"There might be Anbu or the like in this village, too. If the ones who come next are Anbu, they should be about as strong as the jonin in our village," Shikaku said from the side.
Everyone slowly came around.
"If people like that show up, just leave them to me," Guy said groggily, rubbing his eyes.
"I can help you identify them," said Biji, the Chunin they had captured earlier, looking for a chance to prove useful.
"You should know that whether you identify them or not doesn't really matter. You're a traitor to your country, so you're going to die either way," Yin Xiang said, looking at Biji.
"I... I know. What I've done is unforgivable. I... I'll help you with anything I can." Biji stumbled over his words, as if he had already prepared himself for the worst.
"Good. Tell me, when will the next group arrive?" Yin Xiang crouched in front of him, then reached out and tore the Explosive Tag off his back.
"Whew..." Biji let out a breath. With the Explosive Tag gone, he relaxed. "If they suspect we've defected, this will be a long-term tracking mission. The earliest anyone will come is five days from now."
"Five days... That's a while." Yin Xiang bit his lip. "What if you ran back now and told them you'd encountered a powerful enemy and been attacked, and that you were the only one who made it back? How many people would they send to avenge you?"
"I... I really don't know. I'd guess one jonin and four Chunin..." Biji thought it over before answering. He really wasn't sure, since he had no idea how the Land of Filling's ninja handled things.
"And what if those five disappeared, too?"
"I..." Biji didn't know what to say.
"Ugh..." Just then, the ninja Yin Xiang had knocked out earlier woke up. He squirmed on the ground like a maggot.
"He might know a little more," Biji said when he saw the man wake up. "He's a ninja from the Land of Filling."
Yin Xiang nodded, then looked at the newly awakened ninja. "You're awake?"
"You... you..." The ninja came to and stared wide-eyed at the ninjas around him. When had so many ninja infiltrated the area around Honey Flower Village?
"Tell me, if you disappeared, how long would it take someone to come looking for you?"
"I won't tell you anything." The Chunin looked at Yin Xiang, completely unafraid.
"Is that so?" Yin Xiang smiled, then reached out and lightly poked the spot where the Rasengan had hit him.
"Ah!!" The ninja let out a scream like a slaughtered pig. "Are you going to talk or not?" Yin Xiang poked him with a finger after every few words, and his cries filled the entire cave.
"Y-you can't..." The ninja was drenched in sweat and curled up on the ground, but still held his tongue.
"Still not talking? Good." Yin Xiang nodded and stopped poking him. He took a Kunai from his tool pouch. "Then I'll cut you up, one slice at a time, sprinkle sugar over you, and toss you in the mountains. The ants will eat you bit by bit, and you'll find out what it really means to have a thousand ants gnaw at your heart."
Yin Xiang spoke softly, but the ninja trembled all over, his skin crawling with goosebumps. The others shuddered, too. It was the first time they'd realized Yin Xiang could be so twisted.
"Want to give it a try?" Yin Xiang said, drawing the Kunai across his face. A line of blood ran down it.
"Ah... Ah! No!" The ninja felt the blood running down his face and imagined the scene Yin Xiang had just described. His skin crawled. "No!! I'll talk! I'll talk!" Another cut appeared on his face, and at last his resolve broke.
"You should've done that sooner." Yin Xiang put away the Kunai, then crouched in front of him. "Tell me, who'll come looking for you if you disappear?"
"Three days from now, one jonin and five Chunin."
"You're only losing four Chunin, and they're sending that many people?"
"The village is in a special situation right now... Everything has to be dealt with quickly. If four Chunin disappear, they'll send a lot of people." The ninja no longer hid anything from Yin Xiang. He answered every question.
"Three days... I can live with that. What if they disappear, too?"
"Then... they might send three jonin to look for us."
"Might?"
"This is already classified as a high-level secret. If that many ninja disappear from the village without explanation, it'll draw serious attention and cause panic among the villagers." The ninja looked at Yin Xiang as he explained.
Yin Xiang nodded. "I see. All right, let's try it." He smiled and stood up.
"What do we do now?" Neji asked, looking at Yin Xiang.
"Wait," Yin Xiang replied. "We'll wait for them to come. Once their numbers have dwindled enough, we can infiltrate Honey Flower Village and take out everyone else."
"This really is a long-term mission. Hey, how long have we been out here?" Tenten stood up and stretched. They had been away from Konoha for ten days already.
"Don't rush. It's better to wait here and let them walk right into our trap than to charge in and lose a few people," Yin Xiang said with a smile.
"Next time, you have to let me fight. My body's about to stiffen up." Rock Lee pumped his fist. He hadn't had much time to train properly along the way, and had only managed to exercise on the boat.
"Next time, we'll attack together and wipe them all out. Let's try to capture the jonin alive; he'll know more." Shikaku smiled at Rock Lee's impatience.
"I'll make sure to capture him alive. Don't worry!"
"I'll give it everything I've got! Don't worry!" Guy and his student shouted together.
"A squad full of fighting spirit really is strongest when paired with the smartest squad leader," Tenten said with a laugh.
"You're all far too relaxed. We're in another country, after all," Neji said helplessly. Those three really were careless.
"Relaxing a little is a good thing. It's not good to stay tense all the time," Shikaku said from the side.
"Then I'll take another look around Honey Flower Village and see if anything's going on." Yin Xiang headed for the cave entrance.
"Be careful," Shikaku called after him.
"Got it." Yin Xiang waved to Shikaku and the others without turning around, then left the cave.
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