After listening to the assassin ninja's confession, Shinju finally understood everything.
In short, all of this evil… was done by Mōsō!!
Years ago, Mōsō, leader of a group of wandering shinobi, came to the Land of Birds disguised as a monk and deceived the former daimyō into trusting him.
Later, in order to seize full control of the country, he assassinated the previous daimyō Ōwashi and the prince, Sagi.
When he discovered that "Sagi" was still alive, he deliberately stirred up suspicion among the people toward Kōmei, making Sagi and Kōmei distrust each other so he could profit from the chaos.
The reason he chose this moment to assassinate the daimyō was because he knew Shinju's team had come to investigate the Ghost Samurai and would be too occupied to protect the palace. Tonight, with the Ghost Samurai appearing in Kōmei's residence and the guards drawn away, it was the perfect time for him to strike and take power in one move!
What he didn't expect… was that the Ghost Samurai's true identity was the daimyō himself.
...
Inside Mōsō's mansion.
The old bald monk was pacing anxiously in the main hall, muttering to his subordinates,
"Why haven't the men I sent out returned yet? Something must've gone wrong! Σ( ° △ °|||)︴"
His subordinate tried to calm him.
"Boss, the palace is heavily guarded. We should give them a bit more time…"
Suddenly, Mōsō made a decision.
"No. It's been too long—something's definitely gone wrong!"
"We're not waiting for them. We're leaving now!"
His subordinate hesitated. "That's not right, boss. If the others find out, they'll lose heart."
Mōsō waved impatiently.
"Now's not the time for that! If they've already been caught in the palace, we'll have no way to escape! Ծ‸ Ծ"
With that, Mōsō turned sharply and hurried toward the door with two of his men.
But moments later—
The just-departed Mōsō stumbled back inside!
He forced a smile at Naruto and Neji, who were blocking his path.
"You two Konoha ninja weren't investigating the Ghost Samurai tonight? Why are you still here in my mansion? (o´Д`o)"
Then he quickly turned toward his subordinates, his eyes signaling them:
Didn't you say all four of the Leaf ninja went out? What's going on here?!
The subordinates returned an innocent look: We really did see all four leave together… ⊙_⊙
Neji noticed the exchange, smiling slightly.
"The two who went with our companions to investigate the Ghost Samurai were merely our shadow clones."
"To avoid suspicion, we had no choice but to use this trick. Please forgive the deception, Mōsō-dono."
Mōsō's heart sank. He feigned anger.
"Then why are you blocking my way? Why won't you let me leave?ヽ('⌒´メ)ノ"
Naruto replied calmly, "The Ghost Samurai appeared again tonight, and the capital of the Land of Birds is in chaos. We were worried something might happen to you if you went out, Mōsō-dono…"
That excuse only confirmed his fears.
At this point, being surrounded could only mean one thing—the Konoha ninja had already uncovered the truth!
Mōsō's eyes flicked between Naruto and Neji, sizing them up carefully...
Truth be told, the brilliance of Konoha's younger generation had long been overshadowed by Shinju.
As a wandering ninja, Mōsō had heard of Shinju's fearsome name—but had no impression at all of Naruto and Neji.
And if they were just two unknown brats... then maybe he had a chance!
Without warning, Mōsō's hands flew into seals.
"Since you insist on blocking my way, don't blame me for what happens next!（｀Δ´）!!"
But Naruto and Neji only exchanged a knowing grin, as if they had expected this.
...
After the captured assassin's confession, Kōmei immediately sent guards to surround Mōsō's mansion.
Shinju and Toki followed close behind.
At that moment, the captain of the guards shouted,
"Mōsō-dono! Come out and cooperate with our investigation! Otherwise, don't blame us for being rough!"
The next instant—
Creaaak—
The doors of Mōsō's mansion swung open.
The guards, already aware of Mōsō's true identity, tensed up immediately.
After all, they were only well-trained soldiers with a few special skills—far from being on the same level as shinobi.
But then...
The entire squad froze. (꒪⌓꒪) (ᗒᗩᗕ)՞
From within the mansion, Naruto and Neji emerged—dragging a tied-up Mōsō between them.
Naruto looked every bit the proud, triumphant general, grinning as he called out to Shinju standing behind the guards.
"Heh, Shinju, mission complete! ୧⍢⃝୨"
"This Mōsō guy was all bark and no bite—completely useless."
Shinju: "…"
Naruto's been hanging around me too long… he's even picked up my bad habits. (||๐_๐)
Soon after, Mōsō was handed over to the guards.
Toki turned to Shinju in surprise.
"You… you planned all this from the start?"
Shinju replied modestly, "Not really. I just noticed something was off about him and kept my guard up, that's all."
And with that, the Ghost Samurai case finally came to an end.
Afterward, Shinju and the others stayed one more night in the capital of the Land of Birds, where Toki treated them warmly.
The next morning, they prepared to leave.
Outside the capital, Toki sat gracefully in her palanquin—now dressed once again as a woman.
Naruto said, "Didn't expect Toki-chan to look this good in girl's clothes. ( ˝ᗢ̈˝ )"
Tenten rolled her eyes.
"She is a girl!"
Toki blushed slightly when she heard them, smiling shyly.
Then her gaze, soft as flowing water, turned toward Shinju.
"Shinju… I thought about something all night."
Shinju asked calmly, "What is it?"
With a faint blush, Toki lowered her head and whispered,
"Would you be willing to stay and help me govern the Land of Birds…? (´つヮ⊂︎)"
The lakeside scenery and the girl's flushed, shy face formed a picture of pure beauty.
Tenten, Neji, and the others were all dumbfounded.
I mean… who could say no to that? Not only would he win the heart of a beauty, he'd also become the daimyō of the Land of Birds in one move! ( ´▽` )
But beside them, Shinju answered seriously,
"No thanks. Sounds like a lot of trouble. I don't even want to be the Hokage back in Konoha—let alone rule an entire country."
As soon as he said that, Toki lowered her head in disappointment, her eyes dimming.
Seeing this, Shinju simply waved a hand.
"Thank you for your hospitality, Daimyō-sama. We'll be going now."
And with that, the red-haired boy and his companions turned away without hesitation, their figures slowly fading down the main road…
Even after Shinju was gone, Toki couldn't bring herself to look away.
Kōmei, noticing the daimyō's expression, comforted her softly.
"That young man's power reaches the heavens. He could never be confined to a small country like ours."
Toki knew he was right—but her heart still ached.
She murmured, "Even if he'd just left me something to remember him by…"
Then, as if realizing something, she touched her lower back gently—and smiled.
...
On the way back to the village.
Naruto asked Shinju, "Has the village already asked you to become Hokage?"
Shinju nodded. "Yeah, Tsunade-sensei's brought it up more than once… ┐(´-｀)┌"
Naruto sighed. "When's she ever gonna ask me? ꒦ິ^꒦ິ"