Chapter 19   - Ch19. Bandits/Mercenaries/Idiots

Konan was not very eager to travel with the caravan. She grumbled that her alone time with Rei was interrupted when Rei was not around. She could see the mocking gazes of other guards who didn't see Rei handle the big thuggish man. They were looking at them as if they were baggage. In the end, Konan didn't care about their opinion but she thought it would be much better for her to travel with Rei alone. Not to say, faster! She didn't understand why Rei accepted the job since they had enough money from stealing. But she did not voice her complaints to Rei. She long ago decided to follow him. She would tell him only when she felt him doing something bad for his health.

Rei, contrary to Konan's beliefs, knew well enough how she felt. He even told her that this would help them legally cross the border but she didn't care. He knew Konan wouldn't mind blowing a few outposts to smithereens in order to cross the border with 'bang'. He could just exasperatedly shrug and cease caring.

...

Konan and Rei sat on Karubo's wagon, holding hands and just relaxing. It was a week since they started their journey with Karubo and so far, only a few bandits popped up that were handled by the other merchant's guards.

But today, just an hour ago, they left the caravan as Karubo was heading towards the Land of River as crossing to Land of Fire was easier through it.

Karubo was humming a song when Konan's hand suddenly tensed. Rei noticed it and instantly knew her papers were disturbed and activated his nature sensing... they were chased by a few people from the caravan. All of which were guards that looked at them mockingly. Rei sighed and nodded wearily at Konan.

He wanted to try his kenjutsu anyway so this was a good thing.

...

Twenty men suddenly jumped out of the foliage. Rei and Konan were watching them in complete disinterest since the men were as obvious as the sun in the sky as they tried to sneak around.

"Karubo! You better leave all your money here!" A blonde man with a katana shouted in a mocking and loud tone.

"Kaito! What is the meaning of this! My fath-, ahem..." Kurabo blushed but continued after clearing his throat. "Why are you doing this!?"

"Eh? Money... isn't it obvious? You made it so easy when you picked two children to protect you!" Kaito laughed while his group of misfits followed and also started laughing.

"Boss!" One man with a crooked nose pointed towards Konan and Rei, making Kaito nod.

"Boy! We can let you leave unharmed. But the girl stays. She is old enough to entertain us!" He condescendingly remarked.

It only proved to make Rei madder and his eyes grew cold.

Rei sighed as his cold eyes didn't leave Kaito and hopped down from the carriage. It was time to play with these guys. His hand held the chokuto as he approached the men.

He stood in front of the wagon, directly opposite Kaito and his goons, prepared for the fight.

"Will it be alright?" Karubo leaned towards Konan and asked quietly. "There are twenty of them!"

"It's fine." She rolled her eyes as her feet excitedly dangled from the wagon.

"See that, boys! The twerp wants to cha-" Kaito taunted but Rei already disappeared from his previous spot.

Rei channeled raiton chakra into his body. Not much but it helped to raise his speed. He appeared in the middle of the twenty thugs, his chokuto at the ready as he swung it in a circular motion, slicing through three of them at once.

The other thugs saw what happened and quickly jumped back warily.

Rei stood in the middle of their encirclement, holding his chokuto leisurely in his hand with a bored expression. Those men were no shinobi. They were mercenaries. But even then...

He sidestepped a sword swipe from the left and twisted his body to the left into a small jump as another sword approached him from the right side. As his feet touched the ground, he jumped up, raising his legs into crouch mid-air as weapons skewered the air where his torso previously was.

His feet dropped onto the bunch of collided weapons and with a spin, two men lost their heads. The other ten men who were holding the weapons, and therefore, in the range of his chokuto quickly let their weapons go and retreated backward, unsheathing their spare knives, katanas, or whatever they had. The weapons fell to the ground but Rei just lazily hopped down the second they were released from the hold of the thugs.

Kaito and four of his best were looking at the remaining ten of their subordinates, cursing that they already lost five to someone they called a child.

"Good. Let me handle this." Kaito sneered and took his katana out, charging at Rei who was looking at him in apathy.

Does the idiot even realize, I am not even using any chakra except the initial raiton dash?

He thought as he saw the man approaching.

Kaito saw Rei frozen in his spot as a winning smile spread through his face. He had the little shit! He will...

Rei coated his sword in raiton chakra and before Kaito could slash at him, he bisected both Kaito and his katana.

"And this is why you never fight against shinobi unless you are a skilled samurai or shinobi yourself." Rei shook his head with a 'tsk. tsk. tsk' noise.

"Shinobi..." The remaining fourteen men looked at their fallen leader and muttered surprised at what just happened.

Rei dashed into the group of four men who were Kaito's best and as he came closer, he swung his chokuto, parrying a slash. His body was still advancing and with a half-turn, it harmlessly passed the sword of his enemy and his chokuto dislodged from the parry, getting inside the guard of the attacker, cleaving through him.

Rei didn't stop. As his sword went through the man, he took out a kunai, twirling it through his fingers until it was high enough and he grabbed it tightly, blocking the sword of another man. Rei pushed his body towards that man, evading yet another slash from the third enemy, and as his body entered the personal space of the man whose sword he was blocking with his kunai, he pushed the sword aside, getting a clear path towards the man's neck with his kunai. The man didn't live long after that.

Rei stabbed the kunai up to the handle to the man's neck and let it go, grabbing the shoulder of the man, spinning his almost lifeless body into a slash, using it as a shield. The man who slashed was bewildered that he just killed a comrade and Rei's chokuto found a quick purchase as it pierced his head through the eye, right over the shoulder of the man he used as a shield.

Rei's other hand sn.a.k.e.d around the neck of the man, grabbing the handle of the kunai still embedded in his neck and ripped it out, letting blood gush like a waterfall, the man who was used as a shield finally died while Rei flung the kunai to the forehead of the last man who was frozen from horror, killing him.

Ten seconds passed since Kaito died and none of his four lieutenants were still standing.

"Konan. Rest is yours." He shrugged, not really interested in fighting common mercenaries.

Konan nodded and ten high-speed, thin paper slices flew right into the chests of the other ten men, killing them.

Karubo could only stare in bewilderment. He was expecting it, alright. He knew the power of shinobi. But to see twenty men felled in under thirty seconds was still something chilling. Especially when done by kids around twelve!