Chapter 106: "Filial Piety" Melodramatic Family Drama
Falling Leaf Town, the Mayor's Mansion.
Haruko and the others looked at each other.
This plot... how did it suddenly turn into a melodramatic family drama?
"Rebellious son! You rebellious son!"
The pudgy mayor trembled with rage, pointing at the leader of "white bird" kneeling on the ground—his own son. His finger shook as if he were playing a Parkinson's concerto.
"I sent you to the best private school, but you didn't study hard and insisted on running off to train as a Ninja. Fine, but after you finished your training, you actually became a thief!"
"That's all wealth squeezed from the people by those crooked merchants! What's wrong with me using it to help the poor?"
The young man kneeling on the ground stiffened his neck. Though bound by ropes, his momentum didn't falter.
"If it weren't for those mercenary merchants, would the people of this town be suffering so much? On the other hand, you collect that money every day—aren't you afraid of karma!"
"You know jack shit! You foolish child, you've let a few words of praise as a 'heroic thief' go to your head!"
The mayor almost fainted from anger, but more than rage, it was the frustration of his son failing to meet expectations.
"You think the townspeople are suffering, but do you know that twenty years ago, this was just a desolate, godforsaken Village? It only developed into what it is today because of the merchants you despise!"
"If I didn't deal with those merchants, the Village would have been annexed by our neighbors long ago! Without money, how would we build roads? How would we hire people to protect the town?"
Haruko squatted in the corner watching with interest, holding a slice of watermelon—swiped from the fruit plate in the mayor's house.
As an onlooker, Haruko's conclusion was—both were at fault, and both deserved a share of the blame.
Developing the town was true, but the greed was also real; having a heart for justice was true, but being blinded by praise was also real.
But none of this had anything to do with him, an outsider. He just wanted to eat his melon while enjoying the drama.
But some people didn't want to just watch.
"Ahem. Excuse me, Mayor-sama." Kakashi had to interrupt. "Since this is a family matter, it's not convenient for us to interfere. However, regarding the Emerald Cabbage..."
Hearing the words "Emerald Cabbage," the father and son, who had been like fighting roosters, suddenly fell silent at the same time.
The mayor looked at his son: "Where is it? Hand it over quickly! You scoundrel, you actually dared to touch our own family heirloom!"
The young man froze, looking indignant: "How could I possibly steal my own family heirloom!"
Everyone's eyes instinctively turned toward Shiranami, who was tied up and thrown in the corner.
"Don't look at me. I only targeted white bird because I wanted money and manpower..."
Just then, the butler who had been standing behind the mayor suddenly stepped forward and took an exquisite wooden box from his robes.
"Master... Young Master... The item is with me."
Upon opening it, it was indeed the stolen Emerald Cabbage.
"You..." The mayor's eyes widened. "You hid it?!"
The butler fell to his knees with a thud, tears streaming down his face. "Master, I had no choice but to hide it! During that time, several large merchants had already developed murderous intent because they were robbed by " white bird " several times. They were going to unite and post a bounty on the black market. I watched the Young Master grow up; I couldn't watch him die!"
"I thought if the family heirloom went missing, Master would surely invite Konoha Ninja to investigate, and those assassins wouldn't dare to act recklessly... And as long as the heirloom wasn't found, the Young Master, as the nominal culprit, would have to be kept alive..."
Silence filled the hall.
Haruko tossed aside the finished melon rind and looked at the Old Man prostrate on the ground weeping, his eyes flickering slightly.
'Tsk tsk, that's human nature for you."
Everyone was acting for what they believed was right.
The mayor amassed wealth for the town, the young master stole for justice, and the butler stole from within to protect his master.
Hana and Izumi looked awkward, not knowing what to say.
Kakashi cleared his throat: "Since the Emerald Cabbage has been found, our mission is considered complete. As for the matter of white bird..."
"I'll handle it." The mayor waved his hand. "Thank you all."
"Then we shall take our leave."
...
On the way back to Konoha, Hana and Izumi were still immersed in the joy of striking it rich.
"Over two hundred thousand Ryo! That's more than I earned all of last year!"
"I plan to give part of it to my family and save the rest."
"Me too, me too!"
The two girls chatted away, completely failing to notice Haruko's "as long as you're happy" expression.
Kakashi walked at the very back, guarding Shiranami.
"Why did you target the Emerald Cabbage? And... where did you get that scroll?"
Shiranami was silent for a few seconds before finally speaking.
"...Ge Cheng Mountain. My father was a disciple of the Ascetic Practitioner. I killed him and stole the scroll."
The sudden explosive revelation stunned even Kakashi, and the two girls stopped talking.
"They're just a bunch of fools! Begging for food while sitting on a gold mine!"
Madness flickered in Shiranami's eyes. "That Forbidden Jutsu is a power that can instantly level a town, even rivaling a Tailed Beast! Yet they sealed this power away, treating it like a monster, preferring to hide in the mountains like cowards while watching the Clan Members wither away day by day!"
He roared hysterically, clearly having given up all pretenses.
"I'm not resigned! I'm not resigned to rotting away in Mount Katsuragi like them! Since my father refused to give the technique to me, I had to take it myself."
Hana's brow furrowed, and she couldn't help but turn back to scold him: "So you killed your own biological father? You're absolutely insane!"
"Those who achieve great things don't sweat the small stuff!" Shiranami yelled back with a stiff neck. "As soon as that Old Man, the Ascetic Practitioner, kicks the bucket, I can lead people back to Mount Katsuragi to seize the core of the Forbidden Jutsu."
"As long as I get that Forbidden Jutsu, I can establish the Sixth Great Nation! Even the Five Great Ninja Villages will have to answer to me! Who will care how I got it then? History is written by the victors!"
Shiranami continued to prattle on about his grand blueprint for world domination, but in Haruko's eyes, this guy wasn't even fit to shine the Akatsuki Organization's shoes.
'A frog in a well... If just "carrying rice" could rule the world, would Brother Chao still need to collect Tailed Beasts?"
"I say, Kakashi-sensei. Why are we bringing this guy back to the Village?" Haruko approached Kakashi and made a gesture across his throat. "Why not just..."
He had originally thought Shiranami would be handled like other thieves and left to the mayor. He hadn't expected Kakashi to say something to the mayor that resulted in him being escorted to Konoha.
"He is a rogue Ninja of the Tsuchigumo Clan and carries the secrets of that family's Forbidden Jutsu. Since Konoha has taken over, we must do things by the book." Kakashi shifted his gaze forward. "Taking him back for Hokage-sama to decide is the proper procedure."
"Tch, so rigid."
Haruko curled his lip; he could guess with his toes how that Old Man, the Third, would handle it.
That Old Man is full of talk about benevolence and morality; he's all about appearances and sets up the highest moral monuments.
As an ally, the Third would definitely not execute Shiranami. Instead, he'd pack him up and send him back to Mount Katsuragi for that Old Man called the Ascetic Practitioner to deal with.
'Forget it, anyway, the most important Forbidden Jutsu is already in my hands. It doesn't matter what happens to that waste."
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