The three Sand shinobi heard this and turned away without another word. Since the answers lay within the city, there was no need to waste breath arguing with the other village's ninja here.
While the Sand trio hurried off in agitation, the three from Iwagakure were in no rush. Compared to the Land of Wind, the journey from the Land of Earth to Muwang City was far longer. They had already been traveling for days without pause. With the city now in sight, they needed a moment to rest.
Shigeo marveled at the scale of Wuyouka's commission. To hire so many ninja to gather in Muwang City—it couldn't have been cheap.
He turned and left the hilltop. When he reappeared, he was already standing before the city gates.
"Muwang City!"
Three enormous characters, written in traditional script, hung above the gatehouse. A mist blanketed the city, white and heavy, carrying with it the faint fragrance of flowers. Yet peering through the gate, Shigeo saw not a single person inside—whether from the fog, or something else entirely, he couldn't tell.
In the brightness of day, the scene carried an unsettling eeriness.
Though still young, Shigeo had traveled far these past two years. He had visited many cities, but never one as strange as this.
On the road here, he had seen several other squads of shinobi heading in the same direction. Yet now, at the gates, the area was silent.
Just as he was puzzling over this, the sound of "ling-ling-ling…" drifted closer, the sharp ring of bells approaching rapidly.
Soon, a snow-white palanquin came into view. At each of its four corners dangled bells, chiming crisply with each jostling step. In no time, it reached the gate.
The four palanquin bearers were garbed strangely: black robes with long sleeves concealing their fingers, violet hair streaming down their backs, and each face covered by a demon mask twisted into a grinning expression.
From within the palanquin came muffled sobbing, soft and low, as if suppressed. Without listening carefully, it could barely be heard.
Shigeo's curiosity was piqued.
With a flicker, he slipped into the palanquin through his other-space technique.
Though he was still a child, his sudden appearance did not alarm the four bearers—they continued their pace into the city mist, unbothered.
Inside sat a young girl of striking beauty. She lifted her head, staring directly at the boy now hanging above her. Their gazes locked—both filled with surprise.
"Shh…" Shigeo pressed a finger to his lips, signaling her to keep silent.
Her wide eyes blinked, then she nodded, perfectly obedient.
Delicate and radiant, her expressive eyes carried a trace of fear. Her tears ceased as she slid sideways to make room.
With a flip, Shigeo landed beside her. His deep blue, unfocused eyes lingered on her face. After a long moment, he whispered:
"Why were you crying?"
The girl pointed to her throat, then lowered her head shyly.
Mute?
For Shigeo, it was more shocking than discovering his own blindness at birth.
"Who are they? Did they hurt you?" He knew the saying—"Nine out of ten mutes are also deaf." But clearly, she could hear him.
The girl gently picked up his hand, about to write something—but before she could, the palanquin halted at the edge of a cliff.
She shook her head quickly, pointing outside, her face etched with fear.
Shigeo vanished into his other-space again.
The girl was escorted by the masked bearers into a cavern at the cliffside. They climbed via an elevator shaft, emerging into a castle. Soon, she was placed inside a lavish chamber.
Shigeo shadowed them, reappearing in her boudoir. The room was vast, opulent to the extreme, furnished with every luxury. Yet the windows were barred with iron, and guards stood heavily at the door. Clearly, she was under confinement.
It was as if she had been waiting for him. The instant he appeared, she seized his hand, pulling him into the dressing room.
"I…" Her throat strained to form a sound, then she shook her head and took up paper.
Through her written words, Shigeo learned she was none other than the daughter of Wuyouka, the lord of Muwang City. She had only just been retrieved from afar.
"If your mother brought you back, why were you crying?" Shigeo asked, puzzled.
The girl fell silent, doll-like in her fine dress, seated upon the floor.
Suddenly, her eyes widened. She reached into the lowest corner of a cabinet and drew out a scroll, placing it firmly in his hands.
"I'm not important. Help me… save them."
The effort of speaking flushed her whole face red.
Shigeo frowned, peering at her throat. "You weren't born mute. Someone cast a forbidden jutsu on you. Open your mouth—let me see."
Sure enough, a seal was carved into her throat.
"I'll dispel it!" he offered. Though unfamiliar with the technique, he was confident given time.
But the girl's eyes went wide in fear. She shook her head frantically and scribbled:
"You mustn't. If it's broken, he will know. Many will die."
Shigeo's expression darkened. "Who is he?"
This time, she refused to say. She wouldn't even write, only pressed the scroll back into his hand with desperate insistence.
"Save them," she whispered hoarsely—then fell silent.
No matter how he pressed, she refused to leave. She even shoved him toward the door, urging him to go.
Reluctantly, he withdrew from the fortress.
Muwang City sprawled along the mountainside, its lord's castle towering at the western cliffs, grand and imposing. Below, the homes of commoners spread east, north, and south, walled in with a single eastern gate.
Now, seated on a seaside rock outside the walls, Shigeo unrolled the scroll she had given him.
It was a secret map of Muwang City—not only its streets and alleys, but the detailed schematics of Wuyouka's castle. Even the underground tunnels and hidden palaces were marked.
The complexity of the subterranean maze drew a quiet sigh from Shigeo. Muwang City was even grander—and darker—than he had imagined.
(End of Chapter)
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