Nara Luling was a little surprised to hear this. She looked up at Shi Xiu, her lively, wide eyes filled with confusion.
After a brief pause, Nara Luling nodded gently and replied, "All right!"
Just then, Minato and the others slowly emerged from the house.
Obito was the only one missing from the group. Seeing this, Shi Xiu looked at Minato and asked, "Has Obito still not woken up?"
Minato nodded slightly in agreement, then let out a soft sigh and answered in a heavy voice.
"That's right. Rin examined Obito carefully just now, though, and fortunately, there's nothing seriously wrong with him. He just needs some time to recover."
Shi Xiu felt a little relieved. Then he turned to Kakashi, who stood behind Minato, and said in a calm voice,
"The mission at the Land of Fire's border—Monkey should have told you about it already, right?"
Kakashi was taken aback at first, apparently unsure who Shi Xiu meant by Monkey. But he soon realized, nodded, and replied,
"Yes. Lord Hokage did tell us about it. Are you planning to lead us there yourself this time, Lord Shi Xiu?"
As he spoke, Kakashi couldn't help glancing at Nara Luling's injured arm, concern showing in his eyes.
Shi Xiu noticed where Kakashi was looking. He shook his head and explained,
"No. I'll only take you with me this time. Nara Luling can stay here and rest, and keep an eye on the house while she's at it."
Kakashi nodded again to show he understood. Then Shi Xiu waved goodbye to Minato and the others, and left with Kakashi. They reached the courtyard gate, pushed it open, and stepped outside.
Watching Shi Xiu walk away, Nara Luling sighed softly. After speaking with Minato and the others, she headed to Shi Xiu's room.
Shi Xiu strode steadily into Konoha's Interrogation Department with Kakashi at his side.
As soon as he entered, Shi Xiu spotted the famous interrogation master of Konoha, Morino Ibiki.
Ibiki sat behind an old wooden desk. His usually stern, unsmiling face bore two conspicuous scars.
The scars were clearly the marks of torture inflicted by enemies long ago. They made his already intimidating face look even more fearsome.
Just then, Morino Ibiki's sharp, hawklike eyes caught sight of Shi Xiu and Kakashi.
Ibiki nodded in greeting, then asked in a low, authoritative voice, "I assume the two of you are here to take custody of the prisoners from Kumogakure?"
Shi Xiu nodded slightly in reply. Kakashi, standing beside him, quickly pulled out a sealed order signed by the Third Hokage Hiruzen Sarutobi and handed it to Morino Ibiki.
Morino Ibiki accepted the order without expression and examined it closely. Then he nodded and decisively waved to his subordinates behind him.
A short while later, several members of the Interrogation Department arrived, escorting Samui and three other prisoners.
At first, Samui held her head high, an air of arrogance on her face.
But the moment her gaze happened to fall on Shi Xiu, that arrogance vanished like a receding tide, replaced by deep fear.
The fear seemed to rise from the darkest depths of her heart. In an instant, it swallowed up all her courage and pride, leaving her deathly pale.
Morino Ibiki noticed the sudden change in Samui's expression. With a hint of puzzlement, he glanced at Shi Xiu, silently wondering what this young man had done to fill Samui with such deep, soul-searing fear.
But now was no time to dwell on that. Several members of the Interrogation Department hurried over.
With serious expressions and brisk movements, they handed Samui and the other prisoners over to Shi Xiu and his companions.
Shi Xiu stared at Samui, the corners of his mouth lifting into a faint smile. He spoke softly.
"Samui, it's been a long time." To anyone else, his seemingly warm, harmless smile might have looked friendly. To Samui, it was like the menacing grin of a demon.
A chill ran down Samui's spine.
She began to tremble uncontrollably. Her throat was parched, and she struggled to swallow several times.
The memory of that enormous red figure from that day haunted her like a nightmare, a shadow she would never escape for the rest of her life.
Just then, Shi Xiu raised a hand. The smooth ground suddenly shook violently, and countless thick vines burst from the earth, swiftly wrapping around Samui and the other three prisoners.
In the blink of an eye, all four were tightly bound and unable to move.
It was the same familiar pose, the same binding that made people blush with embarrassment.
Hearing the faint sounds of people swallowing around her, Samui felt both humiliated and helpless.
Faced with such an awkward situation, she had no choice but to squeeze her eyes shut and try to avoid the shameful sight.
Even Morino Ibiki, who had seen plenty in his time, was witnessing such a strange binding pose for the first time. He couldn't help feeling surprised.
Morino Ibiki instinctively turned to Shi Xiu, confusion and astonishment in his eyes.
Shi Xiu, by contrast, calmly picked up Samui, bound like a rice dumpling, and walked forward.
Kakashi wasn't nearly as relaxed. He had to handle the other three prisoners by himself, and it looked like quite a struggle.
Don't ask why Shi Xiu didn't use the Wood Prison Technique to make a cage. The answer was that Shi Xiu's lecherous soul was burning.
Shi Xiu looked at Morino Ibiki, smiled, and nodded. "We'll be off, then."
Before Morino Ibiki could reply, Shi Xiu put a hand on Kakashi's shoulder. In an instant, the two vanished from before Morino Ibiki and the others.
Morino Ibiki looked at the spot where Shi Xiu had just stood and smiled thoughtfully.