In the Land of Grass, on a riverbank, a group of samurai lay scattered about. Their faces were etched with the lingering fear of having survived a disaster and the bitter taste of defeat. The man who had been invincible had become their waking nightmare. The once-confident samurai now trembled at the mere mention of his name, their fighting spirit completely shattered.
"Report! The count is complete. Remaining personnel... 273."
"Two hundred seventy-three..." Mifune's expression was grim. He blamed himself. "It's all my fault. As the commander, I was incompetent, which led to such a disastrous defeat."
"It's not your fault, my lord. You already had intelligence that the man was skilled with poison and had prepared antidotes in advance. We just never expected his poison to be so extraordinary that ordinary antidotes would be completely ineffective."
"I should have paid more attention to that point." Mifune felt he had failed Kaito, who had given him that piece of information.
Looking at the listless samurai, he stood up and said loudly, "In this battle, our skills were inferior. If we continue to be this dejected, we will never be able to reclaim the face we have lost. A samurai must possess a spirit that never admits defeat. After we have improved our strength, we will fight another great battle with the Land of Rain and wash away this humiliation!"
"..." Few responded.
"Sigh." Mifune sighed, deeply disappointed and dissatisfied with the current morale of his samurai.
If I have the chance, I must train a unit of samurai with wills of steel. Only then can they shoulder the future of the Land of Iron!
While Mifune was making his silent resolve, Kaito, tired of soaking in the hot springs, left the hot spring street with Tetsuren and went to the seaside.
A gentle sea breeze caressed their faces, bringing with it a fresh scent.
"It's so beautiful." Seeing the ocean for the first time, Tetsuren's heart couldn't help but open up at the sight of the endless expanse of water.
Kaito nodded in agreement and raised his hands. "It's decided! Let's go out to sea! Let's experience the magnificent waves of the ocean up close!"
Filled with a sense of novelty, Tetsuren readily accepted the proposal. However, she soon came to regret it.
The two of them hired a boat of medium size, along with a captain and two sailors, and set out to sea. Their destination: the Land of Demons on the other side of the ocean. There was a mystical priestess there whom Kaito wanted to see.
The moment she stepped onto the boat, Tetsuren's expression changed. Her body swayed with the rocking of the ship, a feeling completely different from standing on solid ground that made her very uncomfortable. It felt as if her brain was swaying along with it, and she couldn't help but grip the ship's rail tightly.
"Ooh~" Kaito, who was completely unaffected, sidled up to her and teased, "Tetsuren, you're not getting seasick, are you?"
"I... I am not!"
The term "seasick" was easy enough to understand. The ever-competitive Tetsuren, of course, would not admit that she could be defeated by a mere boat.
"Ha. At times like this, you just have to distract yourself." Kaito held up a finger. "Let me ask you, do you believe that if we sail in the same direction, we will eventually end up back in the Land of Waterfalls?"
"?" Tetsuren gave Kaito a quizzical look. "Isn't that normal? The ninja world we live on is a giant sphere. Of course you can come back around after circling it."
"Huh? You actually know that?" Kaito was greatly surprised.
"What do you mean? Even though I don't pay much attention in class, I still know that much."
"...That's not what I meant." Kaito sighed. He had wanted to use his other-world knowledge for a bit of intellectual dominance, but it turned out to be common knowledge in the ninja world. Thinking about it, the technological development in the ninja world was quite fast. In a hundred years, it had evolved from the primitive Warring States period to a modern era that used electricity. It was a pity Kaito knew nothing about technology, or he would have just started a company and transformed the ninja world with science.
"Alright, that was just a warm-up. Listen to the next question: Given that your current sparring record against me is 148 losses and 0 wins, calculate the area of the shadow currently darkening your soul."
"???"
Having successfully tormented Tetsuren, Kaito was in a great mood. As the ship sailed slowly forward, an even vaster world unfolded before him. He stood at the bow, closed his eyes, and spread his arms, feeling the baptism of the sea breeze.
"The wind... is so free. I wonder when I'll be able to learn a Flying-type skill."
To fly. It was a dream hidden in everyone's heart.
After a long moment, he opened his eyes, wiped his face that had been washed by the sea waves many times, and sullenly left the bow. He borrowed a fishing rod from a sailor and began to play the part of an old fisherman. As for Tetsuren, she was still trying to adjust to her condition.
The boat sailed leisurely on, gradually moving away from the shore until there was no land in sight.
Two days later, at night.
The small boat sailed alone on the surface of the sea, rocked back and forth by the waves.
Kaito, who was sleeping in the cabin, suddenly opened his eyes. He pressed a hand to his frantically beating heart, a sense of foreboding washing over him. Frowning, he pressed his ear against the wooden wall and listened intently. However, besides the occasional sound of the waves outside, there was nothing out of the ordinary.
Kaito's expression grew more and more solemn. He quietly got out of bed, went to the adjacent bunk, and clamped a hand over Tetsuren's mouth.
Tetsuren woke up with a start and began to struggle violently. When she saw Kaito's face, she struggled even harder.
"...Shh. Don't make a sound. There's a situation." Kaito put his mouth to her ear, his voice as soft as a mosquito's buzz.
This was the first time Tetsuren had seen Kaito with such a serious expression. She immediately understood that something was really wrong, and that it was serious. She nodded at once.
Kaito released his hand and gestured with his hands. The two of them leaned against the walls on either side of the cabin door, their hands gripping the hilts of their swords.
After waiting for two minutes, the cabin door opened without a sound, and a figure flashed inside.
"Now!" Kaito shouted, attacking at the same time as Tetsuren.
Two treasured swords cut into the intruder's body at almost the same time, but it dissolved into a splash of water.
"A Water Clone?" Not good, Kaito thought, and without a second's hesitation, he pulled Tetsuren back.
In the next second, the wooden wall exploded, and a longsword crackling with lightning pierced through. If Kaito hadn't reacted so quickly, he would have been run through.
By the faint starlight, they saw the attacker's appearance. He was tall, dressed in black, and wore a dark mask on his face, like an emissary from hell.
"Who are you? Why are you attacking us?" Kaito couldn't figure out his identity and tried to probe for information. "We are just ordinary travelers. We haven't provoked anyone."
"Two little kids? My apologies. You can only blame your own bad luck." After speaking, the masked man strode forward, his longsword slashing viciously at Kaito.
"I'll go first. You act according to the situation," Kaito instructed, raising his sword to block the man's longsword.
The moment their blades clashed, Kaito's expression changed. An immense force came from his opponent, almost knocking him off balance. Before he could think, the masked man's long leg had already slammed into his waist, sending him flying to the side of the bed.
Tetsuren timely stepped in, blocking the masked man's pursuit.
"This is not right. This is no ordinary ninja! Tetsuren, get out of the way!" Kaito immediately flipped over, no longer caring about hiding his strength. He opened his mouth and spat out a stream of crimson flames.
Flamethrower!
While the masked man was dodging, Kaito immediately grabbed Tetsuren, crashed through the side wooden wall, and fell into the sea with her.
"This little brat..." When the masked man poked his head out of the hole to look down, there was only a faint ripple left on the sea's surface.
Swish, swish, swish!
Three more masked figures appeared behind him, dressed in the same attire.
"Captain, the others have been dealt with."
"I had two kids run away over here, a boy and a girl. They know ninjutsu and swordsmanship. You all split up and search for them. Remember, show no mercy. Kill them on sight!"
"Yes, sir!" The four of them vanished at the same time.
In the darkness behind the ship, dozens of large ships suddenly appeared, sailing silently, like a ghost fleet.