Hannya Clan

"This is sukiyaki. Beat the eggs, then soak the beef in the egg mixture..."

In a restaurant in the Land of Fire, Kazashiro, accompanied by Wuming, whose entire outfit had been completely transformed, sat in a corner of the hall, personally instructing him on how to appreciate the food before him.

Following Kazashiro's instructions, Wuming prepared the beef and put it in his mouth. He felt the unique texture of the beef and egg mixture. His eyes lit up, and he quickly wielded his chopsticks.

Kazashiro was already used to the other person's ravenous eating habits, and sat aside with a smile, watching the other person enjoy their meal.

After spending a few days together, Kazashiro discovered that the girl in front of him was not as terrifying as he had initially thought. She was essentially an innocent girl who did not belong to the evil Uchiha clan.

Tobirama Senju: You're talking nonsense!

At the start of the journey, Kazashiro was still somewhat wary, fearing that the other party might take advantage of his inattention to launch a sinister backstab.

However, he has now completely relaxed and is treating the other person like a child, taking them to sample various delicacies within the Land of Fire.

After all, the other person's mental age is only around twelve years old, which is even younger than mine.

Kazashiro rested his chin on his hand, his eyes darting around as he surveyed his surroundings.

The restaurant was quite busy, mostly with merchants carrying luggage, suggesting that the town was situated at a key point on a trade route.

If they could take this place, Konoha's funds would likely be much more readily available.

After noting down the name of the town, Kazashiro planned to arrange for the Internal Affairs Department to investigate which noble family owned the territory once he returned, and then have the Internal Affairs Department visit them with gifts.

Why aren't you eating?

After finishing about half of the food in the pot, Wuming realized that Kazashiro was busy looking around and had no intention of touching his chopsticks.

"Hmm? Do you think I still need to eat?"

Upon hearing the nameless voice, Kazashiro turned his head to look at the two remaining slices of beef in the pot and deliberately teased the other party.

"Why, why is it unnecessary?"

Wuming blushed slightly at Kazashiro's teasing. Looking at the other guests around him as they ate, Wuming's cheeks turned slightly red, and his toes unconsciously clenched. He picked up his chopsticks, took a slice of beef, and placed it in Kazashiro's bowl.

"Didn't I leave you two pieces of meat?"

"Yes, yes, thank you for your gift, Miss."

Kazashiro was worried that if he continued to provoke him, he might get hit by Amaterasu, so he stopped joking, called the waiter to order another serving of beef, and placed the piece of beef in the bowl in front of Wuming.

"Alright, there's more if you're still hungry. I'm the Acting Hokage of Konoha, I'm not short of money."

"Hmph, fine, don't eat it then." Remembering how the other party had even wiped the bottle opening before, Wuming thought Kazashiro was disgusted with him, and angrily stuffed the beef into his mouth.

After finishing their meal, Kazashiro asked Wuming if there was anywhere else he wanted to go, but Wuming's gaze fell on a small alley not far away.

Ignore them, they're just a bunch of clowns.

Kazashiro had noticed the commotion over there long ago, but he had no intention of taking action in the town.

"That gaze was really annoying."

Wuming simply expressed his opinion, but still obediently followed Kazashiro's instructions and ignored them.

"Have we been discovered?"

The man, who had been hiding in the shadows of the alley, wanted to continue peering out, but his fear outweighed that thought.

"Probably not, she's just a young girl who probably just happened to be looking this way."

The other man dismissed the nameless gaze as a coincidence and prepared to continue his mission.

Both men were guards of the Nangong Family, the most powerful noble family in the area, and they recognized each other's identities as early as when Kazashiro brought Wuming into the city.

Having established himself in this commercially prosperous area, the head of the family Nangong Zao, sensed the changing situation earlier than the Daimyo's Mansion.

The new caravans, whose origins were unclear, differed from the merchants of the past in both their conduct and trading methods.

He wrote to the daimyo more than once to explain his views, but the officials of the Daimyo's Mansion always dismissed him on the grounds that there was no evidence.

"When have nobles ever needed evidence when dealing with ninjas?"

Nangong Zao couldn't understand why the Daimyo Daimyo's Mansion would allow a ninja to stir up trouble and bully the nobles.

Since the daimyo isn't going to interfere, he'll handle it himself!

Using his own connections, Nangong Zao contacted the Hannya sect of the Land of Forests Hannya Clan and hired them at a high salary to assassinate Shimura Kazashiro.

However, before the Hannya Clan could figure out what to do, Kazashiro and Wuming appeared in the town on their own initiative and were discovered by Nangong Zao's subordinates.

"It seems they will be leaving the city soon. We must report to the head of the family immediately."

Only after Kazashiro and Wuming had walked far away did one of the guards dare to peek out and deduce their destination based on the direction they were heading.

"If we can truly keep Konoha's Acting Hokage forever, then our Hannya Clan will be famous throughout the Shinobi World, and we will never have to live at the mercy of the great village again."

The leaders of the Hannya Clan, upon receiving the news, attached great importance to this intelligence.

As a small country surrounding Konoha, the Land of Forests had long been fed up with the domineering attitude of the larger powers. Like many small countries, they also wanted to break free from the control of the larger powers and develop according to their own ideas.

"But the other party is, after all, the Hokage. Although he is not very old, he is a hero who made a name for himself in the Third Shinobi World War."

One of his subordinates expressed his concerns.

"Don't worry, the intelligence said this guy has a girl with him. If the Kage of a village has her by his side, she must be very important to him. Let's start with that girl. If we can take her hostage, that would be even better."

The leader quickly devised a plan, deciding to target Wuming as the primary objective, thus distracting Kazashiro, and then delivering the fatal blow himself.

"Quite a few people have come."

Walking along the forest path, Wuming glanced at Kazashiro, who still seemed completely unaffected, and whispered a reminder.

"It doesn't matter, I'll take action."

Kazashiro shook his head very slightly, indicating that the other party should not worry.

"Don't worry, I'll take your safety into consideration. After all, protecting underage girls is a responsibility that adults should fulfill."

"Adults?"

Wuming was somewhat surprised. Looking at Kazashiro, who was only a head taller than her, and with that delicate little face, she found it hard to associate the Kazashiro in front of her with an adult.

After being surprised by the other person's adult identity, Wuming then carefully considered the protective intent in the other person's words.

She has always been used by her people as a weapon; the word "protection" seems to have never been associated with her.

This feeling...

"What are you saying? Don't I look like an adult?"

Kazashiro was somewhat annoyed, but at the same time decided to show his adult spirit in the upcoming battle.