Dawn was approaching.
The world was steeped in a heavy, inky blue. The distant horizon had just begun to show a faint, ethereal sliver of dawn. A faint light fell upon Nibi no Utsu.
All was silent.
A pitch-black shadow landed on the roof of the inn. His steps were soundless, his breathing was long and almost imperceptible.
Haruki...
The name passed through his mind without a ripple. A murderous intent flashed in his pupils.
[Ding!]
[System detected Ninja A's murderous intent value +3000]
[Your Slaughter Curse growth value has increased to 6.6%]
The ninja slowly crouched down. His fingertips reached out. A tile was lifted from the rafters, not a single sound was made.
The room below was dim. The air was mixed with the smell of old wood.
The ninja's gaze was as sharp as a nocturnal animal's. His sight accurately locked onto the slightly rising quilt on the tatami mat. Dark short hair was spread on the pillow, outlining the soft contours of a sleeping face.
— Haruki.
The ninja narrowed his eyes.
Haruki was sleeping soundly and defenselessly.
A hint of sarcasm flashed in the ninja's eyes.
So what if he was a genius?
A genius wasn't necessarily a qualified ninja.
The ninja slowly drew the long blade from his back. His muscles tensed, gripping the long blade tightly.
In the dead silence, there were only the steady breaths of the few people in the room.
The sharp blade cut through the air.
Time seemed to freeze at this moment.
The ninja's pupils contracted to pinpricks. An indescribable, chilling malice, like a tsunami, erupted without warning, instantly filling the entire small room.
Nagato's eyes snapped open. He met a pair of eyes filled with murderous intent.
There was someone on the roof.
Before Nagato could get up, black mist had already filled his vision.
It was Rika.
A short, horrified grunt was uncontrollably squeezed from the ninja's throat.
He saw it.
Despite being prepared, his breath was still caught when he saw the monster. A twisted silhouette emerged from the black mist. It seemed to be a condensation of murderous intent and malice. Its aura was so cold it felt like falling into an ice cellar. Its face had no clear features, only a huge, maw-like mouth filled with sharp teeth. Although it had no eyes, the ninja could still feel that it was staring straight at him.
"Don't…"
"Harm Yuta…"
Fear, an unprecedented fear, like countless cold centipedes, instantly crawled up the ninja's spine, frantically gnawing at his will. He wanted to scream, but his vocal cords were crushed by that heavy malice.
He watched helplessly as the monster reached out its hand. Perhaps it couldn't even be called a hand, it was like a beast's claw.
Rolling with deep murderous intent, that claw was raised, meeting the ninja's long blade frozen in the air.
Crack—
The killing weapon, forged from fine steel, cracked.
The ninja finally burst out with his survival instinct, desperately trying to let go and retreat.
He finally realized how terrifying the monster was. No matter how much preparation was made, at the moment of seeing the monster, that malice, which permeated the soul, still made him feel fear from the bottom of his heart.
This was human instinct.
Whatever he did was futile.
"No…"
"No!"
The ninja squeezed out a broken plea for mercy from his throat.
That claw, which had crushed the long blade, opened again, reaching for him. He felt the omnipresent oppressive force around him instantly gain direction, pressing in on him frantically from all sides.
When that cold claw touched his body, he could even clearly hear his bones groaning under the unbearable pressure, followed by a sickening sound of dense shattering. Before the intense pain could fully reach his brain, his consciousness broke off.
Organs, muscles, and blood were all clenched in the monster's hand. Rika squeezed hard without mercy.
Splat—
Blood flowed on the roof.
Rika blocked the tiles.
Can't let the blood flow down.
Can't disturb Yuta's rest.
Rika gently looked at the sleeping Haruki for a moment, confirming that his peaceful sleep had not been disturbed.
Having done all this, she silently returned to the ring. The terrifying malice that permeated the room receded like a tide, quickly retracting back into Haruki's ring.
The room returned to dead silence. Only a faint trace of blood remained in the air.
Nagato stared at the ceiling. He closed his eyes, as if he knew nothing.
Haruki turned over and fell back into a deep, dreamless sleep.
Outside the window, the sliver of dawn in the sky gradually expanded, tinged with a faint golden edge.
Day was about to break.
The room was in a stable tranquility, as if nothing had happened.
"Do you smell it?"
"It's obvious, isn't it?"
"That person is dead."
Through a wall, Muramasa, sitting on the tatami, conversed with the ninja beside him.
"How terrifying!"
"Even a Jonin died so silently."
"After all, it was such a monster."
"Just facing the monster requires courage."
"Indeed."
"Maybe we can really get rid of our current life."
"I can't live here anymore, I've had enough of these numb days."
"Who hasn't…"
"…"