"How'd it go?" Nawaki asked eagerly the moment they got back.
Xin shrugged and said, "I was expecting more of a fight, but it turned out they were all just a bunch of weaklings. Minato wiped them out in a flash. At least I got what I came for."
Destroying a single ship might not seem like much, but losing Samehada would hurt the Mist Village deeply. The newly formed Seven Ninja Swordsmen now had one less member, and Xin imagined the Mist Village would be feeling that pain for a while.
They might even come knocking on Konoha's door, demanding Samehada's return. Too bad- anything that ended up in Xin's hands never left.
"Well, I didn't finish them that quickly. Some of them did try to put up a fight," Minato added modestly, scratching his head. It wasn't his fault that mowing down weaklings just happened to be one of his strengths.
"Lame..." Nawaki muttered under his breath, clearly disappointed.
He'd spent all that time anxiously guarding the merchant ship, only to find out that the battle was over before he even saw the enemy.
So unfair.
"Wait, so the Seven Ninja Swordsmen of the Mist are this unimpressive?" Nawaki asked, still trying to make sense of it all.
Xin patted him on the shoulder, grinning. "They're alright, I guess. A bit stronger than the average jonin, but once they eat one of my genjutsu... well, that's pretty much the end for them."
He paused, thinking for a moment. "Then again, I don't think the Seven Swordsmen have been around for that long, have they?"
"Get lost, Xin!"
Nawaki didn't even want to respond. Is that supposed to be encouraging?
"Eating your genjutsu..." Nawaki had heard enough. How many shinobi in the entire world could withstand one of Xins genjutsu and walk away unscathed?
Nawaki had once asked Orochimaru about it. Orochimaru's reaction had been surprising- he'd seemed almost... unnerved. After thinking carefully for a moment, Orochimaru had said: "If it were me, I'd probably be dead the moment Xin's genjutsu hit."
Even Orochimaru didn't think he'd survive one of Xin's genjutsu.
Xin wasn't sure whether Orochimaru would really die, but he was certain that if Orochimaru ever got hit by his Sakura Fall genjutsu, he'd be twirling elegantly in a storm of cherry blossoms. After all, the man was very flexible.
"Hey, don't pout. Next time we run into enemies, you go first. I'll just sit back and enjoy the show," Xin said with a grin, sensing Nawaki's frustration. He dangled the promise of a bigger fight in front of him like bait.
"You said it! Next time, I go first. You and Minato can't interfere!" Nawaki exclaimed, his mood instantly brightening.
Xin chuckled and nodded, while Minato gave him a skeptical side-eye. It wasn't that Minato doubted Nawaki's abilities-it was that he could already imagine how this would end, with Nawaki screaming for help halfway through the fight.