Chapter 197: Samon, the guardian of Loulan

As soon as the chakra cloak dissipated, Uchiha Gin felt a wave of scorching heat rushing toward his face, making his nasal cavity instantly dry, and his breathing also carried a trace of difficulty.

"Ah! My hair~"

Seeing his already curly hair becoming drier under the erosion of this heat wave, Uchiha Gin, who was anxious in his heart, immediately furrowed his brows and began to rummage through his bag.

Not long after, he felt a cold thing inside, and for a moment he was overjoyed, quickly taking it out.

"Hehe, this thing is just right!"

Uchiha Gin took out a piece of equipment emitting blue light from his backpack.

With the appearance of this equipment, the heat surrounding him was instantly driven away, and a cold, bone-chilling aura shrouded his body, blocking the subsequent heat waves.

Feeling the refreshing coolness, Uchiha Gin hung this equipment around his neck, stroked the gorgeous patterns on the equipment, and the satisfaction in his eyes was great.

【Eternal Winter: When worn, it forms a Winter Barrier around the body, slowing down the attack speed of all surrounding enemies, with a chance to freeze enemies.】

Didn't expect the Winter Barrier to be able to guest-star as a portable air conditioner in a non-combat state. Uchiha Gin immediately gave this artifact a very high evaluation in his heart. Sure enough, there was no equipment that was useless.

Uh... except for the Statikk Shiv, which is truly trash.

After carrying the Eternal Winter, Uchiha Gin was no longer afraid of the dryness of the Land of Wind. Looking at the small village with human smoke in the distance, he walked with wind under his feet, heading toward the target.

With the acceleration of his steps, the tribe named Loulan slowly appeared in Uchiha Gin's eyes.

This was a very ordinary tribal camp. People who had lived here for a long time built earthen bungalows. These houses with local characteristics were scattered throughout the entire camp.

It was mealtime, and many houses had rising cooking smoke, a peaceful scene.

"Stop, where are you from?"

Just as Uchiha Gin was about to step into this camp in the desert, the guards guarding the surroundings blocked his way.

Local people who had lived in the Land of Wind for a long time, regardless of gender, would wrap their faces with headscarves and face masks when they were outside to achieve the purpose of blocking sand and dust.

The two guards in front of him were typical Land of Wind outfits, wearing plain robes, holding simple long spears in their dry and rough hands, and gray-white face masks wrapped around their entire heads.

Revealing a pair of black eyes, they looked vigilantly at the uninvited guest with a strange appearance. The aura on the man in front of them made their scalps tingle.

"I am a traveler passing by. Seeing human smoke here, I want to come over and resupply."

Facing these two miscellaneous fish with no threat, Uchiha Gin didn't want to take action rashly.

After all, the task was just to investigate, not to slaughter. There was no need to make a big fuss. He just needed to take a turn and record it.

"Where is your luggage?"

The guards naturally wouldn't easily believe his ghost talk. Looking at Uchiha Gin, who had nothing in his hands, one of the guards mustered his courage and asked.

How could someone travel without bringing anything, and the skin of a person wandering in the depths of the desert was so fair and tender? There must be a problem.

"Uh... I encountered a sandstorm not long ago, and my luggage and horses were lost."

Scratching his face in embarrassment, Uchiha Gin also found that his current appearance didn't look like a dusty traveler at all, so he could only bite the bullet and continue to make it up.

"Then you wait here, I'll go report to the Captain, and wait for him to come and decide."

The two guards, although their strength was low, still had basic vision. There was no such plot where they were arrogant and then slapped in the face as in refreshing novels.

Only then did they look at each other cautiously. One of them flew into the camp, and the other guard left behind looked at Uchiha Gin nervously, his hand holding the long spear trembling slightly.

"Am I that scary?"

This was the second batch of people from the Land of Wind he had met today. The guards of the caravan he met earlier were also this cautious when they saw him. Uchiha Gin couldn't help but feel puzzled.

He didn't write the word "protagonist" on his face, how could these people see him and look like they were trembling with fear from his kingly aura, and wanted to bow down as soon as they met?

"This Lord, don't make things difficult for me, I have a daughter who was just born at home, please show mercy~"

The guard heard Uchiha Gin's question, his calves softened, and he almost knelt down. The pressure emitted by this strange man was really too scary. Even facing the Captain, he didn't have this feeling of suffocation.

Actually, Uchiha Gin didn't know that as long as he had opened Tenseigan Mode, even if he closed it, the pressure carried by the Tenseigan would remain on him for a short time.

Maybe he, as the person involved, couldn't feel it, but ordinary ninjas, just by paying a little attention, could perceive the terrifying aura that was bottomless on him.

"Then that's truly congratulations to you. A daughter is a father's intimate little cotton-padded jacket~"

Uchiha Gin, who didn't want to have a conflict, chatted with this guard who was left behind. With the deepening of the communication, the other party gradually let go of the vigilance in his heart. The main topic revolved around the guard's newly born daughter.

"Hehe, my little Chiyo is the cutest in the world~"

"Yes, yes, yes... eh? What is your daughter's name?"

While chatting, the guard reported the name of his newly born daughter. Uchiha Gin raised his eyebrows, glanced unobtrusively at the light purple hair exposed under the guard's headscarf, and confirmed.

"Chiyo, isn't it nice to hear?"

"That's right, your daughter will definitely be a very powerful ninja in the future."

Uchiha Gin replied with an inexplicable tone. Recalling the swimsuit meme in his previous life's mobile game, he only felt his eyes sour, truly unbearable to look back.

"Gin-sama..."

After some communication, this guard noticed that Uchiha Gin had no malice, so he leaned over carefully and said in a low voice,

"You're welcome, just call me Gin~"

Uchiha Gin, who had never cared about vanity, immediately waved his hand to correct him.

"Uh... Gin-sensei, when our Captain comes later, please don't hold a grudge against him because of his appearance. The Captain is a good person with a cold face and a warm heart."

Appearance? What does he look like that could make people hold a grudge?

If he didn't say it, it was fine, but this reminder aroused Uchiha Gin's interest, so he waited in place for the arrival of the Captain

Before long, a group of people rushed over from the distance, their rapid footsteps kicking up a cloud of dust. In the blink of an eye, this group arrived at the camp entrance with a menacing aura.

"Is he the terrifying person you spoke of?"

Before the dust had even settled, a cold voice rang out from within it.

As the dust gradually cleared, the first thing to catch Uchiha Gin's eyes was a shiny bald head. Only when the dust finally settled did the owner of that bald head reveal his true appearance.

A tall and burly bald man stood at the very front of the group. His narrow eyes revealed a terrifying look, and his completely hairless brows added a sense of chill to his appearance.

However, the most striking thing about his entire face was not his features, which were enough to stop a child from crying, but the green dragon coiled across his entire bald scalp. The black dragon claw was positioned right at his right eye, giving people a sense of oppression that was intimidating without him even needing to be angry.

"He's just an unremarkable man. Were you daydreaming while on duty?"

The tattooed bald man stared at Uchiha Gin, looking him up and down without finding anything suspicious. He then turned his head and barked fiercely at the other guard who had just gone to report.

"Huh? Why does he look different? Maybe it's because I haven't rested well these past few days~"

The guard who had gone to report looked at the calm-looking Uchiha Gin in surprise. He hesitated for a moment, touched his head in embarrassment, and whispered.

"Hmph, hmph, hmph~ To dare to neglect your duty—it seems you need a good punishment. From today on, go home and reflect for a week. Don't come back to work until you're no longer confused!"

Just when Uchiha Gin thought this hideous-looking bald man was going to severely punish the guard, he didn't expect that the man's ferocious mouth would actually utter such heartwarming words.

A week off? A corporate slave wouldn't even dare to dream of such a thing~

"Thank you, Captain Shamon. I will definitely reflect properly~"

As if they were accustomed to the bald man's methods, the people around them showed no expression of surprise; even the guard who had been punished showed no hint of fear.

No wonder that guard brother warned me earlier; it turns out this guy named Shamon is a good person who is different on the inside than he is on the outside~

Wait, Shamon?

Truly, the closer the time gets, the more acquaintances I encounter. The anticipation sealed deep within Uchiha Gin's heart grew increasingly intense.

"Who are you, and what are you doing coming to our Loulan?"

After punishing his subordinate, Shamon turned his head, furrowed his browless forehead, and asked Uchiha Gin, who wore a strange expression.

"I am a traveler wandering through various countries. Not long ago, I encountered a sandstorm and got separated from my companions; my luggage and horses were also lost."

Facing Shamon, Uchiha Gin stuck to his previous story, his dull, dead-fish eyes filled with sincerity.

"Where did you come from, and what is the purpose of your travels?"

Shamon's narrow eyes were filled with wonder. Although he was the captain of the Loulan guard, a figure in the tribe who was below only one person but above ten thousand,

he was only in his twenties and had never left the Land of Wind, so naturally, he was very curious about events in the outside world.

"This humble monk is from the Eastern Lands—er, I am a traveler from the Land of Fire. As for the purpose of my travels, it is to record the local customs and human sentiments I encounter, and incidentally, to make some interesting acquaintances."

Uchiha Gin, who had almost slipped up, immediately braked. A flash of contemplation crossed his eyes, and then he answered solemnly,

"The prosperous Land of Fire, huh? How long have you stayed in the Land of Wind?"

Speaking of the Land of Fire, a look of longing appeared in Shamon's eyes, but it didn't last long before he continued his questioning.

"Not long. Because there is a war going on, I haven't stayed in any fixed place."

Spreading his hands, Uchiha Gin gave a very reasonable explanation.

"Still fighting? How is the war situation?"

It is strange to say, but the Loulan tribe has remained reclusive for many years, stationed here for generations, and has never participated in the struggles between the various clans of the Land of Wind.

However, Shamon is different from the others in the tribe. He has ideals and ambitions; he wants to enter the vortex of the Land of Wind, demonstrate his own value, and leave a heavy mark of his own in the history of the Land of Wind.

Unfortunately, he is the guardian of Loulan's most mysterious treasure and will find it difficult to step even half a step out of Loulan in his lifetime.

"As for that, a man named Reto is currently riding high. It looks like there is a possibility of him unifying the ninja clans of the Land of Wind."

(End of chapter)