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Naruto: IHCS Ch. 117
🕑 Added 2025-09-09 15:23:10 +0000 UTCShiratori weighed the money pouch in his hand. Sure enough, the fastest way to make money in this world was robbery.
Those three samurai had built up a considerable fortune by robbing people in Aomine.
"What should we do with this money?"
Yahiko looked uneasily at the bulging pouch in his hand.
Although it was quite a fortune, it was, after all, stolen goods from robbery. Just thinking about how the samurai had gotten this money, he couldn't bring himself to spend it on himself with a clear conscience.
"With this money, we can survive longer in Aomine."
Konan, however, hadn't guessed what Yahiko was thinking. She only had one thought in her mind, at least they wouldn't have to sleep on the streets anymore.
Not that she couldn't endure the hardship of sleeping rough; she had suffered through even harsher days before, and sleeping on the streets was nothing compared to that. But she didn't want everyone to keep living in such misery.
Looking at the joy on Konan's face, Yahiko pressed his lips together, hiding his hesitation, and smiled at her.
"Yeah."
Nagato turned to Shiratori and asked slowly,
"This money was taken from the samurai. How do you want to use it?"
Shiratori glanced at Nagato in surprise. His gaze swept over Yahiko and Konan.
Nagato didn't seem to care about how the money was used, Konan wanted it to improve their living conditions, and Yahiko didn't want to touch the stolen goods at all.
The three of them clearly had different thoughts.
Even though Yahiko didn't voice his concerns, Shiratori could still see through him.
Yahiko's expression might not have been obvious, but someone with more experience wasn't so easily fooled.
Seeing Yahiko's thoughts wasn't hard.
He spoke first to Konan:
"Don't worry about the money. Even without this pouch, we still have enough to live here."
Back on the battlefield, he had scavenged a fair amount of wealth himself. It was more than enough to support the four of them in Aomine.
Konan looked at him, her eyes softening with a smile.
"Mm."
With Shiratori here, it felt like there was nothing to worry about.
He was the most reliable.
As if, with him around, there was no difficulty in the world.
Just looking at him filled her with peace.
"Yahiko."
Shiratori turned his head and fixed his gaze on Yahiko.
Yahiko froze, quickly raising his head to meet his eyes.
"What is it?" he asked, puzzled.
"This money came from the samurai, who stole it from others. I plan to use it to buy food, then distribute that food to the refugees. What do you think?"
Yahiko's pupils widened, his lips parted slightly, and a bright light flickered in his eyes. There was no better way to handle it!
Only this way could he feel at peace using the money. He looked at Shiratori, deeply moved. Rushing forward, Yahiko hugged him tightly.
"Thank you!"
Thank you for always understanding me!
Thank you for being by my side!
[Affection detected: Yahiko +5000 points]
[Curse Growth - Love: 51.8%]
Shiratori patted Yahiko and gently pushed him off. Turning to Konan and Nagato, he asked, "What do you think?"
Nagato nodded.
"That works."
He had no objections. After all, it was Shiratori who had taken the money from the samurai, and he had every right to decide how to use it.
Konan shook her head, her cheeks slightly flushed.
"I don't have any objections either. Just now, I was being too selfish."
She lowered her head in shame. A warm hand suddenly fell on top of her head.
Her pupils widened slightly.
The corner of Shiratori's lips curved upward, his voice sounding softly in her ear.
"Don't say that about yourself. You're not selfish at all. I know you were thinking about us. You're not afraid of suffering, you're only afraid that we will suffer."
"..."
Tears quickly welled up in Konan's eyes.
[Affection detected: Konan +5000 points]
[Curse Growth - Love: 52.3%]
"Come on, let's go buy food."
He rubbed her head and spoke to Yahiko and Nagato.
"Yeah!"
Yahiko nodded energetically.
Just as they were about to take their first steps, a pebble suddenly dropped from above, landing right in front of them.
Yahiko instantly became alert. He stretched out an arm, shielding the others behind him, and looked up.
Shiratori, however, showed no surprise as he stared at the figure sitting atop the wall.
The man wore a loose, untidy yukata. The wooden clogs on his feet looked like they could fall off at any moment. His hair was a messy tangle, and he looked as though he had just rolled out of bed.
One hand rested lazily on the wall, while the other tossed a pebble up and down.
"Who are you? What do you want?"
After the incident with the samurai earlier, Yahiko was now extremely wary of anyone in Aomine.
The man on the wall pointed at the money pouch in Shiratori's hand.
"You planning to use that money to give relief to the refugees?"
"You were eavesdropping on us!" Yahiko glared at him.
Ignoring Yahiko, the man continued, "Do you have any idea what the consequences of that will be?"
Yahiko froze. Consequences?
What consequences could there be to helping refugees?
At most, they'd get gratitude from the refugees.
Wasn't that a good thing?
"Hey, you. Do you know what's going to happen if you go through with it?"
The man's eyes locked directly on Shiratori, who replied calmly, "Giving aid to the refugees will make us the enemies of all the ninjas and samurai in Aomine. If that's the consequence you mean, then yes, I know."
Yahiko and Konan turned to him in shock.
Why?
Even Nagato's expression showed confusion.
The man's lips curved slightly, his gaze dark and sharp as he stared at Shiratori.
"So you do know. Then… aren't you afraid?"
Inwardly, Shiratori sighed.
Becoming their enemy was only a matter of time. Whether sooner or later, it made no difference.
"I'm not afraid. We came to Aomine for the purpose of changing its chaotic order. If we were afraid, we never would have come."
Upon hearing that, Yahiko's expression hardened.
That's right!
The very reason they had come here was to drive out the corrupt ninjas and samurai who plagued this land.
"Impressive!"
The man raised his brows, leapt down from the tall wall, and landed steadily in front of them.
"What are your names?"
He looked over the four children before him.
Yahiko glanced at Shiratori, who gave him a small nod.
Only then did he speak, "My name is Yahiko. These are my friends, Shiratori, Konan, and Nagato."
The man's eyes moved back and forth among them.
Although Yahiko spoke first, it was obvious that the one holding the authority in the group was the child called Shiratori.
Shiratori?
Why does that name sound so familiar?
The man's pupils contracted, his gaze instantly locking onto Shiratori. He suddenly remembered where he had heard the name before.
During the Land of Rain ceasefire not long ago, wasn't the one who turned the tide in the final battle named Shiratori?
Rumor had it that he was also Hanzō's student!
So Shiratori was this young?
He stared at the boy in disbelief.
The chances of it being someone with the exact same name were extremely low, this youth was indeed that Shiratori.
No wonder he could say what he just said.
But the boy before him was quite different from the Shiratori he had imagined. This boy had short black hair, blue eyes, fair skin, and radiated a gentle aura.
He looked nothing like the figure described in the intelligence that had spread across the shinobi world.
"You're Hanzō's student?"
Just to be certain, he asked cautiously.
Shiratori nodded honestly. The man before them wasn't a bad person. He had appeared when they were being pursued by samurai. At first, he seemed ready to save them, but once he saw that they had the ability to protect themselves, he held back. Only after hearing Shiratori's bold words did he finally step forward and offer his warning.
"You came here to restore order, was that Hanzō's will?" the man asked.
Shiratori replied, "Not exactly."
"Then how should I understand it?"
"My mission is to drive out all the ninjas and samurai who don't belong to the Land of Rain. But even without this mission, I would have come here. This place is in chaos, every day people bleed, every day people die. I came here precisely to stop such things from happening."
Shiratori looked at the man as he spoke.
The man studied him, the corners of his eyes curving with a trace of mockery. "From the way you talk, it sounds like you want to play savior?"
"No, you're mistaken," Shiratori answered calmly.
"I've never once thought about earning the title of savior. That word carries too much attention and expectation, and instead makes people forget what truly needs to be done. What I want is actually very simple: to keep children from having to step onto the battlefield, to let the pain of losing loved ones end with this generation."
"This isn't some grand salvation, just the small effort of someone who has witnessed too much suffering, and cannot look away. I'm just an ordinary person who has seen too much pain."
"If I must say I have a wish, it is to become a bridge that connects understanding, not a lofty savior above all."
The man looked at Shiratori in shock.
Such words, coming from the mouth of a child.
He couldn't help but let out a bitter smile. To think he was now living in a way less worthy than these children.
"Aren't you afraid?" he finally asked.
When he was Shiratori's age, all he knew was laziness and play. Peace in the shinobi world had never crossed his mind. The only education he had received from his parents was: "Train well, or else one day you'll die on the battlefield." Never had anyone told him, as a child, that sacrifices might be made for the sake of peace.
"Whether I'm afraid or not isn't important."
Shiratori's gaze was steady as he fixed it on the man. "What matters is that there is something before me that must be done, and people behind me that must be protected. When the meaning of something far surpasses one's own safety, then fear simply has to give way to resolve."
The man didn't know what to say. No matter what words he used, they couldn't hide the fact that he had become a selfish man.
"Truly remarkable…"
He looked at the four children before him. With convictions this firm, they would surely one day become ninjas renowned throughout the world.
Perhaps… they really could bring peace.
He finally introduced himself, "My name is Kojiro. I know a place where food is sold cheap. Let me take you there."
Yahiko's eyes lit up. "Great!"
Kojiro led the way ahead, chatting casually with them.
"So, what are you planning to do? Tonight you're bound to run into some trouble!" He glanced at them out of the corner of his eye.
These children were too exceptional. He couldn't bear the thought of watching them die along the road to their ideals.
"We'll meet force with force."
Shiratori was confident in the power of his cursed spirits.
Kojiro chuckled.
He suddenly turned and stared at them. "Hey! If I see you all again tomorrow, I'll join you! I'll help you realize that dream of yours that sounds impossible!"
He sighed deeply. "Though I'm already getting on in years, losing ideals and convictions would make me age even faster, wouldn't it? You won't mind that I'm too old, will you?"
Shiratori shook his head. "No. Because others who've joined us are even older than you."
"Is that so," Kojiro murmured.
It seemed he wasn't the only one conquered by these children's ideals.
"Someone joined you before me? Do you already have a proper organization then?"
"Not a proper one yet, we've only just founded it. It's called Akatsuki."
"Akatsuki? That's a fine name!"
