The full moon hung high in the sky.
Its light was pure and bright.
From time to time, nightingales called out in the forest—clear, melodious, and lingering in the air.
Beneath the tree branches—
The woman's snow-white legs dangled freely in midair. Her delicate bare feet swayed gently, teasing the air as if stirring the surface of water.
At her mature age, she normally wouldn't make such girlish movements—but there was no one nearby.
Through the lenses of her round glasses—
She watched that team gradually disappear into the distance.
They hadn't insisted on finding her.
Only then did she feel relieved.
Those people had left in a hurry, like fugitives. After leaving, they likely wouldn't return.
"This is the first time I've ever been interrupted while bathing and had to flee in such an awkward state.
Sigh… sorry.
I have a mission to complete. I can't afford to waste too much chakra helping others."
A gentle smile surfaced on her pretty face. The inner conflict in her heart finally dissipated. She slowly stood up and reached out to undo the bath towel around her body.
The moonlight was as white as snow.
Her skin was smooth like jade.
The white towel slipped to the ground, covering the thorns below.
Her pale-pink toes stepped lightly on the branch. Nono closed her hands into seals, released a storage scroll, took out clothes, and put them on with practiced ease—then vanished in a Body Flicker.
Buzz—
The tree branch trembled slightly.
Wearing her shrine maiden robe—unable to restrain her full, surging curves—the mature, graceful figure leapt toward the mountain settlement.
Back at the wooden cabin—
The door stood open.
Nono pushed back her white hood. Beneath her golden hair, a fair and handsome face was revealed.
Looking at the empty hall—
Her light aqua eyes trembled, filled with confusion and astonishment.
"Hm? Where did my bathtub go?"
Her slender brows lifted slightly. Barefoot, she stepped outside and looked around. Seeing no signs of water being poured out, a huge question mark popped up in her mind.
That was a brand-new bathtub she'd bought with her own money yesterday after submitting a mission in Kikyo City to eliminate rogue ninjas!
Sure, someone could seal a bathtub into a storage scroll—but how could they seal it together with the bathwater still inside?
They couldn't find her—
So they took the bathtub to vent their frustration?
"How can there be people like this—stealing even bathwater?! Despicable!"
Suppressing her confusion, Nono couldn't help a trace of anger rise on her pretty face, even with her usually gentle temperament. Her jade fingers clenched tightly.
She cast her gaze down the slope.
Beside the rugged mountain path—
Jaeger and Doctor Nak were still chatting.
"Doctor Nak, it's so late—why don't you stay at my place tonight?" Jaeger invited warmly.
Nak shook his head and politely refused:
"No. The accounts at the Kabuki district still aren't settled. Such bad luck—being dragged out in the middle of the night to treat someone, and your friends didn't even pay medical fees!"
"I'll pay it!" Jaeger said with an honest smile.
Nak glanced at him. Seeing how sincere the hunter was, he waved his hand.
"Your family of three depends entirely on you to survive. Besides, how much money could a refugee hunter have? Forget it. I'll go to your place for a cup of hot tea, then I'll leave."
Jaeger's smile didn't fade as he hurriedly led Nak back home.
The moment they entered—
Both froze in place.
Candlelight flickered in the cabin.
Nono sat upright in the main seat, eyes half-closed, wearing a gentle smile. She looked like a graceful, dignified matron, calmly watching the two men at the door.
"Gah—blonde hair, round glasses, good-looking, shrine maiden outfit!!"
Doctor Nak's eyes widened. He sucked in a sharp breath and immediately turned to flee.
Jaeger instantly grabbed the doctor's arm tightly. His entire body tensed. He swallowed hard and stared blankly at Nono, whispering:
"Doctor, don't go… I'm scared."
"I'm scared too!" Nak's face twitched.
In his heart—and out loud—he cursed: I never should've been greedy for that cup of tea!
In the pitch-black night—
The Uchiha advanced with torches in hand, feeling their way forward in the dark. Since some members were carrying a stretcher, their speed wasn't fast.
They encountered no attacks along the way, allowing their tightly wound nerves to relax slightly.
Now, all they could do was pray that within the remaining three or four days, they would find a medical ninja for Tamao.
Walking close beside Yinyue, Izumi asked curiously:
"Captain Yinyue, why didn't that shrine-maiden ninja kill Mr. Jaeger and the others when they were pretending to be Mist rogue ninjas?"
Yinyue thought for a moment, then replied:
"For a ninja, what's the most important thing before taking action?"
Izumi smiled immediately. "Intelligence!"
Yinyue nodded lightly.
"I get it now!"
Izumi suddenly realized.
Before that female ninja acted, she must have investigated the rogue ninjas in this region.
She knew Jaeger's settlement wasn't made up of real rogue ninjas—so she chose to lodge there and even helped the family out of goodwill.
Still, Izumi felt that pretending to be rogue ninjas was an extremely unwise move!
Yinyue landed on a tree branch and looked up at the night sky. Stars sparkled like diamonds, the bright moon hanging pale and pristine.
This night—
Was just like the night he killed Danzō.
Beautiful beyond words.
A faint smile suddenly lifted the corner of Yinyue's lips. He stopped, turned back toward the team, and said calmly:
"Turn back the way we came."
"Huh?!"
The Uchiha were completely stunned.
Inside the simple cabin—
Nono frowned deeply as she looked at Jaeger, who clenched his teeth and refused to speak. She then turned her gaze to Doctor Nak.
"You tell me—who were those people just now? And what were they doing at Kikyo Mountain?"
At that moment, Jaeger and Nak were tied back-to-back to two chairs, completely unable to move.
Their faces were ashen.
As for Jaeger's wife—
She stood behind Nono, staring at the back of Nono's neck with a grave expression, holding the sleeping infant in her arms.
Nak sighed.
"I really don't know them well. I don't even know their names."
Thunk—
Nono deliberately stabbed a kunai into the tabletop.
Jaeger stared straight at the sharp blade, his eyes going wide.
Feigning cold indifference, Nono said, "I'll give you one last chance."
Naturally, she had no intention of harming Jaeger or Nak. She only wanted to intimidate them and try to gather information about that group.
This wasn't even necessary.
But when traveling—
As a former Root intelligence operative, gathering information was a skill engraved into Nono's bones.
For the sake of completing her current mission smoothly, she felt it was necessary to probe a little.
If that group had nothing to do with her mission, she would let it go.
If she truly wanted to extract information—
She could have threatened Jaeger with the woman and child behind her. That would've been far more efficient.
Before Jaeger could fabricate any lies, Nono's brows lifted slightly. A sense of premonition arose as she looked toward the tightly shut wooden door.
Bang—
The door was violently kicked open from outside. Wood chips and dust rained down from the ceiling.
A heavy stench of blood rushed in.
Jaeger's eyes widened. He felt that this smell of blood was even more pungent and unbearable than what had clung to Nono two days earlier.
Nono remained perfectly calm. She raised a hand to adjust her glasses and, through the clear lenses, saw four figures slowly walk into the cabin.
Jaeger's wife and the baby in her arms were startled—the infant immediately burst into loud crying.
The baby's cries marked the beginning of chaos.
Doctor Nak's pupils shrank sharply. He turned his head slightly and cursed inwardly again:
I really, really shouldn't have been greedy for that cup of tea!
The four wore Konoha ninja uniforms, Konoha forehead protectors on their heads. Their clothes were stained with fresh, not-yet-dried blood.
One was a short-haired, obese ninja with the character "Food" printed on his armor. In his thick hand, he gripped several Mist rogue-nin forehead protectors—one of them missing a corner.
Next—
A white-furred ninja dog slipped in through the doorway, nose twitching as it sniffed the lingering scent inside the cabin.
"Woof!"
Suddenly, it caught a familiar scent. The dog yelped in alarm and frantically tried to bolt outside, only to be yanked back by the leash held tightly by one of the ninjas.
Jaeger's gaze went vacant.
He stared fixedly at the chipped Mist rogue-nin forehead protector in the fat ninja's hand.
(End of Chapter 21)