Over here, Seimei had just finished turning one of the hidden agents into his pawn.
Meanwhile, over there, a Rock Village Anbu was clashing with a group of Mist Village Anbu.
The Rock Village Anbu had impeccable timing. Before the Mist Anbu could close in, he unleashed the "Water Release: Mist Hiding Technique," shrouding everyone's vision and senses in a thick fog.
But theMist Anbu weren't pushovers either.
For one, the "Mist Hiding Technique" was a signature move of the Mist Village—something the Mist shinobi were well accustomed to fighting in. Plus, the sheer skill of those Mist Anbu meant a simple fog jutsu wasn't going to trap them.
So, unsurprisingly, a fight broke out.
Seimei glanced at the agent he'd just tampered with. The moment the sounds of combat reached them, that Mist Anbu bolted toward the chaos. Without a second thought, Seimei followed quietly behind.
One pawn wasn't nearly enough to satisfy him.
His next move? Repeat the process—find an opening and turn more of these Mist Anbu into his tools.
Boom!
Before he even got close to the battlefield, a massive explosion echoed through the air.
Seimei could tell it was the sound of an explosive tag going off.
And that was just the beginning.
Soon, the clash of ninja tools, the roar of jutsu, and the shouts of combat filled his ears.
Through the thick mist, with the help of his Byakugan, Seimei could see the Rock Village Anbu being cornered and attacked up close by three Mist Anbu. Two others hung back, occasionally tossing ninja tools for sneak attacks.
In just a short time, the Rock Anbu had already taken a few cuts.
If he didn't have some hidden trump card up his sleeve, it was pretty clear he'd end up defeated—or dead.
And that wasn't something Seimei wanted to see.
He waited a bit longer, but the situation didn't shift.
In fact, with the arrival of a sixth Mist Anbu, the Rock Anbu's odds got even worse.
Seimei scanned the six Mist Anbu, realizing it'd be tough to make a move. So, he decided to stir things up even more.
With that thought, he backed off a little, raised his hands to form seals, and cast a jutsu—Water Release: Mist Hiding Technique!
Yep, just like the Rock Anbu, he used the same move.
Back when he only had the Sharingan, he rarely bothered with this jutsu in a fight—it limited him too much. But now, with the Byakugan in play, he didn't have to worry about that anymore.
At the heart of the battlefield, the fight raged on.
Suddenly, one of the Mist Anbu assisting from the sidelines sensed something off.
He looked up, quickly scanning the surroundings.
That's when he noticed it—the white mist, which had started thinning out after the Rock Anbu stopped channeling chakra into it, had somehow thickened again.
And this time, it messed with their senses even more.
Without hesitation, he shouted to the others, "Heads up, there's another enemy out there!"
The other five Mist Anbu glanced around, picking up on the same oddity. Instantly, they all went on high alert.
Right then, a wind blade over two meters long shot out of the fog, aimed straight at two Mist Anbu standing close together.
"Watch out!"
One of them felt the danger first, spotting the wind blade and leaping out of the way.
At the same time, he yelled a warning to the guy next to him.
But that second Anbu was a tad slower. He dodged the wind blade's main strike, but it still sliced a deep gash into his arm.
Drip, drip.
Bright red blood trickled down, hitting the water below and staining it crimson.
"Ugh…"
The wounded Mist Anbu let out a muffled groan, clutching his bleeding arm.
Seeing this, the others were about to split up and search for whoever launched that wind blade.
But before they could, fist-sized air bullets came flying out of the mist like a machine gun, raining down on the group.
Even though they were on high alert, Seimei's "Wind Release: Vacuum Sphere" caught them off guard, throwing them into chaos.
Meanwhile, the Rock Anbu—whom Seimei had deliberately spared—caught a glint in his eyes behind his mask. He seemed to piece something together.
But he didn't have time to dwell on it. Seizing the moment, he flashed out of the encirclement and bolted.
The Mist Anbu split up on the spot.
Three of them chased after the Rock Anbu, while the other two stayed behind with the injured guy. They fanned out in a triangular formation, closing in on where the wind blade and air bullets had come from.
They moved cautiously.
Too bad for them—Seimei's Byakugan saw right through it all.
After checking their positions, he activated his Mangekyou Sharingan and used "Heavenly Authority" again.
Silently, he vanished from where he stood.
When he reappeared, he was already outside their little triangle.
Next, he cast "Shadow Clone Jutsu," splitting off two clones. They made some noise and left openings, baiting two of the Mist Anbu away from the injured one.
Of course, these seasoned fighters weren't about to stray too far.
But that was fine—it was enough.
Spotting his chance, Seimei used "Heavenly Authority" to slip right next to the wounded Anbu. He dropped the stealth, revealed himself, and activated "Illusion: Sharingan."
In an instant—before the guy could even react—Seimei had him under control.
Then came the Flying Thunder God mark, followed by two "Transcription Seals" to finish the transformation.
The whole thing took maybe fifteen seconds.
And that? Not nearly enough time for the other two Mist Anbu to notice.
Finally, Seimei tapped into his Mangekyou Sharingan again, using an illusion to wipe the last ten or so seconds from the guy's memory and nudge him back into what he'd been doing.
Just like that, another pawn was ready.
With the second one done, Seimei was getting the hang of this routine.
So, he kept it up. In less than a minute, he'd turned the remaining two Mist Anbu into his agents too.
Once that was handled, he didn't rush off. Instead, he played a little hide-and-seek with them, making it look like he was covering the Rock Anbu's escape. Only then did he use "Heavenly Authority" again and slip away.
By now, the shadow clone the Rock Anbu had left behind had been tracked down and taken out by the six Mist Anbu who'd gone after him first.
Through his Byakugan, Seimei saw them rushing toward where the real Rock Anbu had fled, likely planning an ambush up ahead.
No hesitation—Seimei locked his sights on them next.
No need to go into all the details.
It wasn't as smooth as before, but with his Mangekyou Sharingan and Byakugan, Seimei still found openings. One by one, he turned three of them into his pawns.
By the end of it, seven out of the twelve Mist Anbu from these three squads were now his eyes and ears.
Seimei paused to think it over. This ratio felt about right.
If he pushed it further and got caught, there was a real chance Karatachi Yagura might ditch the whole Anbu unit.
That'd be more trouble than it was worth.
So, he decided to switch targets.
Yep, even now, Seimei wasn't ready to call it quits.