Location: Lightning Country Border – Canyon Pass
Anyway, Seijuro and the other ANBU moved with purpose... TL;DR, they were spamming the shit out of Shunpo.
They were using Shunpo so much that they reached their mission area in less than 5 hours. They got there in 3.
Luckily, they spotted the ROOT ninja from afar. Their goal was simple: capture them. Nothing more. Try to get as much info as possible from them.
This was their mission.
Yet, as they got close—
Tch—AMBUSH!
Welp, guess it was time to box.
He had the Ino-Shika-Cho trio get into position, guarded by the Inuzuka and the bug people (Aburame).
While Hikaru himself layered some defense over the Aburame, Seijuro—while technically support—actually went to the frontline. With his sword in hand, he began clashing against several ROOT ninja.
He slashed toward the nearest ROOT operative. The bastard tried to parry his strike, only for the blade at the last second to appear shorter. That split-second misread forced the ROOT ninja to readjust, but just as he went to reset his grip—
Seijuro sliced the man's head clean off.
Well damn, his Kenjutsu style was working wonders.
Seijuro dashed at the remaining five ANBU ninja.
"Fire Style: Phoenix Flower Jutsu!" one of the ROOT ninja shouted, unleashing countless fireballs at Seijuro.
"Fang Over Fang!"
Seijuro was protected by a dog—the Inuzuka's beast partner. Though, for some odd reason, that same Fang Over Fang attack seemed to go underground... odd.
Seijuro leapt above the attack, tossing his sword at a ROOT agent who nimbly dodged out of the way.
The sound of a thousand birds chirping could be heard, and the very next second, the same ROOT ninja who dodged the blade didn't even have time to scream as he died, near instantly.
You see, when the Inuzuka used Fang Over Fang, it served two purposes: one, to block the enemy's line of sight as Seijuro sent a Shadow Clone underground, and two, to carve out a premade tunnel for the clone to know exactly where to surface.
"Four more to go," Seijuro muttered, watching as the rest of his team went to work. Everything was going perfectly. Seijuro even managed to place some seals on them.
Yet it all went to shit when the ROOT leader realized he was going to get absolutely screwed. With two of his men under Inoichi's control, he made a hand sign.
"Agh—AAAARRGH!"
It happened in an instant.
A black seal glowed on Hikaru's forehead. Then the veins around his Byakugan bulged violently, turning black. His chakra network began to twist and rupture before their very eyes.
"HIKARU!" Seijuro's voice rang out.
Then, Inoichi's mouth began secreting a white substance. His eyes rolled to the back of his head, as if he'd taken soul damage.
A bright light illuminated from a nearby ROOT member, causing all shadows in the area to be forcefully repelled.
Okay. The fuck?
Hikaru screamed in raw, unfiltered agony, staggering back as blood poured from his eyes.
"They activated a backdoor seal—on his ocular network!" someone shouted, horrified.
Choza and Shikaru moved to form a defensive line, weapons raised, but the ROOT leader calmly raised his hand.
A second seal glowed in his palm—tied directly to Hikaru's curse mark.
"Take another step... and his Byakugan ruptures entirely. Let us go. Or he loses both eyes."
"Or... would you rather your Yamanaka friend go brain-dead?"
Everything froze.
Tension so thick you could cut it with a blade. ANBU stared each other down. No one moved. Even the wind seemed to hold its breath.
Seijuro moved first.
He walked toward Hikaru, eyes unreadable beneath the fox mask. The boy was shaking, barely conscious, his chakra spasming out of sync.
Seijuro's gaze landed on Inoichi. Fuck, he didn't think they'd have that kind of contingency.
"T-They're bluffing," Inuzuka Kenta muttered. "They wouldn't destroy the Byakugan—"
"They would," Seijuro said softly, kneeling beside Hikaru.
The veins were convulsing. The chakra coils were fried. Blood streamed down the boy's face.
Hikaru's voice cracked but resolute:
"Don't... worry about me... Commander. Take them out. Don't let me be a weakness."
Seijuro didn't answer.
He placed a hand on Hikaru's shoulder, then raised the other in a silent halt gesture.
Shikaru blinked. "Wait—what are you doing?!"
Seijuro stood.
"I accept your terms."
The canyon went silent.
Even the ROOT looked surprised.
Seijuro's voice was low but carried across the canyon like steel.
"He's still a shinobi. And he'll remain one. But if you rupture that Byakugan now, healing it becomes impossible. I won't let my comrade die when I can save him."
His words weren't apologetic.
They were terrifyingly calm.
One of the ROOT agents spoke. "A surprising amount of empathy for the Genjutsu Devil."
"I have emotion because I am human... what does that make of you?" he said calmly, his sword glinting faintly.
He saw them bite their lower lips—not seductively or anything, but to draw blood.
They couldn't risk being put under another genjutsu.
The ROOT moved uneasily—but didn't challenge him.
With that, they slowly vanished into the trees, leaping across the cliffside pass.
The ANBU remained still.
As the last ROOT ninja disappeared, Seijuro finally exhaled and turned to Inoichi.
"Heal him. Now. Stop the deterioration. I'll lock his chakra pathways in place."
He pressed a palm to Hikaru's back. A sealing array flared beneath his hand—custom script, likely Uzumaki in origin.
Inoichi got to work.
Shikaru stood beside him. "...You let them go."
"I let them think they won."
"But why?"
Seijuro glanced at him, voice cold:
"I already placed the Hiraishin seal on them. I'll momentarily seal Hikaru's curse mark for a second, and then I teleport them back."
Oh...
Yeah, he had that technique.
"And also, they're under my Genjutsu. They'll be running around in circles for the next six hours... so we have time."
Goddamn... when did he even have time to do this?