Chapter 284: No Habit of Knocking

At the top floor of Rain Hidden Village's central tower, rainwater streamed down the tempered glass, distorting the outside world into blurred patches of color.

Shanjiaoyu Banzang stood before the window, wearing a specially-made Breathing Mask, hands clasped behind his back, his knuckles white from the strain.

Over a dozen reports were scattered across the desk, each one representing a Rain Hidden Ninja who had failed to return. The most recent intelligence report was still stained with blood, brought back at the cost of his life by a severely wounded ninja who had broken through the encirclement that very morning.

So the ninja of these great nations not only treated Rain Country as a Battlefield, some ninja squads even attacked Rain Hidden Ninja…

In just a few short days, several squads had fallen victim to their attacks.

"These great nations are going too far!" Banzang's voice came through the mask, low and suppressed, clearly genuinely angry.

He turned and picked up the bloodstained report, which detailed in full how Sand Hidden Village Ninja had ambushed a Rain Hidden Patrol Team at the border.

In the corner, Rain Hidden Jonin Qing Tian kept his head lowered, not daring to even breathe loudly. Having followed Banzang for many years, he knew what fury lay hidden beneath his leader's current calm.

Shanjiaoyu Banzang slammed the report heavily onto the desk. "Treating Rain Country as a Battlefield is one thing, but now they even dare to casually kill our ninja and civilians."

He pointed toward the slums faintly visible through the rain outside the window. "Last week, thirty-seven of our civilians went missing — most of them children."

Anyone could figure out that ninja from these great nations had sneaked into the Village to do this!

Qing Tian spoke softly: "Lord Ban Zang, should we organize a retaliatory operation? The recent batch of Poison Mist Squad we've been training has already…"

"No." Banzang raised a hand to cut him off, the Breathing Mask emitting a faint hiss. "Now is not the time."

He walked over to the Ninja World Map hanging on the wall, his finger tracing the borders of Rain Country surrounded by the great nations. "Iwagakure, Sunagakure, Konoha — their strength cannot be underestimated. We still need time to develop."

Rain drummed against the glass, the atmosphere in the room heavy.

Banzang stood before the map, gazing at that small patch of territory symbolizing Rain Country, situated at the junction of the great nations.

"Pass down the order." Banzang suddenly spoke. "Recall all Rain Hidden Ninja currently on missions outside, and shrink the patrol range."

Qing Tian looked up in surprise: "Wouldn't that be showing weakness to those great nations?"

A cold laugh came from beneath Banzang's mask: "A temporary retreat is not a defeat." He walked toward the aquarium in the corner of the desk, inside which several highly venomous Salamander were kept. "Notify the Scientific Research Department to accelerate the research on new types of Poison Gas."

A Salamander's Poison Sac had been implanted within his body, a process that altered his physiology and granted him the ability to release deadly Poison — even his breath released Poison Gas.

Banzang wanted the Village's Scientific Research Department to develop powerful Poison Gas, so that Rain Hidden Ninja could one day use it against the ninja of the great nations in war.

Qing Tian nodded in acknowledgment, about to exit the office.

"Wait!" Banzang suddenly called out to him: "Issue Triple Compensation to the families of the fallen ninja, from my personal account."

After the office door closed, Banzang stood alone before the window, gazing at his own blurred reflection in the rain.

"One day…" he whispered, looking at the curtain of rain outside, his finger leaving a trail of mist on the glass, "I will make Rain Country suffer the humiliation of no one."

A bolt of lightning struck in the distance, illuminating the resolve flickering in Banzang's eyes.

In his view, Rain Hidden Village was like a wounded beast, temporarily lying low, yet never abandoning its fangs.

As long as he was given a little more time to develop, he would surely be able to change this situation.

"Who are you?!"

Qing Tian's sharp shout came from the corridor, followed by a few brief sounds of fighting, then everything fell silent.

Banzang instinctively frowned, unsure what had happened.

Before he could figure out the situation, the office's iron door suddenly warped and deformed, then was kicked flying by a tremendous force.

The heavy metal door grazed Banzang's ear and embedded deeply into the wall behind him.

"Sorry, I don't have the habit of knocking."

Banzang: "…"

A long-haired youth wearing a conical hat stood at the doorway, his right foot still held in a kicking posture. Behind him, guards lay sprawled unconscious in disarray, including Jonin Qing Tian.

Noticing his gaze, the youth explained: "Don't worry, they're just asleep."

Banzang said nothing, his eyes quickly scanning the youth — no headband from any Ninja Village, a Tachi tucked at his waist. Most striking was that cold, ruthless face, as though he regarded no one at all.

"You're Shanjiaoyu Banzang, aren't you?" the youth asked.

Banzang maintained a guarded stance, his voice muffled beneath the Breathing Mask. "Who are you?"

His peripheral vision caught the guards collapsed in the corridor — all of them taken down in a single strike, the wounds precisely placed at the carotid artery, the force controlled just right to cause unconsciousness without fatal injury.

This youth's strength could not be underestimated; in mere moments he had defeated all the guards. In his memory, he had never provoked this youth.

Wait, this youth seemed somewhat familiar…

Banzang narrowed his eyes, staring hard at the youth's face, but for the moment simply couldn't recall where he had seen him before.

This youth was none other than Lian Ye, who had come to challenge the establishment.

Lian Ye clicked his tongue impatiently: "I'm asking you a question — are you Shanjiaoyu Banzang or not?"

After all, these Rain Hidden Ninja all wore masks, making it hard to tell who exactly was Shanjiaoyu Banzang.

If, like with Yakushi Kabuto, the person he found turned out to be someone two levels below Shanjiaoyu Banzang's right-hand man, wouldn't that be a farce?

Seeing that Lian Ye meant no good, Banzang instinctively glanced at the scythe beside the desk — a weapon he had specially forged. If the youth before him chose to act, he would unhesitatingly take up the weapon and counter-kill his opponent.

"I am indeed Shanjiaoyu Banzang. May I ask what business brings you here?"

Seeing Shanjiaoyu Banzang confirm his identity in person, Lian Ye smiled and explained: "Don't worry, I've only come here to experience the Toxin of the Salamander for myself."

Hearing this, Banzang stared at the youth before him with a strange expression, feeling all along that this fellow didn't seem very bright…

In the Ninja World, who didn't know that his, Shanjiaoyu Banzang's, Poison was extremely dangerous? Hadn't he noticed he was still wearing a Gas Mask right now?

He had assumed the youth came to assassinate him, but never imagined he'd come to throw his life away!

Anyone struck by his Poison would almost certainly die.

Although Banzang had developed an Antidote himself, the survival rate was not high.

Because his breath could exhale Poison Gas, to avoid harming his comrades he had taken to wearing a mask and breathing through his mouth.

He hadn't expected that even so, someone unafraid of death would still come forward to experience his Toxin.

Noticing Banzang's suspicious gaze, Lian Ye finally chose to reveal his identity.

"Let me introduce myself. My name is Lian Ye."