Reunion?!

Rumble...

The violent explosions rang out one after another, shaking the ceiling next door and sending fine dust raining down.

Uchiha Ao, who had already conducted in-depth investigations with several dancers, abruptly lifted his head, staring toward the direction of the Ramen Shop, his heart tightening.

"Could I have been discovered?!"

Beside him, the Pink Haired Dancer in Orange Gauze was also unsteady from the fierce blasts, her delicate body softening and collapsing into Uchiha Ao's arms.

With the situation unclear, though his mood was ruined, he slowly ceased his investigation, comforted the dancer with a few words, and led her to the front desk to ask about the cause of the tremor.

On the way, he quickly calmed down. If he had truly been discovered, the first thing to come wouldn't have been the sound of explosions, but those two ferocious bearded faces.

"Guest, my apologies for disturbing your enjoyment."

Just then, the Blonde Beauty hurried back into the shop, looking flustered. Seeing Uchiha Ao's displeased expression, she quickly explained.

"Just now, Lord Kinkaku and Lord Ginkaku from the Hidden Village were pursuing a ninja from another country.

I'm terribly sorry. How about this—on my authority, I'll reduce your fee this time to Ten Thousand Taels."

As she spoke, she kept bowing, the two mounds on her chest swaying up and down, dazzling the eyes.

"Again, my apologies for ruining your mood."

"...Since it was an accident."

Uchiha Ao struggled to pull his gaze away, coughed dryly twice, and waved a hand. "Then forget it. Here's the remaining payment."

With that, he turned and left.

He had gathered enough intel; it was time to withdraw.

"Wait, guest."

"Is there something else?" he asked, puzzled.

"Though I'm embarrassed to say..."

The Blonde Beauty called out to him with a troubled expression. "But guest, according to the rules, the shop's dancers cannot be taken outside."

"Ah? Oh!"

Uchiha Ao looked down at the Pink Haired Dancer in his arms, who stared back at him with big, watery, innocent eyes. His face flushed with awkwardness.

"Hehehe... I forgot. Forgot."

Saying this, he released the Pink Haired Dancer from his embrace.

It wasn't intentional; his mind had been entirely focused on escaping this place, causing him to lose focus for a moment.

Of course, part of it was also because the dancer was so soft and cuddly, too pleasant to hold.

From the earlier "battle," he had extracted plenty of useful intel from Kinkaku and Ginkaku.

In his estimation, it was enough to handle this mission. If used wisely, he could even maximize the delay of the war's outbreak.

As he pondered, just as he reached the door quickly, the shop's beaded curtain was suddenly pushed aside.

He looked closely.

It was Ginkaku, faint traces of blood still on his face, holding the Seven Star Sword.

"..."

Seeing this, Uchiha Ao's heart leaped to his throat, but his expression remained unchanged. He bowed slightly to Ginkaku and prepared to brush past him.

After all, given the man's reputation, pretending not to recognize him would be the biggest red flag.

"Wait!"

Ginkaku, fresh from battle, exuded a fierce killing intent. He suddenly twisted around and called out to Ao, who had one foot out the door, his eyes icy.

"Why was your heart beating so fast just now? Have we met somewhere before?"

As he spoke, he raised the Seven Star Sword, and the Chakra in his Dantian began to gather toward his eyes.

"..."

Uchiha Ao's body stiffened. Just as he was about to turn and explain, the Blonde Beauty suddenly inserted herself between them, quickly explaining.

"Lord Ginkaku, I can vouch for him. He really is a guest of my shop. For the entire hour before the incident, he was here at the establishment.

And... who wouldn't be afraid seeing you draw the Seven Star Sword? Even my own little heart is still pounding away."

As she spoke, the woman patted her chest with her small hand.

Ginkaku frowned and tried to push the Blonde Beauty aside, but the massive objects before him were too dazzling, leaving him frozen in place for a moment.

At this point, not only had his killing intent vanished, but even his gaze had grown dazed.

"...Heh, since Fangzi says so, it seems I really was mistaken..."

As he spoke, the arm holding the Seven Star Sword was suddenly enveloped in softness. The Blonde Beauty shouted toward the inner room.

"Girls, Lord Ginkaku is here! Come quickly and offer Lord Ginkaku a toast."

The blonde woman hooked her arm around Ginkaku's as she called out to the shop, turning back to shoot Uchiha Ao a wink, only to find he had already vanished without a trace.

Probably scared out of his wits, she thought. Who would've guessed a man with such a timid streak could be so fierce in that department...

At that thought, something seemed to cross her mind, and she rubbed her thighs together as a flush crept up her cheeks.

"Hey, Fangzi, I heard your shop cooked up something new. Come over and tell me about it."

"It was finished just last night. I was about to mention it to you."

Half an hour later.

Smack!

Ginkaku, red-faced with rage, slapped Fangzi hard across the face.

"You stupid woman! If my brother didn't have a stake in this shop, I'd kill you right here and now!"

The dancers attending nearby all cowered away in fear.

Just as Ginkaku was about to take more of his anger out on Fangzi, Kinkaku, who had arrived at some unknown moment, suddenly appeared and blocked him, his face dark with displeasure. "Ginkaku, can't you talk things out properly? Why resort to violence!"

He had clearly told his younger brother that this shop was under his protection—wasn't this just sabotaging their own business!

Seeing it was his brother, Ginkaku had no choice but to swallow his fury and truthfully recount what he had seen and heard.

After hearing it, Kinkaku was angry too, but he kept much calmer than Ginkaku. "At this point, that man probably hasn't gotten far. Venting won't solve anything. Come on, I'll go with you to chase him."

Before leaving, his eyes flickered as he pinched a few strands of hair left on the bed, then shifted his gaze to the blonde woman collapsed on the floor. "Before I get back, tear this room apart. Now!"

Whoosh! Whoosh!

The words barely left his mouth before the two of them grabbed their ninja tools and vanished from the room.

A day later, within the Land of Iron.

A figure flickering with blue electric light darted ceaselessly through the mountains and forests.

For an entire day, aside from dodging patrols of Cloud Village ninja, Uchiha Ao had pushed himself without rest, racing desperately onward.

Yet even so, his instincts still screamed warnings at him.

"How do they always know where I am?"

Before heading to the Land of Lightning, he had already mapped out his escape route.

First, he would hug the coastline to slip into the Land of Iron, then use the Transformation Jutsu to blend into a merchant caravan heading from the Land of Iron to the Land of Fire.

Given the Land of Iron's permanent neutral status, even if Kinkaku and Ginkaku guessed he was sneaking back through the Land of Iron, they shouldn't dare use large-scale ninjutsu to search openly.

But what he hadn't expected was that shortly after blending into the merchant caravan, he discovered that the Lightning Clone he had deliberately left at the Land of Iron's border had been destroyed!

He immediately realized his location was exposed and was forced to leave the caravan, sprinting at full speed toward the Land of Fire.

"At my current pace, I should be able to reach the Land of Fire's border in a few minutes."

The people of the Land of Iron weren't skilled in ninjutsu. If I use the Transformation Jutsu, I should be able to pass through the border easily and slip into the Land of Fire.

The most important thing now is shaking off the pursuit of those two behind me.

"..."

As he pondered, the Thunder Breathing coating Uchiha Ao's body faded due to its time limit, cutting his speed by more than half.

With no other choice, he forced himself to press on with his remaining stamina toward the border.

Yet, to his confusion, just as he reached the junction where the Land of Iron met the Land of Fire, the instinct of danger seemed to peak at that very moment!

He instinctively looked back.

There was no sign of Kinkaku or Ginkaku.

Then why...

As if a thought struck him, he suddenly looked up and scanned the distance.

There stood Kinkaku and Ginkaku, along with a group of samurai from the Land of Iron, positioned at both ends of the border checkpoint, scanning the area.

"...Waiting by the tree for the rabbit," Uchiha Ao muttered through gritted teeth, his face dark.