"Did you kill them all?"
Jaeger looked dazed as he lifted his head, staring at the Konoha ninja who was smoking and clearly in charge.
The man had a thick beard, rough facial features, and a weathered appearance. A trace of amusement brewed in his eyes.
Jaeger stood there in a trance.
How could he not recognize those forehead protectors? He had risked his life to pick them up from battlefields and pass them to nearby refugees, using them to deter mountain bandits.
Asuma took a drag from his cigarette, smiled, exhaled smoke, and said lightly:
"Oh—just a few rogue ninjas."
Jaeger murmured blankly, "They weren't rogue ninjas…"
"Oh? They weren't?"
Asuma smiled faintly, leaned close to the thin man's face, and blew a thick cloud of smoke at him, enunciating every word:
"Then where is your forehead protector?"
Jaeger's pupils shrank. His face went deathly pale.
Clang—
Veins bulged on his forehead as a Hyūga branch-family jōnin activated his Byakugan. In stark black-and-white vision, he began scanning the cabin.
During the inspection, the Hyūga jōnin sneered:
"You refugees—whether you carry rogue-nin forehead protectors or not doesn't matter.
If we kill you, then you're dead.
The Land of Fire doesn't need refugees.
If we say you're rogue ninjas—
Then you are rogue ninjas.
In the ninja world—
No matter which country's border you're on, you're nothing but homeless ants.
Used as cannon fodder by the great villages.
Used by ninja to pass off as rogue ninjas in exchange for rewards—
Isn't that your fate anyway?"
His words carried the arrogance of the Hyūga clan, even though he was merely from the branch family.
Jaeger stared blankly at the ceiling.
"It was war that turned them into refugees. After fleeing here, they didn't rob or harm anyone. They lived by hunting."
Nono stood up and spoke coldly.
She pulled the kunai from the table and flicked it lightly, slicing through the ropes binding Jaeger and Nak.
Looking at the Konoha forehead protectors on the four ninjas, Nono suddenly felt deep shame—being from the same village as people who trampled lives so casually was a disgrace.
Jaeger remained seated.
Doctor Nak bolted behind Nono without hesitation. As a seasoned survivor, he could tell—this woman had no intent to kill, but the four Konoha ninjas who had just arrived were pure butchers.
"Who cares?"
The Hyūga jōnin raised an eyebrow, ignored Nono completely, and walked straight toward the kitchen.
Asuma scanned the floor, then focused his gaze on Nono.
She looked familiar, but he couldn't recall where he'd seen her. Smiling, he asked:
"I didn't expect to meet another ninja here. Which village are you from?"
Although Nono's reputation was well known, very few people—even within Root—had ever seen the true face of the Wandering Shrine Maiden. That was basic discipline for an intelligence operative.
As for her identity as the director of Konoha's orphanage—who cared? Konoha ninja didn't spend their days hanging around orphanages.
"My name is Yakushi Nono.
Former member of Konoha's Root.
Currently on an external mission.
How did you find this place?
And what is your objective?"
Nono took out her Konoha forehead protector and her Root mission scroll, dropped them onto the table with a sharp clack, and met Asuma's gaze.
Asuma glanced at the items. His eyes lit up as he suddenly remembered.
"So you're the director of Konoha's orphanage!"
He chuckled.
"Sorry.
We're under no obligation to disclose our mission details to you."
Hearing Nono's name, Asuma did have an impression. Back then, he and colleagues had once discussed attractive female ninja in Konoha—
And one colleague had praised Nono as being among the top in both looks and figure.
At this moment, an Inuzuka ninja tugged firmly on the leash of his snow-white dog and laughed:
"We followed the scent of blood—Snowmaru and I tracked it all the way here.
Though I've got to say, this place is really remote. Took us ages to find it!"
Their team had waited on the waterways outside Kikyo City until late at night but never saw the Uchiha defector squad. After reinforcements arrived, they spread out to search Kikyo Mountain.
The ninja dog detected the smell of human blood.
They deduced that the Uchiha defectors had fought on the mountain—
And so this pursuit squad converged on the refugee settlement.
"The smell of blood…"
Guilt surfaced in Nono's eyes. Her body trembled slightly.
So it was her unintentional acts—hunting real rogue ninjas and bandits—that had brought annihilation upon this refugee settlement.
She also understood now: this well-equipped Konoha squad was chasing the group that had just fled.
Nono glanced at Jaeger, her heart heavy. If she had made a mistake, she had to make amends—at the very least, she couldn't allow this family of three to die at the hands of Konoha ninja.
Bang—
The Hyūga jōnin emerged from the kitchen carrying a set of used teacups—twelve in total—and placed them on the table.
Asuma, the Inuzuka jōnin, and the Akimichi jōnin all examined them.
Jaeger noticed as well. His pupils trembled as clarity returned.
"Woof! Woof!"
Snowmaru barked twice at the teacups, then hid nervously behind his master's legs.
"Snowmaru is saying that twelve people used these cups," the Inuzuka jōnin explained with a smile.
Asuma pushed one cup toward Jaeger.
"One for the host. Eleven remaining.
Looks like our intel was wrong.
That rogue-nin squad has eleven people—not ten."
"I ask. You answer."
The Hyūga jōnin, Byakugan active, stared at Jaeger's face and asked coldly:
"Which direction did those eleven flee?"
Jaeger's mind raced.
Without hesitation, he pointed south and replied:
"They went that way."
He didn't know much—
But he knew one thing. If Captain Yinyue had escaped from Konoha, then the east—where Konoha lay—could never be pointed to.
The Hyūga jōnin frowned and slammed a heavy kick into Jaeger's abdomen, sending both man and chair flying into the wall.
Jaeger crashed to the ground, clutching his stomach, teeth clenched, sweat pouring from his forehead.
"Ah—!"
Jaeger's wife cried out and tried to rush to her husband—
But in an instant, a kunai rested against her neck, and another was aimed at the swaddled infant in her arms.
The Hyūga jōnin appeared behind her, holding the two kunai steady, and whispered:
"Don't move.
If you move—everyone dies."
Nono's pupils shrank. Her fists clenched as she waited silently for the perfect moment to strike.
Nak had already collapsed into a corner, trembling uncontrollably.
Judging from their movements and methods, these ninja were strong even by Konoha standards.
"Four Konoha jōnin…"
Nono's expression turned grave as she stared straight at them, feeling immense pressure.
Inwardly, she wondered—just who were those people who stole her bathtub, to warrant Konoha dispatching a pursuit squad of this caliber?
Asuma watched the scene with indifference. The Hyūga jōnin he'd brought had once served in the interrogation division—
And had been expelled by Morino Ibiki for being excessively brutal.
"Don't try to be clever.
I can tell from facial expressions whether you're lying.
I won't waste words.
Four directions—south is eliminated."
The Hyūga jōnin said coldly:
"Three directions remain. Only one is correct.
If you lie—I kill someone at random.
You get two chances.
When they're gone—
You die."
(End of Chapter 22)