While Haseo was accompanying Tsunade as she gambled away her money, and Hatake was preparing to carry out a kidnapping mission, another Haseo had already arrived at the Daimyo's palace. Yes, another Haseo—this was a fairly standard tactic, since most ninjas could handle the technique of creating multiple clones.
But in contrast to Hatake's experience, at Haseo's infiltration target there were at least thirty to forty ninjas on guard. At first glance, that number rivaled even the protective force surrounding the Hokage. It seemed like the Daimyo's palace was locked down like a fortress. But… in reality?
At the very least, when Haseo entered the palace, it was more like taking a casual stroll than an actual infiltration.
Though Haseo couldn't yet be called battle-hardened, he was certainly rich in major combat experience—he was a capable fighter. Even though he hadn't received formal ninja training, the education and knowledge he received from his teacher were of a level even traditionally trained ninjas wouldn't normally obtain.
As for the wandering ninjas currently working for the Daimyo? First, their skill level was generally quite low; basically anyone capable of extracting chakra dared to call themselves a ninja, on par with first-graders at the Konoha Ninja Academy. Second, could one actually expect hired wandering ninjas to work diligently for the Daimyo? Why would they? They were merely here to collect their pay. As for actual labor? It all came down to how they felt that day. On a good day, maybe one or two would do something resembling real work.
This is precisely why cooperation with Danzo Shimura was necessary. If it weren't for Danzo's manipulation that convinced the Daimyo to voluntarily remove the twelve Konoha jonin originally stationed here, Haseo's infiltration definitely wouldn't have gone this smoothly.
At the very least, those jonin would certainly have detected any intruder.
Haseo wandered around the palace grounds before quickly locating the Daimyo's sleeping quarters.
Due to recent events, the Daimyo might've felt somewhat tense, so Haseo didn't see any indecent scenes. In fact, even while asleep, the Daimyo maintained a dignified posture as if carefully composed, appearing both refined and bearing the noble grace fitting of his station.
Lying flat on his back, hands resting gently upon his abdomen, even his hair was meticulously in place.
How should one put it? There was no show to watch, and Haseo felt genuinely disappointed. Sitting atop a wooden beam hanging down from the high ceiling used purely for decoration, he stared quietly at the figure below for a moment before musing that things were just fine as they were—there'd be no need whatsoever to tidy him up before preparing the body for burial.
Haseo reached behind him with his right hand, gently drawing out the long blade strapped to his back, then pointed its sharp edge directly downward, steadily aiming at the throat of the man below.
Then, his figure gracefully descended from above, light as summer willow fluff drifting in the breeze or winter snowflakes falling silently—utterly silent.
The sharp long blade pierced straight through the target's throat, then continued sinking into the thick, expensive wooden bedframe beneath.
When the steel initially struck the throat, the first sensation perceived was the coldness of the metal itself. Then, instantly, the wound became scorching hot. After that, with blood pouring rapidly from within, the Daimyo felt his body gradually growing colder and colder.
Haseo clamped his hand over the daimyo's jaw, silencing him. The foreign object lodged in his throat caused the nobleman to gasp for air. The sensation of suffocation drove him to struggle harder, but the more violently he thrashed, the faster blood poured from his wounds.
At the moment of death, humans always cling to life. The stronger the desire to live, the swifter death approaches; and the closer death draws, the fiercer the fight for survival becomes. There is nothing ridiculous about this paradox in one's final breath. Once caught in this endless cycle, everything becomes unsolvable.
Death arrived unhurried, step by step.
Even in his final moments, the daimyo never saw his attacker's face. He could only guess from the figure before him that his killer must be extremely young.
At that age, noblemen like himself would still look down on servants and commoners with arrogance and contempt, yet ninjas had already begun carving bloody paths through endless piles of corpses...
Yes, it was a ninja.
Once the silk-draped bed was soaked in crimson blood, Haseo sheathed his long blade exactly as he had drawn it—like it had done nothing at all.
Despite Haseo's silent movements, the spreading metallic scent eventually caught the attention of a ninja guarding outside the daimyo's bedroom.
His job done, Haseo should have left by now. But when he noticed another ninja approaching, a thought struck him. He paused at the bedroom entrance.
Therefore, when the ninja entered the room, he followed his beloved daimyo into death within just three seconds.
Knowing what had to be done next, Haseo didn't let the ninja bleed out—instead, he snapped his neck cleanly, then grabbed the corpse by its collar and dragged it toward the noble's bedside... finally stuffing the body beneath the daimyo's embroidered quilt.
This wasn't some pointless cruel act or perverted amusement—it was simply meant to break the killer's soul alongside taking his life.
After accomplishing all that, Haseo sealed both doors and windows of the bedroom tightly before leaping away.
...
"Tsunade, we should go now."
On the other side, Haseo whispered softly near Tsunade's ear.
"Huh?"
Smiling brightly, Tsunade hadn't immediately understood his meaning even after receiving his reminder. Only after Haseo silently mouthed the word "mission" did she finally catch on.
"Cough... cough..." Tsunade lightly coughed twice. No matter how hard she coughed, she couldn't hide the embarrassment of forgetting the mission entirely.
"I think I'll call it a day here."
She tossed the dice onto the gambling table amid disappointed gazes and sighs, preparing to leave.
"Onee-sama, you'll come back tomorrow, right?"
"You must definitely come again tomorrow!"
"We're counting on you—we won't miss this!"
Strangely enough, compared to Haseo, gamblers clearly didn't want to let Tsunade go.
However, they certainly wouldn't return tomorrow either—a fact unrelated to whether Tsunade enjoyed herself or not, purely dependent upon whether Haseo's wallet had thinned. Tsunade was someone capable of single-handedly supporting an entire casino and hundreds of gamblers.
Under the repeated warnings of the gamblers, Haseo and Tsunade left the place. Once they reached a dark alley with no one around, they released their Transformation Jutsu.
Tsunade stretched lazily with a self-satisfied grin. Too bad she wasn't quite grown into her body yet—otherwise, that move would've looked really graceful. As it was, all she could do was spread her cheerfulness to those nearby.
"Haseo, what should we do next?"
For Tsunade, gambling itself had always been the fun part—the outcome was genuinely secondary. Otherwise, she wouldn't keep losing (not that it was her own money) and still enjoy it so much. Even after heavy losses, she was still full of energy—and excited about what to do next.
"Next… we should withdraw now. I've already finished my task." So saying, Haseo pointed in a certain direction, where another Haseo approached from afar.
This second Haseo nodded at the first one, took the empty money bag he handed over, then vanished with a soft pop.
This time, Haseo had completed his mission exactly as planned—an unusual occurrence he should have been pleased about—until he got his pouch back, now completely empty.
As for Tsunade, she'd also been pretty happy too—until she realized the one walking beside her this whole time had just been a Shadow Clone. It was an odd reaction, really. Her first thought wasn't about being left out of Haseo's success, but rather that he'd used only a clone to accompany her.
But whatever the case, it really was that simple: halving someone's happiness required no effort at all. So Haseo succeeded, and so did Tsunade.
<><><><><><><><>
Thank you for reading! Your support will keep me updating!
~ Every 50 Powerstones = **4 Bonus Chapters** this weekend!
<><><><><><><><>
~ 100+ Advanced Chapters Available on Patreon!
~ More *Free* Chapters and Books Available on Patreon!
patreon.com/Tansnovel
<><><><><><><><>