On the second day after the incident with the refugee ship, Her Excellency, the Almighty Ogosho, Raiden Shogun summoned the Tri-Commissions for a rare meeting.
No one knew the contents of the discussion.
However, upon returning, Kujou Takayuki, the head of the Kujou Clan, removed Kujou Masahito from his position as General of the front lines, citing "mismanagement of the Kamuijima Cannons."
In his place, he ordered his adopted daughter, Kujou Sara, to temporarily set aside her duties at the Tenryou Commission headquarters and take over for Masahito.
Though Kujou Takayuki paid lip service to treating everyone equally, he essentially barred his adopted daughter from meddling in real military power or important family affairs.
Even her position as General of the Tenryou Commission was only begrudgingly arranged because the Raiden Shogun had tasked her with enforcing the Vision Hunt Decree.
To now have her lead the troops at Kujou Encampment must be related to that meeting.
The Yashiro Commission, like the Kanjou Commission, appeared to remain quiet.
However, that very night, a large group of Shuumatsuban ninjas departed the Kamisato Estate under the cover of darkness, heading toward Yashiori Island.
"Whoosh..."
On the beaches of Kannazuka, a spherical object composed entirely of Anemo energy was speeding across the sand at a breakneck pace.
But before long, she skidded to a halt.
"Puh, ptooey, blech!"
Removing her hood, Sayu patted her hair while making sounds of spitting something out.
A mouthful of sand was far worse than being dizzy.
Last night, the Shuumatsuban received orders from the Clan Head to carry out a mission on Yashiori Island.
Sayu didn't know what mission her seniors were on, as that was kept secret from her.
Her task was simply to conduct a perimeter survey of Kannazuka; she wasn't asked to set foot on Yashiori Island.
Legend has it that Kannazuka means "the hill where gods are absent," and it has long been a contested territory between the Shogunate and Sangonomiya.
The terrain here is precipitous, with high hanging cliffs.
Nestled within the layered cliffs, a place named Tatarasuna houses Inazuma's largest smelting facility—the Mikage Furnace.
And the Jade Steel, a special material for forging Inazuman blades, is produced here.
Due to reasons that couldn't be disclosed to servants like them, the power known as "Tatarigami" had leaked into the sea.
Kannazuka is a crucial position for the Shogunate. To prevent the Tatarigami energy from affecting this land, they could only send her, a little ninja skilled in escaping—er, traveling—to survey the island.
If she found anything resembling Tatarigami, she was to report it immediately.
But...
"I'm still so sleepy..."
Yawning and looking at the sun overhead, Sayu found a random tree and climbed up.
It wasn't that she wanted to slack off, but as a growing little ninja, lunch was mandatory, or she wouldn't grow taller.
And now, it was lunchtime.
As for her lunch...
"Sigh, do I have to gnaw on Lavender Melons again?"
Honestly, if it weren't for the rule against lighting fires in the wild, she would rather eat carrots than gnaw on raw Lavender Melons.
Lavender Melons weren't inedible.
Whether roasted or boiled, they tasted delicious.
But eating them raw, and with the skin on...
That takes a brave soul.
One must remember that Lavender Melon skins are used to make dye.
Even Arataki Itto only dares to eat them after roasting them over a fire.
Simply put... even an Oni wouldn't dare gnaw on them raw.
"Huh?"
She wiped her mouth with her arm, smearing purple juice across her cheek.
Stashing the half-eaten Lavender Melon, Sayu hid within the lush branches and peeked out through a gap.
As a ninja of the Shuumatsuban, Sayu hadn't just put effort into learning how to run away and hide.
Listening to the wind to determine positions like a cat was also one of the key skills she studied.
Because if she wasn't careful, she'd be caught by the shrine maiden sister sneaking up behind her, and then she'd get her mouth stuffed with carrots again.
If she heard correctly... there was the sound of cart wheels nearby.
And quite a few carts, at that.
Sure enough, a few minutes later, several carriages filled with boxes passed along the small seaside path.
"Is that Mora?!"
Mora, the currency created by Liyue's Rex Lapis using the authority of the Geo Archon, is the only currency circulated throughout Teyvat.
And this currency possesses a special power.
Vision holders can easily verify its authenticity through elemental resonance.
Based on the feedback of elemental energy, the contents of these carriages should indeed be Mora.
"Ugh... should I report this?"
This convoy hauling so much Mora... they didn't look like they were up to any good.
But her mission was a perimeter survey of the island; was it really okay to just walk away?
These people were definitely too suspicious, especially the leader, who was clearly dressed like one of the Fatui.
Maybe she should go back and report it first.
Swallowing the last trace of Lavender Melon juice in her mouth, Sayu tried to slowly retreat backward.
She was like a keen little kitten; her movements made no sound, not even shaking the tree trunk.
But after only a few steps back, she felt herself bump into something.
It was a person!
Based on her experience being chased by the shrine maiden, Sayu immediately judged there was someone behind her.
At this point, she didn't care if she alerted the convoy outside.
"Muji-Muji Daruma!"
She leapt high into the air, leaving a round Daruma doll in her place, while she scattered a handful of shuriken and plummeted toward the ground.
However, the opponent's seemingly slender arm effortlessly grabbed her by the back of her collar, dangling her in mid-air.
"Shh, don't scare off my prey, little Tanuki."
"I'm not a Tanuki, I'm a Mujina!"
This shout was intended to refute him, but it ended up causing trouble.
Because of her yell, the convoy outside noticed the anomaly.
Including the leader, everyone went on high alert.
"Who goes there!"
With an angry shout, Igor drew his weapon and looked toward the forest where the sound came from.
The others in the convoy also drew their weapons in imitation, but judging by their posture and the expressions on their faces...
They were likely not Fatui soldiers.
Fatui soldiers deployed to foreign lands wouldn't hold their blades so unsteadily.
These were mostly hired thugs Igor had brought in, purely to make up the numbers.
Only a very small portion were core members he had brought out from Watatsumi Island.
He wasn't afraid of anyone robbing this Mora. Before passing through here, he had specifically investigated via the Fatui intelligence network.
Due to the war between the Resistance and the Shogunate, plus the chaos caused by the Tatarigami, hardly anyone passed through here.
Even if people did pass by, it was just a few scattered individuals, mostly miners fleeing from Tatarasuna.
Such refugees wouldn't stand a chance against their convoy.
But there was one thing he hadn't realized: if someone was targeting this batch of Mora, they would be intercepted no matter which route they took, even if they went by water.
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