Chapter 20: Cruel Reality

Walking beside him, Miroku smiled slightly.

"This town is very quiet considering the things that have happened the past few months" Yamato said as he looked up at the sky.

Hearing Yamato, Miroku sighed and replied.

"It's because no one wants to be afraid of something they've never seen" Miroku said, still keeping a slight smile on his face.

Yamato listened to Miroku and closed his eyes for a few seconds.

"You seem to trust your people a lot" Putting his hands in his pockets, Yamato spoke.

At those words, Miroku's eyes widened, she thought Yamato was someone very understanding, but still....

"I'm the one in charge of everything important in this place, it's normal for me to trust my people" Crossing his arms, Miroku looked Yamato in the eyes and smiled.

Yamato simply stared at Miroku's handsome face for a few seconds before replying.

"I guess so" Yamato said as a sigh escaped his mouth.

After that the two continued walking for a few minutes, neither of them had said a word until that moment, but suddenly Miroku spoke.

"Now that I remember, the boy that accompanied them, what was his name?" Miroku asked, remembering the grey eyed boy, this made Yamato look into her eyes with a confused expression.

Although he had no problem saying his student's name, Yamato thought that question was a bit strange.

"Asahi Toru..." Without looking away from the front, Yamato spoke.

Hearing Toru's name, a smile formed on Miroku's lips.

(Asahi, uh...)

"Hm... that's a bit of an unusual name" Miroku said.

After Miroku spoke, Yamato narrowed his eyes.

(An unusual name...) Yamato thought, after all his student's last name wasn't usual at all.

*Boom!

A loud boom was heard, causing Yamato to turn his eyes in the direction of the village.

At that instant, when that roar reached his ears, a big smile formed on Miroku's mouth.

(Something happened, I must go) Yamato thought as he looked at Miroku.

"Sorry, I have to go to-"

"No!"

Yamato stopped talking when he felt something sharp touch his throat. At that very moment he realized everything.

"You-"

-In Hinata's room-

Shifting back and forth between the bed sheets, Hinata tried to sleep, but failed to do so.

(I can't sleep...) Hinata thought as she closed her eyes.

It had been a few hours since dinner and Hinata was still awake.

"Everyone must be asleep by now" Hinata said as she looked up at the ceiling of the room.

She was still feeling a little uncomfortable with what had happened during dinner. Toru getting up so abruptly, at the same time causing Miroku to fall to the ground, all that just gave her things to think about.

(Toru-kun...) Hinata thought as she imagined that gray-eyed boy.

Since they arrived in that town everything had become strange, the attitude of the people was strange, the strange hallucinations in which some people disappeared in front of her, everything was so strange.

(A giant spider...) Hinata thought.

That boy she had questioned earlier said some interesting things.

A giant spider that kidnaps people and eats them, that all sounded ridiculous, but still, Hinata thought that was kind of strange.

(Huh?!)

Hinata's Byakugan activated involuntarily when she sensed a presence in the room.

She immediately realized that that man with the rings was about to hit her right in the face.

So, in an attempt to dodge the blow, Hinata spun around on the bed.

Kouta's fist went through the bed like tofu, this made Hinata's eyes widen, after all if that punch ever touched her right now she wouldn't be alive anymore.

"Why did you do that?" Hinata asked, but Kouta answered.

*wind sound*

Kouta threw another punch. This forced Hinata to use her arms to block the attack, but the blow was so strong that the recoil sent her through the wooden wall.

(Why is he doing this?) Hinata asked herself as she picked herself up off the ground.

Stepping out of the hole Hinata left when she went through the wall, Kouta sighed and spoke.

"She looks tougher than her chakra shows" Kouta said, for a few seconds the rings on his hands glowed due to the moonlight.

-Minutes earlier in Ino's room-

His eyes widened as he heard a strange noise on the ceiling, for a few seconds an annoyed expression formed on his face.

(Damn... I'm tired, who's the idiot making so much noise at this time of night?) Ino thought as she got out of bed.

Opening the bedroom door, Ino rubbed her eyes and yawned. She started walking in the direction of the exit, obviously wearing her ninja gear, in case the cause of the noise was a pervert trying to eavesdrop.

"Ha~ Why do these things happen to me?" Ino said as she walked out of the inn.

She immediately saw a familiar silhouette.

(Is it serious?) Ino thought as she saw Toru sneaking around Miroku's house.

She thought Toru was a pervert for sneaking into someone's house late at night.

"I'm going to catch you in the act, so everyone will know what human trash you are" Ino said as she approached the place Toru entered through.

Ino took a few seconds to scan the surroundings, she wanted to be sure if no one was watching her.

"How weird..."

Although she looked around, the town seemed to be empty, and that was strange, since, in the daytime, that town was always full of people.

(I guess that will be an advantage for me).

A smile formed on Ino's mouth, as she tried to open the window.

(Huh?)

The window wouldn't open, after all, so as not to arouse suspicion Toru blocked the window.

(It can't be, I must find another way).

After thinking a bit, Ino began to look for something that would allow her to enter Miroku's house, however, she found nothing, there was no opening.

Ino could only make a face of displeasure at her situation, she felt cornered, but that didn't make her give up.

(There's still a way) Ino said as she headed for one of the nearby bushes.

"I'll wait here until the fool comes out, after that I'll yell for Yamato-sensei to appear and then he'll be caught."

Ino watched every possible way out of the house and stood waiting.

After that, a few minutes passed, Ino was still waiting with a serious expression on her face, but when she least expected it....

*Boom!*

Ino's eyes widened as she saw someone shot out through one of the walls of the house, that someone was Toru.

"What?"

Ino hid a little in the bush so she can't be discovered.

(What's going on? That's... the guy with the spear) Ino thought the moment she saw Yasu come out of the hole left in the wall of the house.

Yasu was walking slowly while swinging the spear in his hands, there was a smile on his face.

Meanwhile, Toru was still on the ground, he had his hands on his stomach, after all he had been kicked there.

*Cof, cof...*

Blood came out of Toru's mouth, this made Ino's eyes widen.

(What the hell? Why the...?) Ino covered her mouth with her hands, she thought Toru deserved a punishment for entering Miroku's house in such a suspicious way, but something like what she had just seen.

"I should have killed them all when they came to this village, after all you were the first one to find out, weren't you?" Yasu said as he looked at Toru.

"It's a pity Miroku-sama didn't allow me to kill them, still it was worth the wait."

*wind sound*

Yasu began to swing the spear with great skill, it caused a slight breeze on the ground, which made the leaves of the trees begin to orbit around him.

(Kill us?) Ino thought as she looked at Yasu.

"But, I'm surprised that you managed to find out that all the people in this town don't exist. Tell me, how did you figure out that it was all Genjutsu?" Yasu spoke with a smile on his face, however, Toru didn't respond, after all the punch he received in the stomach prevented him from speaking.

(Genjutsu?)

Ino was at a loss to understand what Yasu had just said.

(Wait...)

Clasping her hands together, Ino closed her eyes tightly.

"Release" Whispering, Ino released the Genjutsu.

Instantly she could realize everything, the houses, the people, the village, none of it existed.

All she could see were the ruined houses that was in place, everything was fake, everything she had seen, all the people, none of it was real.

(To create something like that with Genjutsu and keep it active for such a long time...)

Ino's eyes widened like saucers as she realized the magnitude of chakra needed to do something like that.

(So they... are as strong as Yamato-sensei) Ino thought, at the same time, her body began to tremble.

"It's amazing that a brat like you has such reasoning ability, but pitifully it all ends here."

Raising the spear, Yasu's eye gleamed.

"Die!"

*wind sound*

"Huh?"

Yasu was confused, his arms stopped just a few centimeters away from Toru's head, and a few meters away from the spot, was Ino, her hands formed a triangle pointing straight at Yasu.

After realizing this, Ino's body fell to the ground.

(Are you in my mind?) Yasu spoke inside his own mind, this made Ino sigh tiredly.

"I...I..." Ino said, this caused Yasu's mouth to utter the words out of her mind.

"Damn..." Ino said.

Another smile formed on Yasu's face before he swung the spear and stabbed his own leg.

"That doesn't work."

Hearing that, Ino quickly snapped back to her body due to the horrible feeling of the spear piercing her leg.

"I thought Kouta killed you, did he go for the Byakugan girl?" Yasu said while removing the spear from her leg.

(What do I do!) Ino screamed internally, she didn't know what to do, the moment she saw Toru about to be killed, she used her jutsu without a second thought.

"That damn jerk, but I can't blame him, after all he is blind" Yasu said as he approached Ino, at the same time the spear started to spin between his fingers.

"I'll have to kill you first, otherwise I won't be able to kill the other one."

Yasu said while looking at Ino with a smile.

(Are you going to kill me? Am I going to die? I'm going to die! I don't want to die!)

As Yasu approached with that macabre smile on his face, cold sweat began to slide down Ino's face, her legs began to shake, and tears came out.

"Help me, help me!"

Realizing she was going to die, Ino began to run as she screamed, tears spilling down her cheeks as she watched Yasu approach.

When he saw that, Yasu simply smiled, and in less than a second, he appeared in front of Ino.

*Wind sound*

The spear slashed, but only managed to make a small cut on Ino's cheek.

"Ahhh!!!"

-Somewhere-

Hinata had adopted her fighting stance, at the same time the blindfolded man sighed.

"The chakra is directed to the hands, eh. Your chakra control is superior to the people I've felt" Kouta said, his voice sounded somewhat muffled, as did the way he moved.

"You, why are you doing this" With veins swelling around her eyes, Hinata spoke, chakra could still be seen enveloping her hands.

"I don't have time to answer" Kouta said, instantly appearing in front of Hinata, throwing a punch of great magnitude.