He then told them the tale of a great hero abandoned by all. His name was Jurima.
They learned that the village of Kuwa was protected by Jericho, a very strong samurai.
When the bandits first attacked, he fought them and drove them out, but one day they returned and used the village as a hostage, threatening to set it on fire.
Despite this, the man did not surrender.
He told the villagers to follow him and fight alongside him, but no one responded to his call.
Someone among the village even colluded with the enemy to expose the hero, and that is how he died, betrayed by the same people he was protecting.
Later, after killing the hero, the bandits only increased their attacks on the village. It got so bad that the villagers could no longer just stand there, since they would die either way.
That is when the resistance was formed, but it was too late, said the leader bitterly.
Hearing the full story, Shintoki was very angry. He even lost most of his compassion for them. And it wasn't just Shintoki—everyone else was also angry at how they had betrayed their own hero.
Seeing this, the village head could only awkwardly lower his head, knowing they were right to be indignant.
He himself hadn't done much at the time, having preferred the little comfort he possessed.
It was only after the hero's death that they realized how much they had fucked up.
And so much of the remaining day passed in silence.
…
Meanwhile, somewhere else.
"How are the preparations of our men?" asked suijin the leader of the bandits.
"Almost ready."
The boss drank liquor and released a breath, fully satisfied.
A man was seated on his throne, being attended by several maids.
His hand ran past his twin mustache.
His eyes were piercing as he looked at his maids with envy.
He was born poor, but through fighting and bloodshed, he had built his own kingdom.
The maids looked at him with smiles, as if inviting him to give them more attention, which normally he wouldn't mind, but right now there was urgency.
Those Konoha shinobi he had run into and tried to wipe out had still not been found.
The last thing he needed was for them to get involved.
He wondered if he had been too greedy. Konoha was the strongest village, and he was unsure how they would react if he didn't solve this matter fast.
This was what he was thinking when someone ran into his room.
"Boss, boss, there is trouble.
The prison was attacked. Everything was destroyed."
"What?"
Hearing this, the boss shot right up, his expression dark and grim.
Did the Konoha shinobi choose to get involved, or perhaps they were after his prize?
When he engaged them, the first thing he did was recover something akin to a treasure from the man they were escorting.
It was possible they were after it, but why attack the prison?
The turn of events was not something he liked, but thankfully this town didn't have any wealth left.
"Fine. We will move tomorrow. Keep searching for the author. As for me, I will make preparations.
Also tell our armies to be ready. We will be launching a raid soon and wipe out any intruders. We might even clean this village of anything left in it before we depart to another town."
"Understood, boss."
And with that, the man turned and left.
After several days, with the team of Konoha waiting so that Dama-sensei could recover enough.
"Have you found anything?"
"Yes. This man right here has information."
A huge person grabbed the civilian who had gathered some information for them for money and forced him to kneel before the boss.
"Talk. I'm listening," he stated, his voice itself sounding like a dismissal.
"I know where they are."
The boss's face gleamed for an instant. "Really?"
"Yes."
After recounting everything about a certain woman going back to her apartment with someone injured after treatment, and later several people showing up in front of her house, likely friends of the latter.
"Good work," he stated.
Then, with a nod, he ordered his men to take him away.
"But boss, the money—"
The boss smiled wickedly and mocked him. "You're asking that right now? Isn't your life worth more? Anyway, you are not making it out of here.
Your information is worthless now. Anyway, you should have come here sooner.
Had you done so, I would have been done with those invaders, but now…
Take him away and kill him. This worthless man is useless."
After he was taken away, the boss's face turned furious.
"It's now certain these Konoha shinobi are likely waiting for something, probably for their sensei to recover before a counterattack.
But he had a plan that would surprise them."
Dama-sensei had almost fully recovered.
The now-recovered sensei was standing and revising plans with Tsume.
They had already arranged a meeting with the leader of the resistance.
BOOOM!
Wind roared everywhere. Half of the building was blown up.
A giant beast appeared at the top of the apartment where the Konoha ninja were recovering.
A giant tornado hit the beast, pushing it back, but it stood its ground.
With another roar and a kick of its leg, it caused the remaining part of the apartment to collapse.
But thankfully, a wall raised by Dama-sensei protected everyone.
Seeing this, the beast flew up before descending at high speed and smashing its giant body into the wall, causing it to crumble. With a deafening roar that tore through the clearing, it disappeared in a poof of smoke.
Leaving only ruins behind.
Meanwhile, the team of Konoha, now standing on the roof of another building nearby, was shocked.
"What the hell was that beast?"
If not for Tsume-sensei's decision to abandon their building a day ago after finding some people suspiciously watching their direction, they wouldn't have been alerted.
The moment the beast appeared, Shintoki and the genin instantly took the woman and the chief to a secluded rooftop, leaving Tsume and Dama-sensei behind.
Among the earth wall that was hit by the beast, a portion remained that stood like an immovable shield.
The sensei were hidden behind it and weren't hurt by the beast, although even they were left shaken by the strength it possessed.
Especially as a surprise attack, this could have been fatal.
If the enemy possessed more tricks like this, it would be troublesome.
After that, the Konoha team switched bases and prepared to go through their plan.
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