Five days later.
The young man was sprawled on the counter, listlessly looking around, until someone entered the door from outside. Only then did he quickly perk up and wave in greeting.
"You're back, Mr. Naraku."
"Mm."
Ren, clad in a black robe, paused his steps, nodded to the other party, and then continued carrying the plastic bag upstairs.
"What a strange person."
Watching Ren's back disappear around the stairwell, the young man slumped back down, muttering to himself.
These two people had been staying here for four or five days now, always wearing black robes every time they met, making them seem mysterious.
However, the other party was quite generous; the day after they arrived, they paid for a week in advance and even gave a two thousand tael tip, which he was happy about.
It didn't matter if they were commoners, Ninja, or something else; it had nothing to do with him, as long as it didn't affect his earnings.
"Creak!"
The door slowly opened. As soon as Ren entered, he saw Rin standing by the window, gazing into the distance, lost in thought, completely oblivious to the sound of the door opening.
"Rin."
"Huh?"
Ren called out, and only then did Rin snap back to reality, instinctively turning her head to look in his direction.
"What are you thinking about? Let's eat first."
Ren placed the bought breakfast on the table and nodded.
"Mm."
The two sat down at the table. Less than two minutes after they started eating, Rin looked up and spoke.
"Ren, I want to start taking action."
"Hm?"
Ren put down his chopsticks and looked at Rin, saying with some surprise.
"Why the rush? Your injuries haven't fully healed yet, which could significantly impact your combat ability."
Although Rin's injuries had mostly recovered after a week of rest and treatment, Ren still felt she would struggle in a fight.
"It's fine."
Rin shook her head, then also put down her chopsticks and smiled.
"Don't forget, Saiken is with me too."
The next moment, Saiken's voice emanated from within Rin.
"Ah, I'm here."
"Uh…"
Ren rubbed his temples, looking at the other party with a headache, then sighed softly, got up, walked to a nearby table, took out paper and pen, and began to write.
Soon, Ren returned with a densely written piece of paper. Under Rin's curious gaze, he handed it over.
"What is this?"
Rin took it, finding it filled with place names, personal names, and names of what seemed like objects, none of which she had ever heard of.
When these locations were plotted on a map, most of them were scattered across the small, border nations of the Ninja World, nestled between the Five Great Nations, usually inconspicuous.
"These are the hidden forces of the Ninja World that I've learned about before."
Ren took out another Ninja World map, spread it on the table, pointed to a spot, and nodded.
"Here is the Land of Demons, with its generations of priestesses and the monster they need to seal. You can take some time to learn about this."
"Okay."
Rin nodded, then picked up the paper and compared it with the map. Ren didn't stop, moving his hand to another spot.
"This is Takigakure Village, their…"
Thus, one explained in detail, and the other listened attentively. By the time Ren stopped, Rin had a general understanding and knowledge of these matters.
After talking for most of the day, leaving Ren parched, he drank water while looking at Rin, who was deep in thought, and added.
"For now, this is all I know. The rest you'll have to investigate yourself."
"Mm."
Rin nodded, then carefully put away the map and paper, and nodded.
"Then I'll leave tomorrow."
"Alright."
Ren didn't object. With Saiken present, as long as Rin was careful, there shouldn't be any problems.
"Oh, right."
Ren seemed to suddenly remember something, his gaze returning to Rin, and he said with a serious expression.
"You can go to other places, and deep investigations are fine, but absolutely do not go to Hidden Rain Village. Even the Land of Rain, if you can avoid it, don't go."
"Huh?"
Rin blinked, repeating with some confusion.
"Hidden Rain Village?"
"Yes!"
Ren nodded, his face showing unprecedented seriousness and earnestness.
"The previous ruler of Hidden Rain Village, Hanzou, known as the 'Demigod,' has already been killed.
The current ruler of Hidden Rain Village is a very strong fellow. Don't provoke him."
Nagato, wielding the Rinnegan in conjunction with the Deva Path, was definitely stronger than an average Kage-level Ninja. If Rin went there, wouldn't she be leading Saiken straight into a trap?
"Okay."
Although surprised by the Demigod's death, Rin didn't ask further. After all, such a person was certainly not someone she could contend with currently. It was better to focus on the present first.
Ren stood up and nodded to Rin.
"Then let's add two more seals."
Although the current relationship between the one person and one Tailed Beast meant there was no need to worry about the seal, Ren was concerned about Saiken's existence being discovered.
Adding two more seals to mask the Chakra signature felt very necessary to Ren, as it's better safe than sorry.
After another round of effort, until even Isobu and Chomei within him could only faintly sense Saiken's Chakra, Ren finally stopped.
Since even they, fellow Tailed Beasts, could barely sense it, the possibility of others discovering it was even lower. Although it took a lot of time, the effect seemed to be good.
"Then that's all for now."
Ren popped an orange segment into his mouth, and as he stood up to leave, he didn't forget to instruct.
"If you encounter any trouble, send me a message. I guarantee I'll arrive within twelve hours."
As they spoke, the two also reached the door. Just as Ren put on his black robe and prepared to leave, he casually asked another question.
"By the way, have you chosen your infiltration target?"
"Mm."
Rin nodded and said softly.
"I plan to go to Hidden Cloud Village."
"Huh?"
Ren was startled at first, then after a moment of thought, he agreed.
"Hidden Cloud Village, huh? That's not bad either."
Among the Five Great Villages, aside from Konoha, Hidden Cloud Village had the deepest foundation and the strongest power. They even had many more good things than other villages, so it was indeed a good choice.
"However, if you go to Hidden Cloud Village…"
At this point, Ren turned and went back inside the room. Under Rin's puzzled gaze, he said sternly.
"Rin, for safety, let's add two more seals!"
"…Is that really necessary?"
Rin put a hand to her forehead, saying with some helplessness.
"Very necessary!"
Hidden Cloud Village also had two Tailed Beasts, the Two-Tails and the Eight-Tails. If Rin accidentally came into contact with their Jinchuriki and her identity was discovered, it would be over.
Actually, Hidden Mist Village was a more suitable place for Rin, as their two Tailed Beasts were already gone, so there was no fear of her identity being exposed.
However, Ren had already taken most of the good things from Hidden Mist Village, so there wasn't much profit in going there. He could put that aside for now.
As for Hidden Cloud Village, Ren was very interested in this undeveloped dungeon.