Red & Ink

Terada Yusuke looked at Mo's profile and spoke earnestly.

But in the next instant, Uchiha Mo suddenly turned his head, and a pair of scarlet eyes filled Terada Yusuke's mind.

Genjutsu: Sharingan!

Terada Yusuke's body trembled. His eyes shifted into the form of two-tomoe Sharingan, and his expression instantly went blank.

As Mo controlled Terada Yusuke and had him continue walking as usual, he slowly asked:

"Did you lie to me just now?"

"No."

"Why is the planned route so strange?"

"To delay our return to the Land of Birds as much as possible, while avoiding major black markets."

Mo frowned at that. "Be more specific."

"Something happened in the Land of Birds. It seems a minister offended an extremely powerful ninja. During the time I was away, quite a few nobles in the Land of Birds died. Even my old man wasn't spared, so I don't dare return to the Land of Birds.

"But because of the daimyo's orders, I have no choice but to go back. So I can only avoid the places where incidents occurred, buying time while ensuring that once we enter the Land of Birds, we can return to the capital as quickly as possible."

"An extremely powerful ninja? Who was it? How did that minister offend him? And what does any of this have to do with underground black market merchants? Tell me everything."

Uchiha Mo remained calm, the tomoe in his eyes slowly revolving as powerful ocular chakra continuously poured into Terada Yusuke's brain.

Yet after Mo finished speaking, Terada Yusuke only looked bewildered and shook his head.

"I don't know."

"You don't know?" Mo raised a brow. "Then what do you know?"

"..."

Terada Yusuke looked as though he were thinking. After a long while, he finally said with certainty:

"That person... was very strong!"

"..."

The tomoe in Uchiha Mo's eyes rotated once more before fading away, as he withdrew all his ocular chakra.

Clarity gradually returned to Terada Yusuke's eyes. He sneezed, then asked in confusion:

"Lord Mo, what were we talking about just now?"

At the front of the group, Asuma Sarutobi and Hayate Gekko chatted excitedly, trading remarks back and forth. It was both their first time leaving the village, and their first time carrying out an official ninja mission, so they were unusually fired up.

Although it was also Kurenai Yuhi's first time leaving the village for a mission, most of her attention was focused on Uchiha Mo behind her.

Though Team 8 had been established for nearly a month, Kurenai Yuhi had never found a chance to properly speak with Uchiha Mo. Mo disappeared at lightning speed every time a mission ended, leaving Kurenai Yuhi with no opportunity to catch him.

Seeing that Uchiha Mo and Terada Yusuke had stopped talking, Kurenai Yuhi immediately slowed down and moved to Mo's other side.

A smile appeared on her delicate face. "Mo, have you been doing well these past few years?"

Uchiha Mo glanced at her. "Not bad."

"I see... Then how has your genjutsu training been going?"

Though Mo's tone was cold, Kurenai Yuhi still felt deeply satisfied. The corners of her lips lifted slightly, and she was in an excellent mood.

"Not bad."

Although genjutsu was difficult to use effectively in high-level battles, it was still extremely practical given Mo's current strength. Training genjutsu also helped him improve the precision of his control over his own ocular chakra.

Just like the genjutsu he had used on Terada Yusuke earlier—he had to precisely control his ocular chakra, completely manipulating the man without pouring in so much that he turned him into an idiot.

"That's great! I was always worried that my father hadn't properly guided you back then!"

As she spoke, the tips of Kurenai Yuhi's ears turned red. She grabbed Mo's right hand and secretly glanced at his profile.

Seeing this, Terada Yusuke smiled knowingly and looked away. Seemingly without meaning to, he quickened his pace and moved to the middle of the group.

After that, the air fell silent for a while. Thoughts raced through Kurenai Yuhi's mind, and the blush on her face deepened. Finally, as though she had gathered her courage, she puffed out her chest, raised her head to look at Uchiha Mo, and said in a slightly trembling voice:

"Um... Mo, my father has been very busy lately. After the mission, could you... could you come to my house... and teach me genjutsu?"

Mo turned to look at the girl.

Their eyes met. Her face was flushed, yet she continued to gaze unwaveringly into those clear black eyes.

"If I remember correctly, Uncle Shinku rotates shifts with the Barrier Team, and he's responsible for the noon-to-evening shift."

Hearing that, the girl felt a little guilty, but having made up her mind, her resolve was exceptionally firm.

Kurenai Yuhi met Mo's gaze with an unchanged expression and calmly explained, "A jonin in the Barrier Team has fallen ill recently, so my father has temporarily had to take on the evening-to-midnight shift as well."

"..."

Mo turned his gaze away and pulled his right hand free from Kurenai Yuhi's arms. "I understand."

Kurenai Yuhi was overjoyed. She tried her best to suppress the corners of her mouth from curling wildly upward, struggling to keep her expression unchanged.

After quite a while, once her emotions had calmed somewhat, Kurenai Yuhi raised her smiling face again and looked at Mo's profile.

"Mo, your younger brother is really strong. Just like you were when you were little. Are you the one training him?"

The girl skipped along at the boy's side, asking question after question. Even though his responses were extremely indifferent, she never grew tired of it. On the contrary, she seemed to enjoy it.

At some point, the front of the group had fallen silent. Asuma moved forward wordlessly, his eyes occasionally glancing back.

At the rear of the group, Kurenai Yuhi nestled close beside Mo, her face full of smiles, nearly pressing half her body against him. Although Uchiha Mo's expression remained as cold as ever, Kurenai Yuhi's joy was as rich as nectar that had fermented for decades before its jar was opened, filling the air and rushing into Asuma's nose as a bitter aftertaste.

"..."

"Cough... Asuma?" Hayate Gekko seemed to have noticed his mood. He looked at Asuma, then turned toward the smiling Kurenai Yuhi.

Ninjas had excellent endurance, but there was an ordinary noble among the group who was delicate and frail.

As a result, it took Team 8 an entire day just to barely approach the border between the Land of Fire and the Land of Rain. The journey had been peaceful, with no bandits or rogue ninjas attacking the group. This left Kurenai Yuhi and Hayate Gekko somewhat disappointed, while Asuma, who was usually lively and rebellious, had no idea why he was walking around with a sullen face, having fallen quiet.

The group found an inn to stay at. With a grand wave of his hand, Terada Yusuke rented out the entire inn, thoroughly displaying a noble's lavishness.

After resting for the night, the group set out once more and officially entered the Land of Rain...

The Land of Rain lay wedged between three great nations, and its situation was exceedingly complicated. Thus, after entering its territory, Mo also became slightly more alert.

Yet before they had traveled far within the Land of Rain, the first unexpected development occurred.