Chapter 123: Entering Hozuki Castle

"Karin, there were people who bullied you, right?"

"Do you hate those people?"

"Do you want to take revenge on them?"

"Do you want to—"

Before Hiroki could finish speaking, he pulled out a kunai and aimed it behind Uzumaki Karin.

Because Uzumaki Karin was young and short in stature, the kunai appeared to be aimed directly at her forehead, gleaming with a cold, eerie light.

The one wielding the weapon wore a cold, merciless look.

Her heart pounded violently.

She turned and bolted.

"Stop!" Hiroki called out.

Uzumaki Karin's pulse raced as she hesitated before finally halting.

Hiroki glanced at her, then hurled the kunai in his hand.

Six meters away from Karin, deep within the bushes, blood splattered. A thick snake, roughly the width of an arm, had been split into two halves. It hadn't died yet; both parts slithered frantically to escape.

Looking back at the scene, Uzumaki Karin suddenly understood.

So it was just killing a snake. She had misunderstood him.

Hiroki gave her a puzzled look. Wasn't Karin supposed to have strong sensing abilities in the original story? It seemed like that ability hadn't developed fully yet...

Meanwhile, inside the inn.

After estimating the time passed, the female Grass Ninja staying in the room tapped the wall with her fingers.

In the adjacent room lived the team leader Juzo, an elite Jonin from the Grass Village.

Alongside the female ninja were three others, all Chunin.

Not hearing any obvious sounds, the woman rushed into the next room and woke up the man sleeping soundly in bed.

"Lord Juzo, quickly wake up! Karin has escaped. Wake up!"

The man opened his eyes wide, glaring furiously at her.

"Karin has escaped," the kunoichi repeated, bowing her head.

"What?! Can't you even keep track of a brat?" Juzo nearly roared.

After yelling, he asked her, "How long ago did she escape?"

"I'm not sure, my lord."

Then the two entered other rooms and woke everyone else.

Upon hearing that Karin had run off, the others also became furious.

"Got a brain in there? She was in shackles — didn't you hear anything?" one of them snapped.

Rolling her eyes, the kunoichi said, "Lord Juzo, I fell victim to a genjutsu. After breaking free, I came straight here to find you. I truly don't know what happened exactly. Besides..."

"Worthless piece of trash!" someone shouted.

"Yeah right, that's why I had to team up with two fools like you!"

"You old hag, watch your tongue!"

The two Chunin started arguing bitterly with the kunoichi.

"Enough!" Juzo barked loudly.

"Lord Juzo, I suspect she let Karin escape intentionally. She's highly suspicious," one Chunin accused, pointing at the woman.

Juzo stared at her deeply before ordering, "We'll go catch her now. Leave immediately—no delays!"

At the location where Hiroki and Uzumaki Karin stood, Hiroki looked up at the sky and said, "I need to leave now. What about you, Karin?"

"Why would you leave? Isn't this your territory?"

Smiling gently, Hiroki replied, "Some unexpected company's on its way."

"If you still want to see me, come here. I'll be waiting."

If she somehow managed to escape again...

That was strange. What did the Grass Ninja actually want?

"Oh," Uzumaki Karin understood. He meant the person who needed to leave was her.

"Karin, see you next time." Hiroki vanished into the shadows, leaving her behind.

Although Uzumaki Karin was a fragile child who had been mentally and physically abused,

that didn't mean she would blindly trust someone she'd just met enough to follow them away.

Even if their conversation had gone well, it was the same.

Earlier, when he asked where she was going several times, Karin had avoided answering clearly, showing caution.

Therefore, Hiroki hadn't pressed further and simply left.

There's no pain without comparison. With the Grass Ninja's blatant cruelty toward her, surely Uzumaki Karin would awaken and grow.

Karin idly used her finger to draw circles in the lake. After a while, she finally walked away from Xinyue Lake.

She was merely a child who had not yet received ninja training and knew nothing about counter-tracking techniques.

Therefore, the Grass Ninjas soon traced her footprints and cornered her.

Even though Karin could vaguely sense their chakra rapidly approaching and tried to evade, she couldn't fully escape.

In the end, she still ran straight into the four Grass Ninjas.

Before even meeting their gazes, Karin quickly turned and fled in the opposite direction.

Juzo sneered coldly and formed hand seals.

[Lightning Release: Thunder Ring]

A blue oval ring sparkling with electric sparks appeared in his hands.

The ring kept expanding and became more unstable until it exploded forward with a "Peng" sound toward where Karin stood.

This wasn't some powerful technique—it only carried sensing and paralyzing effects.

Its spreading range equaled its sensing area.

Karin collapsed on the ground, numb from the electric shocks, and no one else showed up.

"There's no one nearby. Bring her back." Juzo ordered.

The female ninja walked over and tossed her roughly.

Then the four Grass Ninjas mercilessly kicked and punched her, beating her senseless.

It hurts so bad! Karin's eyes turned red, filling up with tears.

She wanted to cry—but refused to let them see her tears.

Because that would only provoke crueler mockery.

Held high in midair, Juzo threatened harshly, "Escape again, and we'll break both your hands and legs!"

Karin fiercely dug her nails into the arm gripping her and shouted defiantly, "Let go of me! You're all despicable scumbags!"

Juzo gave a contemptuous smile and knocked her unconscious with a quick strike to the neck.

The female ninja watched everything indifferently.

At dawn, Juzo arranged for a chunin to guard Karin before temporarily leaving with two others.

Surrounded by sea on all sides, Hozuki Castle faced fierce waves crashing around with swirling whirlpools everywhere.

"Do you think we'll be fine with these strong currents?" Hiroki stood by the seashore and asked while Kimimaro walked closely behind him.

"Pieces of cake. Water is also organic. As long as we move fast enough, it won't affect us at all." White Zetsu said cheerfully.

"Alright then, take us there. And make sure someone keeps an eye on those Grass Ninjas to find out what exactly they're up to."

With White Zetsu's help, Hiroki and Hei easily entered Hozuki Castle and even directly reached Mui's study, the castle lord of Hozuki Castle.

At this moment, that man was reprimanding newly arrived prisoners in the prison.

A short while later, footsteps finally echoed.

A cloaked man wearing white gloves strode into the room — Mui.

"You're Mui?"

The sudden voice made him alert. Immediately, he turned his gaze toward the source of the voice.

Hiroki came into view.

Mui's expression turned cold. Without hesitation, he began using ninjutsu.

[Fire Release: Heavenly Prison] 

Fiery chakra condensed in his hand, forming a flaming sword.

<><><><><><><><>

Thank you for reading! Your support will keep me updating!

~ Every 50 Powerstones = **4 Bonus Chapters** this weekend!

<><><><><><><><>

~ 100+ Advanced Chapters Available on Patreon!

~ More *Free* Chapters and Books Available on Patreon!

patreon.com/Tansnovel

<><><><><><><><>