33. „Stranger"

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Next to the "Dragon," who appeared to be a well-built but ordinary forty-year-old man, sat the "Devilish Siblings." A brother and sister who allegedly committed cannibalism on their own uncle when they were children. Both were no more than thirty years old, their faces covered in small scars. The notion that inner darkness reflects on people's faces is true in this case. Both siblings looked anything but ordinary, especially not beautiful; their faces were decidedly ugly, making it hard to maintain eye contact with them for more than just a brief moment.

A little further away, sat two old men, "Fish," with gray hair and sunken eyes, was in his fifties but looked much older and frail, yet his eyes held indescribable intelligence. "Old Man" looked like a typical grandfather who enjoyed spending time with his grandchildren, with a friendly expression that anyone could judge at first glance as pleasant and ordinary. However, anyone with a keen sense could detect the scent of blood lingering on him from years spent as a Shinobi on bloody battlefields.

"Nameless" sat farthest away from the rest. This was a person whom everyone in the room trusted the least. He always wore a mask on his face, even to such gatherings, showing his lack of trust in others, or rather, his lack of trust in them.

To cooperate together, trust in others is required, even the small and subtle trust shown by not wearing masks and arriving at the meeting without their bodyguards. However, "Nameless" continued to conceal his identity, being a stubborn man, perhaps overly cautious?

Even some of his subordinates began to form various theories and rumors about their mysterious leader. Besides those about connections to the Hokage, there were also rumors about his face, which is completely destroyed above the mouth. However, no reputable source could confirm this.

The last, seventh person was unrelated to the three main criminal groups in the black market. He liked to call himself the "Elder Brother," but often, even by his own subordinates, he was called a fool or a despicable person without dignity. He belonged to a small group of thieves of which he was the leader. Thanks to excellent espionage techniques, he was able to conceal his presence even near Jounin and thus managed to steal from half of the people gathered in the room. Since sneaking into the annual meetings a few years ago, he himself began to be invited, thanks to cooperation with each of the three largest criminal groups.

Although leading a small group of thieves, he was highly esteemed among the most influential people, even though he had robbed them several times. Many people didn't like him, but his usefulness couldn't be denied.

"Dragon," as the organizer of these annual meetings and the person who despite having the greatest influence of all those gathered here, most desired coexistence, began the meeting.

— As you've probably heard and noticed, a new force has appeared on the black market and in the Red Light District. I wouldn't mind it, but it's taking a bite out of all the groups present here, seizing our influence and power.

— "Stranger" — "Fish" replied, the person who suffered the most from him. His direct subordinates were attacked by him, and some of them were already on the other side of life — What do you know about him? I suppose you have the most information about him out of all of us.

— Honestly, I'm not much different from you guys — "Dragon" shrugged helplessly — He was able to take over two brothels from me, killing all of my people without a trace. The lack of any traces of his presence indicates good hiding technique, maybe even better than... — "Dragon" couldn't bring himself to utter the pseudonym "Elder Brother." He was too proud to call someone younger his elder brother, even if it was just a pseudonym.

— Oh...? Is he really that good? — "Elder Brother" was surprised.

— I was close to catching him, but he has no scent, his chakra is absolutely invisible to my sensory perception, and he's "invisible" — "Old Man" admitted — I've never seen such a powerful espionage technique in my life, it's probably some Kekkei Genkai or Clan technique, but I haven't heard of anything so powerful.

— We can't dismiss this. However, we need to find a way to deal with him, otherwise, he'll slowly exterminate us — "Dragon" said.

— If he managed to grab so much influence for himself, it means he can take even more. What if it's someone from the great Clans? I doubt we stand a chance against them — "Fish" pondered aloud. If one of the great Clans wanted to control the black market, they didn't stand much of a chance, even if they all joined forces.

— Does it matter? We just need to catch him and kill him. There's no point in pondering over whether it's you acting on the principle of "kill and immediately cover all traces"? — a male member of the "Devilish Siblings" mocked "Fish" with his words.

— It's complicated. I've found that it doesn't always work, and as you can see, I've suffered the most... — "Fish" shrugged, feeling no greater emotions over the deaths of his subordinates and the losses he suffered.

— Do you suggest something? — "Dragon" raised his eyebrows in surprise.

— I'm not sure if it's related, but once I sent two of my people to kill a kid, they were trained killers at the Chunin level, but... they were killed by him.

— Are you telling us that some kid killed your people and now has his own criminal group...?! — the woman from the "Devilish Siblings" exclaimed amused. She had a rather ugly face even for a woman, and her vulgar speech only worsened her general impression in the eyes of others.

— In the world, there are many monsters hidden in immature children's bodies, I simply don't dismiss it and keep it in mind — "Fish" rarely felt the consequences of his actions, but he always remembered even the smallest ones. Thanks to such thinking, he was able to avoid revenge from many people and come out alive from several situations where he would normally have been killed.

— That's unreasonable to assume that the "Stranger" is a child just because it killed two of your men. We don't even know if he did it himself, someone could have helped him get out of that situation alive. Following that line of thinking, I could also designate a random person who killed my colleagues, as there were a few such people — "Elder Brother" shared a similar mindset to the Devilish Siblings.

— But consider that everything started from that moment...! Apparently, only I made an effort, analyzed the "Stranger" activity since the beginning of his activity in the black market, and it coincides with the moment my people died. That's why I'm the biggest victim because he seeks revenge on me for attempting to kill him...! — "Fish" was adamant in his words.

— It could be a lead, but we can't fully assume that he's the "Stranger" — "Dragon" also questioned this possibility, but didn't fully reject it. He knew that Fish was intelligent and wouldn't say something he was at least 60% sure of.

— I'm not saying it's definitely him, but he's the closest person I can suspect — "Fish" replied.

"Old Man" knocked on the table a few times. — Well, the simplest task will be to just interrogate one of his people. Unfortunately, his group is quite small and consists only of his most loyal members. 'Stranger' manages them excellently, directing them so well that they are well hidden in society as normal people. He most likely kills anyone who sees him, otherwise he wouldn't be so invisible...

— Extraordinary caution, coupled with incredible technique in hiding his presence... — "Elder Brother" rubbed his beard — He's the perfect picture of an elusive Shinobi. He's also strong; one could assume he's at least at the level of a beginner Jounin, which makes this matter even more challenging... I wonder if I could befriend him?

"Elder Brother" chuckled, meaning if he could rob him. For him, all the people gathered here were just ATMs from which he could withdraw new funds. Life is about amassing fortune; the more you risk, the greater the profit. "Elder Brother" always followed one thought, contradictory to the values of many people, and it was thanks to this that he had come so far. "You won't find happiness being poor; was any homeless person ever happy because they lacked money? It's money that brings the greatest happiness in life, family, home, food... everything is a derivative of money!"

— Do we know any specific places where he usually appears or stays? Without any leads, we won't be able to find him — "Elder Brother" was sure he would be tasked with tracking down the "Stranger," so he at least wanted to gather some clues. — Perhaps a brothel he frequents, maybe he has a favorite girl? Any recent strange events or unresolved issues. We also need to inquire about suspicious people lingering around.

— Here, everyone is suspicious — "Old Man" let out a quiet laugh.

— Anyone particularly suspicious among the suspicious? — "Elder Brother" corrected himself. — Well, why am I even saying this, you all know what to do. Look for anything that's strange or too ordinary; the more something tries to look ordinary, the stranger it is.

— I'll send a team of people to look for clues and leads; everything will be relayed to you later so you can track him down. Of course, I'll compensate you generously — "Dragon" replied.

— Don't mention it; we're friends — "Elder Brother" chuckled, rubbing his hands together.

"Dragon" didn't pay much attention to his acting, trying to portray himself in the light of friendship. Either way, he would be forced to pay because he would take the money himself, maybe even more than he deserved, and no one would find any evidence accusing him of stealing it.

At that moment, a faint sound piercing through the body caused everyone to turn their gaze in one direction.

"Old Man" had a blade protruding from his chest where his heart should be. The man let out a quiet sigh of surprise and involuntarily tried to turn his gaze to the attacker, but his neck was twisted the next moment.

— What the hell...?! — "Devilish Siblings" exclaimed simultaneously.

— Stay alert...! We have a guest — "Old Man" warned everyone, tensing all his muscles. He activated his sensory ability but didn't notice the presence of any new person.

Too strange...

"Old Man's" body fell from the chair, and everyone prepared for the next enemy attack. However, there was no one; the person who should have been standing behind "Old Man" had disappeared.

— Who are you, stranger? — "Dragon" remained composed and tried to communicate with the enemy.

There was no response. "Dragon" narrowed his eyes and turned to "Old Man" — Do you sense his presence?

— No... This man is practically invisible to all senses. Try to find him...! He won't escape our sight, no matter how he tries to hide his presence! — "Old Man" commanded or ordered.

— He's probably been here the whole time, hidden in the shadow of "Old Man" — "Fish" said, practically not believing his own words. — "Stranger," am I right? — he addressed him by his alias.

There was a moment of silence as everyone was almost certain about the enemy's identity. "Nameless" drew his blade and placed it in the air, pulling a thin, metal wire that was almost invisible to the sense of sight in the dimly lit room.

— What...? — the man from the "Devilish Siblings" stood stunned and also touched the thin wire, which was close to his neck — What is this supposed to be?! It's damn sharp! — he withdrew his wounded finger.

— A trap... He laid them while we were talking — "Nameless" replied. — What a clever bastard...!

Then, he cut the wire with his tanto, and the eyes of all the gathered people widened in disbelief.

—What the hell are you doing?!

However, after cutting the metal, nothing happened. Even after a while, there was silence; no weapon came, everyone stood in their places alive, and the enemy, if he hadn't revealed himself, still sat in hiding, if he was still somewhere here. The wire slowly fell to the ground, giving the opportunity for free movement without getting hurt.

"Nameless" explained — It's just a wire, a bit sharp, but without a trap attached. Do you see any weapon here? He just wanted to scare us and injure us if we fell for it.

— So why did you say it was a trap? — "Fish" was irritated by his behavior.

— I wasn't entirely sure, so I wanted to warn you — anyone could tell that behind that mask, "Nameless" had a mocking smile.

— Tch...! — the woman from the "Devilish Siblings" snorted — Don't think you're better than us, you bastard...! If it weren't for this situation, I would have killed...

Her words were cut off halfway as she suddenly leaped aside. It was an animalistic reflex, something like a sixth sense she acquired from cannibalizing her enemies. She did it instinctively and was momentarily disoriented by her own body.