Chapter 22
Yahiko looked at the sword put next to his neck before he quickly signaled Nagato not to do anything and stay calm. Unlike Konan, who observed the situation first, Nagato liked to act before thinking. In that way, he was similar to Yahiko.
There were three more shinobi with them; now all of them kept Yahiko in their sights even as they finished their work. They saw how easily that pebble could have been a kunai or another throwing weapon, and they felt uneasy at how easy they would have been selected as the target.
Though they acted calmly, and still did their work, only leaving the one with a sword on Yahiko's neck to watch over their backs. The difference between these shinobi and the ones from Amegakure was quite big.
"Why did you do something so stupid?" A good question, but the answer was simple, because Yahiko was quite stupid.
"Why did you need to kill them?" But rather than reflect on himself, Yahiko chose to question the man who was intending to kill Yahiko if he did something stupid again. "Wouldn't it be safer to capture them alive and question them about their operations? Make sure that nothing was missing."
"You aren't the one asking the questions."
"Neither am I the one answering them," Yahiko replied. "I let you use me, so at least you could extend a favor to me and not show the cruel part of the world we live in. I am quite weak-hearted, you see. Capture them alive, question them, and judge them according to their crimes. Is it too much to ask?"
The other Konoha shinobi looked at Yahiko like he was out of his mind. And that made him dangerous. So, rather than focus on a bunch of criminals that were harmless to them, their eyes were set on a bunch of unknown kids with unknown abilities once again.
"And I guess you will interfere if I don't agree?"
"I just don't like the bloody side of being a shinobi," Yahiko replied honestly. "And I will do everything I can to not only not be part of it, but also stop others."
"Our mission is to eliminate them, not judge them," the Konoha shinobi replied, and as Yahiko prepared to interfere, an olive branch was given to him. "But I can alter the mission if there is a benefit for Konoha. If you agree to answer my questions, I will do as you ask."
"Done."
The rest of the Konoha shinobi received a signal from the man holding Yahiko's life in his hands and moved on to apprehend the rest of the so-called criminals. Yahiko smiled at Nagato and Konan to relax as the sword was pulled away from his neck.
Yahiko, this time didn't even think of doing anything funny. He might be stupid, but not enough to not know when he was completely outclassed. He already suspected the identity of this shinobi from his white tanto sword and other characteristics.
And even if he didn't, he could still feel that this shinobi was at least on the same level as Jiraiya. But he also felt that he wasn't bloodthirsty even when he was pointing his sword at Yahiko's neck.
Unless he was a complete psycho, he wasn't some coldhearted killer who would harm innocents. But even Yahiko knew when not to push his luck or the patience of another shinobi. So, he stayed calm and in place while the other Konoha shinobi rounded up the last of the dregs.
"Now, you three, you'd better answer my questions honestly, and don't even try to hide anything," the Konoha shinobi said, not even bothering to introduce himself. "First, are you three really from the Land of the Rain?"
"Yes," Yahiko answered. Nagato and Konan nodded.
"But you don't belong to their village?"
"Nope," Yahiko didn't know where it was going, but he played along.
"And where are you going?"
"The Land of Iron."
"Who taught you?" And there was the question of importance, as Yahiko expected.
"Can't say," Yahiko replied. "A wandering shinobi taught us basics out of pity; the rest we learned on our own."
"Is that so?"
"Yes, we find some scrolls with techniques and books about anything else," Nagato said.
"We have developed our own techniques," Konan added.
Yahiko stayed calm, but he signaled Nagato and Konan to prepare to run at any moment. He could see that the Konoha shinobi knew it was only half the truth. There was no way he would let them go when they posed a danger to Konoha. But Yahiko didn't intend to stay either.
In a fight, they might not stand a chance, but escaping him wouldn't be too difficult, though the idea of being hunted down didn't sound that great. Still, it was better than being detained by Konoha. And he didn't wish to make trouble for Jiraiya either.
"Captain."
"Clean up the mess, and deliver those dregs to the proper authorities in the nearby town, and observe how officials deal with them, and afterward return to the village with this message from me," the Konoha shinobi instructed his subordinates and gave one of them a letter with something written on it. "I will lead those little guests out of the country."
Yahiko sighed in relief. It might have sounded like he was going to watch over them all the way until they left the country, but that wasn't a bad deal for them. They had nothing to hide, and with him, it wouldn't be too difficult to go through this country.
In the end, Yahiko prevented useless death and a fight between himself and the Konoha shinobi. A victory in his books. And he even got a personal guide, too. So far, their journey had been going far better than he expected.
"Captain, a word." The Konoha shinobi whispered something to each other and then a sword was given to the captain.
"I see. Lucky for you three, it seems we are connected to the Land of Iron. And now we have another reason to travel together."
Nothing changed, but somehow the Konoha shinobi's tone was different. Yahiko glanced at the sword; he recognized it. It belonged to one of the criminals who captured them. Well, Yahiko had nothing to hide, aside from the fact that they were trained by Jiraiya and that Nagato had the Rinnegan. So, he wasn't that worried.
"Good to hear," Yahiko smiled back. "By the way, my name is Yahiko, and they are Nagato and Konan."
"Sakumo Hatake," the Konoha shinobi smiled kindly to them as he introduced himself. "Jonin of Konoha."
Yahiko and Sakumo smiled at each other, but there was a tense atmosphere between them. Yahiko knew that Sakumo had changed his mind on them after that shinobi whispered something to him. So, now he was truly observing them with suspicion.
…
Coincidences barely happened in the shinobi world. Sakumo knew it more than anyone else. So, when on a mission to subdue a few criminal organizations that rose during the war in the country, he met a trio of kids with unknown origins and abilities, and he was suspicious.
But it didn't seem they were connected to any of the criminal organizations he had subdued yet. And this was the final one at the edge of the Land of Fire. And yet, he couldn't dismiss that the leader of this organization was once a samurai hailing from the Land of Iron.
The same country that these three were allegedly traveling to. Unknown origins, clearly trained shinobi, traveling alone through the Land of Fire, and just so happening to get involved with Sakumo's mission. It was too much of a coincidence.
Yahiko, an intelligent child with sharp eyes who acted like he hated violence, more specifically, killing. He always had a smile, but Sakumo could see in those bright eyes the intelligence that others never managed to achieve in their lives.
Konan, a girl the same age as the other two. Strong-willed, but it was her movements that caught Sakumo's eye. Light, effortless, and soundless footsteps. Even while simply walking, she showed off her agility. Sakumo could tell she was fast and couldn't let his guard down around her.
Nagato, the last of the trio. His red hair reminded him of Lady Mito. They had the same shade of red. Sakumo suspected him to be one of the Uzumaki clan, though probably a lost branch. He also looked far more intelligent than a child should be and had solid skills.
Every single one of them was trained well. That meant they were dangerous. So, the question was: to whom? He didn't like how they had just met each other. There was something suspicious. Either they needed to make contact with him for their own plans, or they were pawns in another's game.
"Let's stop," Yahiko said. "It is getting dark and cold; we should rest by the next town."
Sakumo glanced at him without slowing down as he jumped from one tree branch to another. It was winter after all, the days grew shorter, and even he couldn't avoid the cold nights so easily. So, it was a reasonable request.
Yet he was suspicious. Paranoia wasn't something he was ashamed of; it was better to be careful than sorry. That's how he managed to survive through the years and save his comrades during the war.
"Those clouds don't look pretty," Nagato added another reason to stop.
And it was true, the dark clouds were approaching them at a fast pace. Sakumo didn't want to cast suspicion on himself just yet, so he had no choice but to agree with them. There was a town not far from here, anyway.
"Very well, it won't do us good to get caught by a blizzard."
But before that, Sakumo observed the kids. He didn't like how close he was to the border of the country that bordered the Land of Stone. He had many enemies there. And he felt like he was led to this place. Many scenarios played in his mind as he made up his mind.
While they were running through the forest, Sakumo observed the kids. Konan's movements were the best of the three. She moved silently and fast. Her agility and dexterity were on par with his. With a little more experience, she would soon surpass him in movement skill.
Nagato seemed the slowest of the three, but Sakumo noticed how the boy was observant of his surroundings. Every five or so seconds, he looked back to see if they weren't followed and to the sides to familiarize himself with the area.
Sakumo didn't like that. Even most experienced shinobi forget to look around while traveling, but a kid did it expertly. The worst part was that Sakumo couldn't see the boy's eyes, as they were covered by his hair. He couldn't read the boy at all.
Yahiko seemed to be the most average of the three. Yet that made Sakumo most suspicious of him. He saw how he knocked a shuriken with a pebble in the middle of the air. And his movement was simple but effective, not wasting too much energy.
This orange-haired boy reminded Sakumo of the kid Jiraiya picked up to train. They both had similar eyes, those of extreme intelligence. Both of them also possessed leadership qualities that kids their age shouldn't have. Sakumo took every detail of these kids and memorized them.
Every one of them was also able to keep up with him without exerting too much of their stamina. Those kids were simply monsters for their age. As confident as he was before to best them, they would prove troublesome if they were only here to support the real player who wanted to harm him.
"Let's find an inn, stay close to me, and don't wander off," Sakumo instructed the trio as they arrived in a town. "Though, should we eat first?"
Sakumo tried to act casually with them to lower their guard. He still wasn't sure about anything, but he couldn't let go of the feeling that something was wrong. So, he needed to be guarded, but also relaxed enough for his enemies, who were probably watching him, to let their guard down.
"Sure," Yahiko agreed easily without much thinking.
It was quite a big town, so it wasn't hard to find a place to sit down, and just in time as snow started to fall. Though Sakumo didn't like how quiet the town was. He liked it when people spoke around him; that way, he could gather more information.
"Hello, sir, what would you have today?" Sakumo looked over the menu as the waitress came to them.
"I'll have sashimi," Sakumo didn't find anything too appetizing.
"Miso ramen," Yahiko said.
"Dumplings," Konan ordered.
"Curry," Nagato finished.
As Sakumo observed the surroundings, he noticed how the kids looked at him. Yahiko had a strange look on his face as he stared at Sakumo. Maybe he was a bit too tense of late, but he still believed that it was better to be safe than sorry, so he kept his guard up.
"Is there a problem?" Sakumo asked Yahiko, trying to keep his cool.
"Nothing, you're just weird."
"How so?"
"Firstly, you bought a seafood dish in a place with no sea anywhere close," Yahiko replied. "In a rundown restaurant that doesn't seem to be too concerned about hygiene. Either you have an iron stomach, or you didn't think things through."
Sakumo didn't understand what Yahiko was talking about. He had plenty of seafood back in the village, and it was nowhere near any sea either. Yahiko was probably trying to distract him from something else.
So, he dismissed the kids for now and continued to observe his surroundings. Even when the food was delivered to him. He ate in silence as he still couldn't figure out anything about those kids, nor what kind of situation he was in.
Still, he wasn't someone who ran away from situations he didn't understand. He had enough strength to power through most of the traps set for him. So, he would rather deal with it now than worry about it later. There was no escaping it either way.
A.N.As always. Thanks for reading and supporting me. If you want 7 more chapters of this story and 42 chapters in total with all my current stories, please consider supporting me on pa treon ironworlf852. Thanks in advance.