Chapter 314: Danzo, the innate scapegoat

As night falls, the entire town becomes silent. Only the occasional barking of dogs from the alleys proves that this place is not deserted.

Sarutobi Sasuke, who was squatting at the temporary settlement site, looked at the sky and waved his hand to interrupt F6 who was whispering.

"It's almost time, let's go."

According to the mission details, in this town every night at the end of the month, several people will disappear mysteriously. The next day, abandoned corpses will be found outside the town. The smell is stinking and the appearance is horrible.

Although the client who issued the mission repeatedly emphasized that the culprits of cannibalism were indescribable demons and monsters, Sarutobi Sasuke, who was experienced, believed that the culprit should be some kind of human-shaped beast. The wandering ninja who disappeared a few years ago was probably a student. If you are not good at art, you will lose your life.

"Father, Captain Sarutobi! Do you have any tactics?"

Sarutobi Hiruzen, who was going on a mission for the first time, was excited and gearing up, wanting to use this mission to prove himself to his father.

"That's right~"

The other little ones also nodded hurriedly, their tense little faces full of eagerness to try.

"Um, just look at my eyes and act."

Sarutobi Sasuke, who was a little uncomfortable being stared at by a few little ones, looked a little dodgey, hesitated for a moment, and made arrangements aloud.

"receive!"

The sultry moon hung above the treetops. Sasuke Sarutobi took a few little ones and escaped into the darkness. They wandered through the dark alleys of the town, looking for suspicious figures. However, after walking around for most of the time, there was not even a ghost among them. turn up.

"Hiruzhan, come here."

Sarutobi Sasuke thought for a while and felt that it was not a problem to keep wandering around like this. It was said that the murderer came and went without a trace, and his hiding methods and moving speed were certainly good, so he waved to the few people who were poking their heads.

"Captain Sarutobi, what are your plans?"

Several little ones immediately stood at attention, waiting for the order to be given.

"Next, we will split up. You will work in groups of three and squat near the two gates of the town. If you find suspicious people, you must not act rashly and send a signal as soon as possible."

While talking, Sarutobi Sasuke took out several flares from his backpack and distributed them to several people.

"yes!"

Next came the grouping session. Without any hesitation, Xiaodanzo directly approached Hiruzen Sarutobi, who was wearing the same pants as him. The two hit it off immediately, and then at the same time, their eyes fell on Uchiha, who was entangled by Koharu who was sleeping with him. On the mirror body.

"King-kun, please take me with you. I'm just a helpless medical ninja~"

Koharu, who was pouting, turned to bed, pulled Uchiha Kage's arm coquettishly, and said coquettishly.

"Xiaochun, there are differences between men and women, everyone is watching."

Uchiha Jing looked at the tearful Koharu who was going to bed, and a few strands of cold sweat could not help but break out from behind. If he had not known the true face of this girl, he would probably have killed her.

"How can you say that? Aren't we good friends?"

"Mirror, come with us!"

Just when Koharu was going to bed and was pestering him endlessly, Hiruzen Sarutobi and Danzo Shimura came over and extended their invitation in a very sincere tone.

"It's obviously me first"

Xiaochun was immediately unhappy when he went to bed, and then turned his head and looked at the two of them with a fierce look.

I'm here to fish for success, you guys don't come to disturb me.

"You're wrong to say that. The team must be formed on a voluntary basis. Mirror, our team needs you!"

Sarutobi Hiruzen shook his head and stretched out his hand towards the Uchiha mirror.

"Sorry Xiaoharu."

Uchiha Kagami smiled apologetically at Koharu who was sleeping, then shook hands with Sarutobi Hiruzen and joined their team.

"You Danzo, just wait for me!"

The cooked duck flew from his mouth. When he went to bed, Koharu was so angry that he immediately warned Danzo Shimura.

"Huh? What does it have to do with me? I didn't say a word!"

Shimura Danzo, who didn't know that he was the Holy Body that was born to take the blame, was inexplicably warned by Koharu who was transferred to his dormitory. He touched his head in confusion with an innocent expression.

Now that Sarutobi Hiruzen's three-man team had been assembled, Koharu had no choice but to curse and form a temporary team with Mito Kadoen and Akimichi Tifou, who were afraid to make a sound.

"Okay! If nothing happens, we will gather here before dawn."

After witnessing the process of forming a team of several little ones, Sarutobi Sasuke's evaluation of his son was a little higher. Unexpectedly, this boy had some leadership qualities.

"yes!"

Ji Xiao had no choice but to order, and immediately turned into a few black shadows and dispersed in two directions.

Sasuke Sarutobi watched the little ones leave, still a little worried. Then he clapped his hands on the ground, and two strange little monkeys jumped out of the white smoke, scratching their heads and scratching their heads to observe the novel environment.

"Please, help me keep an eye on them secretly. If there is any accident, please inform me as soon as possible."

"Zhizhizhi~"

After receiving the order, the little monkeys did not nod immediately, but stretched out a hand towards Sarutobi Sasuke. With understanding, he fumbled around in his backpack, took out the bananas he carried with him, and handed them to two A little monkey.

"Chiji~"

The little monkeys who received the reward nodded excitedly, jumped up with bananas in their arms, and chased in the direction where the few little monkeys left.

"Huh~ It should be fine now."

Only then did Sarutobi Sasuke put his heart back in his stomach, and his whole body slowly escaped into the darkness and began to search.

Although this is only a B-level mission, if it cannot be completed, evaluation points will be lost to Konoha.

"Monkey"

Uchiha Madara, who sat in front of the former mayor, took a sip of the fragrant tea, but his thoughts flew elsewhere.

If nothing unexpected happened, the Konoha ninja who came to perform the mission was most likely Sasuke Sarutobi, the patriarch of the Sarutobi clan. As for the children he brought, they should be the disciples of Senju Tobirama.

So, Jingzi is here too.

No, he has to take care of this matter.

As a branch of the patriarch's lineage, Uchiha Jing is very important in Uchiha Madara's heart, especially since the other party is the most valued child of his eldest cousin. If something goes wrong, how should he explain to Uchiha Gin.

"Thank you for the tea, I won't bother you anymore."

Uchiha Madara, who was worried that Uchiha Jing might have an accident, greeted the old man and stood up to leave.

"Wait! Are you crazy? What I just told you was all in vain, right?"

The old man was anxious. He had just told Uchiha Madara so many things about ghosts, just to remind the young man not to give up his life in vain.

"Don't worry, I am a ninja anyway."

In order to reassure the old man, Uchiha Madara chose to reveal his identity as a ninja, but the old man did not buy it.

"You wandering guys always like to call yourself ninjas, just like the young man five years ago."

It turned out that the old man recognized Uchiha Madara as a wandering ninja, and then he couldn't help but bring up the old things again.

"Call yourself a ninja?"

This sentence aroused a little interest in Uchiha Madara.

"That's right, five years ago, that young man claimed to be a ninja from the Land of Grass, but he was still buried in the mouth of a ghost."

It turned out that the missing ninja five years ago came from the Land of Grass. Uchiha Madara didn't have a deep impression of that country. It was just said that their ancestors were rich, but the family fell into decline and then fell into a slump.

Uchiha Madara touched his chin and sat back.

"What's his name?"

"His name is..."

"My name is Kagami! I'm a ninja from the Land of Grass. I heard you have a mission commission?"

A thin young man with a ponytail stood in front of the old mayor, slightly awkwardly holding the worn-out saber on his waist, with a look of expectation on his pale face.

"Are you a ninja?"

The old mayor, who was worried about the recent haunted incident, looked up and down at the young man in the red shirt in front of him, with a full look of suspicion on his old face.

"It's genuine! If you don't believe me, look~"

Feeling that he was questioned, the young man named Kagami immediately drew out the saber on his waist and hit the table next to him, and the exquisite square table collapsed instantly.

"Hehe~ How is it?"

The Fire God took back his sword and asked proudly,

"Three thousand taels!"

The muscles at the corners of the old mayor's eyes twitched as he looked at the scrapped table,

"Ah? Didn't we agree on ten thousand taels?"

"I mean the table!"

"."

"Remember, after the matter is done, I will only pay you seven thousand taels."

The ninja in front of him didn't look like he could take out three thousand taels. With the mentality of giving it a try, the old mayor finally gave him the task.

"Is there food? I have a big appetite~"

Unexpectedly, he got a blessing in disguise. The young man named Fire God asked excitedly.

Isn't this a guy who cheats for food and drink?

The old mayor rubbed his temples with a headache, weighed the pros and cons, and replied,

"The world is not peaceful now, I can only give you one meal a day. If you can't complete the task within three days, you will go back to where you came from."

"One meal is fine, let's eat!"

Wipe the crystal clear saliva from the corner of his mouth, the fire monkey urged anxiously, and the old mayor had no choice but to arrange it.

"Delicious! Delicious! Another bowl!"

"No. This is too much, isn't it?"

Standing in a restaurant, the old mayor stared at the young man who was eating like a whirlwind,

"Mayor, he has eaten the third bucket of rice. If this goes on, the food allowance you give me will not be enough!"

The restaurant owner on the side also opened his mouth in surprise. He has been running a restaurant for so many years, but he has never seen such a big eater. Even the Akimichi Ninja who passed by before did not have such a big appetite.

"No more food?"

The young man named Vulcan touched his flat stomach regretfully when he found that the boss did not come to add more food.

"No more! You ate all the food in the kitchen. How can I open the business today?"

The boss's face was ashen. The ragged guy in front of him actually ate all his stock in one breath. If the old mayor had not stopped him, he would have put the whole pot away.

"Alas~ I barely ate 60% full."

The young man stood up and stretched his lips. This was the most he had eaten recently.

"Young man, if you are just a cheater, I hope you will admit it sooner and don't force yourself."

How can a normal person eat like this? I think this young man must have been hungry for a long time, and he may have accepted the task just to have a full meal.

"I am very strong!"

The young man wiped his mouth and was still full of confidence.

"In that case, in two days it will be the end of the month, I'll leave the ghost business to you."

"Guaranteed~"

In this way, this young man came to eat on time every day. His amazing appetite attracted people in the town to come and watch. The fire god was not restrained and greeted people with a smile.

"Big brother, are you really a ninja?"

A young boy plucked up the courage and asked the Vulcan who was eating.

"Why, it doesn't look like it?"

Kagami glanced at the child, but did not put down the bowl. He chewed a mouthful of food hard and took the time to ask.

"Ninjas don't all wear gorgeous equipment. They spit fire, spray water, and swish in their hands~"

The young man recalled the ninjas he was lucky enough to meet, and returned with longing.

"Hiccup~ I'm so sorry, I'm a ninja from a remote country."

After burping, Vulcan did not feel ashamed of his downfall, but instead admitted it generously.

"Backcountry?"

"My hometown is the Country of Grass. The people there are not very strong, but they do a lot of shit. They won't let you do this, and they won't let you do that. It's really annoying~"

Kagami picked his teeth while complaining to the boy, and there was no ninja airs in his words.

"Can you really defeat ghosts?"

The young man stared at Vulcan for a long time and suddenly asked,

"ha?"

"My father, the town watchman, was a man eaten by ghosts."

It turns out that the boy was also one of the victims of ghosts. His father was abducted by a ghost that suddenly appeared on the way to work. Later, his mutilated body was found outside the town, and the boy became an orphan.

"So that's it."

Looking at the young man with a look of hatred on his face, Vulcan's eyes flashed with an inexplicable look, and he murmured in a low tone,

"That's really..."

"Brother, you must get rid of the ghost!"

"Ha~ of course."

Vulcan, who quickly regained his unreliable appearance, yawned lazily and nodded casually.

Soon, three days passed, and the day when the ghost appeared finally arrived. The old mayor gathered some young people in the town in his yard, and everyone was ready with iron weapons in hand. The young ninja named Vulcan, Then the old god was sitting aside drinking tea.

"The time is almost up."

The old mayor was very nervous, because due to the frequent disappearances during this period, his position as mayor was in jeopardy. If the ghost problem could not be solved, he would resign.

"Aren't you leaving yet?"

The old mayor asked the Vulcan beside him in a deep voice.

"Cough~cough!"

Kagami didn't hesitate, put down his tea cup, stood up, and walked out of the courtyard into the dark night.

"Hopefully he's not a liar."

The old mayor looked at the other party's disappearing figure and couldn't help praying in his heart.

The white moonlight shines through the dry treetops, leaving mottled afterimages on the dark streets. At the gate of the town, an indescribable darkness is quietly approaching,

As it slowly stepped into the town's territory, the thick darkness on its body quickly shrank. Within a moment, it turned into a tall figure and began to wander aimlessly. Its scarlet eyes scanned the closed surroundings aimlessly. door.

"Eat eat."

Hoarse and vague whispers echoed in the empty streets, and the figure endured the unspeakable hunger in its belly, looking for prey to appear.

"Creak~"

An unexpected sound was particularly harsh in the empty street. The figure was instantly attracted. After raising its head and sniffing, a coveted smile appeared on its face.

Familiar taste.

"Hoo~ho~ho~"

The frightened boy ran in the dark alley. He was just worried about the unreliable ninja brother, so he sneaked out in the middle of the night. Instead of meeting the Vulcan, he met another strange person.

When the other party turned to look at him, the young man instinctively felt fear and immediately got into the familiar alley without looking back and ran towards his home.

"Eat eat."

However, no matter how fast he ran, the demonic whisper still echoed in his ears. Wrapped in the breath of death, the young man still fell down out of fear.

"Don't come here!"

The boy, whose legs were weak, found that he could not stand up no matter what.

"Eat eat."

The ghostly figure slowly approached, and it was only now that the young man smelled a fishy smell that almost made him vomit. It was the smell of rotten food.

At this moment, the young man was very sure that the figure in front of him was the ghost who ate his father, but under the fear that penetrated his bones, he could no longer react except trembling.

"eat"

At this moment, under a ray of moonlight, the boy who was on the verge of death could see clearly the true face of the ghost in Lushan.

It turns out that the ghost is not the green-faced and fanged ghost in the legend, but a pale-faced woman. She is not gorgeous in appearance. She can only be said to be not ugly. There is no expression on her face. Her long hair is hanging on her shoulders. She is wearing a full-length washcloth. The white and gray robes made him look lifeless, like a lifeless corpse.

Move!

The frightened boy slapped his trembling legs, trying to fight for a chance of survival for himself.

"eat"

The reversal in the novel did not happen. In the blink of an eye, the pale-faced female ghost put her hands on the young man's face. Looking at the man's smelly mouth that slowly grew, the young man closed his eyes in despair.

"Da da da~"

However, just when the young man fell into despair, the sound of footsteps slowly coming from the darkness behind him suddenly ignited a glimmer of hope in his heart, and he shouted loudly with all his strength,

"Help! The ghost is here!"

"Da da~ da~"

The owner of the footsteps paused for a moment after hearing the boy's call, and then disappeared with a click.

"So it's here~"

Just when the boy thought that something bad happened to the owner of the footsteps, a familiar voice came from behind him. Hearing this voice, the boy turned his head excitedly,

"Brother Ninja! Save me!"

"You, you, have told me not to run around at night, why don't you listen?"

Vulcan slowly walked out of the darkness, his face less casual and more complex. Looking at the young man slumped on the ground, he slowly shook his head,

"Eat eat."

The female ghost retracted her hand from grabbing the boy, stood up slowly, and stared straight at the Vulcan who suddenly appeared in front of her with her scarlet eyes.

"Huh~"

The young man who survived the disaster breathed a sigh of relief. The appearance of the God of Fire gave him the courage to stand up, and his trembling legs regained their vitality. However, before he could stand up, a faint voice suddenly came from behind him. Instead of the laziness before, there is only the coldness that penetrates into the bone marrow,

"You're hungry again"

"That day, the young ninja named Kagami never appeared again. At the same time, a young man from our town was kidnapped. Poor child, his father was eaten by a ghost, and he did not escape."

The former mayor's eyes were full of sadness. He still remembered the boy's broken body and the red cloth tightly held in his hand.

"Didn't you find that ninja's body?"

After listening to the former mayor's story, Uchiha Madara frowned and asked,

"No, but there are fragments of his clothes. He was probably eaten alive."

The old man had a good impression of the voracious ninja, but it was a pity that he lost it at such a young age.

"It's strange. You said that the corpses of everyone abducted by ghosts will appear outside the town. No one is spared. Why is the body of that ninja missing?"

According to the old man's narration, Uchiha Madara vaguely felt that the ninja was a little weird.

"Perhaps it was picked up by a passing wild beast!"

Obviously, the old man didn't want to talk about this memory anymore, and his defeated expression made Madara Uchiha, who was about to ask, shut his mouth.

"You can sleep with me tonight. Konoha's ninjas are powerful and will definitely help us eliminate ghost troubles."

The old man pointed to the tatami beside him and asked Madara Uchiha to rest here for the night.

"Thank you then."

Uchiha nodded with consideration in mind. The old man turned around and walked into the back room without saying anything. After a while, the sound of deep sleep was heard.

Sitting cross-legged, Madara Uchiha slowly opened his eyes after sensing that the old man was asleep, and then disappeared into the room in an instant.

Town gate

Hidden in the alley, Sarutobi Hiruzen's team was staring intently at the street, fearing that they would miss any details.

"Gulu~"

As a result, a cry of hunger broke the tense mood of the three of them. As the speaker, Hiruzen Sarutobi elbowed the confused Shimura Danzo next to him without changing his expression, and whispered,

"Duanzo, I asked you to eat more in the afternoon, why don't you listen?"

"Huh? Hiruzen, not me!"

Shimura Danzo, who took the blame for no reason, frowned and retorted in a low voice,

"If it wasn't you, could it be the mirror?"

"Maybe it's him."

Xiaodanzo did not want to bear the blame except for the monkey, and then pointed the finger at the Uchiha Mirror behind him.

"Crunch~Crunch~"

"Do you want to eat too?"

Uchiha Kagami, who was eating snacks, saw the two of them looking at him and handed over the pastry in his hand with some embarrassment.

This was when he was searching for information during the day. He was worried that he would be hungry when he went out at night, so he bought some snacks on the way.

"Thank you stepfather!"

Think about it, in the middle of the night, you are so hungry that you can't fall asleep. At this critical moment, you receive a pack of snacks from your roommate. How can you not call him an adopted father for such a great favor?

"You're too polite. What's the relationship between us? If it's not enough for me, I still have it~"

"Danzo! Look at you, can't you learn from the mirror?" (End of Chapter)