Under the moonlight, twenty or thirty ninjas raced through the forest. Though they wore Konoha Ninja uniforms, they didn't look like they were from the Land of Fire. Several of them had distinctly brown skin.
But there was no doubt about their destination: Konoha Village. The forest they were in was the last line of defense before Konoha, and they seemed familiar with its defenses, slipping past every trap...
"Captain."
A young ninja turned to the middle-aged man beside him, the commander of this operation...
"I still think this mission is unnecessary. Even if we succeed, there won't be enough time to bring our target back home. In the end, we'll just be doing someone else a favor."
"We have our orders. We follow them."
The burly man looked back at his subordinate.
"When you're a ninja, you don't get to choose what you like or don't like."
"Then let's just abduct the target and leave. If we reach our destination soon enough, we can use reverse summoning."
"That won't do. Both targets are crucial to this mission. The other one is easier to deal with, and the results are guaranteed. Even if we can't abduct our target, the other one has to die."
He patted the young man on the shoulder.
"I'm leaving that part of the mission to you. Once you've killed the target, leave immediately. Don't waste any time."
"Understood."
Though he was still unhappy about the mission, the young man obeyed and nodded. With a turn of his feet, the group split into two. Leading one of them, he leaped off in another direction.
Soon, the group had all crossed the forest, and the place fell quiet once more...
A little while later, several shadows appeared in the trees without warning. They all wore masks, enough to reveal their identities.
"Report to Lord Danzo. The rats are already inside."
A voice as cold as death came from beneath one of the masks.
"Notify the others. Once the enemy enters the village, nobody moves until they make a scene."
"Yes!"
With several quick whooshes, the ninjas vanished as well. Only then did the forest truly fall silent...
By then, Qi had just finished a day of training and had returned to his apartment not long ago.
"I'm exhausted..."
He kicked the door open and, too tired to do much else, tossed the bag containing his Kunai and Shuriken onto the floor. With a casual nudge of his foot, he shut the door behind him.
It wasn't that he didn't want to clean up; he was simply too tired. He decided to take a bath first, then lie in bed and let his aching muscles relax.
"Whoosh..."
Ever since becoming a ninja, Qi had kept his bathing routine simple. He didn't need hot water or a bathtub; two large wooden tubs were enough.
Before long, he was lying in bed just as he'd hoped.
Although he was still "fully armed"...
He couldn't help it. It was a habit he'd picked up back in the Land of Water. Even when he slept, he kept all his gear ready so he could fight at a moment's notice. He'd even gone to bed without taking off his shoes, though he'd wiped their soles clean while bathing.
The only things he wasn't wearing were his two short swords. After all, he couldn't exactly sleep with them strapped to his back...
"What a huge moon..."
Turning his head, Qi looked out the window at the moon. The moon in this world seemed a little too big, and it reflected plenty of light. His entire room was brightly lit by the moonlight.
Good grief, what a huge moon. Just looking at it was overwhelming. He wondered whether this world had anything like the Mid-Autumn Festival...
"How stupid. What am I even thinking..."
Suddenly, he sighed and rolled over.
"I can never go back. What's the point of thinking about that..."
At some point, he drifted off to sleep. Maybe because he was so tired, he even let out a faint snore...
Since he'd tossed his weapons pouch onto the floor, several Kunai and Shuriken had spilled out. With their owner having no intention of cleaning them up, they lay exposed in the open air, their surfaces reflecting an eerie blue light in the moonlight...
Suddenly, a hand emerged from the floor and grabbed a Kunai. A moment later, the rest of the person rose straight out of the ground, standing in the middle of the room.
Without a word, he quietly walked to the bed, making not the slightest sound throughout.
Suddenly, he stopped moving. Qi had rolled over again, leaving him facing the window with his back to the intruder.
"..."
The intruder's face remained expressionless. The fact that his opportunity had improved seemed to stir no emotion in him. He simply raised the Kunai, which was no longer merely reflecting light: at some point, it had been coated with purple poison...
Step by step, he drew closer to Qi. Just as he was about to reach him, Qi's snoring suddenly stopped! At almost the same instant, the intruder vanished completely!
"Mm..."
Sitting bolt upright, Qi got out of bed, wearing a pained expression.
"I'm starving. Did I forget to eat dinner tonight?"
Right on cue, his stomach gave a strange growl...
"Can't be helped... I'll make some instant noodles. Since this godforsaken place has instant noodles, why not go all the way and invent fast food..."
Muttering words that almost nobody in this world could understand, Qi climbed out of bed. Rubbing his stomach, he headed toward the kitchen.
And his path took him right past the spot where the unwelcome guest had just disappeared...
A pair of eyes watched Qi approach step by step. To their owner, Qi looked a little dazed after waking up. More importantly, Qi's weapons—the two short swords—were propped against the wall!
At last, Qi came close, close enough for the intruder to trip him with a simple stretch of his leg. The intruder finally made his move.
The Kunai, rendered invisible by ninjutsu, flew toward Qi's neck at impossible speed without making a sound!
The eyes gleamed with delight. The intruder clearly saw his poisoned Kunai slice across Qi's neck, and the familiar resistance from the blade told him he had indeed cut through a living person's flesh.
Szzzt!
First, a thin line of blood appeared on Qi's neck. Then blood gushed from the wound. His expression hadn't even had time to turn to horror before the light left his eyes and he fell to the ground with a thud.
"That was easy!"
The intruder finally revealed himself. He was dressed as a Konoha Ninja, but that was because he wasn't a Konoha Ninja at all...
He casually tossed aside the bloodstained Kunai and kicked Qi, who lay facedown on the floor. Of course, Qi was already dead, though blood continued to seep out and pool beneath him...
"I thought he'd be some big shot, but he was a complete pushover... Oh well, that makes things easier for me."
With a satisfied smile, he prepared to leave and join his companions on the next mission.
"Thud!"
Once more, the sound of a blade piercing flesh rang out. The room was so quiet that it came through loud and clear...
"Ugh..."
A fierce pain flared in his chest. The ninja looked down in confusion, only to see a length of blade sticking straight out of his chest!
"How... That's impossible..."
"Nothing is impossible in this world, is it, my guest from Iwagakure..."
Qi's voice came from behind him, full of mockery.
"This trick of yours is nothing new. Back when I was fleeing in the Land of Water, Kirigakure Ninja tried it on me plenty of times."