Choices, Opportunities, and Crisis

As dusk gradually fell, the drizzling rain showed no sign of stopping. Rinto supported the thoroughly drunk Mizuguma as they strolled through the streets of Amegakure.

"Teacher, why were you so fast?" Rinto asked casually, effortlessly holding up Mizuguma by the shoulder.

"Fast?" Mizuguma slurred back. "What was fast?"

"Not what was fast—you were too fast. I did the math. In ten minutes total, you took care of two women, five minutes each! And during those ten minutes, you drank yourself senseless."

At that, Mizuguma, whose legs had gone weak, immediately twisted around, swaying unsteadily with an unconvinced look on his face.

"Bullshit, I'm not drunk! And Meiya and Yukiko and I have a purely platonic friendship! They sell their art, not their bodies!"

"Enough." Rinto tightened his grip and steadied Mizuguma's steps. "They sell their art, not their bodies? Do you take me for an idiot? By the way, I don't know how much you spent at Kijiko's, but there's at least 10,000 Ryo missing from your money pouch. You've only got a little over 20,000 Ryo left."

As he spoke, Rinto placed Mizuguma's dog-head money pouch into his Ninja Pouch.

"It's fine." Mizuguma waved a large hand, a blissful smile stretching across his flushed face. "Meiya... my little Meiya's birthday is today. Everything extra was a birthday gift for her."

Hearing Mizuguma's incoherent words, Rinto was rendered speechless.

Right now, he truly could not tell whether this guy was drunk or not.

If Mizuguma was drunk, he still clearly remembered that he had given his money to the geishas.

If he was not drunk, then giving a geisha a birthday gift was not something anyone without a hole in their head would do.

After escorting Mizuguma all the way home, Rinto took out the key, opened the door, and tossed the man, now too drunk to even open his eyes, onto the sofa.

Setting the key on the coffee table, Rinto rolled his stiff shoulder. Looking at Mizuguma snoring away on the sofa, he gave a self-mocking smile and prepared to leave.

Just then, Mizuguma suddenly propped himself up and swayed as he sat upright.

"Pingping-kun, keep... keep drinking!"

"Drink your big head. Lie down and sleep!" Rinto snapped irritably.

But Mizuguma suddenly reached out and grabbed Rinto's sleeve, stammering thickly.

"Pingping-kun, you... you shouldn't hate Lord Hanzō. He... he only became so coldhearted for the village... for peace. I... I'm the same as you. We're both orphans, War Orphans. But I'm not as good as you. You're far more talented than me. I can tell that you've always been hiding your abilities. Your Chakra... uh... you have a lot of it. You think you've hidden it well, but I know."

At those words, every muscle in Rinto's body suddenly tensed, and a sharp glint flashed through his eyes.

Mizuguma, drunk and with his eyes closed, did not notice Rinto's change. He continued in fits and starts.

"D-don't worry, I won't tell anyone even if I die. I don't know why you won't tell Lord Hanzō, but I believe you have your reasons. Hei-kun, do... do you have a dream?"

Rinto sighed. The cold glint in his eyes gradually faded as he shook his head.

"No."

"Hehe, I do!" Mizuguma smiled proudly, as though having a dream when Rinto did not was some great honor.

"I was born at the End of the Warring States period. Back then, the entire Shinobi World was ravaged by war. Back then, even seven- and eight-year-old children had to charge onto the battlefield and fight for their lives."

As he spoke, Mizuguma's voice grew increasingly low.

"My parents were killed back then. L-later, Lord Hanzō saved me and brought me back to the village. I remember that when I was still younger than you, Konoha, Sunagakure, Iwagakure, Kumogakure, and Kirigakure were established one after another. Yet even with that man known as the God of Shinobi, the Shinobi World remained chaotic beyond measure. The wars between small villages never stopped. Later, I went to the battlefield, where I saw my comrades, friends, and teachers die with my own eyes. I hate war. It mercilessly took their lives."

Watching the man before him cry like a child, Rinto pressed a hand to his forehead and sighed silently.

For the first time since crossing over, he felt that he was living in an incomparably real world.

Mizuguma's muttering continued.

"From then on, I kept wondering why we lived, and what right we had to live. Later, I set a goal for myself. A dream."

As he continued, Mizuguma's tone became increasingly resolute.

"I'm not a talented person. I can't change this world, but! I will do everything I can to protect the village. I'll protect children like you, and when I die, I'll pass on the belief of protecting the village to the next generation once they've grown up. Hei-kun, can you accept that belief?"

Looking at Mizuguma's eyes, which had opened at some point, Rinto fell silent.

After an unknown amount of time, under Mizuguma's eager gaze, Rinto slowly but firmly shook his head.

"I'm sorry, Teacher Mizuguma. I... I've only been in the village for a few dozen days." Rinto rarely stumbled over his words. He did not want to deceive Mizuguma. After all, Mizuguma was the only person in this village whom he acknowledged.

Hearing Rinto's words, Mizuguma gave an awkward dry laugh and muttered to himself.

"Hei-kun, I... I was too hasty. Forget it, don't take this to heart! Oh, right. If you have any questions about training, you can come ask me at my home. After all, I'm your teacher!"

After saying that, he gave Rinto a broad smile.

Rinto slowly nodded. Under Mizuguma's complicated gaze, he walked expressionlessly out of the house and closed the door.

Leaning against the doorframe, Rinto looked into the distance.

The light rain that had been falling without pause finally stopped. In the night sky, a bright moon rarely poked its head out, scattering moonlight over the dark earth.

Rinto looked at the moon and sighed again.

Freedom and Bonds were clearly twins born of fate, yet they ran in opposite directions down different roads.

Meanwhile, in the center of the village, Hanzo of the Salamander sat expressionlessly in his office, listening to his subordinates report intelligence.

One look at the trembling guards around him was enough to tell that Hanzo of the Salamander was in a terrible mood.

Indeed, he was in a terrible mood. After a full day of buildup, his anger had reached its limit.

First, that morning, an Intelligence Department Jonin reported that the Intelligence Department had been attacked and a large number of classified scrolls had vanished without a trace. The important ones included Amegakure's Water Style Secret Technique Scroll, the village's Defense Map, and intelligence correspondence with Undercover agents sent to villages of all sizes. The unimportant items included the encrypted intelligence scroll obtained from Ineyū that had yet to be deciphered.

That afternoon, spies stationed at the Bounty Exchange sent word that a large amount of intelligence documenting Amegakure's spies had appeared at the Bounty Exchange and been purchased by representatives of the major shinobi villages.

Just moments ago, even worse news had arrived. The Undercover agents within the Five Great Shinobi Villages had all lost contact without exception. Even those Undercover agents who had never been activated had been uprooted.

Compared to that, Zhu Kangping, that disappointing disciple, was nothing.

In truth, as soon as Hanzo of the Salamander received news that the Intelligence Department had been attacked that morning, he immediately activated the Undercover agents to recall the spies from every village. But transmitting messages took time, and in the end, he had failed to outrun the mastermind behind it all and the Five Great Nations.

Every time he thought about how he had investigated for an entire day without finding any news of those attackers, Hanzo of the Salamander's breathing grew more ragged.

"Investigate! Keep investigating! Find every spy from other villages in this village!"

At that moment, Hanzo of the Salamander only wished he had Konoha's Yamanaka Clan. Otherwise, he would have forced everyone in his village to play a round of truth or dare.

Shinda cautiously approached Hanzo and spoke softly.

"Lord Hanzō, could it have been that brat Zhu Kangping? Nothing suspicious has entered the village lately. He's the only one worth suspecting!"

At that, Hanzo of the Salamander abruptly turned his head. His vicious gaze frightened Shinda into stumbling back again and again. He swore that he had never seen Lord Hanzō this furious before.

"Put away your little tricks! Do you take me for a fool? That brat has been under twenty-four-hour surveillance by the people I sent. I even know when he shits and how much he shits!"

Shinda sheepishly shrank his neck, looking like a mistreated young wife.

"Th-then the most urgent matter right now is rebuilding the spy network, Lord Hanzō! The one in Konoha has just passed away, and the Five Great Nations are making frequent moves. We can't afford to be blind!"

Hearing that, Hanzo of the Salamander finally nodded slightly and said in a low voice, "Tell me. What do you have in mind?"

Seeing that Hanzo was willing to listen, Shinda was immediately delighted. Lord Hanzō still favors me more. At a time like this, only I can help Lord Hanzō minimize the losses.

Shinda's eyes rolled, and an idea immediately came to him.

"My lord, since all the Undercover agents have been uprooted, sending adults out now will definitely put the Five Great Nations on guard. In that case, we should train a group of orphans and send them to infiltrate the Five Great Nations. Not only will the Five Great Nations not notice them, but we can cultivate our forces from nothing. If things go well, some might even work their way into the upper ranks of the Five Great Nations. Take Konoha, for example. They take very good care of orphaned outsiders! It kills three birds with one stone!"

It had to be said that Shinda truly had no shortage of schemes and conspiracies in his head.

The Five Great Nations might guard against adult outsiders, but they would never guard against countless War Orphans. After all, monitoring the vast number of orphans pouring in would consume too much manpower and resources.

"Mm, very good! But how will you guarantee their loyalty?" Hanzo of the Salamander struck directly at the weak point in Shinda's plan.

Shinda gave a sinister smile and leaned close to Hanzo's ear.

"My lord, doesn't our village have a secret technique? That Cursed Technique: Brain Insertion Jutsu."

"Hm?" Hanzo's eyes suddenly narrowed sharply as he shot Shinda a harsh sideways glare.

Hanzo of the Salamander's look made Shinda's scalp go numb, but he forced himself to persuade him.

"Lord Hanzō, this is no time for mercy. For the peace and tranquility of the village, these children's sacrifices are worthwhile. Besides, as long as they infiltrate carefully, their chances of survival are high! My lord, think of the people in the village who trust and depend on us! And those who have died—they gave their lives for the village. We must protect their children!"

By the end, Shinda was nearly shouting himself hoarse. It was clear that he truly believed what he was saying.

As though he had seen through Shinda's heart, Hanzo slowly turned to look at the scroll on the table. It recorded the orphaned children of those Dark Children who had been eliminated.

After an unknown amount of time, Hanzo of the Salamander let out a long breath. His specially made mask hissed, and his expression became incomparably firm.

"Go. Bring me the Forbidden Scroll from the vault!"

"Yes!" A guard took the key from Hanzo's hand and walked toward the safe on the other side of the room.

After a series of complicated procedures, a bundle of palm-sized scrolls appeared on Hanzo's desk.

"Since you proposed the plan, you will carry it out."

As he spoke, Hanzo of the Salamander quickly pushed the scrolls toward Shinda, as though his palm would be wounded if he touched them for another second.

"Also, uproot every spy from other villages in the village! Three days. In three days, I want to see a clean village!"

"Yes!" Shinda accepted the scrolls and stood ramrod straight, an irrepressible smug smile on his face.

"Oh, right, Lord Hanzō. I'd like to borrow someone from you."

"Who?"

"Zhu Kangping."