You Stab Me Once, I Stab You Once-Fair and Square, No Exceptions...

The man called Okamoto frowned instinctively. "Why are you back again? Who are these two? Who gave you the right to ask about Lord Gato's whereabouts?!"

"Here's the thing..."

With a smile on his face, the burly man quietly walked over and whispered a few words in his ear. Without any change in expression, Okamoto asked, "Where is it?"

"Right here."

The burly man actually took out the portrait of Gato.

Okamoto took it, looked it over, and nodded. "Get them! Take them down!"

The people nearby immediately swarmed forward, brandishing all kinds of weapons as they closed in on Shinji and Hidan with vicious expressions.

The burly man now showed his true colors as well, his face full of mockery and cruelty, as though he could hardly wait to see the two men hacked to death.

Yet neither Shinji nor Hidan's expression changed in the slightest.

Perhaps the burly man had thought his lousy acting had fooled them both, but in reality, they had spotted the problem long ago and simply played along.

Who brought a picture of the chairman with them when applying for a job at his company?

Obviously, only someone looking for trouble would do that.

The burly man knew this, and so did Shinji and Hidan. They had simply all believed they could easily finish off the other side, so they had come all this way without mentioning it.

Now that the trap had been sprung, who was the real hunter?

A kunai slid out of Hidan's sleeve. But just as he took a step forward to slaughter all these idiots, he instinctively glanced back at Shinji, for reasons he could not explain himself. Only after Shinji nodded his approval did Hidan relax and reveal a cruel, bloodthirsty grin, charging straight toward the largest group.

Even Hidan himself did not notice this subtle change.

Clearly, Shinji's efforts to train him were already bearing fruit. Throughout their journey to the Land of Waves, he had repeatedly stopped Hidan from killing on impulse, using threats and incentives at times, soothing words at others.

First, it reduced trouble. Second, it gradually accustomed Hidan to obeying his orders and made him less resistant.

But simply refusing Hidan everything would not work either. He also had to loosen the reins now and then and offer a little reward to achieve his ultimate goal.

As he pondered this, Hidan had already engaged the enemy.

"Kill! Kill!! Kill!!! Ahahahaha!"

Laughing wildly, Hidan slit one unlucky man's throat, kicked another away, then casually grabbed a third by the head and lifted him up. The kunai in his other hand stabbed in and out without stopping, turning the man into a tattered sack in the blink of an eye.

"Weak, weak, weak! You're all far too weak! You don't even deserve to be sacrifices!"

He tossed the "tattered sack" at his feet in disdain. The remaining men were so intimidated that, for a moment, none dared step forward.

At this, Okamoto shouted furiously, "What are you afraid of?! There are only two of them! Get them together! Surround them and hack them to death!"

The remaining men snapped out of their daze. Gritting their teeth, they exchanged glances, then shouted as they swung their blades at him from every direction.

Those who could not squeeze in stayed on the outside to keep the bald man from escaping.

But Hidan had no intention of running. He did not even consider dodging!

Like a monster that knew nothing but slaughter, he mercilessly reaped the lives of the three men directly in front of him, then let the remaining blades pierce his body.

Shhk!

Seeing this, Okamoto, who had also been badly startled earlier, finally breathed a sigh of relief.

Just his fucking luck to run into a suicidal lunatic. The bastard had cost him seven or eight men. What rotten luck!

Fortunately, the guy did not seem too bright,

Otherwise, his losses might have been even greater. Just as Okamoto was wondering whether to feel frustrated or relieved, his pupils suddenly constricted as he stared ahead.

"Hey, brat, stop twisting that blade around! It hurts!"

Hidan, who should have been as good as dead, suddenly spoke, startling everyone around him. Then he grinned viciously, reversed his grip on his kunai, and precisely pierced the hearts of the men beside him!

Clang, clatter...

Hidan pulled out all the blades lodged in his body and tossed them aside. Then he rolled his neck a couple of times, bared his teeth, and delivered his death sentence.

"None of you are getting away. I'm going to turn every last one of you into mangled, shattered, sticky mush!"

With that, he began a one-sided slaughter!

No dodging, no blocking. You stab me once, I stab you once. Fair and square, no exceptions!

Except that no matter how many times Hidan was slashed, he remained as lively as ever, showing no sign of dying.

Everyone else, however, had to pay with their lives. No exceptions!

These gang thugs, who were not even ninja, instantly broke under Hidan's brutal slaughter.

"M-monster!"

"Someone save me! Save me!"

"I don't want to die!"

"Run!"

"I'll take you down with me! Aah!"

This time, Shinji had no intention of stopping Hidan. He let him vent the frustration he had built up over the past few days.

Only when he saw the man who had brought them here and the fellow called Okamoto trying to escape amid the chaos did he act, immediately giving chase.

"Why are you in such a hurry to leave? Are you taking me to see Gato?"

After blocking their path, Shinji got straight to the point.

Okamoto's face was dark and grim. He had thought his underling had brought him a chance to earn some credit, but instead, he had brought demons out for his life.

That bald man was already terrifying enough. Although the man before him did not look particularly strong, even a complete idiot could tell he would be no pushover.

If he could, he would have strangled the moron beside him right then and there!

"A misunderstanding. This is all just a misunderstanding." Okamoto forced an ugly smile and hurriedly added, "This bastard fooled me too. Besides, I have no idea where Gato is..."

"Okamoto! You..."

"Shut up! Who are you calling your big brother?! You idiot, clean up your own mess. I'm leaving."

"Fuck! What did you say back when you had your eye on my sister, you bastard? Now you're just turning on me like that?! Fine, if you're going to screw me over, don't blame me for doing the same! Don't think I don't know you're screwing the butler's daughter too. How could you not know where Gato is?!"

"Bullshit! I'll cripple you first!"

Dogs biting dogs, both ending up with a mouthful of fur.

Even Shinji had not expected their relationship to be such a mess, and he had somehow stumbled across several juicy scandals along the way.

He casually crushed a small blood bag, then formed its contents into two ropes that shot straight toward the men.

The burly man was bound and fell straight to the ground, but Okamoto suddenly displayed an extraordinary reaction speed. He dodged with a backward leap, then immediately began forming hand seals.

This bastard was actually a ninja?!