The Genjutsu Devil of Konoha

[Later That Day — Land of Tea Village]

The journey was pretty boring. With quick pace, they got to the town in like 2 days, exactly 2 days, so early in the morning of day 2, instead of around the afternoon or evening. So they got there a few hours earlier.

Could have come earlier, but their client had needs, man had a problem with the bathroom and so on.

Oh well. When they did get there, the Chunin in charge of the village did ask for their papers, which they did give, and since the merchant was there with his goods—

They were allowed in.

The Land of Tea was known for two things: its very good herbs, and its tea. They had some fresh tea.

Anyway, once inside the village, Tsunade gave them a look, her hands on her hips. "Alright, brats. Be back here tomorrow morning at sunrise. We leave early. You get one day to relax."

One day. Better than none.

Naturally, Nawaki was already dragging them toward the food stalls two seconds later, talking about how "the tea leaves are grown in perfect mineral-rich soil" and "the flavor of the beef is enhanced by the mountain mist!" like he was some kind of connoisseur.

Seijuro followed along, hands in pockets, not exactly thrilled about the prospect of listening to Nawaki's TED Talk on cuisine. Mikoto walked a step behind; she seemed more alert, though more relaxed, her face observing Seijuro's expression, as depending on how much it shifted, this was her signal to turn on her Sharingan since he could sense enemy.

She didn't know when, but sometime ago, Seijuro's intuition started to flare up—so much in fact that it felt like he was a sensor. He probably was, considering how good his control of earth was. Each step, he sent out some slight seismic wave, which spread quite wide, and that's how he sensed shit.

Either that, or he was a natural-born sensor—or both, to be honest.

Anyway, back to the TED Talk about the food here.

The food, to be fair, was great. Tender, melt-in-your-mouth meat. Rice that practically sang. Even Seijuro had to admit it internally—the mouthfeel was immaculate.

While Nawaki gushed over the soup stock and yam preparation, Seijuro's mind was elsewhere, sweeping through the village like a radar.

Average ninja strength: Chunin.

Strongest signature: an Elite Jounin, maybe.

Jounin count: Four. Maybe five if he squinted.

In short? This place was not well-defended. If someone really wanted to, they could wipe this entire village out before lunchtime.

The Hokage of this village was only Elite Jounin level. Tsunade could beat his ass so easily it wasn't even fair.

And depending on what kind of fighter that man was, even Seijuro had a chance at killing him—all thanks to his Kyōka Suigetsu. It was starting to look like he was being heavily carried by his hacks.

Anyway, they wandered for a while, full bellies making the day a little more tolerable, until a particular shop caught Seijuro's eye.

It was a small, dusty place—like it hadn't seen a broom since before the First Shinobi War. Seals, trinkets, little glowing orbs lined the windows.

Inside, the merchant—a wiry old man with greedy eyes—noticed Seijuro staring at a particular scroll displayed proudly on a velvet cushion.

The merchant's mouth curved into a grin, showing too many yellow teeth. "You have good eyes, boy. That scroll right there—an authentic find from the ruins of the Uzumaki Clan village."

He leaned forward like he was offering a state secret. "I'll let it go... for a mere five million Ryo."

Seijuro's eyebrow twitched. Nawaki immediately scoffed so hard he almost inhaled his own spit.

"Five million? My grandma could make a better one while half-drunk!" Nawaki snapped. Well, the boy wasn't wrong. His grandma was Mito Uzumaki, the best seal master alive... she didn't have much competition considering like 95% of her competitors were currently... well... dead.

The merchant puffed up like a toad. "Bah! What do you know? Uzumaki seals are the best of the best! Worth their weight in gold!" Truth, 95% of the world's best seal masters were Uzumaki—they had an advantage in that field, that was for sure.

Seijuro could feel Nawaki about to reveal who his grandma was, so before Nawaki could open his big mouth and accidentally say the word "Mito," Seijuro subtly kicked his ankle and gave him a look.

Shut. It.

Nawaki grumbled but caught the hint.

Seijuro examined the scroll a moment longer—just enough time to plant a little Genjutsu. A simple mirage. Nothing fancy. In their eyes, he just sighed heavily and turned away.

"Tch," Seijuro muttered outwardly, "Don't have the money for that."

Internally?

Got it.

In reality, his ass had already grabbed the scroll. Hm, no one needed to know that. When he was alone later, he'd have to analyze it to see if it was authentic. If it was... jackpot.

"Don't be so down about it, Seijuro!" Nawaki said brightly, slinging an arm around him. "We'll find you an even better one later! I promise!"

Seijuro managed a small, weary smile, still playing the part of the disappointed shopper. "Thanks... Nawaki."

The little ball of optimism was contagious. Seijuro almost felt bad about the deception.

Almost.

They continued strolling around the village, the sun starting to dip low over the rolling tea fields. Somewhere along the way, Nawaki got a very suspicious glint in his eye, made up some random excuse about needing to "inspect the famous bathhouse plumbing" (what?) and scampered off.

Which left Seijuro and Mikoto alone.

She fiddled with the hem of her sleeve, obviously trying to think of something to say.

"You were thinking about buying it for me," Seijuro said casually, cutting straight through her defenses like a hot knife through butter.

Mikoto flushed pink. "I—I wasn't!"

"Mmhm," Seijuro murmured, unconvinced.

He leaned down slightly, reaching out to gently squeeze her cheek between his thumb and forefinger, the way you might squish a cute kitten's face.

"You're adorable when you lie, Mikoto."

Her entire face went bright red, and she smacked his hand away, glaring at him half-heartedly.

Seijuro chuckled lowly, stepping back. "But thank you. I appreciate the thought."

Mikoto huffed, crossing her arms—but she was smiling, barely able to hide it.

Her cheeks were flushed red.

She was falling for this man... hard.