The Poor Bandits

"We finally left the village."

Kushina bounced along at the front, a smile on her face. Ever since arriving in Konoha, she hadn't left the village once.

Mikoto was also curiously looking around, as if everything were brand-new.

"Listen, the farther we get from the village, the more dangerous it becomes. Don't let your guard down."

Tsunade reminded Kushina and Mikoto.

Most ninja died because they let their guard down. They had to make a habit of staying cautious at all times.

"Okay."

Kushina ran back and saw Shin looking distracted. She nudged

him, then asked, "Shin, are you still thinking about that guy?"

"Yeah. It's impossible to say I don't care at all."

Shin nodded. Right now, he was thinking about how to get rid of Dan Katō. Since the man had shown hostility toward him, that meant he was an enemy.

And the best way to deal with an enemy was to nip the problem in the bud, before he could cause any trouble.

But there was no opportunity to do it in Konoha. If he was discovered, his only option would be to defect.

He was doing pretty well in Konoha, and didn't want to defect and become a wandering

missing-nin.

"Hmm, there are ninja approaching us."

Shin turned and looked behind them.

Tsunade immediately followed his gaze. She hadn't sensed anyone, but she trusted Shin. He had already shown that he was capable enough to earn her trust.

When Shin saw the ninja rapidly approaching from behind, his expression turned strange. Was that Dan Katō?

"Jonin Tsunade, I finally caught up with you."

Dan Katō caught up with them alongside three ninja, and spoke with a smile.

"What are you following us for, Jonin Katō?" Tsunade asked, her gaze hostile.

Despite Tsunade's obvious hostility, Dan Katō had thick enough skin to act as though he hadn't noticed. Smiling, he said, "The Third Hokage sent me to assist you with your mission."

"Really?" Tsunade looked at Dan Katō suspiciously. With her leading the team, was there really any need to send someone along to help with a bandit-suppression mission?

"We don't need help. Go back."

Tsunade waved them off, clearly trying to send them away.

Dan Katō looked troubled. "Sorry, Jonin Tsunade. It's an order from the Third Hokage. I can't disobey it."

"Tsunade, since the Third Hokage meant well, let's accept his help. We'll just have to trouble Jonin Katō," Shin said with a smile, acting as if he was glad to have Dan Katō along.

Tsunade, Kushina, and Mikoto all looked at Shin strangely. None of them believed he was genuinely happy to see Dan Katō.

As Dan Katō looked at Shin's smile, it struck him as strangely familiar. Right, it was almost the same as his own—the insincerity was unmistakable.

"Fine. You can come along, but don't get in our way."

Tsunade glanced at Dan Katō

and his men as she spoke.

Tsunade didn't know what Shin was planning, but she decided to play along.

"Jonin Katō, I look forward to working with you," Shin said with a smile.

"Likewise," Dan Katō replied, wearing the same smile as Shin.

"Ugh, it feels so fake."

Kushina felt goosebumps rising on her skin. She wasn't the only one who felt that way—Tsunade and Mikoto did too.

With Dan Katō and the three Genin he led joining them, the atmosphere grew awkward. No one said a word.

Ninja traveled quickly. After half a day, Shin and the others reached the mission site, Xitian Village.

"Where are the bandits?" Kushina asked, looking eager to get started.

"Not far from Xitian Village. See that mountain? According to the mission intelligence, they're up there. There are six of them, all ordinary people."

"There are only six bandits?"

Shin was stunned to hear there were only six. He'd expected there to be dozens.

But he'd overestimated them. There weren't that many bandits in the Land of Fire, especially since ninja often killed them. Bandits were quite rare.

After searching for over half an hour, Shin finally found the gang. He'd thought they might have a hideout, but it turned out they lived in a cave. How shabby.

On top of that, all six were skin and bones. Were they really bandits? They looked more like refugees.

"Are they really bandits? They look so pitiful," Kushina asked doubtfully.

"They probably are. That's what the intelligence says." Tsunade wasn't entirely sure, either. If they really were bandits, they were in a sorry state.

"Boss,

look! Women!"

One of the skinny men spoke to the tall, thin man standing in the middle. The lanky fellow was their boss.

"Don't be stupid. I've got eyes, haven't I? Kill the men and keep the women!" The lanky man drew a battered sword and charged at them first.

"What's wrong with his brain? Can't he see we're ninja? Can't he see our Ninja Headbands?"

Shin couldn't help complaining. He felt ashamed to even bother fighting them.

"Mikoto, Kushina, you two can handle them. I believe in you," Shin said to Mikoto and

Kushina.

The main purpose of this mission was to train Mikoto and Kushina. As for Shin, he'd already killed ninja when he was five.

Kushina and Mikoto were nervous. Even though their opponents weren't strong, they couldn't help feeling tense.

Even Kushina, who'd been looking forward to this, was now so nervous she didn't know what to do.

"Kushina, Mikoto, if you two don't do something soon, this guy's going to hack me to death."

Shin looked at the bandit chief, who was almost on top of him, and spoke to Kushina and Mikoto with helpless exasperation.

"Huh?"

At Shin's words, Kushina and Mikoto saw the bandit chief charging toward him, sword raised to strike. Their expressions hardened, and they angrily hurled the Kunai in their hands.

Thud! Thud!

The bandit chief's eyes widened. One Kunai pierced his throat; the other pierced his heart.

Mikoto and Kushina ignored the dead bandit chief and asked Shin, "Are you all right? Why didn't you dodge?"

"If I'd dodged, who knows how long you two would've hesitated before acting?" Shin said to Kushina and Mikoto.

"But that was way too dangerous! What if you'd been hurt?" Kushina glared at Shin angrily.

"But I wasn't hurt. Besides, do you really think he could've injured me?"

If an ordinary bandit—a malnourished one, no less—could hurt him, Shin might as well slit his own throat.

"By the way, you two aren't scared at all?" Shin said with a smile.

Only then did the two girls look at the bandit chief they'd killed. Kushina seemed fine, but Mikoto's face had gone pale.

A moment ago, they'd been so worried about Shin that they hadn't paid any attention to the bandit they'd killed. Now that they'd come to their senses, they felt uneasy.

Kushina was all right. As she looked at the body, she felt conflicted, but when the Uzumaki Clan had been attacked, she'd seen things far bloodier than this. Still, having killed someone with her own hands left her feeling uneasy.

Mikoto hadn't been through what Kushina had. As she stared at the body in front of her, her body trembled slightly.

Tsunade said nothing, letting them adjust on their own. It was an important step every ninja had to take.