The Yamanaka Clan

Meanwhile, life in the village continued as usual.

On the other side, the Daimyo of the Land of Fields was seething with rage. "You bunch of useless trash! How long has it been, and you still can't handle such a simple matter?"

As he spoke, the Daimyo casually hurled the cup from the table in front of him, shattering it against the floor.

The guards kneeling below let the wine from the cup splash onto them, not daring to utter a single word of complaint, and instead bowed their heads even lower.

After venting his frustration, the Daimyo looked toward the person sitting behind a desk to the side. "Head of the Nagata Clan, it was your people who, after inspecting the scene, discovered that the guard detail had not been killed by bandits. Tell me, has there been any progress after all this time?"

The person being questioned was Nagata Nobufuku, the head of the Nagata Clan, a local ninja family in the Land of Fields and a representative of the pro-Daimyo faction.

When the guard detail intercepted and killed by Bai Sui was discovered, the bodies were immediately reported to the Daimyo.

Initially, upon hearing from his subordinates that they might have been killed by bandits, the Daimyo was angry but felt helpless. After all, those were outlaws who had been rampaging within the Land of Iron for over a decade; if they were truly the ones responsible, the Daimyo didn't believe they would show him any respect.

When his subordinates reported the incident, Nagata Nobufuku happened to be there discussing matters with the Daimyo. To show his sincerity, he had volunteered to send his own clansmen to investigate, promising that if it were indeed those bandits, he would teach them a lesson.

With someone willing to step up, the Daimyo naturally had no reason to stop him, so Nagata Nobufuku arranged for one of his elders who had accompanied him, Nagata Ietsugu, to head to the scene and investigate.

Upon arriving at the site, Nagata Ietsugu conducted an inspection and determined that the scene had been staged. However, even after the staging, the scene still bore such distinct characteristics that he believed it was highly likely someone was trying to frame others.

Yet, because the guards' skulls had all been pierced by katana blades, destroying their brains, Nagata Ietsugu suspected that this had been carried out by professionals who had specifically targeted ninjas.

"Elder, this scene was clearly staged. It is obviously not the work of ordinary bandits; I fear there is something wrong here," a middle-aged ninja reported to Nagata Ietsugu.

Nagata Ietsugu nodded with a smile, stroking his goatee. "Very good, Domen, your observation is quite keen. Look here—not only were their brains pierced by blades, but there are also signs of intentional destruction. It is clearly a form of information gathering aimed at ninjas. Even if the perpetrator isn't a ninja, they have certainly dealt with them before. Wait?"

After conducting a more thorough examination of the victims' brains, Nagata Ietsugu discovered something unusual.

The merchant's brain, while appearing no different from the others at first glance, showed clear signs of having been impacted by some kind of force when covered with chakra, even though the exterior of these people's brains appeared to have been destroyed.

However, the brains of the samurai had been destroyed from the outside in; from some of the relatively intact brain fragments, it could be seen that they had merely been sliced, with the internal tissue left undamaged.

"This person's brain was destroyed from the inside out. It looks very much like a secret interrogation technique from a ninja clan; this is the trauma left behind after a brain's memories are forcibly read," Nagata Ietsugu explained to his clansmen, his mind racing as if he had grasped a key point.

Although he had his suspicions, Nagata Ietsugu did not reveal them, continuing his investigation as if nothing were amiss, hoping to uncover more clues.

Soon, the Nagata clansmen finished their respective inspections and stood behind Nagata Ietsugu.

Seeing that there were no further clues, Nagata Ietsugu waved his hand, signaling the Daimyo's servants to clean up the scene.

The members of the Nagata Clan did not exchange many words with those servants and headed straight toward the Daimyo Mansion.

Ninjas travel quickly; what would take an ordinary person half a day to walk took the ninjas, who could sprint across treetops, only an hour. They arrived back well before the Daimyo's evening banquet.

Upon returning, Nagata Ietsugu found an opportunity to speak with the Nagata Clan Head first.

"What?" The Clan Head lowered his voice immediately after uttering the word. "Are you saying this was likely done by the Yamanaka Clan? How is that possible? There's no reason for it!"

Ignoring the Clan Head's distress, Nagata Ietsugu continued to report his findings. "Yes, I discovered that the merchant's brain bore traces left by a secret technique. Furthermore, after our investigation of the scene, we found evidence that it had been staged. Although there were many wounds on their bodies, some could be identified as having been inflicted after death; those people were actually killed quite cleanly."

Nagata Nobufuku nodded upon hearing this. "Indeed. In that case, there was at least one expert involved who quickly cut them all down. To kill such a group in one go without giving them a chance to resist is certainly not the work of ordinary bandits. I have heard of that group of outlaws in the Land of Iron; their leader is a member of a small, fallen ninja clan. The only reason they haven't been wiped out by the Land of Iron for so many years is his family's secret technique, which allows him to detect opponents in advance and flee. His own strength isn't particularly high; while killing these people would be simple for him, he couldn't have done it as ruthlessly and cleanly as you described, Elder."

Nagata Ietsugu agreed. "Exactly. It is based on these points that I suspect the Yamanaka Clan. After all, the 'Ino-Shika-Cho' trio are among the most elite families, not just in the Land of Fire, but in the entire ninja world. For such a great clan, cultivating an expert like this—while perhaps not effortless—would certainly not be a difficult task."

Nagata Nobufuku frowned deeply. "That may be true, but why would they do this? They have no reason to attack such commoners, and to stage the scene like that, no less."

Nagata Ietsugu hesitated for a moment. "I do have a theory, though it lacks evidence. I offer it only for the Clan Head's consideration."

Nagata Nobufuku looked slightly surprised. "Oh? Please, Elder, tell me. What is your insight?"

"Observing the scene, I feel that the number of people who set it up was small, likely only two or three. Considering the Ino-Shika-Cho trio always act together, it could very well be three. And while there were many oversights in the setup, it was clearly done by someone who had received specialized training. It doesn't look like the work of a seasoned ninja, but rather that of a novice. Therefore, I suspect: could this be the work of young geniuses from those three clans, out in the ninja world for the first time? Compared to the war-torn Land of Fire, they chose the relatively peaceful Land of Fields, which would, to some extent, ensure the safety of their disciples while allowing them to gain experience."