A Beautiful Woman

A long line of people set out from the Royal Capital, heading in the direction of Muchuan County. The people of the Royal Capital also came out of their homes to witness this rare spectacle.

Inside Ming Jing's carriage, Tamamachi Kiki held her samurai sword and stared at Ming Jing and Tamamachi Seiyo, as if they would disappear if she blinked.

Ming Jing coughed dryly and complained in a low voice to Tamamachi Seiyo, "Why did you bring her along?"

"I didn't want to either," Tamamachi Seiyo retorted with a helpless look. "Kiki wanted to come. Do you think I could stop her?"

Ming Jing thought about Tamamachi Kiki's combat strength and immediately felt that Tamamachi Seiyo made a lot of sense. So, he said gently, "Mr. Tamamachi, please stay in the carriage and focus on how to start the construction. I'll go inspect the convoy." After speaking, he smiled politely at Tamamachi Kiki and got out of the carriage, completely ignoring Tamamachi Seiyo's pitiful gaze.

As Ming Jing alighted from the carriage, Qing Yan approached, leading a white horse. After mounting the horse, the two truly began to inspect the convoy. This convoy consisted of forty carriages, carrying three hundred and seventy-five tons of grain, which was exactly one month's supply for the disaster-stricken people. Ming Jing had asked Koji Kurama to collect this grain in advance, and the payment was settled immediately after the donations arrived, so there was no need to worry about the Zhonghua Hotel experiencing a cash flow crisis.

Asuma stood on a tree, watching the convoy move slowly, his admiration for his subordinates growing. He had solved almost every problem imaginable, and more importantly, Asuma could see that Ming Jing still had feelings for Konohagakure. Otherwise, why would he care about Konohagakure's opinion of him?

Ming Jing rode his horse past the tree where Asuma was perched and called up to him, "Captain, it's not good to be slacking off up there, is it?"

"Hey, hey, I'm not slacking off!" Asuma gazed into the distance before descending from the tree. "Standing high allows one to see far. From up there, I can see the situation of the entire convoy."

"I see. Thank you, Captain." Ming Jing nodded. He looked in the direction of the Land of Rain. Besides disaster relief, he also intended to investigate the incident involving the Kurama Clan on that battlefield years ago. Why had the awakening of the Kurama Clan's Bloodline Limit suddenly become so difficult? Perhaps the answer lay in the Land of Rain.

Moreover, Ming Jing had a feeling that he would indeed meet Nagato and Konan!

Based on the timeline, Yahiko had probably already passed away. In Ming Jing's heart, Yahiko was not only the leader of Nagato and Konan but also served as an elder brother and a strategist. After Yahiko's death, Nagato became like a wild horse that had broken its reins, becoming extremely hateful. Konan's personality, in a sense, was very close to the traditional personality of Japanese women. She had her own insights but rarely expressed them. When Yahiko was alive, she followed his lead; after Yahiko's death, she followed Nagato's.

What about after Nagato's death?

She chose to listen to herself, knowing full well that Masked Obito would not let her go, yet she did not seek help from others. She had seen through Masked Obito's abnormal behavior early on and had warned Nagato, but he had not listened. What would someone else have done? A smart person might have chosen to find evidence to expose him, while a foolish one might have had a big argument with Nagato and left in a huff.

But Konan chose to face it together with Nagato. Even if Masked Obito had ulterior motives, so what? As long as she was with her companion, what did it matter if they went to war with the strongest Konohagakure? Life was short, and she didn't know when she would die. Since that was the case, she would fully support Nagato! Face it together, work together! In Konan's heart, perhaps right and wrong had ceased to matter after Yahiko's death. All she cared about was Nagato himself.

"Young Master??" Ming Jing's thoughts were interrupted by Qing Yan. He came to his senses, turned to Qing Yan, and said apologetically, "Sorry, I was spacing out. What did you say??"

"Xiao You is here. He brought the latest intelligence from the disaster area," Qing Yan said, not minding Ming Jing's lapse, and pointed to You beside him.

"Oh? Xiao You, I'm sorry! But I still hope you can bring me some good news," Ming Jing said with an apologetic smile to You.

"I'm sorry, Young Master, but I'm afraid I can't fulfill your wish," You said to Ming Jing with a serious expression. "Muchuan County is on the verge of collapse. Someone is deliberately inciting the emotions of the disaster victims. The local officials can only appease them with a small amount of food. When I left, the food in the official residence could only last for a week."

"Did you encounter any bandits or brigands on your way?" Ming Jing asked, frowning.

"I traveled light. I found two groups of brigands and a nest of bandits on the road. But judging by their accents, they don't seem to be disaster victims," You replied.

"It's good that the disaster victims haven't formed into brigands yet. Your convoy will stop three kilometers outside Muchuan County as originally planned, right?" Ming Jing continued to ask.

"Yes, Mr. Hizashi said that the Young Master has his own plans," You nodded.

"Excellent!" Ming Jing smiled with satisfaction. He said to Qing Yan, "Qing Yan, go tell the Captain that the safety of this convoy is his responsibility. You and I will head to Muchuan County first to prevent the situation from getting out of control."

"I'll go with the Young Master," You immediately called out.

"You've had a hard journey. Stay with the convoy for now!" Ming Jing shook his head and refused. After Qing Yan reported back, the two of them, on four horses, galloped towards Muchuan County.

Meanwhile, in Muchuan County on the border, seven figures quietly converged. They were all wearing masks, appearing extremely mysterious.

After the seven figures gathered, one who appeared particularly thin and small immediately spoke, "Lord Honma, we have already stirred up the anger of the disaster victims. Isn't it time to start the uprising?"

"Has the matter I asked Shoko to investigate been found out?" The person in the lead was Honma. He didn't answer the thin man but retorted.

"Yes!" The woman named Shoko said, "The Land of Fire has sent the Prime Minister to deal with the flood. This Prime Minister is from Konohagakure!"

"Haha, that's great!" Honma narrowed his eyes and said, "The mission is to assassinate the Prime Minister of the Land of Fire within Muchuan County!"

"Lord Honma, rumor has it that this Prime Minister is quite good. He brought enough food. What will happen to the disaster victims if we assassinate him?" Shoko hesitated for a moment and said.

"Hmph, as long as we can kill that monster, it doesn't matter if all the disaster victims die! Have you all forgotten that scene from that day?!" Honma said coldly.

"Yes!" The six were stunned for a moment, then their tone became firm. As long as they could kill that monster, what did it matter if tens of thousands of civilians died?

Just then, a piece of paper on Honma's waist moved. He calmly stood up and said, "I have to go. Gentlemen, continue with our plan and don't forget our mission!" Then, he walked through the crowd and left this small place.

After cautiously circling for a while, Honma hid in a dilapidated house. When he emerged, his clothes had been changed. After confirming there were no problems, he left Muchuan County at high speed and entered the Land of Rain. Crossing a few hills, he saw a solitary figure standing in the rain.

"Greetings, Divine Messenger Lord!" Honma quickly approached and knelt on the ground, shouting.

The person in the rain turned around. She had light purplish-blue hair, light orange pupils, and a pale purple paper flower worn on the right side of her head. Standing there, she was like the beauty in Du Fu's poem "Jia Ren": "A peerless beauty, dwelling secluded in the empty valley. She says she is a lady of good family, fallen and clinging to the grass and trees..."

"What is the situation?" Konan asked in a clear, cold voice, looking at Honma kneeling on the ground.

"The emotions of the disaster victims are very unstable, and violent incidents may occur," Honma said without hesitation.

"Is that so?..." Konan gazed in the direction of the Land of Fire, and after a long while, asked, "Because of the food shortage?"

Honma seemed to have guessed Konan's intention, but his answer was still without hesitation: "Also clothing and medicine."

Konan frowned slightly. Clothing and medicine were also scarce resources in the Land of Rain! She was silent for a moment and said, "Continue to observe!"

"Yes!" Honma nodded vigorously and shouted.

Countless paper fragments flew out from Konan's body, forming a pair of wings on her back, gently lifting her. At this moment, Konan was a true divine messenger. With a flap of her wings, Konan left the hill. Honma maintained his kneeling posture for a minute before standing up. He showed no emotion, merely lowered his head and quickly left the Land of Rain, returning to Muchuan County in the Land of Fire.