Due to the spy incident a few days prior, Takigakure had implented much stricter controls over returning ninjas and outsiders.
Naoto's squad endured an entire morning of interrogation and physical inspections before they were finally cleared to leave the mission office.
Once released, the three didn't head ho imdiately. Instead, they pooled their money and went to visit the ho of their forr team leader, Sato.
After staying there for a long ti to pay their respects, they finally dispersed, agreeing to et at "Takigawa Sho's" place that evening.
Having learned that Sho was to be their new squad leader, they intended to follow tradition and hold a lively celebration at his house.
anwhile, the rchant Ryuji Ida was having a much harder ti.
He had hoped to secure an audience with the new leader of Takigakure to discuss opening a permanent general store for daily necessities within the village.
However, he wasn't even allowed through the gates. Representatives sent by the four elders turned him away imdiately, forcing him to remain outside the village periter.
Left with no choice, he turned his caravan toward a larger city to sell his cargo of ore. Accompanying him as a bodyguard was Ichiro Kurosaki.
Since being subjugated by Shisui, Ichiro had been ordered to protect Ryuji Ida while simultaneously acting as a covert overseer.
Though Shisui had never explicitly stated this second role, Ichiro understood the silent directive perfectly.
Despite being turned away, Ryuji Ida wasn't irritated. He remained jovial, saying with a chuckle, "Well, let's go. It looks like I won't be seeing your 'Master' this ti."
"I told you, he isn't my master," Ichiro replied, standing rigid with his hand on the hilt of his blade, his expression grim.
"Understood, understood," Ryuji waved a hand dismissively, ceasing his probing for the mont.
To him, Sho's true identity was irrelevant. As long as he reliably completed the tasks assigned to him, he could amass a fortune.
Eventually, he planned to beco a great rchant—perhaps even a noble. His son had already been placed within the staff of a high-ranking noble in the Land of Earth, aning the path to social climbing for his family was open.
All they lacked now was sufficient martial backing.
Ryuji Ida liked to believe they were equal partners in a collaboration. He was unaware that his "equality" existed only in his imagination. Should he ever overstep that boundary, the gambler would find himself paying for every bet he had ever placed.
At dusk, a bonfire was lit in Shisui's courtyard. He had a premonition that his small yard would be quite lively today.
Sure enough, before long, Naoto, Arisuke, and Harukusa arrived one after another, carrying at and vegetables.
Shisui welcod them with a smile, and soon the aroma of roasting at began to drift through the air.
"Sho-niisan, welco to the team as our leader!" Naoto raised his cup, a long-absent smile finally returning to his face.
The other two followed suit, lifting their cups. Shisui joined them, clinking his drink against theirs. "And congratulations to you three for successfully completing your mission."
After a round of drinks, the at on the grill was perfectly cooked. As Shisui began carving and distributing the portions, he asked casually, "Was the journey smooth?"
"Pretty smooth," Arisuke answered between bites. "Boss Ida really knows his business.
After selling the goods in the Land of Earth, he noticed the local ore was cheap, so he used the profits to buy a massive shipnt of iron and copper to bring back and flip. He even issued an extra escort mission for it."
Naoto, a piece of at clamped in his chopsticks, added to the report: "He originally planned to go straight to the city, but he insisted on coming back to the village with us first, saying he wanted to thank you in person. He even wanted to open a shop here, but the elders wouldn't have it."
Shisui nodded. He knew Ryuji Ida's attempt to open a shop was a move to establish a permanent contact point while simultaneously probing his background and attitude.
However, Shisui's secrets weren't ant to be probed. If the rchant wanted to test his depths, he had to be prepared to pay the price.
Fortunately for the man, the village elders had blocked him this ti—but there wouldn't be a second chance for a graceful retreat.
The four of them ate and chatted.
Naoto reverted to his usual talkative, cheerful self. He regaled them with the thrill of encountering a Sand Ninja squad near the border, then spoke of the scars of war they saw along the road.
He ntioned how they had rescued a rchant during the trip, which naturally led to their partnership with Ryuji.
The bonfire crackled as the night grew deeper.
Midway through the gathering, Shisui quietly released a minute amount of pheromones—a sedative substance refined from "Foul-Scent Bugs" designed to induce a peaceful sleep.
He intended to let the three of them drift off calmly to make his subsequent tasks easier. There was another reason, too: Naoto's constant, dense chatter was becoming overwhelming.
Such a noisy scene caused a flicker of discomfort in Shisui's mind, though his face remained perfectly composed.
Soon, Harukusa and Arisuke's eyes grew hazy, and they slumped over the table, falling into a deep sleep.
Naoto, however, only shook his head. Though a drunken flush crept over his cheeks, he remained conscious.
Shisui was montarily surprised but quickly realized that the parasitic insects within Naoto had developed a level of resistance, neutralizing the pheromone's effects. It seems the bugs have evolved on their own. Worth studying, he thought.
While he was reflecting, Naoto leaned in close. Unaware of the sedative, the boy assud he was simply feeling the effects of the alcohol.
"Sho-niisan... tell , why do we even beco ninjas?"
Shisui watched him quietly, not interrupting.
"On this trip, I saw so many people die. Sand ninjas, Stone ninjas, civilians... everyone killing each other over a piece of land, a mission, a village..."
Naoto paused, his tone growing bitter. "Captain Sato is dead. Boss Ida's servants—on the way back, there weren't any familiar faces left. They all must have had families, right? What was the point of their deaths?"
"And the civilians... they just want to live. But when the ninjas show up, everything seems to vanish."
Naoto felt his head throbbing, his thoughts becoming muddied. He rubbed his temples and continued, "Are we protecting them, or are we destroying them?"
Shisui added a branch to the fire, his voice slow and steady. "I don't know."
"I don't know the aning of being a ninja, nor if those deaths have any aning at all."
"This is simply the shinobi world. The strong survive, the weak perish; great nations play their gas, and small nations are sacrificed. Everyone searches for their own way to live and pays the price for their choices."
He turned to look Naoto in the eye. "If you feel lost, don't waste your energy thinking about it so much. Just focus on what's in front of you and live your own life well.
Of course, if you ever feel you have the strength, perhaps you can follow your heart—do what you want to do and change the things you can't stand."
Shisui reached out and tapped the boy gently on the chest.
Naoto sat stunned for a long mont, nodding as if he understood, yet didn't. Finally, he couldn't fight it anymore. His eyes slid shut, and he slumped onto the table, sinking into unconsciousness.
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