Seduction X First Step

For a while after that, Yue disappeared.

Even when patrolling with his father, he would sneak away alone to the Land of Rain to carry out his own plans.

His plan was simple: disguise himself as someone from Akatsuki and provoke organizations that were not official powers of the Land of Rain.

During his time at the stronghold, he had thoroughly understood the village's deployment at the border. Before separating from Sousuke, they had bypassed many routes to ensure they could smoothly reach the border of the Land of Grass. Coupled with his growing understanding of the Land of Rain during his stay there, Yue could easily travel back and forth between the two countries.

He left early and returned late.

Another reason for this smooth operation was the diplomacy of the Land of Grass.

To put it bluntly, Rain Village had never considered the Land of Grass a threat, so the defenses in the areas bordering the Land of Grass were relatively lax.

As for Grass Village, it was even less so.

The entire area adjacent to the Land of Rain had only two front-line strongholds.

That is, two squads, about a dozen people.

Initially, Yue had been investigating the situation, looking for an opportunity to strike.

Until one day, when the time was ripe, he began the first step.

It was a drizzly afternoon.

A convoy was escorting a large number of people.

Upon closer inspection, these people were in ragged clothes, mostly barefoot, appearing to be refugees… old and young alike. However, they were being driven like livestock, and the convoy was accompanied by seven or eight guards. Some wore forehead protectors, while others did not, but judging by their movements and equipment, they were clearly not ordinary people.

"Be careful, there's been news recently that Akatsuki members have been seen around here."

"The previous few squads were ambushed."

"Akatsuki?"

The leader of the convoy looked around vigilantly.

But the sky was misty, and he couldn't see very clearly.

"Hmm? I heard that the current area of activity for the Akatsuki Organization is..."

As one person was speaking, suddenly, as if guided by an unseen force, a shadow appeared behind him.

A sharp long sword was held against his neck.

With a shink.

The blade sliced through, and the man fell to the ground.

"Enemy!"

The convoy leader reacted quickly, instantly throwing several kunai at the black shadow flashing in the rain. Another companion, very close by, also moved in, wielding a weapon and clashing with the mysterious person. The blades met, sparks flying.

But this enemy was agile and didn't seem focused on direct combat.

Using the visual confusion caused by the rain, he found an opening and immediately darted away.

He severely wounded the other person, piercing his lower abdomen with the tip of his sword.

At this point, all the guards escorting the convoy rushed towards the enemy.

A rogue ninja used Earth Style, shuttling rapidly underground like a fish, and in an instant, he was at the black-clothed man's feet, grabbing his ankle. Another person simultaneously swung their weapon, and their coordinated attack achieved the desired effect, with blood splashing in the rain.

The mysterious black-clothed person was injured.

But this person actually broke free from the restrained ankle with brute force. After a few evasive maneuvers, he unhesitatingly turned and fled.

He showed no inclination to fight further.

"Did you see clearly?"

"Yes, it was definitely someone from Akatsuki… he's injured!"

"Chase him! We can't let him get away!"

Yue ran forward, his face cold and indifferent.

He occasionally shook his injured arm, deliberately leaving bloodstains to create the illusion of a severe injury.

He had intentionally gotten hurt to lure them in.

The local forces within the Land of Rain now harbored intense hatred for the Akatsuki Organization because Akatsuki's presence disrupted their interests.

Furthermore, he had disrupted this group's business several times, and the boss behind them definitely wanted him eliminated. This time, the number of guards had clearly increased, and their strength had also improved significantly.

Yue also knew that for these hired individuals or rogue ninjas, the bounty for killing an Akatsuki member was considerable.

He stopped and looked back, waiting for a moment. Seeing that the pursuers had caught up under the rain, he continued to run.

After a while, he disappeared into a stretch of rolling hills in the distance.

"Boss, the Land of Grass is that way…"

One of the pursuers instinctively stopped and looked at the leader.

"Why would someone from Akatsuki go to the Land of Grass? Isn't it a trap?"

"The Land of Grass… Hmph, I think he's just desperate. This is the only way he can run. This is the border. You know what kind of people are in the Land of Grass; they can pretty much come and go as they please. Judging by his blood loss, he can't hold on much longer. If he's discovered by people from Rain Village, he'll be in serious trouble."

"But... why is there only one person from Akatsuki?"

"Are they trying to test us?"

"Let's kill this one first."

The leader pondered for a moment, not daring to waste any more time, fearing the person would get away.

With that, he was the first to dart towards the Land of Grass.

The others immediately followed.

They didn't seem to hold much reverence for the Land of Grass.

Meanwhile, Yue landed ahead of time, his father, Fuma Ryoma, who had been waiting there for him, was by his side.

"They're coming."

Yue took off the Akatsuki clothing and stuffed it into his backpack.

At the same time, he wrapped his wounds with bandages, disguising them.

"As expected... he really doesn't consider this foreign territory,"

Yue said coldly.

Before long, several sounds approached from the forest.

The pursuers revealed themselves one after another.

"The blood trail is gone... Did they hide?"

"Search!"

The leader commanded.

They also saw the two ninjas from Grass Village, one large and one small, before them.

"This is the territory of the Land of Grass. You people shouldn't be from my country, should you?" Fuma Ryoma questioned.

"So what if we're not?"

The leader sneered.

"If you are carrying out a special mission, please show your village's documents. If you are merely passing through the Land of Grass, please use the main road... unauthorized entry like this is not permitted." Fuma Ryoma had already assumed a fighting stance. "According to the rules, you should be expelled."

"Heh."

The leader bared his teeth. "We're looking for an injured person who ran here, wearing black. Once we find him, we'll leave."

"Did you two see him?"

"Please leave!"

"Hey... look here!"

Another person shouted, pointing at the forehead protector on his forehead with his finger.

There was a clear scratch on the forehead protector, emphasizing his identity as a rogue ninja.

Since they were rogue ninjas, the implication was clear.

They exchanged a silent glance, and the next second, Fuma Ryoma immediately threw a shuriken.

"Kill them. Don't let them contact their reinforcements."

The leader said fiercely.

Clearly, he knew there must be a Grass Village outpost nearby.

Their group consisted of five people. Three were searching for the non-existent 'Akatsuki' member, and the current situation was two against two.