Ino-Shika-Cho

"Relax, relax. I'm not hostile. I just want to travel to Takumigakure with the caravan. Maybe we have the same destination~" Ruri moved slightly, and the scabbard at her left hand lightly tapped Mitsunosuke's sword. Mitsunosuke felt an immense force and couldn't help loosening his grip.

"What destination? We don't have a destination. We just want to make this money and go home to retire." Mitsunosuke spoke in a low voice. Ruri's strength had once again surpassed his understanding. She could probably take his life with a flip of her hand. Since she said she wasn't hostile, he would believe her for now. If they became enemies, they probably wouldn't even reach the Land of Artisans, let alone get their revenge.

"Then let's say we have no destination. Just don't act rashly before we enter the Land of Artisans, or you'll interfere with me." Ruri reminded them aloud. The only thing he was worried about was that these two survivors of the Miike Clan might attack before reaching the Land of Artisans. If they caused a commotion, he wouldn't be able to infiltrate Takumigakure quietly. He couldn't waste this hard-won opportunity.

"Teach me Niten Ichi-ryu. Consider it the price for us not attacking first." Shizuka suddenly spoke. Ruri's kenjutsu was extremely powerful. If she could learn even a little, she would have a better chance of taking revenge.

"Are you stupid?" Ruri walked away without even turning his head. Did this girl still think she was the young mistress of the Miike Clan? Her ideas were so naïve. Didn't she understand the difference in their strength? Without strength, she had no right to make threats like that. Ruri had only reminded them to reduce trouble. If he had a bad temper, he might have killed them directly. He wouldn't even have needed to bury them, and nothing would have happened.

The caravan set out shortly afterward. Although there were many people, they made it all the way to the ship at the harbor without attracting anyone's attention. It was as if they had planned their route long ago, deliberately choosing secluded paths.

Ruri grew increasingly curious about what they were transporting. He stared at the wooden chest on the carriage for a long time, but still couldn't sense what was inside. It probably had some kind of seal on it. As for the other carriages, Ruri had investigated them long ago. They contained nothing but ordinary iron ore.

The thing inside this chest had given one senior warrior and one intermediate warrior the confidence to kill Seimei. One had to know that Seimei was no weakling. Although no one knew exactly how he had annihilated two clans, the brutality of his methods and the efficiency of his actions were known to everyone. They all felt he might become the second Takikage, allowing the Land of Artisans to rise just like the Land of Waterfalls.

Of course, Ruri held such claims in contempt. In the original story, Seimei was resurrected with a pile of ninja tools that were practically cheats, and even claimed to be the "Ultimate Ninja Tool." Yet he was killed by a single thrust from Gaara, who couldn't even control the power of Shukaku. In terms of strength, he was at most an elite Jonin. Although he was alive now and his strength was unknown, it definitely wouldn't exceed that level by much. With all kinds of bonuses, Ruri had long since entered the Kage tier.

The caravan's ship secretly left the harbor. One had to admit that the Fujiwara Clan was full of talents. They could even sail a ship. A red-haired fellow merely glanced at the sky and knew how long it would be before the rain fell, which was simply unbelievable. Partway through the journey, Ruri secretly used Wind Style to tear a sail, hoping to slow them down. Who would have thought that an old man would mend it in just a few moves?

Ruri finally understood. The Fujiwara Clan could not only change careers from warriors to ninja, but also become captains, helmsmen, ship commanders, navigators... After living in seclusion for so many years, they probably had to rely on themselves for everything. Perhaps they even had what it took to take a trip around the New World. Becoming an extremely notorious pirate would be much better than scraping out a living in the Land of Artisans.

A day later, the ship docked at a harbor in the Land of Artisans. Fujiwara Masanori, who had stayed near the three of them the entire time, also breathed a sigh of relief. They had avoided attacks at sea, so everything had gone smoothly.

The caravan continued on safely for several thousand meters. Many people had already relaxed completely. They were only one or two days away from Takumigakure and were about to complete the mission.

"It won't be that easy..." Ruri moved a few steps closer to the carriages. At least until they approached Takumigakure, he needed to ensure these people's safety.

Seeing Ruri's movement, Fujiwara Masanori, who had been watching him all along, froze and whispered, "Is someone coming?"

"Mm." Ruri didn't offer any further explanation and replied blandly. The enemy's strength was not weak. Judging by their chakra levels, there were fully three Jonin, while the others were at Chunin level.

Masanori whispered something to a warrior beside him. That warrior then shouted loudly, "Prepare for batt—"

Before he could finish, a Kunai pierced through his throat and took his life.

"Human Bullet Tank!" A sphere fell from the sky, crushing many lower-level warriors on impact. Lower-level warriors really were even more expendable than Genin...

"Konoha Ninja?" Ruri was startled. This caravan had actually attracted Konoha's attention. That technique was clearly a secret technique of the Akimichi Clan. The three Jonin-level chakra signatures he had sensed earlier meant that...

"Mind Destruction Technique..." Ruri swung his sword backward, and sword aura struck the attacker, forcing him back several steps. As expected, Ino-Shika-Cho had acted together!

The "Shika" of Ino-Shika-Cho had not found an opening earlier, but now appeared before everyone.

"If you leave that thing behind, we can spare your lives." The "Shika," wearing a cat-faced mask, shouted loudly.

"How could that be... Who sent you?!" Masatsune leaped to the very front. Aside from Ruri, he was the strongest person here. But Ruri was an outsider, and he couldn't place his full trust in him.

"Us?" The three exchanged glances and said in unison, "We are ninja from Takigakure!"

Ruri: "????" Even with the mask on, that pineapple head clearly belongs to a Nara Clan ninja, doesn't it?! And there was the Human Bullet Tank just now, along with the Mind Destruction Technique that hadn't been thrown out yet. Since when did Ino-Shika-Cho move to Takigakure?

"Takigakure Ninja? That village can stand alongside the Five Great Ninja Villages. As expected, it is full of capable people. I heard long ago that the Takikage defeated Senju Tobirama by concealing his strength. You Takigakure Ninja are just as good at hiding your heads and showing only your tails as rats, and you even wear masks!" Fujiwara Masatsune had probably lived in seclusion for too long and was ignorant of Ino-Shika-Cho, so he actually believed them!

???? This is unacceptable. You can't slander people like that, can you? What do you mean, hiding his strength and showing only his tail? Damn it, this must be a rumor Tobirama spread because he couldn't bear to lose face!

Ruri shifted his attention to the three men's masks. These were clearly the Anbu masks from the original story! Could they be Konoha's Anbu? Did Konoha already have the Anbu at this time? Logically speaking, the Anbu should not have formally appeared until after Tobirama took office.

After thinking it over, he came up with an explanation. The three only wore animal masks and did not have the standard Anbu uniforms. They were probably a secret unit arranged by Tobirama, most likely the forerunners of the Anbu.

"Ah!" A shout came from the rear, causing Masatsune's expression to change drastically. The people attacking them were not limited to these three!

Six Chunin wearing similar masks swept through the group like wolves among sheep, cutting their way into a massacre. Caught off guard, more than half of the group were killed or wounded. However, the Konoha Ninja had also paid a price. One of them had his chest slashed by an intermediate warrior who fought to the death.

The battle also proved Ruri's guess. Konoha's Anbu might indeed include Chunin, but those Chunin had to be highly experienced or monstrous geniuses. How could one of them have been so easily injured by an intermediate warrior?