The Pain of Ten Thousand Ants Devouring the Heart

"There might be Anbu or similar forces in this village. If they send Anbu later, their strength should be comparable to the jonin of our village," Shikaku said from the side.

Everyone else slowly began to wake up.

"If that's the kind of person who shows up, just leave them to me," Guy said, rubbing his eyes in a daze.

"I can help you identify them," said Biji, the chunin who had been captured earlier, clearly trying to find a way to save his own skin.

"You need to understand, whether you identify them or not doesn't really matter. Since you're a traitor, you're going to die regardless," Yin Xiang said, looking at Biji.

"I... I know. My crimes are unforgivable, but I will help you with whatever I can," Biji stammered, as if he had already steeled himself for the worst.

"Fine. Tell me, when is the next group coming?" Yin Xiang crouched in front of him and reached out to peel the explosive tag off his back.

"Phew..." Biji let out a breath. With the tag removed, he felt a slight sense of relief. "If they suspect we've defected, this will be treated as a long-term tracking mission. The earliest anyone would arrive is in five days."

"Five days... that's a bit long," Yin Xiang bit his lip. "What if you ran back now and told them you encountered a powerful enemy, were ambushed, and you were the only one who escaped? How many people would they send for revenge?"

"That... I really don't know. I'd estimate one jonin leading four chunin..." Biji thought for a moment before answering. He was truly uncertain, as he didn't know how the ninjas of the Land of Filling operated.

"And what if those five people disappeared as well?"

"This..." Biji didn't know what to say to that.

"Ugh..." Just then, the ninja Yin Xiang had knocked out earlier woke up, squirming on the ground like a maggot.

"He might know more," Biji said upon seeing him wake up. "This man is a ninja from the Land of Filling."

Yin Xiang nodded and looked at the ninja who had just regained consciousness. "Awake?"

"You... you people..." The ninja looked around at the group of ninjas, his eyes widening. When had so many ninjas infiltrated the vicinity of Honey Flower Village?

"I'm asking you: if you disappear, how long until someone comes looking for you?"

"I won't tell you anything," the chunin said, staring at Yin Xiang without a hint of fear.

"Is that so?" Yin Xiang smiled, then extended a finger and lightly poked the spot where the Rasengan had struck him earlier.

"Ah!!" The ninja let out a blood-curdling scream. "Speak, or don't." Yin Xiang poked him with every word, and the entire cave filled with his shrieks.

"Im... impossible..." The ninja was drenched in sweat, curled up on the floor, yet still refusing to talk.

"Still not talking? Good." Yin Xiang nodded, stopped poking him, and pulled a kunai from his pouch. "Then I'll carve you up, one slice at a time, sprinkle you with sugar, and toss you into the mountains. I'll let the ants bite you piece by piece so you can taste what it's like to have ten thousand ants gnawing at your heart."

Yin Xiang spoke in a low voice, but it made the ninja tremble all over, his skin crawling. The others nearby also shivered, realizing for the first time just how dark and twisted Yin Xiang could be.

"Want to try it?" Yin Xiang asked, drawing the kunai across the ninja's face, leaving a trail of blood.

"Ah... ah! Don't!" Feeling the blood on his face and imagining the scene Yin Xiang had described, the ninja felt his resolve crumble. "Don't!! I'll talk! I'll talk!" Another cut appeared on his face, and his mental defenses finally shattered.

"That wasn't so hard, was it?" Yin Xiang put away the kunai and crouched before him. "Tell me, if you disappear, who will come looking for you?"

"In three days, one jonin and five chunin."

"Just for four missing chunin, they'd send that many?"

"The village is in a special situation right now... everything needs to be resolved quickly. If four chunin go missing, they will send a large force." The ninja no longer held anything back, answering every question Yin Xiang asked.

"Three days, that's barely acceptable. What if they disappear too?"

"Then... then it might be three jonin coming after you."

"Might?"

"That's high-level classified information. So many ninjas disappearing from the village without cause would draw serious attention and cause panic among the villagers," the ninja said, looking at Yin Xiang.

Yin Xiang nodded. "I see. Fine, I'll give it a try." He smiled and stood up.

"What do we do now?" Neji asked, looking at Yin Xiang.

"We wait," Yin Xiang replied. "We just wait for them to come. Once their strength is whittled down enough, we can infiltrate Honey Flower Village and take out the rest."

"So it really is a long-term mission. Man, how long have we been out here?" Tenten stood up and stretched. From Konoha to here, they had been away for ten days.

"Don't be impatient. Waiting here for them to walk into our trap is better than us rushing in and losing people," Yin Xiang said with a smile toward Tenten.

"Next time they come, you have to let me fight. My body is almost going numb," Rock Lee said, swinging his fists. He hadn't had much time to train properly on this trip, only getting a little exercise while on the boat.

"Next time we'll all attack together and wipe them out completely. Try to keep the jonin alive; he'll know more," Shikaku said, smiling at Rock Lee's eagerness.

"I'll definitely capture him alive, don't worry!"

"I will give it my all! Don't worry!" Guy and Rock Lee, master and student, shouted in unison.

"A team full of combat power, paired with the best brains—it really is the strongest combination," Tenten laughed from the side.

"You guys are too relaxed. We're in someone else's country," Neji said helplessly, finding the three of them incredibly thick-skinned.

"Relaxing a bit is good, too. It's not healthy to keep your nerves on edge all the time," Shikaku added.

"I'll go take another look around Honey Flower Village to see if there's any movement," Yin Xiang said, walking toward the cave entrance.

"Be careful," Shikaku said to Yin Xiang's retreating back.

"I know," Yin Xiang waved without turning around and left the cave.