Satoru looked somewhat awkwardly at Orochimaru's twitching mouth.
Clearly, the Rain Ninja Captain opposite them did not understand that compared to a python's constricting force and venom, it was hardly the safer, harmless option.
"Satoru, watch them... I'll go outside and find some food. When I get back, we'll start the interrogation!"
Orochimaru flicked his sleeve and left. The summoned python also slid off the captain's body and followed him away.
"Yes!"
Satoru nodded and exchanged glances with Nawaki and Mikoto.
The Rain Ninja Captain gradually regained his breath. Watching Orochimaru disappear at the cave entrance, he gritted his teeth and signaled the sensory ninja.
The campfire gradually dwindled. Nawaki scratched his hair and glanced at his wet clothes.
"With so little fire, when will these ever dry?"
"It rains here all the time. Even this firewood was dried by the captain with ninjutsu. Even if you went out to gather more now, it would all be wet and impossible to burn."
Mikoto pulled over the small pot beside the campfire. Inside was a thick soup made from boiled compressed biscuits, giving off an enticing aroma.
"Before the captain gets back, let's fill our stomachs with this first. The captain hates this stuff, but I think it's pretty good."
Mikoto stood and distributed the emergency rations to everyone.
"We have limited time. As soon as the captain returns, we'll interrogate them. Even if they don't know the internal defenses of Amegakure toward the Land of Birds, they should still have some useful information."
Satoru accepted the food and spoke terrifying words in an apparently casual tone.
"Still, I prefer being direct. If they refuse to talk, I wouldn't mind turning them into pigs and roasting them."
"Maybe roasted sheep would be better? Actually, I can turn people into dogs too. Dogs bite... rabbits, then."
Mr. Ito's group of three and the three captives all shuddered. The youngest and cutest-looking member of these ninjas was not only powerful, but ruthless as well!
And what were these bizarre techniques?!
"Damn it, we can't wait any longer... Now, move!"
The Rain Ninja Captain formed several hand signs with the fingers bound behind his back. The sensory Rain Ninja nodded slightly, and the rope binding his hands suddenly fell away!
Before Nawaki tied him up, he had barely managed to use the last of his consciousness to cast Genjutsu on Nawaki, making him think the ropes were securely tied...
And now, that had become the key to their escape!
With the captain and his companions covering him, the sensory Rain Ninja swiftly formed hand signs and unleashed the strongest Genjutsu he currently knew!
"Hey! You lot!"
With a loud shout, the sensory Rain Ninja drew the attention of all six people beside the campfire. Before they could react, he successfully activated his Genjutsu!
Thud!
The sounds of bodies collapsing came one after another. The sensory Rain Ninja panted heavily—bringing down six people at once while injured had nearly drained him dry.
"It worked!"
"Nicely done!"
"Captain, my technique can only hold six people for a very short time. We have to leave quickly!"
After swiftly untying his two companions, the sensory ninja immediately closed his eyes and focused on sensing.
"Damn... that Elite Jonin is not far from the cave entrance! He's coming back!"
"These people have trigger-based alarm measures on them!"
"Damn it!"
The captain clenched his teeth. Looking at the seemingly helpless targets before him, whose heads he could reap with a mere reach of his hand, he made a swift decision.
"Go! Once we get the intelligence out, they're as good as dead!"
"Escape before that Jonin returns! Even if we run into him, he'll definitely check on the mission targets first!"
The fastest Rain Ninja grabbed his two teammates and rushed out of the cave.
Just as the captain had said, Orochimaru, carrying two fish, changed expression when he saw them, but still swiftly darted toward the cave entrance.
"It worked!"
The captain rejoiced inwardly. Those Konoha bastards could just wait to die!
"Those bastards took all our signaling devices..."
"Hurry! There's a Jonin-sama stationed in the nearest defense zone!"
The three of them sped away.
"Bastard!"
The Rain Ninja Captain's expression was ugly. They had been moving for nearly half an hour, only to return to the same cave entrance!
"That Konoha Jonin... we were caught in Genjutsu the moment we last saw him?!"
By the time the three Rain Ninjas, hindered by their heavily injured sensory ninja, finally realized they had fallen under Orochimaru's Genjutsu, Satoru's group had already discovered a second Rain Ninja patrol.
Orochimaru's ability to control summoned snakes was immensely helpful for scouting, allowing the team to safely bypass quite a few enemy patrols.
"Oh? Looks like they've received word."
As they advanced, Orochimaru had actually been monitoring the movements of the nearest patrol the whole time.
"They seem to have received some kind of signal and are heading toward our previous location."
"Looks like the plan worked."
The group slowed their pace.
Mr. Ito and the old butler were carried by Samurai Sanada and Orochimaru, greatly increasing their travel speed.
But everyone knew that while it was manageable for a short time, it was impossible for them to keep traveling like ninjas over a long period.
If they encountered combat, they would be completely unable to handle it.
"Whew... they won't catch up to us, will they..."
Recalling what had happened in the cave earlier, Mr. Ito still felt lingering fear.
"They actually chose not to kill 'us' back then?"
"It seems you still don't understand just how intimidating Teacher Orochimaru is. If they had tried anything, they would have been dead for sure."
Satoru smiled. Of the six people in the cave at the time, "Mr. Ito" had been Orochimaru's Shadow Clone transformed using the Deformation Technique, while the old butler had been Satoru's solid Clone Technique.
As for Nawaki falling under Genjutsu, Satoru had noticed it from the very beginning—the Book of Medivh reacted whenever it encountered Genjutsu. Once he knew it was Genjutsu, breaking it was not difficult.
So their later escape had merely been part of Satoru's plan.
Even if the Rain Ninjas had attacked, they could have simply dealt with them ahead of time and switched to another plan.
Fortunately, the plan had gone fairly smoothly. The three Rain Ninja patrol members should have already informed their superiors of the "escort destination."
"Next, we'll rest briefly, then leave the border defense zone at full speed!"
"Alright!"
Nawaki and Mikoto were very excited. They had followed Satoru's plan the entire way, while Orochimaru had only served as a deterrent and barely needed to act.
In other words, although Orochimaru was backing them up, their three-person team had actually taken the lead in this Rank A mission.
After their grueling training, they had discovered that following their first battle, they had become even more confident.
At Amegakure's border command center, the commanding Jonin frowned as he looked at the bedraggled patrol team before him.
"The destination requires them to pass through our Land of Rain, and it's a small country?"
"In other words, the destination of this Konoha elite mission team's escort is very likely the Land of Birds?"
The Land of Birds was a small country bordering the Land of Rain. It lay between the Land of Earth, the Land of Wind, and the Land of Rain, where the three countries met.
To reach the Land of Birds from the Land of Fire, one had to pass through the Land of Rain.
PS: Yesterday's bookmarks were cut in half again. Today they'll probably be nearly gone, so I'll post a big update. Please show me some support... This part is a bit flat; I'll get through it as soon as possible.
Before you continue