The events that took place in the central district spread across New Eridu like a virus. Despite the authorities' best efforts to suppress it, they couldn't stop the flow of information.
The disturbance had simply been too massive.
In less than a day, New Eridu Public Security had mobilized its entire force to begin investigating the cause of the incident.
However, the investigation didn't go smoothly. The only clue was the Victoria Housekeeping estate, not far from the destroyed district.
At the estate, traces of activity from the Nin-Village were discovered. Lycaon and Rina, members of Victoria Housekeeping, were immediately brought in for questioning.
But neither of them knew what had happened. They'd been fighting four Shadows from the Nin-Village when those opponents abruptly retreated—seemingly after receiving urgent orders—leaving only a handful of clueless underlings behind.
Naturally, those underlings were swiftly dealt with.
They may not have been a match for the four Shadows—but these small fry? Not even worth mentioning.
The captured Nin-Village members ended up being Victoria Housekeeping's best defense against suspicion.
On top of that, their employer used their personal connections to shield them from further investigation by New Eridu Public Security.
As a result, suspicion of the terrorist attack fell entirely on the Nin-Village, giving investigators a clear target at last.
But unlike the Red Fang Gang, the Nin-Village didn't need protection from high-ranking officials. They could vanish without a trace on their own.
That was the very essence of a ninja—always hidden in the shadows, unseen and undetected.
…
The Day After the Attack — Somewhere in New Eridu
In a dimly lit little house sat the headquarters of the Nin-Village. It lacked any notable defenses, making it appear utterly unremarkable from the outside.
Perhaps that was why no one paid it any attention.
Inside, six Shadows had gathered—including the five who had escaped the previous night.
They were meeting to discuss their next steps.
Their plan for revenge against Victoria Housekeeping had been upended by the appearance of the Uchiha. Not only that, they were now the prime suspects in the terrorist investigation. One misstep, and they could be cornered with nowhere to run.
Worse still, they had lost two powerful members in the previous operation—crippling their strength.
From here on, any action they took would need to be calculated with extreme caution—especially now that they had drawn the wrath of the Uchiha.
They had witnessed firsthand what became of the Red Fang gang.
"Murasaki and Ao are gone. What about you, Chairo—how bad is it?" asked Oren, glancing at the only one among them who hadn't participated in the previous mission.
Chairo was the Shadow who had saved the others by deflecting Zhong Yan's deadly arrow. Of them all, he was the strongest. The Nin-Village would only send him when they had no other choice.
Even so, despite being the strongest Shadow, Chairo had stood no chance against the enraged Zhong Yan. That alone showed how vast the difference between them was.
"If I were going to die, I wouldn't be standing in front of you now," Chairo replied coldly. His right arm was missing, but the wound wasn't fatal—otherwise he'd be lying in a bed instead of sitting here.
"We've never crossed the Uchiha. That means he must have some connection to Victoria Housekeeping. It's the only reason he'd interfere," said Kuro slowly, cradling an adorable little kitten in his arms. The kitten, clearly unaware of the gravity of the moment, peeked around curiously.
"So basically, we're screwed," Kuro muttered, his lips curling into a wry smile. The kitten squirmed free and darted into a corner of the room.
The air grew oppressively silent.
It wasn't until the door creaked open that the stillness was broken.
All six Shadows turned toward the entrance, where a man in a New Eridu Public Security officer's uniform stepped inside. He removed his badge, casually set it aside…
Then hesitated, picked it up again, and slipped it into his pocket. He closed the door behind him.
His gaze swept over the seated Shadows.
"So… who's going to explain to me how things got so out of hand?"
As the camera pulled back, it became clear—the man in uniform was none other than Zhao Anmen, the lead investigator in the terrorist attack case.
A high-ranking, highly respected officer in New Eridu Public Security—turns out, he was a member of the Nin-Village all along.
Not just any member either. He was Aka, the most senior of the Nine Shadows, and the mysterious figure who had saved the remaining five at the last moment.
"It was the Uchiha. That bastard ambushed us and took out Murasaki and Ao. We never stood a chance. If you hadn't shown up when you did…" Kuro trailed off, but everyone knew how that sentence would've ended.
Hearing the name "Uchiha," Zhao Anmen frowned. "One arrow flattened half a district… Two of the Nine Shadows dead, another crippled… Looks like this is even worse than I thought."
"You made way too much noise," he continued grimly. "You left too many witnesses at the Victoria estate. Now the entire force is hunting for us—and on top of that, we've got the Uchiha breathing down our necks."
"For now, stay underground. Call back all of your subordinates. If you don't want us ending up like the Red Fang Gang, keep your heads down. I'll handle New Eridu Public Security."
With that, Zhao Anmen turned and left, slipping the badge from his pocket back onto his chest.
The Nin-Village now faced an unprecedented crisis.
Whether or not they could weather it… depended entirely on whether he could shield them from the city's wrath.
As for pinning the blame on the Uchiha?
Impossible.
He had no evidence to prove the explosion came from Zhong Yan's hand.