"Hey! dead fish eyes, I am talking to you!"
The scar-faced ninja stood up and walked over, stopping beside the table where Ryuji Hyuga and the others were sitting, looking down at them from above. His sharp eyes swept across the four faces, and his voice carried a hint of intimidation and threat. "You four look unfamiliar, and your behavior is suspicious. I have reason to suspect you are spies, so come with me."
Unfamiliar my ass, spies my ass. The capital of Land of Rain was not Amegakure, and it did not cut off contact with the outside world, so there were many merchants from other places in the city. There was no way this guy could recognize everyone.
Plenty of people had heard that sentence and sneaked glances, but it was only because Kakashi Hatake's dead fish eyes drew too much attention that he got singled out. This was simply a case of killing the chicken to scare the monkeys, a warning to others who had heard things they should not, telling them not to spread gossip.
"Bad luck."
Realizing this, Kakashi Hatake sighed inwardly. He knew that running away now was impossible and would only confirm that their identities could not be seen in the light. Even if they escaped, it would alert others and raise the difficulty of the mission.
So he fell silent for a moment, quietly refining Chakra, then calmly raised his head to look at the scar-faced ninja. "Do you know what you are doing?"
Hearing this, the three Amegakure Ninja who had been sitting behind and did not plan to get involved exchanged looks, sensing something wrong, and also stood up to walk over.
"Hm?"
Seeing the four who seemed oddly confident, the scar-faced ninja felt a sudden jolt in his heart, but his mouth did not yield. "Oh? You four cripples cannot even put together three pairs of eyes, and you dare question me?"
Kakashi Hatake only showed one eye, and Ryuji Hyuga had kept his eyes closed the whole time, pretending to be blind, so they really could not make three pairs of eyes.
"Idiot!" Kakashi Hatake's tone sank. "Just based on what you said earlier, we could execute you on the spot!"
The scar-faced ninja's forehead veins bulged as he stepped forward to lash out, but the long-haired ninja who had come up behind him quickly reached out and stopped him.
"You are ANBU?"
The long-haired ninja narrowed his eyes and carefully examined Kakashi Hatake and the others, finally fixing his gaze on the one who had remained silent, "Tenzo."
Tenzo, who would later be known as "Yamato," had once been "Kino" of the Root Ninja. Because he had not joined ANBU for long, the dead and cold aura from Root had not yet faded from him.
Moreover, the ANBU established by Hanzo was not the same as the Konoha kind of ANBU. It was more like a group of true loyalists who existed to protect him alone.
"Now it is your turn to come with us," Kakashi Hatake said coldly, neither confirming nor denying.
At these words, the expressions of the scar-faced ninja and the other three changed at once, theirguess instantly confirmed in their hearts. Recently, because they had failed to catch the remnants of Akatsuki, Hanzo had grown suspicious that there were internal collaborators in Amegakure and ordered ANBU to conduct thorough investigations, implicating many people.
Now, from top to bottom, Amegakure was full of fear, with everyone feeling unsafe. To the scar-faced ninja and his companions, the aura on Tenzo was exactly the same as those hyenas of ANBU, filling them with shock and dread.
If what they had just discussed reached Lord Hanzo's ears, even if the four of them survived, they would still be skinned alive. The scar-faced ninja and the long-haired ninja exchanged a glance and saw the same plan in each other's eyes.
"Haha, so you are brothers from Rain. Our apologies, our apologies, we were rude."
The scar-faced ninja showed a look of sudden understanding, laughing as he bent over and leaned closer, reaching into his clothes to pull out money, hoping these four hyenas would accept some meat on the side. They did not have the guts to attack members of ANBU, but bribing them with money was still possible.
However, just as his hand went into his clothes, Ryuji Hyuga beside Kakashi Hatake suddenly raised his head and shouted, "What are you trying to do!"
The scar-faced ninja and the three Amegakure Ninja behind him froze for a moment. Before they could react, all four, including Kakashi Hatake, moved at the same time with clear division of labor.
One grabbed a wine bottle. One smashed it into a Amegakure Ninja.
Bang! Bang bang!
The unopened bottles shattered, red wine mixed with blood splashing everywhere, like a red rain falling inside the tavern. Clearly, the limited combat training and reaction speed of the Amegakure ninjas were no match for the four from Konoha, who came from ninja clans and from ANBU and Root.
The four Amegakure Ninja were caught completely off guard. Three were knocked unconscious by heavy blows to the head, and only the largest, the scar-faced ninja, merely saw darkness before his eyes.
"You, you are…"
His first reaction was to raise his hands to form seals, but his wrist was seized by someone, held by five slender fingers that looked warm and smooth like jade.
Crack!
"Ah!!"
A crisp sound came from his wrist, turning his words into a scream as he instinctively tried to pull back his right hand in agony. Yet it felt as if his hand was stuck in Yamanaka Clan, completely unable to move, and the youth grappling with him felt like a mountain.
Crack! Squelch!!
Terrifying strength burst out, bones making chilling cracking sounds, muscles snapping instantly under the force, and bright red blood spraying from between the fingers. Amid the strange sounds of flesh being crushed, the scar-faced ninja's wrist lost all shape, and under the intense pain his eyes rolled back and he lost consciousness.
Thud.
Ryuji Hyuga released his grip with an expressionless face, and the scar-faced ninja, already passed out from pain, collapsed to the ground. Seeing this extremely bloody and brutal scene, the customers who were about to scream shut their mouths like chickens grabbed by the neck.
"You dare insult Lord Hanzo, you dog that does not know life or death!"
Ryuji Hyuga shouted angrily, then turned to the stunned crowd. His tone and expression were full of rage as he spoke loudly, "Who let us live in peace, and who made Land of Rain strong?"
"It is Lord Hanzo. I hope everyone remembers that Lord Hanzo is the hero of Land of Rain. Heroes are to be respected, not insulted. As long as Lord Hanzo remains in Amegakure for a single day, the great nations will not dare invade!"
"Lord Hanzo is the sun of Land of Rain. Anyone who tries to spread absurd words that shake people's hearts will be severely punished!" His voice was passionate and forceful, filled with fanatic devotion to Lord Hanzo.
As soon as he said this, the frightened crowd froze for a moment and exchanged looks. Their emotions strangely calmed, and a glimmer appeared in their eyes as they looked at Ryuji Hyuga and the others.
[ Ding! Your lie has been judged as [turning black into white]. Xiao Dao Hong, Beili, and others experienced emotional fluctuations and reached the level of [complete belief], gaining 300 Reality Points ]
At this moment, beside Ryuji Hyuga, the corner of Kakashi Hatake's mouth twitched. He naturally knew the status Lord Hanzo held in the hearts of the people of Land of Rain.
For most of the people of Land of Rain, their admiration and reverence for Lord Hanzo were genuine, and many had grown up listening to his legends. The reason Land of Rain was not affected during the Third Shinobi World War was precisely because Lord Hanzo's fearsome reputation made other great nations hesitate to invade.
So when they heard the scar-faced ninja complain about Lord Hanzo, these civilians did not dare speak up, but they were actually dissatisfied inside. What Kakashi Hatake did not expect was that Ryuji Hyuga would seize this point so quickly.
Originally, Kakashi Hatake planned to impersonate ANBU to subdue the four Amegakure Ninja, then use the authority of ANBU to order everyone to keep quiet. But such a hard approach would easily breed resentment and defiance, likely only delaying things before someone reported it.
Therefore, he could not help but feel surprised and somewhat appreciative of Ryuji Hyuga's handling and quick reaction. This move of turning black into white was clean and decisive, and his tone truly sounded like that of a fanatic who worshiped Lord Hanzo.
"So they are ninja lords as well!"
The tavern owner, who had been hiding behind the counter, finally reacted and hurriedly stood up, bowing respectfully. "Thank you, honored sirs, for clearing out scum for Land of Rain and Amegakure!"
The crowd now showed no fear at all, nodding and praising them, their eyes full of disgust and hatred as they looked at the four fallen Amegakure Ninja. Scum who did not know gratitude deserved death.
"Thank you for your understanding."
It was best if the matter could be resolved quietly, so Kakashi Hatake reminded everyone in the tavern, "Everything you heard and saw today must not be leaked to anyone else. I hope you will cooperate."
"Of course!"
"We understand!"
"We did not see anything!"
Everyone nodded eagerly, obediently sitting back down as they watched Kakashi Hatake and the others carry out the four Amegakure Ninja. The tavern owner even jogged over to personally see them to the door.
The four used the Body Flicker Technique to vanish from the tavern, leaving behind payment for the drinks and cleaning, making those left behind show looks of admiration. Pure and firm in belief, taking nothing from the people, this was the true guardian of Land of Rain.