Yakushi Nonō had long noticed the three children following behind her, but she did not show it.
War orphans were generally psychologically fragile and sensitive, like wounded kittens. They longed to be loved, yet feared being hurt.
Different orphans needed different ways of comfort. Some required initiative, while others needed time to approach on their own.
And sure enough, that child spoke.
"Hmm?" Yakushi Nonō turned around with a gentle smile. She did not know whether the child could see it clearly, but it did not matter. There was no pretense or falsehood in that smile; it came entirely from her heart.
"Are you Genkan?" Kamiya Keiyun called out again.
"Hmm?" Yakushi Nonō froze. Genkan?
"Is the child you're holding being used for Medical Ninjutsu experiments?" Kamiya Keiyun continued shouting.
"Hmm??" The smile on Yakushi Nonō's face stiffened.
Genkan? Medical Ninjutsu? Experiments? Children?
She was not merely an Orphanage Director; she was also an exceptionally capable intelligence operative. With just those few words, she pieced together the entire story.
And with that story came uncontrollable fury!
Such a thing actually existed?
"Did you also send people to attack villages everywhere, murder villagers, and abduct their children?" Kamiya Keiyun continued shouting.
"This!" Yakushi Nonō frowned. She had recently heard that a gang of bandits was roaming nearby, committing every evil imaginable—murder, arson, and worse.
This was not something she was supposed to handle. Usually, villages would pool their money and ask Konoha to send Ninja.
But she had not expected such a conspiracy to be hidden behind those bandits!
"Who are you? Where did you hear these things?" Yakushi Nonō asked in a low voice.
"I killed seven of your men. They had seven horses, and every one of them carried a bow. I heard they used to be hunters from