Bounty Hunter, Ceremony Unveiled!

Uchiha Ci let out a breath and stood up.

He looked around, taking in the three teammates who were about to depart with him.

He couldn't help but feel a sense of absurdity.

There was Terumi Mei, the genius of Kirigakure, who wielded dual kekkei genkai and went by the alias 'Tsukikomi Mei'.

Then there was Shinnosuke, the mastermind villain behind the Sky Ninja Village, who traveled the ninja world in disguise, practicing medicine.

And finally, Hidan, a future member of Akatsuki, currently in his wild, juvenile form, a Hot Water Ninja.

This lineup, no matter how he looked at it, made him want to scratch his head.

Why on earth did they end up together?

"Alright, let's go. Our target is the Evil God Cult's headquarters."

"Hidan, lead the way!"

At the same time, In the underground plaza of the Evil God Cult's headquarters, not far from Yugakure City.

The Evil God Cult's Bishop watched the scene before him with a detached expression.

He saw a crowd of cultists dragging terrified civilians from the Land of Hot Water, Binding them to crosses, Piling firewood at their feet, and then, with sinister grins, retrieving awls, chains, and iron nails from a rack of torture instruments.

They were preparing for the grand Evil God ritual about to commence.

He suddenly felt a sense of absurdity and boredom. He turned around and pulled out a necklace bearing the Evil God Cult's symbol from his robes.

His gaze drifted, lost in thought for a long time.

Until a leader clad in the Evil God Cult's black robes knelt behind him and reported anxiously:

"My Lord Bishop, the three elites we sent to retrieve the child have been killed."

"If they were killed, then they were killed," the Bishop replied with a blank expression, showing no hint of emotion, as if such incidents were commonplace.

He turned his head, glancing at the cultist with his light purple eyes, and then said indifferently:

"This country is like this. Death and chaos are everywhere."

"Hot Water Ninjas, great nation ninjas, samurai, civilians, nobles, even the Daimyo can be killed inexplicably one day."

"Haven't you yet recognized this tragic reality, this meaningless era?"

"But, my Lord Bishop," the leader raised his head slightly and asked, "What about the child needed for the ritual?"

The Bishop looked towards a dark corner beside him and said calmly:

"Professional matters should be handled by professionals."

A bald man with a thick beard stepped out from the darkness, a smile on his face:

"The Bishop is right."

"We, the Underground Bounty Exchange, were born for this purpose."

"Kidnapping, extortion, bounties, intelligence, assassination, even if you wanted to become a noble of this country tomorrow."

"As long as you can afford the price, we will serve you wholeheartedly."

The Bishop closed his eyes and asked:

"How long will it take to bring the person here?"

The bald man smiled slightly, his expression sincere:

"Rest assured, we immediately interrogated the villagers of that village and have already found out the whereabouts of the one who killed your cult members and that child."

"This is a big business. Our most elite bounty hunters have already departed. It will take at most half a day."

"We will definitely bring back the child named 'Hidan'."

"Hmm, that will be all," the Bishop said listlessly, waving his hand.

"Kyoji, take him down to get the deposit."

The Evil God Cult member named Kyoji nodded in understanding, then couldn't help but ask:

"My Lord Bishop, what if the guy who took Hidan comes back and attacks again?"

The Bishop held the necklace and pressed it to his forehead.

A voice devoid of emotion replied calmly: "Someone will handle it."

"Kyoji, we are just an ordinary church that believes in God. Don't always think about solving problems through violence."

As soon as he finished speaking--

Not far away, a cultist gripping an iron nail grinned and stabbed an eyeball with the back of his hand.

A piercing scream rang out from the dense crosses behind them.

One after another.

This scene.

Even the bald, burly man from the Underground Bounty Exchange, who had seen the darkness of the ninja world, His smile froze on his face.

Damn ordinary church.

Is this how your ordinary church worships?

#

"Whoa, you're saying this is the Evil God Cult's headquarters?"

"Are you sure this isn't the Land of Hot Water Daimyo's palace?"

On a cliff edge, Uchiha Ci looked at the massive castle built on the hills below, somewhat surprised.

If Hidan hadn't explicitly told him this was the Evil God Cult's headquarters, He would have thought it was the territory of some noble from the Land of Hot Water.

"It's pretty much the same, actually. This place was built with the help of our Yugakure for a noble in the Land of Hot Water."

"As you know, Hot Water Ninjas rarely get good missions. We're almost like private soldiers for the Land of Hot Water Daimyo and nobles, similar to those fallen samurai."

Hidan explained, pointing to the ancient castle below, then shaking his head:

"But there are still differences."

Uchiha Ci followed his gaze.

Outside the magnificent castle below was a stretch of dilapidated shacks nearly ten miles long.

Dense refugees from the Land of Hot Water were crammed in, hugging their legs and shivering in sheltered corners, unable to sleep all night.

It was clearly a large refugee settlement.

At this moment, the night was dim, and the sky was starless.

The four of them had traveled for three hours. By this time, it should be close to dawn.

However, it was early spring, with short days and long nights, so there was still some time before sunrise.

"How should we proceed?" Hidan asked, tilting his head.

As if uneasy, he added, "I've been here once when I received guidance from the Evil God Cult."

"Don't underestimate this place."

"The internal security here is very strict, especially the path leading to the Evil God Cult's underground headquarters cave. It's practically guarded every ten steps."

"Plus, the Evil God Cult has recruited a large number of samurai, and the refugees act as informants. It's unrealistic to sneak in from the refugee camp by the city gate without alerting the people inside."

"And, it's hard to say how much ninja power the Evil God Cult actually possesses."

Hidan wasn't even a Genin yet and couldn't sense ninjutsu.

He saw everyone as a normal person.

It was only when he picked up Uchiha Ci, seeing his injuries and a Konoha dog tag, that he confirmed Ci was a ninja. It was normal that he couldn't get further information.

Uchiha Ci nodded, stroking his chin.

Inside, he was secretly delighted.

As a true warrior, he certainly wished for a bigger commotion when assassinating.

As long as he killed all the enemies he saw, no one would know he had been there.

(Pushes up sunglasses, bares golden teeth.jpg)

So, Uchiha Ci turned his head and said with a resolute expression:

"I'll attract the enemy's attention, and you guys sneak in and open the city gate."

"Then, we'll charge straight in!"

"We'll kill anyone who stands in our way, gods or men!"

"Once we charge into the underground cave, I'll seal the entrance with a barrier to cut off their reinforcements."

"What do you think? Isn't the plan perfect?"

Obviously, this plan did not gain the approval of his teammates.

"Are you an idiot?"

Terumi Mei couldn't help but chop Uchiha Ci on the forehead with the back of her hand, saying irritably:

"We are ninjas! Ninjas!"

"Do you think this is a stage for a dramatic performance?"

Next, Terumi Mei pointed to the cliff at their feet and the castle below it, connecting the two with her slender fingers.

"We can drop from this cliff onto the castle walls."

"It's a bit high, but we can walk on trees. After scouting the situation on the walls, we can climb down."

"We need to avoid drawing more attention than necessary."

Terumi Mei's suggestion was immediately agreed to by the other two.

But Uchiha Ci shook his head. "You've overlooked an important issue."

"We can climb down. Not just climb, we could probably run down the cliff face without much issue."

"However," Uchiha Ci said, patting his younger companion's shoulder with a cheerful laugh, "This kid probably can't walk on trees or water yet."

Uchiha Ci glanced at Hidan, raised an eyebrow, and asked, "What should we do? Leave him here?"

Thank you to Chi Yan, My Zhenli, and Shuyou 20161229184851430 for the monthly votes.

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