18. Bandits
On top of a small hill,
Rin, Obito, and Kakashi cautiously stare at a small camp at the foothill of the hill in the valley.
A caravan is held hostage as a group of bandits blocks the path.
A young man with dark brown hair and grey eyes is fidgeting inside the prison as he stares at the cruel expression of the bandits.
A group of guards lies in a pool of blood. The bodies of most of the guards are crushed with a heavy strike, while the limbs of the remaining are severed in several places.
The hearts of the merchants in the caravan palpitates at the gory sight.
BAM…
A muscular bandit with a giant red club smashes the head of the last remaining guard. The guard collapses to his death without even the strength to resist.
Ptui…
The scary-looking bandit spits at the corpse of the guard and picks it up like a sack of potatoes and throws it towards the small hill of corpses.
"That was the last one! Hmph… and here I thought, there will be a challenge!"
"Daicho, don't be too complacent about this minor victory. These guards are just a group of trained civilians with nothing to boast about. In front of a shinobi…" A bandit with a diagonal scar slowly walks towards him.
"Hmph, captain! Shinobi or not, I will smash them into a meat pulp with my club. I bet even the shinobis can't fight against the power granted by the devil's blood."
Daicho harrumphs in disdain.
The bandit leader nods and walks towards the most luxurious carriage with steady steps. He signals to the rest of his men to plunder the rest of the caravan.
Hehe…
The bandits have a hideous grin on their face as they eye the carriages with greed.
The group of merchants in the caravan tremble in fear. The laughter of the bandits sounds like the chuckles of devils in their ears.
Most of the bandits in the band have a large muscular build and multiple scars across their bodies. They are armed with giant clubs, hammers, machetes, and sabers.
"Hand over all of your belongings and we might think about sparing your life or else…"
Swish…
Daicho swings his club and brushes off the blood and pieces of flesh.
Gulp…
The merchants gulp their saliva and immediately forks out their belongings.
Hehe…
Daicho laughs in pleasure and nudges his comrades to inspect the merchants as he remarks.
"How can these greedy merchants give away their precious belongings so easily?"
BAM… BAM…
The bandits grab the merchant by their neck and throw them out of the carriage.
"All of you know the drill by now!"
Daicho smiles and sits beside the captain.
"Captain! We made a great haul this month. Two luxurious caravans in a single month. We brothers can spend the rest of the year without any worries."
Mm…
The captain nods his head as he recalls his life before the encounter with the devil.
Their group was a just small group of bandits who robbed people for petty pennies, but their fate changed a few months ago when they encountered a man in black robes.
He easily incapacitated them and captured them. Later, the man experimented on them and forced them to drink a vial with dark red liquid.
Most of them died under the effect of the liquid, but a few of them survived and the men released them, much to their surprise.
Now, they are leaving a leisure life by returning to their previous profession.
Devils' blood is the name they dubbed for the dark red liquid.
The captain reminisces about his past until a shrill cry snapped him out of his reverie.
"You bastard! You dare hide something from us despite our warning."
One of the bandit kicks a young man with dark brown hair and grey eyes.
Argh…
The man pukes out a mouthful of blood.
Hmph…
Daicho snorts and kicks him, sending him flying.
BANG…
The man slams into a nearby tree and passes out. A storage scroll rolls down from his sleeves and falls to the ground.
Daicho picks up the scroll and carries it to his captain.
The captain picks up the scroll and recognizes the Konoha symbol engraved on the scroll.
"There must be something important in this scroll for him to hold it so dearly."
The captain infuses his chakra into the scroll.
Clang… clang… clang…
Multiple kunais, shurikens, swords, sabers, katanas, tantos, clubs, hammers, and other such weapons fall on the ground and form a small hill in front of the group.
Hehe…
The eyes of the bandits light up as they stare at the giant stack of weapons.
"This should be worth a fortune!"
Daicho licks his lips and picks up a giant club from the small hill of weapons.
He waves the club and nods in satisfaction.
"This is much better than my previous club."
He discards the old club and brandishes the new club on his shoulder. The rest of the bandits also select a weapon of their choice.
"Hey, boss! Why don't we sell the rest of the weapons to the group we met a while ago?"
Hmm…
"That's not a bad idea!"
He signals his man to collect the weapons and hands over the scroll to Daicho.
"You are the second strongest in our group after me. I am confident of your escaping skill if things go south. For now, just take half the amount as a proof and bring the group here it. It's not like we haven't traded with them."
"Yes, boss!"
Daichi receives the scroll and walks away from the camp.
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"Is this our target?"
Rin, Obito, and Kakashi are hiding in a bush near the bandit group. They eavesdrop on the conversation of the group.
"Devil?!"
Kakashi raises an eyebrow as the group mentions it.
'Are they working for someone else?'
Kakashi speculates as he monitors the bandit.
"Let's beat them up!"
Obito clenches his fist as he glares at the bandits beating up the elderly people in the caravan.
He prepares to jump out of the bush, but a hand firmly holds him down.
"Hold your horses! Minato-Sensei assigned me as the temporary captain of this team in his absence. So, you aren't allowed to make any move without my order. Do you understand?"
"But Kakashi! They…" Obito argues but the cold look in Kakashi's eyes shoots him down.
"Obito! Don't overestimate yourself because you're a ninja and don't underestimate your enemies because they are bandits. This isn't a game, Obito. One mistake and you might spell the doom of our entire team."
"Yes, Obito! Kakashi is right!"
Rin pats Obito's back.
Gulp…
Obito swallows his next words and nods to Rin.
"Good! Now, wait for the opportune moment when their guard is lowered."
Kakashi and the group calmly bide their time.
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Whoosh… whoosh…
On the other side of the hill,
Minato silently flickers through the forest as he traces the clues of the enemy's movement.
'Lately, the tension at the borders has escalated to a higher level. There are often skirmishes between the shinobis of different shinobis when a group infiltrates another land. I am afraid these footsteps belong to a group of such invaders. I have to confirm my suspicion or Konoha might suffer a severe blow."
Whoosh…
Minato increases his pace and disappears into the forest.
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Scree…
A shrill cry wakes up Akio from his sleep.
Yawn…
"We are already there?"
Akio opens his eyes and glances at the land below him. An endless expanse of the forest appears in his vision.
Tch…
"I can't see anything from this height. I have to land on the ground."
He gently pats Garu's head.
Swoosh…
Garu flaps its wings and lands on the ground.
"Garu, return to the sky and monitor my position. I might need your help if I am in a pinch. You are my only hope of escape."
Garu nods its head and soars to the sky.
"Now then!"
Fwoosh…
Akio summons a black cloak from his inventory. He wears it on top of his clothes to hide his face.
'I don't want to expose myself to others for now.'
He clutches his D-eagle in his right hand and hides it under the cloak. Akio carefully maneuvers through the forest while monitoring his surroundings.
"This brings memories from the training drills I did in my previous life."
He glances at the quest timer on the menu.
'I still have 2 hours and 30 minutes.'
Suddenly,
Swoosh…
A shadow darts towards his back from the dark corner of the forest.
BANG…