Part 7 – The Real Target
One of the guards slid the door open.
"My Lord."
"A messenger has arrived from the eastern front."
Raijin immediately looked up.
"...Send him in."
The guard stepped aside.
A shinobi entered the room.
Dust covered his uniform.
His breathing was slightly heavy from the journey.
He immediately knelt on one knee.
"...Lord Raijin."
"I bring an urgent report from Commander Akari."
He respectfully held out a sealed scroll.
Raijin accepted it.
The crimson wax seal bore Akari's personal insignia.
Without hesitation...
He broke it open.
The room fell silent once more.
His eyes slowly moved across the report.
Lord Raijin,
We have remained stationed on the eastern front for several hours.
No enemy forces have appeared.
No unusual movement has been detected.
At this point, I believe the report of an incoming war was false.
Before we departed, Haruto informed me that someone he claims is his Hunter friend warned him this war was fabricated to draw our shinobi away from the village.
At the time, I had no evidence to support those words.
Now...
I can no longer dismiss them.
I am returning with my unit immediately.
Until then, I advise you to proceed with extreme caution.
— Akari
Raijin slowly lowered the scroll.
The room became silent.
His gaze shifted toward the folded letter lying beside it.
Then...
Back to Akari's report.
One...
Was brought by Amaya.
The other...
Had come directly from the eastern front.
Neither depended on the other.
Yet...
Both carried the same warning.
The war...
Had never existed.
Raijin slowly exhaled.
"..."
"So..."
"They were trying to empty the village..."
Amaya quietly watched him.
"...Lord Raijin?"
Raijin didn't answer immediately.
His eyes remained fixed on the two letters before him.
One question...
Still refused to leave his mind.
"...A Hunter..."
"...Friends with Haruto?"
He slowly shook his head.
"...No."
"...That part..."
"I still don't believe."
But the rest...
He could no longer ignore.
The room remained silent.
Raijin looked between the two letters.
One...
Had come from Amaya.
The other...
From Akari.
Both pointed toward the same conclusion.
"..."
"If the war was fake..."
He murmured.
"...Then why warn Haruto?"
No one answered.
His fingers slowly tightened around the scroll.
"..."
Then...
Something clicked.
His eyes widened ever so slightly.
"...No..."
He whispered.
"This..."
"...Was never about the village."
Amaya looked at him.
"...Lord Raijin?"
Raijin slowly looked up.
"The war..."
"...Was only bait."
"The battlefield..."
"...Was only a distraction."
His expression hardened.
"The real objective..."
He paused.
"...Was the Inazuma triplets."
The room fell silent.
Even the messenger froze.
Raijin slowly clenched his fist.
"...So that's your plan..."
He whispered.
"You wanted every capable shinobi outside the village..."
"So no one would be left to protect them."
His gaze became unwavering.
"...I won't let that happen."
For the first time...
Emotion appeared in his voice.
"...I gave someone my word."
"...That I would protect those three."
"...Even if it cost me my life."
The room remained silent.
Raijin turned sharply toward the messenger.
"My orders."
The messenger immediately straightened.
"Yes, my Lord."
"Quietly recall every trusted shinobi still outside the village."
"No alarms."
"No public announcements."
"If Hunters have infiltrated the village..."
"I don't want them realizing we've seen through their plan."
The messenger nodded.
"...Understood."
Raijin continued.
"Deploy our trusted officers."
"They will move only through the underground routes."
"They are not to reveal themselves unless absolutely necessary."
"They are to locate the Inazuma triplets immediately."
He paused.
Then added,
"...Especially Haruto."
Amaya looked at him.
"...Haruto?"
Raijin nodded.
"I need answers."
He looked at the letter lying on the table.
"...Because if what's written here is true..."
His eyes narrowed.
"...Then Haruto may know something..."
"...That none of us do."
"Go."
The messenger bowed deeply.
"...At once, my Lord."
In the next instant...
He vanished.
The room became silent once more.
Raijin looked out the window into the dark village.
His voice was barely audible.
"...You entrusted them to me..."
"...I won't break that promise."