Suzaku had not lied. The central town of Amegakure had been utterly destroyed by the war.
Haruki held Suzaku’s hand and looked around. The once neatly arranged houses were now nothing but broken walls and crumbling ruins.
Bricks, stones, and rubble were piled into messy mounds. The air was thick with a strong smell of burning, mixed with damp fishiness and mildew.
"Watch your step." Suzaku’s reminder came to Haruki’s ears.
Haruki looked down and saw that he was stepping on a pile of rubble. A slight misstep could cause him to lose his footing or kick a sharp fragment.
"War is terrifying." Haruki exclaimed.
Suzaku did not deny it. He continued to walk towards the central area, holding Haruki’s hand.
The outline of steel buildings emerging in the distance made Haruki breathe a sigh of relief. Fortunately, the central area had not been destroyed by the war. He certainly didn’t want to live in ruins forever.
Two towering structures of steel stood before Haruki. Between the two towers stretched an iron net nearly ten meters high, covered in sharp spikes.
After Suzaku appeared beneath the iron net, it wasn’t long before two dark figures leaped down from the towers, landing in front of Suzaku. Their masks couldn’t hide their excited emotions.
"You’re finally back. We almost thought..."
The two ninjas didn’t continue speaking.
"It’s good that you’re back!" They patted Suzaku’s shoulder.
A relaxed smile appeared on Suzaku’s face. He glanced at Haruki. Without Haruki, he might have truly died.
He had been sent by Hanzo to investigate intelligence in Sunagakure, and was accidentally discovered by the ninjas of Sunagakure.
The Sunagakure ninja pursuing him thought he was severely wounded and certain to die, but they didn’t expect him to return alive.
The two Ame ninja’s gazes swept over Haruki.
They looked at Suzaku in confusion and reminded him, "It’s not suitable to bring civilians here."
Once war broke out, no one could look after civilians. Civilians were very likely to be mistakenly killed as ninja. Not to mention such a small child. Getting caught in a ninja battle would make survival even more difficult.
Suzaku nodded, "I know."
The two ninjas were stunned. If he knew, why would he still do this?
Before Suzaku could speak further, Haruki spoke first, "Big brother, I insisted on coming in myself, please don’t blame brother Suzaku."
Haruki released Suzaku’s hand, stepped forward, and stood in front of Suzaku in a protective stance.
[System detected Suzaku’s Nostalgia Value +2000]
[Currently collected Nostalgia Value totals 10000, activating Cursed Spirit No. 002 — Cursed Womb: Death Painting, Choso]
The Cursed Spirit activated by Nostalgia Value was actually Choso?
Was it because Choso always reminisced about the good old days with his brothers?
"He’s not an ordinary child, he possesses extremely powerful Medical Ninjutsu. If it weren’t for him, I would be dead by now." Suzaku solemnly explained to the two ninjas.
The ninjas’ shocked gazes fell upon Haruki. Their eyes were filled with disbelief.
Such a small child could use Medical Ninjutsu?
Haruki looked at Suzaku, then raised his head to face the two ninjas. "I’m here to protect Amegakure with everyone and drive out the enemy."
A ninja scoffed, "You? You haven’t even fully matured yet. Ho home and drink your milk."
Suzaku said, "His parents died in the war."
The smile on the ninja’s face immediately vanished.
"He has no family left?" He asked Suzaku in a hushed voice.
Suzaku nodded, "His Medical Ninjutsu is very strong. I’m taking him to see Hanzo-sama."
Seeing Suzaku’s serious demeanor, the ninja couldn’t help but question it.
Could this child really use Medical Ninjutsu?
The number of medical ninjas in the entire Amegakure was not large.
After the war broke out, the medical ninjas of Amegakure were constantly targeted and killed by Konoha and Sunagakure. Now, the entire Amegakure couldn’t even find three medical ninjas.
The two ninjas exchanged glances. They opened a tightly shut iron door beneath the iron net. The rusty iron door let out a creaking sigh.
Haruki took Suzaku’s hand again and walked inside the iron door. After they entered, the two ninjas closed the iron door.
Inside the iron door was a city built of steel. The buildings were constructed exceptionally tall to save space. Being built of steel, even if war broke out, they wouldn’t easily collapse or be damaged.
Haruki and Suzaku walked along the street, which was empty. Occasionally, dark figures would flit overhead.
"Is there no place to eat here?" Haruki hadn’t seen a single restaurant along the way.
Suzaku shook his head and said, "Ninja’s food is distributed at fixed times."
"Is Hanzo-sama very powerful?"
Haruki felt it was necessary to gather some information about Hanzo in advance. "I heard my parents talk about Hanzo-sama. They said he is the strongest ninja."
Suzaku looked at Haruki’s innocent eyes, nodded, and affirmed, "Hanzo-sama is indeed the strongest ninja. Without Hanzo-sama, we would be no match for Konoha and Sunagakure at all. Amegakure would forever be a battlefield for Konoha and Sunagakure."
Suzaku’s voice was filled with admiration for Hanzo.
"I believe Hanzo-sama will lead us to completely drive out Konoha and Sunagakure."
"The future Amegakure will no longer struggle for survival between Konoha and Sunagakure."
"The villagers of Amegakure will no longer be tormented by war."
The light in Suzaku’s eyes grew brighter and brighter, a faint blush appeared on his face, and he excitedly gripped Haruki’s wrist.
Suzaku was actually a crazy fan of Hanzo.
"Hanzo-sama is amazing!"
Haruki nodded heavily and vowed, "I want to become a ninja as powerful as Hanzo-sama too."
A hint of a smile flashed in Suzaku’s eyes. He didn’t crush the child’s dream.
"I believe you can become a more powerful ninja than me." A steady voice came from a distance.
Suzaku froze, then immediately looked forward. A familiar tall figure appeared ahead.
"Hanzo-sama!" Suzaku immediately released Haruki’s hand and bowed.
Hanzo walked up to Suzaku and helped him up. "It’s good that you’re alright."
Suzaku’s eyes reddened, and his face was full of guilt. "This subordinate is incompetent."
Hanzo patted his shoulder and said, "This mission was inherently dangerous, it’s already not easy for you to return safely..."
Hanzo’s voice revealed strong confidence. "What’s more, even without intelligence from Sunagakure, I can drive them out."