With Aburame Shiwei's calm reassurance, Hayata finally managed to steady his emotions a little. Then, he began to tell them about what had happened to his daughter.
"My daughter went missing… about half a month ago."
"It was the same afternoon I sent that letter of report to the Hidden Leaf Village. When I got home afterward, I couldn't find her anywhere."
"At first, I didn't think much of it. I thought Kazuko had gone out to play with her friends. But…"
"But when dinner time came and she still hadn't come home, that's when I realized something was wrong."
"After that, I asked my neighbors to help search for her, but… but…"
"Please, I beg you—if you're ninja, there must be something you can do! Please help me!"
As he spoke, Hayata's voice cracked again, and tears streamed down his face uncontrollably. Though he was a grown man, just thinking about how his daughter's life or death was still unknown shattered whatever composure he had left.
"Missing, huh…"
Disappearances like this had become all too common in these chaotic times.
Most likely, she had been taken by traffickers. After all, she was a young girl—and incidents like this often reached the Hidden Leaf's mission desk.
But those missions almost never ended well. Once a trafficker took someone, they rarely lingered in the same area. Even if ninja were dispatched quickly and managed to find a few traces, tracking the victim down was still like searching for a needle in a haystack.
And according to Hayata, his daughter had already been gone for half a month—long enough for any remaining clues to have been erased by time.
A missing girl like that… was almost impossible to find.
Shiwei already had that conclusion in mind, but he didn't have the heart to crush the man before him, who was sobbing so desperately.
"Could you show us a photo of your daughter?" he asked gently. "During our mission, we'll help keep an eye out for her."
Hearing that, Hayata immediately shot to his feet and stumbled into a bedroom. A few moments later, he came back clutching a photo album.
"Th-this is my daughter. Thank you, thank you so much!"
"If you can find her, I'll make sure to repay you however I can!"
"Thank you! Thank you!"
Shiwei lost count of how many times the man said "thank you." He sighed softly as he took the album, glancing at the trembling hands of the desperate father before him.
Meanwhile, Satoru, Shisui, and Gai all leaned forward to look at the photograph in Shiwei's hands.
They knew it was a long shot. But seeing Hayata like this—it stirred something in them too. Even if the odds were slim, they still wanted to do whatever little they could.
Inside the album was a picture of a round-faced girl with twin ponytails and a bright, sunny smile. Though young and still a bit childish, her features were already delicate and pretty—truly a charming girl.
Seeing her face, Shiwei's heart sank even further.
Was beauty really a blessing for a girl…?
At least, not in times like these, and not in a family like this one. Beauty only made her more of a target—and without the ability to protect herself, it was a curse.
With a soft sigh, Shiwei returned the photo and said, "Tell us about that bandit group you mentioned earlier."
"There might be some connection to your daughter's disappearance. The timing's… a bit too coincidental."
In truth, Shiwei didn't really believe the two incidents were related—he was just trying to gather more information while offering the man a sliver of hope.
"You're right! They must be connected!" Hayata said, his voice rising with renewed desperation.
"That bunch… they let it slip themselves while eating in my restaurant!"
"The story goes like this…"
It turned out that Hayata was the owner of a small restaurant. More than half a month ago, a group of rough-looking outsiders had come to eat there. They refused to pay afterward, even threatening to kill him if he made a fuss.
They were loud, even bragging about their "exploits" to scare him into silence.
After they left, Hayata immediately sent a letter to the Hidden Leaf.
The village's scouts had verified the report and confirmed the group's identity, after which the mission was handed to Shiwei's team.
It wasn't a complicated mission—the main issue was that no one knew where the bandits' hideout was, or even if they were still in the city.
The village's manpower was stretched thin. The ninja who first investigated the case had already been reassigned elsewhere, leaving no one to follow up.
After hearing the whole story, Hyuga Satoru could only sigh in exasperation.
Whether it was the villager before him or the information provided by the Leaf, everything about this case felt half-baked.
He had assumed this mission would be a straightforward fight—an opportunity to test himself in real combat—but instead, it turned out that even the enemy's whereabouts were uncertain.
So… were they supposed to find them themselves?!
Then again… maybe that was exactly why Minato had assigned them this mission—to train their intelligence-gathering and reconnaissance skills before battle.
Even if Satoru could see the logic in that, he still felt lost.
How were they supposed to find a hidden group of bandits in such a big city? It was like searching for a needle in the sea!
"Captain Shiwei," Satoru said flatly, "I don't have time to waste on something like this."
"Please allow me to withdraw. If you locate the bandits' whereabouts, I'll be there for the fight."
Having understood the situation, Satoru had no interest in continuing with such a meaningless investigation.
His true concerns were Uchiha Obito—and even Uchiha Madara. For him, improving his combat power was the only priority.
He had joined this mission hoping to gain battle experience, not to spend days chasing shadows.
And besides, he doubted they would find any real clues soon.
As he spoke, Satoru stood up, ignoring Shiwei's stunned expression, and headed straight for the door.
"Hey, Satoru—"
Shiwei started to call after him, but when he remembered who Satoru was, he let the words die in his throat.
The Hyuga Main Family…
Of course. You couldn't expect someone of his lineage to waste time on something like this.
"Haah…" Shiwei sighed softly. "I'm sorry—my teammate can be a bit impatient. Please don't take it personally."
Then, with a meaningful glance at Might Guy, he gestured for him to follow. Guy immediately understood and rushed out after Satoru.
"Leaving like this may be rude to the team," Satoru muttered as he walked down a dim, narrow alley, "but staying would've been a waste of time."
"With monsters like Obito and Madara lurking in the shadows, I can't afford to waste even a second."
"Seriously…"
His mood was sour as he made his way back toward his lodgings.
Tap… tap…
Suddenly, faint footsteps echoed behind him.
Sensing it instantly, Satoru stopped walking. His face darkened.
"Heh…"
"Looks like my luck's not so bad after all…"
As he turned around, a large black sack suddenly dropped over his head.
…
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