Kannazuki Town, a coastal settlement, was unusually quiet. Every so often, a passerby would cast a curious glance at the three strangers wearing Konoha-style forehead protectors.
"This is the place." Itachi stood beside Shisui, his gaze fixed on the closed wooden door at the street corner. "The last place Naoki was seen."
It was a tavern.
The door was locked. Shisui glanced at Uchiha Inabi, who nodded and stepped forward to pick the lock.
When they pushed the door open, a musty smell mixed with the tang of the sea washed over them.
Shisui entered first, his Three-Tomoe Sharingan sweeping across every corner of the dimly lit tavern.
The tables and chairs were neatly arranged, the glasses behind the bar had been wiped clean, the ukiyo-e prints on the walls had faded a little, and a few empty barrels were stacked in the corner... Everything looked perfectly ordinary, but Shisui still noticed something... His gaze fell on the floor.
There were a few faint scratches.
"There are signs of a fight." He crouched and lightly touched the almost invisible marks. "It wasn't recent. At least a month ago."
Uchiha Inabi went behind the bar and searched a few drawers, finding some scattered receipts and letters.
"Aikawa Yumi..." He read one of the names aloud. "The owner of this tavern?"
Shisui nodded.
"The intel mentioned that the woman who was with Naoki was called Aikawa Yumi. Looks like this is the place."
Itachi scratched his head. "But there's no one here."
Let's keep looking.
Soon, the three of them had searched the entire tavern, but they still hadn't found any clues.
Uchiha Inabi shook his head.
"Just searching blindly won't get us anywhere. I'll go ask around."
With that, he turned to leave. Itachi followed. "I'll ask around too."
Shisui didn't