Asuma was accompanied by Kurenai Yuhi, a member of the Hyuga branch family, a ninja from the Akimichi clan, and one from the Inuzuka clan. Along with them was a nervous white ninja dog.
Asuma, being the son of the Third Hokage, dared to approach the forest with these elite ninja by his side.
The forest was cold and ominous.
Corpses littered the ground.
The air was thick with death and a sense of dread.
Kurenai's beautiful red eyes trembled as she clenched her small hands, filled with anxiety.
In an attempt to ease her nerves, she glared at Asuma and said in a stern voice, "Put it out!"
Kurenai hated that Asuma smoked.
But since Asuma's father, the Third Hokage, was also an avid smoker, she couldn't bring herself to criticize him too harshly.
Asuma chuckled, revealing a few yellowed teeth in the moonlight, and tried to put an arm around Kurenai's shoulders.
"Don't worry. It'll go out on its own."
Slap.
Kurenai swatted away Asuma's hand and coldly replied, "Focus on the mission!"
"Haha, alright. We'll focus on the mission... though flirting with you feels like my mission."
Asuma stuffed his hands into his pockets and teased with a smirk.
Kurenai sighed, choosing to ignore Asuma's shameless flirting but still following along with the group.
She hadn't yet accepted him.
"Alright, everyone, let's get to work. Solve this problem, and it's a major accomplishment!"
With a dramatic snap of his fingers, Asuma directed the team into action. The chubby Akimichi ninja stayed close to him for protection, while the Hyuga and Inuzuka ninjas moved out.
The Hyuga activated the Byakugan, scanning the battlefield.
The Inuzuka ninja released his dog, but to his surprise, the dog immediately fled in the opposite direction. He scrambled after it, confused.
Asuma's eye twitched at the sight.
"There's someone over there from the Root organization, wounded but still alive!" the Hyuga ninja called out, quickly moving deeper into the forest.
Asuma and the others followed him.
The Hyuga ninja approached the injured Root captain, who lay on the ground missing several fingers. His thigh was pinned to the earth by a ninja blade, and he groaned in agony.
"It… it was Uchiha Kuroki... He killed Lord Danzo! And then... escaped the village with nine other Uchiha traitors!"
"Uchiha Kuroki?" Asuma frowned and slowly turned to look at Kurenai, whose face had gone pale.
Kurenai averted her gaze, avoiding Asuma's questioning eyes. Moonlight cast shadows on her fair, beautiful face, her panic barely hidden beneath her curly black hair.
Kurenai wore a red undergarment with an outer dress wrapped in bandages. The netted chainmail beneath hinted at her figure, emphasizing her curves and her smooth, snowy skin.
Beneath her skirt, white bandages wound around her legs, which were long and elegant, her calves slim and polished.
Asuma, unwilling to press her further, looked away. A trace of frustration flickered in his eyes. "There's only one Uchiha named Kuroki... He was our classmate at the Ninja Academy."
Kurenai bit her red lips and denied it.
"He's not that kind of person! Besides, how could Kuroki possibly be a match for Danzo?"
Kurenai looked as stunning as a red rose.
She was now fully grown, in her prime, learning how to use makeup and enhance her already beautiful, mature appearance. Every move she made radiated the aura of a refined woman.
"Kurenai, you're right. I don't think he could kill Danzo either."
Asuma's expression darkened.
Back in their days at the Ninja Academy, Uchiha Kuroki had been a kind and gentle classmate, always looking out for the girls. Early on, half the girls in the class liked the cool, aloof Kakashi, while the other half admired the warm and sunny Kuroki.
Kuroki had been just as popular as Kakashi.
Back then, Kurenai, Shizune, and even the shy Anko had all harbored feelings for him.
But that was all in the past.
Asuma didn't want to bring it up again or reopen old wounds.
Taking a deep breath to calm his rising frustration, Asuma looked down at the wounded Root captain and said,
"Tell me all about the Uchiha techniques you saw them use."
The Root captain, struggling to speak through his pain, gritted his teeth and replied,
"It was… control. A kind of inescapable control-type dojutsu. Uchiha Kuroki had awakened the Mangekyou Sharingan!"
Asuma and his team were shocked, exchanging uneasy glances. The Inuzuka ninja felt an urge to back away.
None of them had ever faced a Uchiha with a Mangekyou Sharingan, but they had heard of the terrifying power these eyes held on the battlefield.
Eyes that were said to bring death and curses.
Each pair was blessed with unique, divine abilities!
"Please… take me… to the hospital… in Konoha..." the Root captain begged in pain.
Asuma glanced at him indifferently and said, "Hold on for five more minutes. Someone will come to get you."
With that, Asuma led his companions deeper into the forest.
"Asuma… maybe we should give up on this mission," the Inuzuka ninja suggested, his voice shaky.
He was struggling to control his agitated ninja dog, which clearly didn't want to venture further into the forest, its eyes filled with fear.
Asuma shook his head. "Let's move ahead a little more. We'll gather as much information as we can before deciding."
But the five of them hadn't taken many steps.
They were stunned to discover a clearing in the forest ahead, dominated by a giant, pale tree.
Embedded in the tree was the hilt of a sword. In the shadowy hollow above, hung a lifeless, old face, his body engulfed by the tree.
"Danzo Shimura?!"
By the moonlight, Asuma recognized the old face and cried out in shock.
Kurenai and the others also saw the once lofty face, and their pupils trembled, their breathing growing heavy.
Yet that face remained motionless, hanging quietly within the tree hollow.
"Could this really have been done by Uchiha Kuroki?"
The Hyūga jonin spoke in a deep voice.
That was the man who lurked in the shadows of the village.
Danzo Shimura!!
He had actually been tormented like this by Uchiha—likely dead, and in such a miserable way.
"Was it really Kuroki who did this?"
Kurenai's face flushed, her emotions surging. The boy she once admired had now grown to this extent?
"How is this even possible?!"
Asuma's face turned pale, and he pulled a cigarette from his pocket, his hands trembling slightly as he reached for his lighter.
Uchiha Kuroki had actually killed Danzo Shimura!!
Click—click—click—
Sparks flew.
Asuma, his gaze hollow, flicked the lighter several times until a flame finally sparked. He took a deep drag from the cigarette, trying to calm the storm in his heart.
"What do we do now?"
The large jonin from the Akimichi clan looked toward Asuma. The Akimichi were used to following orders during missions.
Asuma rubbed his temples, steadying himself as he surveyed the corpses of the Root and ANBU members scattered across the ground. His gaze landed on Danzo's lifeless body, and his thoughts began to clear.
It seemed Kuroki had truly unlocked the Mangekyo Sharingan, or he wouldn't have risked assassinating Danzo.
But even so...
After dealing with so many members of Root, ANBU, and Danzo himself, Kuroki must be at his limit.
A smile crept onto Asuma's face as his cigarette burned to the end. He flicked the ash, dropped the cigarette to the ground, and stamped it out.
"Uchiha Kuroki killed the Hokage's advisor and took down so many members of Root and ANBU.
He must be exhausted.
Pushed to the edge!
His bounty, his status as a rogue ninja...
After tonight, they'll likely rival Orochimaru's when he fled Konoha as one of the Sannin.
If we seize this opportunity...
And bring him back alive.
Or even return with his body!
Everyone...
This kind of achievement will guarantee you a spot as a key member of your clan! So, I propose...
We hunt down this Uchiha rogue ninja!!"
(End of Chapter)