Chapter 11: The Ninja Who Dies in a Dog Hole

Yan Xu's dinner was certainly not vegetable porridge. It was steamed rice in a small pot, plus fried bacon and fried eggs. His mouth was full of oil and he felt very satisfied.

After eating and drinking and arranging the night watch, Yan Xu returned to his room to rest.

To be honest, this house has paper doors on all four sides, and if they are removed, it will become a pavilion. I don't feel safe at all, but it's better than sleeping outside, so I can only make do with it for now.

Yan Xu, who was not going to let himself down, spread two layers of mattresses on the tatami. After lying down, he touched the samurai sword, steel mace, and hidden brass knuckles beside the pillow before closing his eyes. Unfortunately, this night was destined not to be peaceful.

At the wooden bridge, five foot soldiers who were responsible for guarding the first half of the night were warming themselves around a fire, looking around from time to time, or patrolling along the river with lanterns. It cannot be said that they were on duty strictly, but at least they were not lazy.

And Yan Xu was not a devil. Anyone on night duty would receive an extra rice ball the size of a fist. This was a good job for a foot soldier, so he would not forget his duties, or at least would not dare to be lazy and doze off. Therefore, bubbles appeared on the river bank several times and then subsided.

In the woods behind the Yamada family residence, a farmer was curled up in the hay to keep warm, but from his alert eyes and movements, it was obvious that he was not a real farmer.

Fujiki opened his eyes and knew without looking up at the moonlight that it was the right time for night action, but he was a little hesitant.

The noises at the Yamada family residence in the afternoon did not escape his ears, so Fujiki guessed that the battle between the two daimyo had ended and they had begun to divide their samurai. If so, it would be dangerous to run to the village to steal food, after all, he was injured, and the samurai who had just ended the war were still vigilant and murderous.

However, Fujiki hasn't eaten for two days and one night. If he doesn't replenish his strength, his injuries will most likely get worse.

After hesitating for a moment, he stuffed a few berries that were still warm from his body into his mouth. The sour taste refreshed him. Fujiki carefully crawled out of the grass, avoiding the dead branches under his feet, and limped towards the Yamada family residence.

Fujiki was surprised by the neatly arranged tents and earthen stoves. How could there be so many soldiers? Was the war not over yet?
He wanted to avoid it, but the lingering smell of food and the guards beside the wooden bridge made Fujiki finally choose to take a risk.

In Tengma's current condition, it would be too difficult for him to avoid the soldiers in the camp, wade across the river, and then steal food from the village to escape. The wounds soaked in water and hypothermia caused by crossing the river alone would cost him his life. It would be better for him to steal some food from the Yamada family's house, then hide in the mountains and wait until his injuries healed.

Thinking of this, Fujiki fixed the sickle behind him and quietly moved towards the dog hole of the Yamada family's house.

Fujiki is a ninja, but unlike the handsome ninjas in anime who can fly over rooftops and walls, his most common method is to disguise himself as a farmer and collect intelligence through gossip in the market. When necessary, he will also crawl through dog holes to obtain additional sources of information.

Although these methods were not very sophisticated at all, they helped him to rise from a rookie to a Chunin who could lead a team independently.

Unfortunately, he was unlucky. Three days ago, he encountered a defeated army. The enemy killed people indiscriminately. He was caught in the crowd and was unable to dodge and was unfortunately injured. Not only did his mission fail, but he was also trapped here.

No matter what, being alive is the greatest luck, this was Fujiki's thought as he crawled into the dog hole, until there was a snap and a spark exploded in front of his eyes.

Yan Xu was not a fool, of course he would guard against sneak attacks. When the foot soldiers were unreliable, he could only rely on props. In addition to the bell hanging on the fishing line, he also bought a lot of firecrackers and pull firecrackers, which were scattered everywhere like landmines. Anyway, the cost was low, so Fujiki accidentally pressed on the pull firecrackers.

The combustion and explosion principle of firecrackers is similar to that of grenades. It is not through ignition, but friction, so it looks like a small firecracker with ropes connected at both ends. It will explode when pulled hard. It doesn't have much power, but there is nothing more alarming than this in the dead of night.

Frightened and breaking out in a cold sweat, Fujiki turned around and wanted to run, but he forgot that he was still in the dog hole. When he stood up suddenly, not only was his waist stuck, but his wound was also pulled. He was already in a very bad condition due to injuries and hunger. He was so anxious and panicked that his eyes went black on the spot. When he came to his senses, he was pinned to the ground and tied up tightly by the foot soldiers who had rushed over.

Yan Xu was not in a good mood after being awakened in the middle of the night, but after seeing the things that were searched from the other party, he immediately broke out in a cold sweat.

A piece of gray cloth that can be used as a wrap and to cover the head and face, a sharp sickle with a hemp rope tied at the end, three palm-length iron spikes for easy hiding, a hollow, thin bamboo tube, and several bags of quicklime. This guy is a ninja!
Yan Xu has watched a program that reveals the secrets of Japanese ninjas. In fact, the ancient Japanese ninjas were not as magical as imagined. They were generally cheap spies in the hands of daimyo and had a very low status. They could not even afford proper weapons. Even if they could afford them, they dared not use them because they were too conspicuous and not conducive to disguising their identities.

Ninjas are not 007, and they have nothing to do with luxury cars and beautiful women. Usually they disguise themselves as farmers, small businessmen, and ronin, so the more inconspicuous the weapon, the better.

Therefore, the weapons of ninjas are mostly modified from common farm tools in life. They are not used to kill enemies, but only to be easy to hide and use.

It was because of this knowledge that Yan Xu immediately confirmed the other party's identity. After all, finding just one or two items could be considered a coincidence, but when several things were placed in front of him, he didn't dare to think it was a coincidence, otherwise he would be playing with his own life.

The question now is, is this ninja coming for him, and if so, who is the mastermind behind this?
Yan Xu felt a huge headache. He had just arrived today. Could it be possible that the other party could predict the future?

No matter what, it is a fact that ninjas have infiltrated, and whether it is assassination or poisoning, Yan Xu doesn't think he can withstand it, so he urgently wants to know the truth.

I was just wondering which of the ten cruel tortures of the Qing Dynasty to use first, but I didn't expect the other party to tell me everything.

A ninja cannot betray his employer. If he dares, the consequences will be worse than death, because no matter his employer, companions, or colleagues, no one will let him go.

Ninjas have no property, no status, no honor, and can only survive on their reputation. If they are afraid of death and betray their employers, they will be destroying their own jobs and the jobs of all their colleagues.

The problem is that Fujiki did not betray his employer, because he only accepted a verbal task from a samurai in the izakaya and did not even receive a deposit. Moreover, even if he took the information, he probably would not receive any decent reward, so it was not a formal employment relationship.

The most important thing is that Yan Xu is not his mission target, and they are not hostile to each other.

In addition, Fujiki had other thoughts, so apart from some of his own secrets, he really didn't hide anything, so he saved his life.

(End of this chapter)