This was an S-rank mission assigned from above. Not a word of it could be leaked.
But the man before her-
Was the enemy of Lord Raikage's son, and the ultimate target of this mission.
Samui had never imagined she would run into this harbinger of death before the mission had even begun.
If she really fell into his hands...
Her heart sank. Almost without thinking, she drew the small Ninja Blade at her waist with a backhand grip and thrust it hard toward her own neck.
Beside her, Hinata jumped at the sudden movement.
This was what it meant to be a ninja.
Once a mission failed, you had to be prepared to die.
"If you die, I'll take Konoha's army and raze Kumogakure."
Xuan Zhe's casual remark made Samui freeze.
The blade had already pierced several centimeters into her skin, and a few drops of blood slid down its tip.
"Kumogakure's been living pretty comfortably these past few years, hasn't it? During the Third Shinobi World War, I slaughtered one of that old Raikage's sons and made your village pay ten billion ryo. But now you've got two Tailed Beast jinchūriki, giving you roughly three Kage-level fighters. Am I right?"
Xuan Zhe dug an intact bottle of liquor out of the shattered liquor cabinet scattered across the floor and poured himself a glass. He took one sip and spat it all out.
"What is this crap?"
He cursed, then continued:
"Compared to the other villages, you really can put up a fight. But-"
At that, his trademark infuriating grin appeared again:
"What do you think would happen if Konoha, Kirigakure, and Sunagakure joined forces to beat you down?"
At that moment, Samui, Kirigakure's famously cool beauty, wore the most shocked expression of her twenty-two years.
The Land of