Inside the Wasabi family courtyard.
Idate was in the middle of reporting his grievances to the boss.
"Boss, this year the Wagarashi family hired ninja again… and they even brought in three kids."
"One of them's a red-haired kid, and he's pretty strong."
"Don't tell me the injury on your chest was caused by one of them?"
Wasabi Jirōchō frowned as he asked.
Idate's expression stiffened with embarrassment, and he nodded reluctantly.
"They attacked me out of nowhere without any warning. Otherwise, with my reflexes, I definitely would've dodged it…"
Wasabi Jirōchō sighed.
"Four years ago, they hired ninja as bodyguards, won the competition, and ever since then, our Wasabi family has been suppressed by them for four years straight."
"That's why this year… I hired ninja too."
Idate was displeased and asked, "Why the hell do we need ninja anyway?"
He used to be a ninja himself and knew all too well how dark and treacherous the ninja world could be. He had no love for them whatsoever!
And this year, after several of the Wasabi family's contestants were ambushed by assassins, Idate had been chosen to represent the family in the competition.
So naturally, he didn't want any ninja protecting him.
Before Wasabi Jirōchō could respond, a knock came from the front door.
From outside came the voice of a young boy:
"Excuse me, is this the Wasabi household? We're the ninja hired under contract to protect the contestants."
Wasabi Jirōchō's face lit up with excitement.
"They actually came! Looks like this year, control over Degarashi Port is as good as ours!"
Sitting beside him, Idate wore a confused look.
"Boss, why are you so sure about that… wait a sec… this voice… sounds kinda familiar…"
Before he could finish, the Wasabi household's main gate opened, and Shinju entered the courtyard along with his two companions.
Idate's pupils shrank sharply.
Talk about bad luck — of all people, it had to be these three brats again!
"Oi! Isn't that the punk we just ran into earlier?!"
Naruto loudly pointed at Idate.
Wasabi Jirōchō glanced at Shinju standing across from them, then at the pale-faced Idate beside him, and immediately understood the situation.
"Idate… the ninja you said attacked you without warning… don't tell me you meant these three?" Jirōchō asked.
Idate looked awkward but quickly recovered.
This was the Wasabi household — his turf!
He didn't need to fear them at all!
Putting on a defiant face, he shouted,
"That's right, it was them! That red-haired brat kicked me out of nowhere!"
"That kick still hurts like hell, boss! Hurry up and have them seized! Help me get revenge!"
Wasabi Jirōchō: "…"
Shinju, Sasuke, Naruto: ┐(´-｀)┌
"You were the one who mouthed off first, and now you're acting like the victim?!" Naruto snapped.
Shinju nodded in agreement, raising his gaze toward Jirōchō.
"Besides, we're here because we accepted the Wasabi family's commission."
"If the Wasabi family doesn't want ninja, you can cancel the contract right now."
Wasabi Jirōchō wiped away a bead of sweat from his forehead.
He could tell Shinju was angry.
This red-haired boy might be young, but his strength was extraordinary — easily close to Kage-level.
With Shinju here, the Wasabi family's chances of winning the festival were very high!
And truth be told, the only reason he was able to hire Shinju at all was thanks to Tsunade-sama's connections. There was no way he'd allow anyone to antagonize him.
So Wasabi Jirōchō quickly bowed deeply toward Shinju.
"My deepest apologies!"
Idate froze in shock: (꒪⌓꒪)
"Boss? Boss, what the hell are you doing?! Why are you bowing to these ninja?!"
Seeing his subordinate still didn't get it, Wasabi Jirōchō turned and smacked Idate square on the head!
"These Konoha ninja are honored guests of the Wasabi family! What the hell did you do to anger them?! Hurry up and apologize!"
Jirōchō barked sharply.
He knew Idate's temper better than anyone. Whatever the guy had gone through growing up, it left him with deep-seated hostility toward ninja.
But given the situation, he had no doubt the conflict was started by Idate himself.
Idate still felt indignant, but since his boss had spoken, he reluctantly bent forward and muttered begrudgingly,
"…Sorry. Back at the teahouse, I shouldn't have mocked you guys."
Wasabi Jirōchō turned to Shinju, seeking his opinion.
"Shinju-sama, would you say this resolves the issue?"
Shinju chuckled cheerfully.
"It's fine. We weren't hurt or anything ┐(´-｀)┌."
"Though… your subordinate there did take a kick from me."
Wasabi Jirōchō waved it off and gestured for the three young ninja to follow him into the guest hall.
Idate, watching this, felt a sinking weight in his chest.
So that's why the boss reacted so strongly — he already knew that red-haired ninja!
But still… wasn't this guy just a regular Konoha genin? Why was the boss treating him with such respect?
Before he could figure it out, Wasabi Jirōchō appeared behind him and smacked him on the back of the head again.
"What are you standing around for? Go brew some tea!"
Idate: "…Yes, sir."
...
Inside the guest hall.
Wasabi Jirōchō carefully explained to Shinju and the others the origins and development of the festival ritual. Everything matched up with what they'd heard on the streets earlier.
Finally, Jirōchō began outlining the competition rules.
"The process is simple."
"Both sides' contestants start at the starting point. First, they take a boat to Aotoroki Shrine and retrieve the Dragon-Tiger Spirit Orb placed on the altar. Then they run another twenty kilometers across the island to the Hō Grand Shrine on the opposite side. The first to arrive wins."
Shinju nodded — they'd already gotten the gist of this while wandering through town earlier.
Then he asked,
"Jirōchō-san, do you know which village the Wagarashi family hired their ninja from this year?"
Jirōchō shook his head.
"Not sure, but four years ago, they hired ninja from Amegakure. My guess is they did the same this year."
Upon hearing this, Naruto slapped his chest confidently.
"Ha! And here I thought they'd brought in someone from one of the Five Great Nations! If it's just Amegakure, that tiny village is nothing we can't handle! (ﾉ∇︎〃 )"
Sasuke: "Stop underestimating smaller ninja villages, dobe! (ꐦ ಠ 皿 ಠ)"
Shinju nodded slightly before asking another question.
"You and Idate seem close. What's your relationship?"
Wasabi Jirōchō replied,
"Picked that guy up on the streets three years ago."
"Even now, I've got no idea what he used to do."
"But since he's stuck with me so loyally, I treat him like my own little brother."
Shinju nodded thoughtfully, falling into deep contemplation.
Ever since he heard the name Morino Idate, he'd suspected this guy might be a missing ninja from Konoha.
After all, there was a Morino clan in Konoha. In fact, the proctor for the first stage of Shinju's own Chūnin Exams had been one of them.
Now, after hearing Jirōchō's explanation, Shinju felt even more confident in his suspicions.
He frowned slightly, thinking to himself:
"Could he be a low-bounty missing-nin from Konoha? If so… handing him over could earn us some decent ryo. A mosquito leg's still meat, after all…"