Chapter 195: Assassination, Scorpion, Deception

195. Chapter 192: Assassination, Scorpion, Deception

"Grandpa is coming back!"

Seeing the contents of the letter, Shisui sprang up, thrilled to the extreme, pacing the office while clutching the letter.

The ANBU members tasked with covert protection watched the Hokage's goofy grin with puzzlement; if they didn't know he was a Uchiha, they'd suspect the Hokage of being under a genjutsu.

After a long while, Shisui finally calmed down, sat back down, and read the letter carefully.

The letter said that the garrison left at the Tang Nation's defensive line had completed training; Sima Yi had largely grasped the ninja army's combat situation, so he planned to hand the northern forces over to Nara Riku for management, and that he would return to the village soon with those Uchiha.

As for the situation in the Water Country and Rain Country mentioned last time, he'll discuss it after he returns and learns the details.

Shisui naturally had no objection; the Rain Country or Water Country were nothing compared to his grandfather.

He left behind a clone and went straight home to tell Yan Shifan the good news.

Yan Shifan was a bit surprised; his eyes flickered as he took the letter, then he smiled and said, "It's good that Lord Sima is back; you can discuss military matters with him extensively, and with Lord Sima's ability you will surely see the clouds part and the sun appear."

Shisui was too busy being happy to notice Yan Shifan's actions.

After he left, Yan Shifan pondered for a long time, and when dusk fell he finally dispatched a letter with a messenger.

However, just as the letter left Konoha, a figure suddenly appeared and intercepted the messenger.

"Lord Jin Huo?"

The newcomer was Uchiha Jin Huo, the messenger's direct superior.

"Give me the letter, and stay here."

The masked messenger, seeing the figure appear in the moonlight, felt a shock; after confirming the identity, he did not hesitate and promptly handed over the letter.

Jin Huo took the letter and left immediately; moments later, the letter appeared in Shisui's hands.

Shisui's face darkened as he opened the letter, then deciphered its contents; after decoding, his expression suddenly froze.

To his surprise, the letter did not mention any news about Sima Yi, it only said "ten".

Jin Huo: "Yes!"

The letter was handed to the masked ninja, sent north again, and Shisui happily lay down to rest.

Meanwhile, at a manor on the outskirts of the Fire Nation's capital.

Under dim lighting, greedy, bloodthirsty faces filled the audience seats, excitedly watching the two combatants on stage, their cheers and curses echoing in waves through the dark underground.

Backstage, Izayoi, wearing a mask, quietly watched the surveillance of two unremarkable ninjas; one wore a White Tiger mask, the other a Flying Bird mask, matching their codenames.

Under his hidden manipulations, the paired opponents' abilities were closely matched.

After a period of fighting, both ninjas' chakra was depleted; they now resorted to the most primitive method of drawing swords to duel, while around the arena the Barrier, having withstood hundreds of blasts, still stood firm.

Aside from the surrounding Barrier, the arena was plain; to accommodate earth-style ninjas, the arena even lacked a floor.

However, it had just been built, and there were no other types of venues yet.

Nevertheless, it quickly attracted the attention of many wealthy families.

"Get up, crawl up, damn it, climb for me! Bite him to death with your teeth!"

The duel on stage concluded: White Tiger was gravely wounded and fell, and the spectators on the stands struggled to accept the outcome, shouting desperately, hoping their chosen fighter could rise again to bring them profit and enjoyment.

"Damned useless thing, get up! I invested so much money, how can we lose like this, get up!" Someone in the VIP seats couldn't sit still, shouting angrily.

"How can you give up, White Tiger, how can you just abandon it!"

Some didn't care about the money, but still found it hard to accept that the ninja they admired was about to fail.

"Flying Bird! Hahaha~"

Supporters of Flying Bird clutched their tickets excitedly and laughed loudly.

On the arena floor, White Tiger lay motionless, while Flying Bird, though barely standing, kept gasping and swaying slightly.

However, the duel could only end when one side died completely or verbally surrendered, so the match continued and the Barrier kept operating.

Flying Bird showed no sign of stopping; he chuckled, drew his sword, approached White Tiger, and slashed, instantly splitting the fallen White Tiger into two pieces.

Amid the wails, White Tiger's body turned to earth and collapsed.

When the blade fell, Flying Bird had already sensed something off with his grip, but having fought too long, his reaction had become sluggish.

In the haste, he couldn't dodge and could only utter, "I concede."

However, before the words left his mouth, a soil spear shot up from below and pierced his heart.

When the surrender signal was received, the Barrier dropped instantly, and the medical ninjas waiting outside rushed onto the arena to rescue him.

For Izayoi, these people needed to stay alive to generate more value for him, but not everyone has five hearts; Flying Bird lost his breath before he could be lifted off the arena.

When White Tiger turned the tide, the initial wails turned into cheers, the cheers into curses, in waves and groups, a noisy, lively uproar.

Izayoi listened to the cries from the stands, watched the bodies being carried away, felt a subtle emotion, but since it wasn't his first time seeing such a scene, he quickly composed himself and ordered his subordinates to continue work.

The arena was refurbished by earth-style ninjas, and the next duel proceeded as scheduled.

Match after match, each wealthy guest enjoyed great pleasure, and some youngsters yearned to rush onto the arena and slaughter everyone.

Soon it came to the penultimate round: two newcomers of unknown skill, whom Izayoi paired together.

At the start of the match, beside Izayoi, a wealthy middle-aged man wearing a mask let out a light laugh after his guard reminded him.

"In this world there are always some self-righteous people who cannot see themselves, who try to take what they shouldn't, yet cannot even preserve their own lives.

A person's worth lies in recognizing oneself. What do you think, Lord Izayoi? Need me to help handle it?"

Hearing the masked man's insinuation, Izayoi remained calm and unperturbed.

"Any means are allowed here, as long as he…"

The masked man smiled at the words, and with his guard turned toward the VIP seats.

While the two spoke, many beneath the arena began to show discontent.

Because the two on stage were fixing the match, this was treating the nearly thousand gamblers in the arena as fools.

Izayoi does not forbid fixing matches, as long as you have the ability to not be discovered, or, if discovered, the ability to leave alive.

You should know that, under his restrictions, only the rich or the noble can come here, and the connections and power they wield are enormous.

Even he had to spend a lot of effort to establish himself here, killing many people.

Seeing the two on the stage with only ordinary Chunin strength, Shi Liuye knew that without an accident they would not be able to leave alive.

The battle on the stage ended quickly, but there was little reaction from the audience; the two, unfamiliar with the situation, took the money and left happily, unaware of how many were following them.

Shi Liuye ignored those two guys and turned to the final scheduled match.

Scorpion vs Meteor.

A few days later, twenty li north of Owl Town, Sima Yi was sitting in a carriage, calmly pressing on.

Yang Zhe sat on the carriage roof, watching the surroundings warily, while Hui urged the carriage onward, sighing repeatedly.

At the front and rear of the carriage were twenty Uchiha clan ninjas.

"Uncle Sima, ahead is Owl Town; once we pass it we'll be close to Konoha. Want to speed up?" Hui tilted his head, gazing into the distance, his hips constantly shifting as if uncomfortable.

"No rush."

Sima Yi's steady voice came from the carriage box, forcing Hui, who wanted to gallop, to suppress his impulse.

Meanwhile, near Owl Town, a group of mysteriously dressed ninjas concealed themselves by the highway, slipping into the darkness and waiting silently for a target from the north.

After an unknown amount of time, the rolling wheels and light hoofbeats from the north drew nearer; the group exchanged glances, crouched silently, and stilled their breath.

A moment later, when a group of travelers entered the ambush zone, the leader's eyes flashed with murderous light.

"Attack!"

Evening, at the Konoha Gate.

Shisui frowned and paced back and forth, his anxiety unrelieved; as he gazed into the distance, a hint of doubt lingered in his eyes.

The onlookers on both sides were equally puzzled, yet hesitant to ask, because Shisui had come in a personal capacity to greet Sima Yi; they had merely happened to see the Hokage and came to join the commotion.

Yan Shifan stood aside, his expression calm, gently stroking his long beard, untouched by Shisui's presence.

Nara Suzaku, with dark circles under the eyes, swung his gaze back and forth following Shisui; his head was about to spin.

"Hokage, Uncle Sima has many guards; nothing will happen."

"Many?"

Shisui shook his head, thinking it insignificant; that few people would be of any use.

"Logically, we should have arrived by now; did something go wrong? Kakashi, go with a team to check."

"Understood."

Kakashi complied, leading a squad that quickly left the village.

Shisui's worry was hard to dispel; his gaze kept drifting unintentionally toward Yan Shifan, then he kept shaking his head.

Yan Shifan seemed oblivious, closing his eyes and entering a meditative state.

After an unknown span, when the last ray of sunlight fell, Kakashi's figure finally appeared on the horizon.

"Hokage, the person is right behind us."

As the words fell, Yan Shifan's eyebrows lifted slightly, he slowly opened his eyes, then fixed his gaze on Kakashi.

"That's good, as long as Grandfather is fine!"

Receiving the affirmative reply, Shisui instantly exhaled in relief; before he could ask further, he saw over twenty ninjas ahead, escorting a carriage slowly.

Near the gate, the procession halted; Shisui instantly spotted Hui driving the carriage and Yang Zhe on the roof, and they in turn saw Shisui clad in a divine robe.

"Clan Leader, Hokage!"

Seeing the coveted garment finally worn by a Uchiha, everyone was thrilled, flocking to Shisui to bow.

"Thanks for everyone's hard work."

Shisui helped Hui and Yang Zhe to their feet; the others rose as well, then stood tall on both sides.

Sima Yi disembarked at that moment, calmly approaching Shisui, looking at him with satisfaction, and softly sighed, "Not bad, you've matured a lot."

The praise made Shisui's nose tingle; he held back tears, yet his mouth twitched upward, laughing naively, "All thanks to Grandfather's teaching, and, of course, the teacher as well."

Yan Shifan's mouth twitched; seeing Sima Yi, he quickly adjusted his expression, smiled, and bowed, "Long time no see, Lord Sima, your bearing remains unchanged."

Sima Yi's eyes twinkled mischievously, and he laughed, "We also owe thanks to East Tower for looking after us; the journey has been enjoyable."

"Hahaha, then that's fine; I've had a banquet prepared for the Lord, please join."

Yan Shifan naturally understood what was meant, chuckled softly, and, unembarrassed, raised his hand to invite the other to go first.

Sima Yi did not pursue the topic further; after polite exchange, he accepted and led Yang Zhe and the others back to the clan lands.

"Eh? Me too."

"Hokage!"

Shisui took the day off, still having some tasks unresolved; he refused to do them, so naturally he shifted the blame onto Nara Suzaku.

But Nara Suzaku's workload had been overwhelming lately, the dark circles had literally formed; if Shisui kept pushing, they'd end up in the hospital.

At this moment, seeing Shisui about to run away, Nara Suzaku disregarded status and grabbed Shisui, hoarsely pleading for him to go to the Hokage Building.

Shisui had no choice but to give up.

However, before heading to the Hokage Building, Shisui also pulled Hui, who was itching for a fight, away.

"I was just waiting to come back for drinks and meat; why did you bring me here?"

Rarely returning to Konoha, seeing others rejoin the clan for the banquet, Hui felt a restless itch.

"Brother Hui, did you encounter anything on the way?"

Although the letters were fine, the earlier conversation made Shisui suspicious.

"Hmm? No, everything went smoothly."

Hui recalled briefly, slowly shook his head, his expression puzzled, not understanding why Shisui asked.

"Nothing happened? Like assassins or mountain bandits, for example?"

"We did run into some mountain bandits, but they were all short‑sighted fellows, we dealt with them easily; rest assured, everything went smoothly."

"That's good, that's good."

Shisui, hearing that, could only call it off, exchanged a few more pleasantries, and then sent Hui back.

"Seems I was overthinking."

At the same time, within the clan grounds, Sima Yi and Yan Shifan sat on the ground, drinking and making merry.

The two always spoke nonsense that no one understood, so the others simply ignored them and each continued their own revelry and drinking.

The banquet lasted a long while, and when Shisui returned, it was only just past the halfway point.

Shisui knew Sima Yi had traveled all day and was somewhat weary, so after offering a few cups of tea in place of wine, he focused on plain rice and did not engage the other in much serious conversation.

Until midnight, when everyone was drunk, he arranged for Jin Huo and Ying Shu to escort the guests back to rest.

As for Sima Yi and Yan Shifan, both were visibly drunk, and Shisui could only help them back to their respective rooms to rest.

After Shisui left, Yan Shifan slowly opened his eyes, frowned, and pulled a slender bamboo tube from his bosom—a tube he had obtained as an excuse to use the restroom midway through the banquet, but had not yet had time to examine.

Inside the bamboo tube was a slip of paper.

Yan Shifan took the slip out and, by the moonlight, examined it closely.

After a moment, Yan Shifan muttered softly, "Old thing, not a single true word from its mouth, even deceiving Shisui!"

Having finished the scold, Yan Shifan laughed in exasperation and couldn't help but sigh, "No wonder you live so long." (End of chapter)