Chapter 10 — The Cursed Treasure Map
No matter how reluctant Shinji was, he still set out on the mission together with Hidan.
And just as Master Takihata had said, it seemed they really weren't being followed. It was as if he fully trusted the two of them to complete the mission smoothly and return safely.
But unless Shinji was completely naïve, there was no way he would believe that.
The more likely scenario was that the cult had already deployed people to secretly watch—or protect—them.
"What are you staring at?"
Hidan asked impatiently. Clearly, if he had a choice, he wouldn't have wanted to go on this mission with Shinji either.
"Nothing. Let's go."
Shinji withdrew his gaze, offering no explanation, and simply walked forward.
Hidan snorted and followed.
According to the map, they needed to pass through the Land of Fire and then take a ship to the Land of Waves.
Though the journey was long, for ninjas, traveling at full speed would only take a few days.
Of course, this mission wasn't urgent to that extent.
So there was no need to rush—they could afford to walk at a leisurely pace.
Three days later, they had finally ventured deep into the Land of Fire.
Once inside the Land of Fire, Shinji's behavior began to seem peculiar.
It wasn't that he wanted to shake Hidan off or flee, and he had no intention of joining Konoha.
He simply realized that they were now getting closer to the location marked on the Cursed Treasure Map.
"Should we go check it out?"
He hesitated, fearing that doing so might reveal his biggest secret.
But then he thought, if he didn't seize the chance now, who knew when he would next get the opportunity to come near this place.
Besides, he was too curious to resist—he had to know what this Cursed Treasure Map actually held.
"Damn it, what's there to hesitate about? If we dig it up and find something, we'll just say we hid it here ourselves before. Shouldn't be a problem!"
Shinji wasn't blindly confident. The Jashin Cult had invested so much in him and Hidan—so long as he didn't betray them, there was no way they would be short-sighted enough to snatch what was his.
Also, considering the system's unreliability, plus the word "cursed"…
He worried something might go wrong during the process, and he could end up digging up a "trap" instead. Heaven forbid this whole mission turn into some fanfiction grave-robbing story!
Looking up, he saw that nightfall was approaching.
Feigning nonchalance, Shinji said, "It's getting dark. The map shows a small village nearby. We can go there to buy some food and maybe rest for the night."
"What a hassle."
Hidan muttered, though he didn't oppose the idea.
After all, they had been living off rations and sleeping outdoors for days—mosquitoes included. He was tired of it.
If there was a chance to have a warm meal and a proper night's rest, he had no reason to say no.
Of course, he still had to complain!
"Can't handle just a few days, huh? Some people really are spoiled!"
Shinji, not one to coddle Hidan, shot back immediately, "Then you can stay here feeding mosquitoes. I'll go see if there's some fried pork cutlet to eat."
With that, he left without any hesitation.
Hidan was left standing there, conflicted.
If he followed, it would be a blow to his pride.
If he didn't… what if there really was fried pork cutlet?!
A born carnivore, Hidan hated vegetables and loved fried pork cutlets above all else.
Why should he be left to eat rations and feed mosquitoes while Shinji got all the good stuff?
With that, he straightened his face and immediately ran after him.
Seeing Shinji glance back, he hurried to speak first: "Can't do anything with you. Fine, I'll indulge you this once, but there won't be a next time, got it?"
A tsundere through and through—complaining yet following.
Shinji clicked his tongue twice but didn't bother exposing him.
Most of his attention was focused on the treasure map anyway. Teasing Hidan was a long-term project, not something to rush.
"Keep up. We need to pick up the pace."
Shinji folded the map and immediately started moving faster.
In the original story, Hidan was the slowest member of Akatsuki—but that was compared to the monsters in the organization.
Against ordinary ninjas, his speed was by no means slow.
Soon, they veered off the original route and headed north.
After an hour of running, they finally saw the village, and night had fully fallen.
Stopping, Hidan couldn't help but complain: "This is the 'nearby village' you mentioned? Where the hell is this?"
Of course, for ninjas running full speed, an hour's distance hardly counted as "nearby."
Hidan felt tricked. That fried pork cutlet was clearly a ploy by Shinji to lure him!
If he had known, he would've stayed behind to battle the mosquitoes instead.
Shinji knew the excuse was a bit far-fetched, but he had no other choice.
After all, he had tracked the location based on the treasure map.
Even with a flimsy excuse, he needed to check it out.
"Then you going in?"
"Go in my ass! If I don't get that fried pork cutlet today, I'll offer everyone in this village to the Jashin Cult as sacrifices!"
Hidan yelled angrily and charged ahead.
Shinji immediately felt a headache coming on.
He had no doubt Hidan could do exactly that in a fit of anger—but that was not the outcome he wanted.
"So I'll have to figure out a way to bluff him along later…"
Fortunately, Shinji's Blood Manipulation completely countered Hidan's abilities, so he could keep him in check.
"Young men, are you looking for someone?"
As the two of them drew attention wandering conspicuously through the village, an elderly man appeared and asked.
Shinji was about to answer when Hidan cut in first.
"Hey, old man! Bring out whatever food or drink you have, or I'll burn this village… uh uh uh!"
Shinji quickly covered Hidan's mouth and put on a smile. "Don't misunderstand. My brother here… had water in his head as a kid and often says nonsense."
"Actually, we're not here looking for anyone. We just happened to pass through and want to buy something to eat, maybe find a place to rest for the night."
The old man's tense expression eased somewhat.
"Oh, I see. I thought your brother might have a serious problem."
Hidan's eyes widened at this, and he started struggling violently again.
"Uh uh uh uh! I'll kill you, old man!"
Shinji struggled hard to prevent him from killing the old man on the spot.
Then the old man said, "Guests from afar are a blessing. Since fate brought you here, let's forget about money. If you don't mind, you two can come back to my house for a meal and spend the night. How about that?"
"That's very kind. We'll stay just one night and won't cause trouble."
"Speaking of trouble…"
"What's that, sir?"
"Uh, you better watch your brother. There are many women and children in the village—don't scare them."
"Haha, don't worry. My brother might be foolish, arrogant, and speak rudely… but he has one good quality: he keeps his distance from women. He finds them annoying, and can't get close even if he tries."
"That's good. Sigh, what a waste of that physique, it's a pity he's an idiot. Women are so good, a fool wouldn't understand~"
The old man seemed to have quite a story himself, sighing deeply as he led the way.