Chapter 192:
"So this is the Hidden Leaf Village, huh?" Amado stood just outside the village, pulling out a cigarette. "Seriously... I forgot to bring a lighter. Hey, kid over there—you're a ninja from the Leaf, right?"
"Yeah." Shuyu nodded, eyeing the unfamiliar older man in front of him. "Who are you?"
"I'm here to seek asylum," Amado said a bit awkwardly.
"Asylum?" Sarada looked puzzled. She turned to Shuyu, who had been helping her train. "Has there been a war or natural disaster recently?"
"None of that matters now. Since you're both ninja, you must know Fire Release. So… could one of you light this cigarette for me?" Amado said as he stepped closer to Sarada and Shuyu.
"Stop! Don't come any closer!"
Amado's sudden approach triggered Sarada's alertness. The ninja world had been far from peaceful lately, and the recent attack on the Leaf by the leader of Kara was still fresh in everyone's minds. Naturally, she remained wary of any stranger acting suspiciously.
"The crest on your clothes—it's the Uchiha clan's, right? That means you must be Uchiha Sarada, correct?" Amado stroked his chin thoughtfully. Though Code had forbidden him from leaving, he still had knowledge of certain key figures—like how Sasuke was the only remaining Uchiha, and that he had a wife and daughter. "And that kid beside you—is he your boyfriend?"
"W-What?!"
Amado suddenly grinned. As Sarada cried out in shock, a Y-shaped scientific ninja tool extended from the sleeve of his right arm. It vibrated softly and emitted a soundwave. Instinctively, Sarada covered her ears and glared at the man. "I knew it—you are an enemy!"
Shuyu also clutched his ears and crouched down. "What are you really here for?!"
"Sorry, I don't mean you any harm. I just needed a bit of leverage to protect myself."
As he spoke, Amado stepped closer to Sarada and snapped his fingers near her ear—but instead of passing out as he'd expected, her form scattered into a flock of crows.
"What?!" Amado stared up at the crows flying in the sky. "A genjutsu? Since when...?"
"Shuyu saw through you from the very beginning." One crow perched on a branch and spoke down to Amado.
Another landed beside it and said, "Now then—how about telling us what you're really here for?"
"Kids these days... can't underestimate them. Fine, I surrender."
"Surrender?" Sarada's crow sounded confused. In her experience, anyone bold enough to attack the Leaf was usually a fearsome figure with nerves of steel. Someone giving up after just one genjutsu didn't fit that image.
"I said from the start—I came here seeking asylum."
"Then why attack us?" asked Shuyu's crow.
"Actually, I'm a defector from Kara. That's why I came to the Leaf seeking protection. In exchange, I'll provide intel on the organization. Attacking you was just my insurance policy—so you wouldn't immediately resort to force to extract information from me." Amado looked up at the two crows on the branch. "But… seems like my plan failed. I just hope the Leaf isn't the kind of village that would interrogate someone by force."
"Shuyu, what do we do now?"
"Take him back to the village." Shuyu's crow flew down in front of Amado, their Mangekyō Sharingan locking eyes with him.
Aside from a faint discomfort in his eyes, Amado didn't feel anything unusual.
"The genjutsu's gone, huh..." Amado looked at the boy now standing in front of him, with the girl perched on a tree branch behind him.
"Just to be safe, I sealed Amaterasu into your eyes. If you try anything, you'll be turned to ash in an instant." Shuyu stared at Amado. "Now, I'm taking you to see the Hokage."
Hidden Leaf Village. Interrogation Room.
Amado was tied to a chair by both wrists and ankles. Sitting before him were Naruto, Sasuke, and Shikamaru. Watching from another room via surveillance were Red She-Wolf, Shuyu, Sarada, Boruto, Kawaki, Future Boruto, and Tsunade.
"Mind giving me a cigarette? We're probably in for a long conversation, and I need to keep my head clear."
"...Fine." Shikamaru lit a cigarette and stuck it in Amado's mouth. Ever since Asuma's death, Shikamaru had picked up the smoking habit himself and always carried cigarettes with him.
"Now then," Naruto said, seated across from Amado, "it's time you told us everything you know about Kara."
Amado let out a contented sigh after taking a drag and began, "Of course, Lord Hokage. Let me start by introducing myself—though you may have already heard of me from Kawaki. I'm Amado, a core member of Kara and also head of the organization's research and development division. The Kāma mark on Kawaki's body was transplanted by me."
In the other room, Boruto turned to Kawaki. "Is that true, Kawaki?"
"Yeah." Kawaki nodded. "Code always placed immense importance on Amado—he was never allowed to leave Kara's base. I'm not sure why he defected, but if it's him, then it's no exaggeration to say he knows everything about Kara. Just his presence here might already have provoked Code's wrath. So I think… Amado probably came here ready to die."
The interrogation continued.
"Lord Hokage," Amado suddenly said, looking directly at Naruto, "you're not planning to discard me after I share what I know, are you?"
"You've already seen my sincerity—I didn't let the Yamanaka clan pry into your mind," Naruto replied. "And I promise you this: as long as you give us the intel we need, the Hidden Leaf will protect you. I swear it on the title of Hokage."
"The name of Hokage… I see." Amado nodded slowly. "No matter what, I have no choice but to trust the Leaf now. Code will never let me go for betraying Kara… So I'll talk. About Kara. About Code. About the Ōtsutsuki. And… the Ten Tails."
At this point, all Amado could do was place his faith in the Hokage sitting before him.
"You said Ten Tails?! Kara has the Ten Tails?!"
Shikamaru couldn't help but shout.
Even after all these years, he hadn't forgotten the image of the Ten Tails during the Fourth Great Ninja War… Uchiha Madara… and his own father, lying under a white sheet, being carried away.