In the end, the meal was completely tasteless, and it ended hastily.
Shinji wasn't some naive saint who believed that just because someone fed him a meal, he now had to avenge their grievances. The most he planned to do was leave a little extra money behind as payment before departing.
Hidan, on the other hand, didn't think the old man's story was anything worth caring about.
So what if a son had died?
People died every single day in this world.
After dinner, Shinji and Hidan returned to their room to rest. Meanwhile, the old man's daughter-in-law took the child back to her parents' house—most likely to avoid gossip from the villagers.
Before long, the night grew deep.
Shinji suddenly opened his eyes and quietly prepared to slip out.
However, to his surprise, someone was already sitting outside the door—as if waiting for him.
"The night is quite late. Where are you headed, young man?"
"Hm? Were you waiting for me?"
Shinji looked puzzled. In the moonlight, the old man's face appeared calm and composed.
"You and your companion are both ninja, aren't you?"
Instead of answering Shinji's question, the old man spoke in a firm, certain tone.
"Our village is very remote. Even merchant caravans rarely pass through here, so unfamiliar faces almost never appear. Not long after you entered the village, I hid myself and began observing you."
Shinji raised an eyebrow slightly.
"Why?"
The old man sighed.
"Because I'm afraid."
Shinji seemed to understand something.
The old man continued,
"I didn't know whether your arrival would bring harm to the village. So even though I knew you might be dangerous people, I could only step forward and ask about your intentions… pretending not to know anything, and bringing you back to my home."
"You're afraid another tragedy like before might happen again?"
The old man sighed again.
"We've only managed to live peacefully for a few years now. As the saying goes, once bitten by a snake, you fear the rope for ten years. How could I not be afraid?"
"So you're standing here to stop me?"
Shinji asked curiously.
"What could a useless old man like me possibly stop?" the old man said with a shake of his head. "At most, I'm gambling once."
"If I win, I go back to sleep. If I lose… then I simply won't wake up again. At my age, I've already come to terms with these things."
Shinji nodded.
"No wonder you found an excuse after dinner to send your family away. You were afraid they might be dragged into trouble?"
The old man didn't respond.
In truth, he had originally planned to stall the two outsiders, then quietly take his daughter-in-law and grandson away from the village for a few days.
But the outside world wasn't safe either.
Wild beasts and bandits roamed the area. With their group—an old man, a young child, and a single woman—if they ran into wolves or thieves, they likely wouldn't survive.
After observing Shinji for half a day, and after a few deliberate tests, the old man had realized something.
Although the other man looked dangerous at a glance, the one standing before him had repeatedly restrained his companion and kept him from causing trouble.
That proved two things.
First, this person was capable of rational communication.
Second, there was a good chance he wasn't someone who slaughtered people indiscriminately.
So the old man decided to remain behind and determine their true intentions.
Old, yet still sharp.
A clear-headed man.
And incredibly courageous.
That was Shinji's evaluation of him.
In this world, the most infuriating thing was that ordinary people had no control over their own fate.
Everything depended on whether the uninvited guests who arrived brought kindness… or malice.
"Don't worry," Shinji said calmly. "I have no interest in your village. When dawn comes, we'll leave."
"That's a relief."
The old man finally relaxed.
"Ah… it's so late already. Time for sleep, time for sleep."
Now that he had received an answer that reassured him, he could finally breathe again.
As for why Shinji had come outside at this hour, or where he intended to go…
The old man didn't ask a single question.
He had no desire to know.
After all, the more you knew, the faster you died. How could he not understand that?
As long as he confirmed that these two meant no harm, that was already enough.
However, just as the old man turned to leave, Shinji suddenly asked,
"The story you told earlier tonight… was it true?"
"Every word of it."
"Then do you hate those ninja? Have you ever thought about taking revenge?"
The old man gave a bitter smile.
"At my age, does hatred really matter anymore? I'm just a useless old man. Am I supposed to take a widow and a child and seek revenge against someone?"
He paused before continuing.
"I've never thought about revenge. I don't even dare to think about it. All I want now is to live out the rest of my days peacefully… and help raise that child."
"I understand."
Shinji nodded slightly.
Then he turned and walked away in a certain direction.
As the old man watched Shinji's back disappear into the darkness, a flicker of pain passed through his eyes.
The grief of losing a son—how could it possibly be as simple as he had made it sound?
But even if he was filled with pain and resentment… what could he do?
After the incident, he had quietly made inquiries and eventually learned the identities of those ninja.
But what did that change?
The two groups who had brought disaster to the village were a squad of Kirigakure spies from the Land of Water and a group of Konoha ninja pursuing them.
And the massive fireball that killed his son…
Had been released by a Konoha ninja trying to eliminate the enemy and protect his comrades.
Killed by the very ninja who were supposed to defend his homeland.
As a citizen of the Land of Fire, what could an old man like him possibly do?
Afterward, the compensation they received was nothing more than help rebuilding the village, along with some money and grain.
As for the people who had died…
They simply died.
That was war.
So revenge was something they didn't even dare to consider.
When it came to ninja, all they felt was fear.
Even if you thought about it carefully—who exactly should they seek revenge against?
The Kirigakure ninja who happened to come here?
Or the Konoha ninja who accidentally killed his son with that fireball?
From the first perspective, it was wartime. The two sides were enemies. Of course they wouldn't care about the lives of villagers from another country.
From the second perspective, a ninja had to fight with everything they had. If they hesitated out of fear of collateral damage, they might get their comrades—or themselves—killed instead.
Looking at it that way, it seemed like no one was truly at fault.
So who was to blame?
Perhaps…
It was simply this damn world.
"The moon is very round tonight."
The old man sighed softly as he looked up at the sky.
"Move. You're blocking my way."
Before the feeling could linger, the door behind him suddenly opened, followed by an extremely rude voice.
The old man jumped in fright and quickly turned around.
Standing there was Hidan, his face pale and expressionless like a corpse fresh from a funeral.
"You… you came out too?" the old man asked with a forced smile.
Suddenly he realized something terrifying.
The tiger that had kept the wolf in check… had just left.
And without that tiger standing in the way, how was a powerless old fox like him supposed to deal with a wolf that had wanted to kill him earlier?
This was bad.
Very bad.
He should probably say a few polite words and try to smooth things over.
The man didn't look particularly intelligent—maybe he could be fooled.
However, to the old man's surprise, Hidan seemed completely uninterested in him.
"You two stood out here yapping for ages. You think I'm deaf or something? Move aside. Which way did he go?"
Hidan asked impatiently.
Without hesitation, the old man immediately sold Shinji out.
"That way!"
"Next time you say my brain's broken, I'll kill your whole family. Got it?"
After glaring viciously, Hidan hurried off in pursuit, quickly disappearing into the darkness.
The old man wiped the cold sweat from his forehead.
Then, as if suddenly remembering something, he gritted his teeth and turned toward the village exit as well.