The prominent wealthy merchants and officials of various countries had been taken out. This was no small matter.
It had already shaken the very foundation of the shinobi code.
Faced with someone who broke the rules, every country would surely take the same course of action.
They would send people to investigate, then launch a punitive expedition. That was a given.
Since no survivors had been found,
they could only conduct investigations and make inferences as they searched.
They had not expected to find anyone immediately.
But fortunately,
one of the killers soon left traces behind.
Following the bodies of bandits, thieves, hooligans... who had died along the way,
they found traits matching one of the killers.
He was around thirteen or fourteen... possibly fifteen or sixteen.
Male.
Overwhelmingly strong.
Brutal methods.
Skilled in taijutsu and using improvised objects.
Anything at hand could become a weapon. That meant his moral bottom line was extremely low—or perhaps he had no bottom line at all.
As this intelligence gradually accumulated, it began to paint a clearer picture.
"A deranged teenage serial killer?"
Pakura thought for a moment.
That was... probably what he looked like.
"And he has a bit of male chauvinism."
Most of the corpses were male, while there were very few women.
The fact that she, known as the "Hero of Sunagakure," had been dispatched to search showed just how seriously the higher-ups took this incident.
After all,
shinobi mission commissions and military expenditures depended not only on the Daimyo, but also on the support of high-ranking officials and nobles.
Now that they were dead, someone had to provide an explanation.
And Konoha and Iwagakure had surely begun moving as well.
"Lady Pakura, on this side of the Land of Rain, the only ones bold enough to do something like this must be Amegakure."
One of her subordinates gazed at the beautiful Pakura with adoration in his eyes.
In theory, the environment of the Land of Wind required people to cover themselves with headscarves, face veils, and long sleeves to protect their skin.
Yet those common rules did not apply to Pakura.
Years of wind and sand had done nothing to diminish her beauty.
All because Pakura possessed the "Scorch Release Bloodline Limit."
A Kekkei Genkai was a bloodline, as well as an alteration to DNA.
Scorch Release gave Pakura resistance against high temperature and wind.
It also granted her formidable strength.
She had climbed up from the bottom, completing countless missions for Sunagakure.
Pakura was immensely popular. Counting shinobi and civilians alike, her supporters and sycophants numbered at least five figures.
That was why she was called the "Hero of Sunagakure."
"Hanzo..."
Pakura had considered that possibility many times as well.
But after asking Hanzo's old rival, Chiyo, who was also one of the village's higher-ups,
she received a different answer.
Chiyo's message said that, given the temperament and conduct of that Breathing Tube Old Man... the Demigod, Hanzo of the Salamander, he probably would not do such a thing.
The killer should be someone else.
"Then it should be that organization called Akatsuki..."
Another subordinate guessed.
During the Ninja World War, the Akatsuki Organization had frequently operated on this land.
They excelled at guerrilla warfare and rarely fought head-on.
Though few in number, they made full use of their own strengths.
"But the Akatsuki Organization never used to do things like this."
The last subordinate shook his head, sensing something was amiss.
On the chaotic battlefield of the Land of Rain, Akatsuki might have been a troublemaker.
But they were also very naive.
They always tried courtesy before force, guided by ideals of peace.
This kind of extreme slaughter... did not seem to fit their previous style.
"Hmph... people always change. Maybe they lost an important companion..."
Pakura snorted.
"Anyway, are you all ready?"
"Yes!"
The three subordinates nodded together.
"Good. We leave tonight and find a way to continue tracking down the killer!"
With a wave of Pakura's hand, the four leaped out the window and onto the roof, vanishing in an instant...
Meanwhile, in the darkness of night,
a pair of eyes watched in that direction.
"Heh heh, even Pakura has come. Still, that makes sense."
Kitsuchi, with his honest-looking face and burly build, spoke up.
He and several companions all wore ninja uniforms patterned in red and brown.
The forehead protectors on their heads indicated that they belonged to Iwagakure.
"Lord Kitsuchi, what should we do next?" a subordinate stepped forward and asked.
As the son of Third Tsuchikage Onoki,
Kitsuchi had been assigned to investigate the disappearance of high-ranking officials and nobles.
The disappearance of their country's officials and wealthy merchants was no trivial matter.
Naturally, their conclusions were much the same as Pakura's.
"First, we rule out Sunagakure as the culprit. Konoha is even less likely... which leaves only Amegakure or Akatsuki."
Kitsuchi analyzed the situation.
"We'll keep our distance from them and continue following them."
Pakura was Sunagakure's hero, and her abilities were outstanding.
As long as they followed her, they could simply reap the benefits.
"Yes."
The three nodded.
Soon, four figures disappeared into the night...
The Strength of the First Tier, a Powerful Build
A small roadside tavern.
Two men were drinking inside.
Under the dim yellow light, their appearances were revealed.
"Heh heh, Shennong, it has been a long time. Have you been well...?"
Orochimaru used tea in place of wine, holding a tiny wine cup in his hand.
Shennong, seated beside him, made the same gesture.
"You look well too."
Shennong replied casually.
The two chatted about various matters like old friends who had not met for years.
No one would have imagined that during the Second Shinobi World War years ago, they had been enemies seeking each other's lives.
With the destruction of Empty Village,
Shennong's state of mind went through several transformations before eventually becoming what it was today.
Over the years, he occasionally met with Orochimaru, and they had conducted some transactions and shared certain things.
Both were deeply interested in human body research.
Their research directions were simply somewhat different.
"Where is that brat who has always been following you?" Orochimaru suddenly asked.
"Ah... my disciple. He went out to train in the rain."
Shennong spoke lightly.
The curtain of rain concealed the scent of blood.
Even with Orochimaru's keen instincts, he could not casually discover the slaughter occurring within this town.
And tonight was destined to be an unsettled night.
Shennong said, "You came all this way. Don't tell me it was for that matter at the Underground Exchange?"
"Heh heh."
Orochimaru put down his cup.
"That is only one reason..."
The other reason was that Orochimaru wanted to see what kind of youth the killer was.
Whether he could serve as Orochimaru's next reincarnation vessel.
Even if he could not, he could still be used as an experiment subject.
He had successively defeated shinobi from the Hyuga, Akimichi, Senju, Nara, Yamanaka... and other clans.
Orochimaru's first thought was that the other party definitely possessed some powerful Kekkei Genkai.
Kakashi had come up empty-handed multiple times, which indicated that the other party moved swiftly as well.
"Have you ever considered that the killer might just be an ordinary person?"
Shennong suddenly asked.
Orochimaru glanced at him and shook his head. "You are still the same as ever..."
Aside from being somewhat tall and powerfully built, Shennong was an ordinary person.
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