After leaving the Daimyo's residence, Uchiha Shunichi suddenly felt a sense of relief.
"Why? Are you not used to this sort of thing?" Hyuga Hiashi asked with a faintly amused smile as he watched Uchiha Shunichi's expression.
At times, Uchiha Shunichi acted far too maturely. It was difficult to associate him with the fact that he was still only a teenager.
"It's alright. I just don't like it very much. The Daimyo... doesn't seem to care about this country..." Uchiha Shunichi said.
Of course, he knew why the Land of Fire's Daimyo was like this. But even without shinobi, there would probably have been other things.
Such as samurai... or perhaps onmyoji, who had long since vanished.
Although this world had become a world of shinobi, supernatural power had existed long before chakra appeared.
The existence of Gamamaru of Mount Myoboku—the Great Toad Sage—was enough to prove that.
There was also Yota, who could control the weather, the priestess of the Land of Demons, Rōran's Dragon Vein, and so on.
Hyuga Hiashi listened to Uchiha Shunichi's words but did not explain anything. After all, there were some matters he could not explain either.
"Alright, don't think about that. The mission is over, so there's no rush to return to Konoha. I'll take you to see—" Hyuga Hiashi was still speaking when Uchiha Shunichi's gaze had already shifted elsewhere.
"Sorry, Hiashi-senpai. Something suddenly came up..." Uchiha Shunichi interrupted Hyuga Hiashi, then vanished without warning.
Uchiha Shunichi's abrupt departure left Hyuga Hiashi stunned.
"Orochimaru, I really didn't expect to run into you here." Uchiha Shunichi quickly caught up to Orochimaru.
Orochimaru was currently dressed in casual home attire. Combined with his now-androgynous face, it created an oddly discordant sight.
"Shunichi-kun, it's been a long time!" Orochimaru greeted Uchiha Shunichi calmly.
Uchiha