Naruto: Five Lives, Five Times the Excitement

Chapter 25 Home Delivery

Mimori watched Rinko and Hozuki Naoto leave without giving chase, silently observing the surroundings and remaining wary of the Takano brothers who might appear.

"Takano brothers, what are your intentions? Do you also want to occupy the high ground of the hills?"

The Takano brothers put away their weapons and went to the tree where Mikami was hiding, where they actually knelt down on one knee.

Hiroshi Takano, the older brother, said, "We hope to follow you and gain your protection through loyalty."

The younger brother, Takano Ishiya, said sincerely, "We can act as bait, we can do anything dangerous. If you feel that we are a burden, you can abandon us at any time."

Hearing their words, Mi Shou was very surprised. After a two-second silence, he said, "I am just a student at the Ninja Academy. I am not even a ninja. There is no benefit for you to join me."

Takano Hiroshi said, "Lord Mikami, we are weak and insignificant. If we don't rely on you, we probably won't even survive to graduate. Besides, you trampled those noble families underfoot without any family resources to support you. You must be a true genius and will achieve great things in the future."

Mikami observed the expressions of the Takano brothers and slowly said, "Today, in order to survive, you can rely on me; tomorrow, in order to survive, you can also rely on others and betray me."

Kono Seki firmly stated, "Time will prove our loyalty. We are self-aware that we have very little talent as ninjas, and our only asset is our loyalty."

He remained silent.

This is the living environment of Kirigakure. Due to the shortage of resources, everyone competes with each other, seeks refuge with each other, and fights with each other. The strong are even more unscrupulous, and everyone is used to obeying the strong.

Seeing that Mikami did not respond, the Takano brothers were very uneasy.

Mi Shou's decision will determine their future.

Mikami initially wanted to refuse, but considering the harsh living conditions in Kirigakure, he thought it wouldn't hurt to find a couple of pawns. So he said, "If you follow me, you must obey my orders. Remember your words: your only valuable possession is loyalty."

"Yes!"

The Takano brothers responded excitedly, and the three of them left the place and found a secluded spot to rest.

The battle had taken a toll on Mimori, and he needed to eat something to replenish his energy. The Takano brothers conscientiously got busy, setting up warning lines, installing traps, and standing guard.

During this time, Mi Shou remained vigilant towards the two, paying attention to their every move and keeping a distance of two or three steps. He also ate only his own food to avoid any mishaps.

During the break, Mikami also took the time to learn about his subordinates' abilities.

"What ninjutsu do you know, and what are your special skills?"

The Takano brothers exchanged a glance, somewhat ashamed: "We only know the Three Body Technique, but our stamina is alright."

Haha, without any family tradition, all I can do is train my physical fitness. My physical strength is alright, but only alright. At best, I won't hold anyone back, but I'm definitely not outstanding.

What equipment do you have?

"We have four kunai, some shuriken, a bottle of poison, and two smoke bombs."

The Takano brothers were very conscientious. They opened their knife kit and laid out the items one by one to prove that they were not lying.

Mi Shou glanced at it, shook his head helplessly. They were really poor; all of this together wasn't even worth as much as his short sword.

After resting for half an hour, the sky was already showing signs of sunset, and Mi Shou stood up.

"Let's go, and arrive at our destination before dark."

For the next half hour, they encountered no one else and successfully reached the slightly flatter hills. After setting up a perimeter, the Takano brothers lit a campfire as bait, while Mikami lay in ambush in the darkness.

The next day, the three of them gathered together under the shade of a tree.

Mimori picked up a branch and drew the outline of the island on the ground, marking the location of the hills.

"This is the island map, and this is our location. We have two options now. One is to defend, use the terrain here to kill the invading enemies, and then board the ship in four days."

"Secondly, we should launch an attack, using this place as the center, and gradually expand the hunting area outwards. Once we kill the people, we will be safe."

Hiroshi Takano said, "You decide. We will obey orders."

"hehe."

Mi Shou laughed, his light blue eyes flashing with dazzling light, and raised the short sword in his hand.

"Being born in the cruel Hidden Mist Village is our misfortune. The only thing that can cut through misfortune is the sword in our hands. Killing one person makes you a murderer, killing ten thousand makes you a hero. We have no choice at all."

"Besides, our boat is so small, it was already crowded when we came, and I don't want to have to endure it again when we go back."

Konoshi said quite consciously, "We are not strong enough, so we can be used as bait."

Mi Shou nodded with satisfaction: "Then let's set off. I remember some of my classmates' families are wealthy. Maybe we can capture some equipment, and even if we don't use it, we can sell it to make money."

"Making money is great!"

"hey-hey."

Hearing that there was money to be made, the Takano brothers became even more excited.

There's no way around it; education costs a lot. Their parents work overtime every day just to be able to afford the education of their two children.

In the days that followed, the three of them transformed into compasses, drawing circles around their base and gradually extending their hunting range.

In the woods, the Gao brothers' trash talk echoed incessantly, their sarcasm reaching a fever pitch.

"Oh dear, this year's students are no good. They can take down kids with a single slash. There's no sense of accomplishment at all."

"That's right, the Hozuki clan and the Kaguya clan, they can only grovel before us in order to survive."

"At this rate, my knife will be corroded by the blood."

“Okay, let’s kill another sixty people, and when we have a hundred, we’ll rest for an hour.”

Everyone who discovers the Takano brothers, seeing them strolling unguarded in the jungle, can't help but attack, only to be killed by Yamori in return.

Of course, some people felt that taking a step back would open up a whole new world and wanted to retreat, but their concealment skills were not up to par, and they were discovered and killed by Misato.

Within two days, they achieved a total of ten kills, and captured some equipment and supplies.

The Takano brothers also suffered some injuries. Takano Ishi was alright, only minor cuts and bruises, but Takano Hiroshi was more unlucky, as he was struck in the groin by someone who had just given him a fatal blow, piercing his thigh muscle and needing proper treatment.

With many people around him killed and prey scarce and hard to find, Mi Shou decided to rest for a day and give the prey a chance to replenish their supplies.

On the fifth day, just as Mi Shou was about to launch another attack, he discovered that his prey had been delivered to his door.

"The sun is shining brightly, and the prey is growing strong. That's wonderful."

Mi Shou looked up at the blue sky and white clouds, and drew his well-maintained short sword.

"If you survive this time, I will truly take you under my wing and make you stronger."

Looking at the dozen or so enemies ahead, Mikami gave a message to the Takano brothers behind him.

In any case, as long as they can hold on in the battle, they can share the burden of Mi Shou.

If they run away and die, then so be it.

Everything in this world comes at a price, and we will fight with all our might!

Hiroshi Takano gripped the kunai tightly with both hands, his voice trembling slightly, but he showed no intention of backing down.

He was prepared to die in battle, as long as his brother could survive!