

Since Kiba couldn't be relied on, Shino had to depend on himself. In the end, he was the one who had to save the world; there was no helping it.

"Summoning Jutsu!"

Shino slapped the ground, and tadpole-like runes spread out from his hands. The pure white smoke dissipated, and a colossal giant beetle flapped its wings, blowing away the surrounding mist, along with the insect repellent and the stench. He stood on the beetle, like a god of war.

"Hmph, mere child's play..."

Shino was sprayed down from mid-air by Kazeki's Water Gun Jutsu before he could finish speaking. Before he could even utter a few cool lines, Kazeki, hidden in the dark, and Ando, who had leaped high, surrounded him.

"Let's have a man's duel, take this sword!"

"I am an Insect Master, how could I possibly..."

Shino tried to explain again, but Ando and Kazeki gave him no chance. Explain? Let's beat him up first.

Not only are we ganging up on you, but we're also bullying the weak. It's reasonable to have more people beat up fewer people. If you have an advantage, you're a bastard if you don't use it. We're just beating up the lone one.

Although Shino was strong, he could initially hold his own against the two, flinging out various insects. If not for the fact that those insects didn't have overly outrageous abilities, Moriyue would have mistaken him for the Great Sage Toad.

But Kazeki and Ando's coordination was also good. They were indeed a bit flustered at first. Their teamwork couldn't be described as flawless; it could only be said that they spent most of their energy dodging each other's attacks. After the initial fumbling, their coordination gradually fell into place, and Shino gradually couldn't withstand their barrage.

Kazeki sprayed water on one side, and Ando generated electricity on the other. Who could withstand these two together?

Moriyue pulled up his pants, which were a bit loose. He needed to tighten them to avoid his pants bursting during the upcoming battle.

"Yo, you caught them? Good, I knew you guys could do it."

As soon as he returned, he saw Kiba and Shino tied up in the same caterpillar restraint as Hinata, and he smiled knowingly.

"The most important thing for a family is to be neat and tidy. Did you find the scroll?"

"Found it, it's on that bug-playing guy. Hey, Captain, this kid isn't honest. He's covered in bugs, and he bit me a few times when I wasn't paying attention. It really hurt."

Although it was a bit inappropriate, Moriyue felt that the way Ando handed him the scroll with both hands was very much like a Japanese contestant... or rather, a translator for a Japanese contestant. The way he was acting like a sycophant, it was so much like it.

"It's good that we got the scroll. Hinata, thank you. You're truly our ATM."

Moriyue took the scroll, his eyes full of admiration. He looked at Hinata with increasing favor. He remembered that Hinata should be the princess of the Hyuga Clan. As the heir of the main family, her value must be quite high. If used well, this ATM could bring in a lot of benefits.

"Captain, we got the scroll. What should we do with these guys? Should we..."

Kazeki was clearly more composed than Ando. After experiencing the feeling of being a combat medic once, she realized that she was more suited to support than combat, though occasionally going up to fight was still good.

"Kill them? No, no, no. Some people are more valuable dead than alive, and some are more valuable alive than dead..."

Moriyue smiled kindly, as harmless as a friendly older brother who didn't use forbidden jutsu.

Upon seeing this smile, Hinata trembled. She knew this guy was up to no good again.