"You are just a piece of scrap metal. Your hatred will only make you rust to death in a dark corner. In the end, even you yourself will forget why you drew the sword in the first place." Senju Chen's voice was very soft, but it was like a heavy hammer hitting Yukimura Shigure's heart.
"Follow me, and the situation will be different. I will throw your piece of scrap metal back into the furnace, temper it over and over again, and forge it into a sharp blade that can see blood. I will give you information, resources, companions, and an opportunity for you to put the knife on Karatachi Yagura's neck with your own hands."
Senju Chen turned around and looked down at him. The fat and kind-hearted face after the disguise now revealed a heart-stopping majesty.
"The enemies you and I face are not just Kirigakure. You mentioned last time that there is an invisible hand behind Karatachi Yagura. Coincidentally, I am also a little curious about that hand."
"The enemy of your enemy is your friend. Now, I, my 'friend', will give you a chance for revenge."
Senju Chen spread his hands as if showing a product.
"Of course, you can refuse." The look on his face became playful, "Then walk out of this door and continue your one-man show of revenge that moved you. Until one day, your body is exposed in the wilderness and eaten by wild dogs until no bones are left. Your bloody feud Yuki Clan has become a joke and completely disappeared."
There was deathly silence in the room.
Only the kettle on the stove was still "chugging" tirelessly.
Yukimura Shigure's body is trembling, not because of cold or pain.
Every word of Senju Chen ruthlessly displayed the true reality in front of him, cutting off his pitiful self-esteem that was wrapped up in hatred and pride, piece by piece, revealing the bloody reality underneath.
In his mind, the cries of the tribesmen before their death, the children's pupils torn by fear, and the snow that was soaked in strange dark red with blood, these images were intertwined crazily, almost swallowing up his sanity.
As the other party said, revenge...
Can he really do it?
Tonight, in that abandoned fishing port, reality gave him the loudest answer.
No.
He is like a joke. A mantis who thinks he can shake the tree.
A line of hot tears finally slipped from his one eye and dripped silently on the cold floor.
When he opened his eyes again, all the struggle, unwillingness, and pain in that eye had solidified into a deathly gray determination.
"Pfft."
Yukimura Shigure knelt down heavily on one knee, and the hard wooden floor made a muffled sound. He lowered his once extremely proud head.
"As long as I can get revenge...Yuki Clan, Yukimura Shigure, I am willing to die for you."
His voice was hoarse, like words of blood squeezed out from deep in his throat.
"From now on, I will be the knife in your hand."
"Very good."
The majesty on Senju Chen's face disappeared, and the friendly smile of a businessman returned to his face.
He walked over and stretched out his hand to help Yukimura Shigure up.
"Remember," Senju Chen patted Yukimura Shigure on the shoulder, not lightly but not too hard, "From today on, you are no longer a dead soul living for hatred. You are an asset in my hand. I don't like my assets. They are depreciated before they have any value."
"Aying, take him to heal, use the best medicine, don't skimp."
"Yes, Young Master Chen."
The strongholds of Kirigakure and Special Assassination and Tactical Squad are colder and damper than any corner of Capital of Water.
Hozuki Getsuga staggered Earth Flow into his room, pulled off the grimace mask on his face, and smashed it hard on the ground. The mask collided with the stone floor, making a crisp crackling sound, and a slight crack spread from the corner of his eye.
"Pfft--"
He could no longer suppress the sweet taste in his throat, and sprayed a mouthful of blood into the cold basin, instantly turning the water red.
The wound on the shoulder blade had been simply treated, but the cold air left behind by the Yuki Clan Ice Release was like countless tiny ice needles, still wreaking havoc in his meridians, causing heartbreaking pain with every breath.
However, the physical pain was far less than the humiliation and anger he suffered in his heart.
Got fooled!
He was completely fooled by that damn fat businessman!
They set a trap, lured him into the trap, and even recruited a remnant of the Yuki Clan as a helper. The guard, and the ninja using Ice Release... They cooperated perfectly, as if they had rehearsed countless times.
This was not a hasty encounter at all, but a hunt carefully prepared for him! And he, the genius of the Hozuki Clan, the captain of Kirigakure Special Assassination and Tactical Squad, was like a stupid prey that fell into a trap.
"Bastard... bastard!!"
Hozuki Getsuga roared low and punched the wall. The hard stone was smashed into a shallow pit, and the joints were a mess of blood and flesh.
"Why are you so crazy here if you don't sleep at night?"
A hoarse and lazy voice came from the door, with undisguised mockery.
Hozuki Getsuga turned around suddenly and saw a tall and thin man, also wearing Anbu uniform but without a mask, leaning against the door frame. The man had a pale complexion and short silver hair similar to Hozuki Getsuga, but his eyes were like a pool of stagnant water, without any ripples.
"Senior Anyue..." Hozuki Getsuga's voice dropped instantly, and the rage in his eyes was forcibly suppressed, turning into a trace of fear.
The person coming is Hozuki Anyue, a being of his generation in the Hozuki Clan, but one who overpowers him in every aspect. This person acts more low-key and ruthless, and is the real "ghost" in Special Assassination Squad.
Hozuki Anyue walked in slowly, his eyes rested on the cracked mask on the ground for a moment, and then glanced at Hozuki Getsuga's embarrassed appearance, with a sarcastic arc at the corner of his mouth.
"I heard that you took a group of people out, but you were the only one who came back alive? You looked like a lost dog." His words were like a knife tempered with ice, poking directly into Hozuki Getsuga's sore spot, "The mission failed?"
"I..." Hozuki Getsuga clenched his fists, "I met the remnants of the Yuki Clan and was attacked by surprise."
He never mentioned the existence of Senju Chen and Aying. It would be a hundred times more embarrassing to admit that he was plotted by a businessman and his guards than to admit that he was attacked by an undead of Kekkei Genkai.
"Oh? Yuki Clan?" Hozuki Anyue seemed to be a little interested, "It seems that Master Yagura's purge still left a few fish that slipped through the net. However, a mere remnant can wipe out you and your team? Yueya, you are really getting better and better."
"You!" Hozuki Getsuga's anger was ignited again.
"Don't look at me with that look." Hozuki Anyue's voice suddenly turned cold, "A mission failure is a failure. Your incompetence has killed more than a dozen comrades in the village. Now, your best choice is to go to the medical class to cure your injuries, and then write a detailed report and hand it in instead of barking like a mad dog here."
He walked up to Hozuki Getsuga, leaned down, and said in a voice that only two people could hear, "Don't forget, we Hozuki Clan never raise waste."
After saying that, he straightened up, stopped looking at Hozuki Getsuga, turned around and disappeared into the darkness outside the door.
There was deathly silence in the room.
Hozuki Getsuga stood there, his body trembling slightly because of the extreme anger. Hozuki Anyue's words were like a handful of salt, sprinkled hard on his bloody wound.
This shameful humiliation will one day be returned to him.
And that Food Is Heaven...
He slowly picked up the cracked mask on the ground, his nails digging into the edge of the mask.