Encountering Hidan (Part Two)

Ye Wuji had planned to soak in the hot springs at the inn, but after seeing Hidan, he realized he was short on time. He'd better hurry and look for Angkor Fortress. Still, he couldn't help thinking, If I take Hidan out now, this may be my best chance. From the way he looks, he probably doesn't know what he can do yet. His Kekkei Genkai hasn't awakened.

But Ye Wuji soon gave up on that idea. They were in the Land of Hot Springs, after all. If he killed someone without any reason, he'd surely be wanted by the authorities. From Uncle Ukyo, Ye Wuji had also learned that although the Daimyo Mansion was mainly staffed by samurai, it had skilled fighters too. They might not be able to deal with just anyone, but if they sent a few squads of guards after someone like Ye Wuji, he'd have to run.

Besides, Hidan's immortality had left a deep impression on Ye Wuji. What if he failed to kill Hidan and only alerted him to Ye Wuji's abilities? That would make things even more troublesome.

With those points in mind, Ye Wuji paid and left the hot spring inn. He'd already asked Old Boss about the place where Angkor Fortress was hidden.

Zhu Town was on the coast of the Land of Hot Springs, very close to the border with the Land of Fire. Its people mainly made a living by harvesting pearls from the sea. Since it was close to the Land of Fire, it was quite prosperous, and people looking to make money often came to gather pearls there.

That was about all Ye Wuji had learned. The innkeeper didn't know how many villages there were near Zhu Town. The information Ye Wuji had received only mentioned Zhu Town, not a specific village. Shennong hadn't said more at the time. Perhaps he'd assumed that fellow Sky Ninja would know where Angkor Fortress was once they reached Zhu Town. That meant Shennong must have left a clue there.

Ye Wuji walked along a road through the middle of a plain. Ever since leaving the hot spring inn, he'd sensed someone following him, though he didn't know who. He began to pick up his pace. After all, he'd been training for a long time.

The road ahead was about to leave the plain and enter a forest. Ye Wuji figured he'd use chakra to speed away as soon as he reached the trees and lose whoever was following him. He wasn't particularly interested in finding out who it was.

Just as Ye Wuji was about to enter the forest, two people jumped down from the trees ahead. They were a pair of burly, fat men. Ye Wuji was pleased to see them: they were the two men who'd been following Hidan at the hot spring inn. When he'd left the inn, he'd made a point of taking a look. Anyone mixed up with Hidan was worth keeping an eye on.

Ye Wuji was about to speak to the two men when he suddenly sensed someone approaching from behind. He turned around and saw Hidan. His face was already beaded with sweat.

"Hey, you up ahead! You're pretty fast. You made Lord Hidan chase you for ages!" Hidan gasped between words.

From the way he was panting, it was obvious Hidan wasn't used to exercising. He'd already be winded after chasing Ye Wuji for that short stretch.

"What do you want with me?" Ye Wuji asked cautiously. No matter how you looked at it, he was facing Hidan—even if Hidan seemed pretty weak right now.

"Kid, you're here looking for relatives, right?" Hidan had caught his breath, but his question was the last thing Ye Wuji had expected.

"That's right. May I ask why the three of you have surrounded me?" Ye Wuji asked, pretending to be an innocent child who knew nothing, despite finding it strange.

"Good," Hidan said, looking delighted. "So you came looking for relatives. From what Old Man Gu said earlier, you don't have any other family left, right? That means you must be carrying a lot of money. Kid, this is a robbery. Hand over everything you've got, or Jashin will punish you."

"So you're saying you're robbing me?" Ye Wuji stared at him in surprise. He really hadn't expected Hidan to stop him just to rob him.

"That's right. Hand over all your money and I'll let you go. Otherwise, see those two?" Hidan pointed at the fat men who'd blocked the road. "Da Ye, show him what you can do."

"Okay, big brother," one of the fat men replied in a simple, honest voice. He swung his fist at a tree beside him. There was a sharp crack, followed by a crash—the tree snapped in half from one punch, then toppled into another tree beside it.

"Damn!" Ye Wuji cursed to himself. "That strength is terrifying. He barely even swung his fist. He wasn't using much force, and he's already almost as strong as Tsunade."

"Well? Hand over the money like a good boy," Hidan said smugly. "Otherwise, once their fists land on you, there won't be anything I can do."

"Big brother, I'm hungry. Can we eat?" the other fat man asked.

"Just wait, Nakano. Once I'm done here, I'll treat you all to a feast. Eat whatever you want," Hidan replied.

"Thank you, big brother," the fat man said.

Seeing this, Ye Wuji considered what to do. If he fought head-on, Hidan was actually the least threatening of the three right now. Judging by their builds, the two fat men were clearly brawlers, and incredibly strong ones at that. But people like that were usually slow. They also seemed none too bright. If he could deal with them, Hidan would be easy to handle.

I've got it. After thinking for a while, Ye Wuji came up with a plan. I'm no Shikamaru, but I used to spend all my time browsing online forums. This trick might not work on people of normal intelligence, but it should be perfect against these two idiots.

"Fine, just wait. I'll get the money out," Ye Wuji said, as if about to take the pack off his back. He was wearing a cloak, so they could only make out that he was carrying something; they couldn't tell what it was.

"Smart choice. Hurry up!" Hidan shouted.

"It'll just take a second," Ye Wuji said with a sudden grin. In a flash, he was beside the two fat men. He flicked both hands, sending out two ropes that quickly tangled around their feet. Then he leaped toward another tree, pulling the ropes with him, and hoisted the two men upside down. To keep their immense strength from breaking the tree, he'd chosen branches far from the trunk. Once they were hanging in midair, all that strength wouldn't do them much good.

After tying the ropes securely, Ye Wuji walked toward Hidan. The two fat men just flailed and yelled in the air. If they'd been a little smarter, they could've swung their bodies and used their strength to break the branches, then escaped. But these two were clearly not bright enough. They just waved their arms wildly and hollered.

"Now it's your turn. Your name's Hidan, right? I'll make sure you remember today forever." Ye Wuji gave him an evil grin. He couldn't kill Hidan, but he could certainly beat him up.

I'm about to beat the hell out of Hidan from Akatsuki—even if he's just a kid right now! Ye Wuji was thrilled.

Ye Wuji cracked his knuckles and grinned wickedly as he walked toward Hidan.

"You bastard, take this!" To Ye Wuji's surprise, Hidan attacked first, throwing a punch at him. Unfortunately, it had neither strength nor speed. Ye Wuji easily dodged, then kicked Hidan to the ground and beat him mercilessly for five straight minutes. When he was done, Ye Wuji felt wonderfully refreshed. He thought that if he could beat Madara Uchiha up like this, coming to the Naruto world would've been worth it. But he knew that was just a fantasy.

Hidan was sprawled at Ye Wuji's feet, so battered he was almost unrecognizable. His face had swollen to twice its size, and his body was covered in bruises. He'd already passed out.

Ye Wuji left Hidan where he was and went over to the two fat men hanging upside down. But since he was afraid of their strength, he stayed well back, far enough away to make a quick escape if they got loose.

Ye Wuji picked up a long branch and stood at a distance, repeatedly smacking the two men with it. He hadn't seen Hidan with any companions in Naruto, so he didn't hit them too hard—but he didn't go easy on them, either. He aimed for the fleshiest parts of their bodies, and as he struck, he shouted, "That's for scaring me! And for trying to rob me! You know how tough I am now?"

Ye Wuji kept at it until the two fat men were crying out in pain, and he was exhausted too. Turns out beating people up was hard work. Now he understood how villains in these stories died: the protagonist's endless stamina wore them down.

"Had enough?" Ye Wuji stopped swinging the branch.

"We surrender! Please stop hitting us, big brother. We won't do it again. But I'm hungry. Could you give me something to eat?" one of the fat men said. The two looked so much alike that Ye Wuji couldn't tell which was the older brother and which was the younger.

"Damn, you're still thinking about food? No way. Since you seriously disturbed me..." Ye Wuji grinned wickedly at the two men. "You can stay there until someone comes to rescue you. I'm in a pretty good mood, so I'll let you off this time. If you bother me again, I'll hang you up for a whole month without feeding you." Ye Wuji knew that food was the most important thing to them, so he used it to threaten them.

With that, Ye Wuji left them behind and headed straight for his destination. Hidan and the two fat men weren't found and rescued until the next day.