Outside a small town, in a humble house, a light shone from the window.
In the woods, a shadow darted out, landing silently in front of the house.
The newcomer appeared to be a young man, around seventeen or eighteen years old, with a cold and stern expression. His eyes were like ice caves.
Touching the human skin mask on his face, Mo Yu secretly nodded to himself.
As expected, the system did a great job. He had exchanged one gold coin for it.
Although it could only be used once, its effect was surprisingly good. There wasn't a single flaw to be seen.
Of course, to avoid giving anything away, Mo Yu still kept a stiff, expressionless face, the best way to avoid suspicion.
According to the memories of Asahi Haruka, this house was where an elite shinobi from the Oma family was temporarily staying.
According to their plan, if Asahi Haruka was unable to stop Mo Yu, then this elite shinobi would be dispatched.
Mo Yu didn't try to sneak into the house. He knew that from the moment he arrived, the shinobi inside would already be aware of his presence. Any attempt at stealth would be futile.
So, Mo Yu walked directly up to the door and knocked loudly.
Knock, knock, knock. Knock!
Three long knocks, followed by a short one.
This was their secret signal.
"Come in."
A man's voice came from inside the house.
Mo Yu opened the door and stepped inside, seeing a man in his thirties sitting at a table reading a book.
"Who are you? I don't recognize you."
The middle-aged man's gaze turned sharp.
The Oma, Asahi, and Kamejima families were all small clans, with fewer than a hundred ninjas in total. They had good relations with each other, so it wasn't hard to recognize someone from their ranks. However, Mo Yu's face wasn't familiar.
Mo Yu remained calm, saying, "I am Uchiha Sasuke."
At the mention of the Uchiha name, the middle-aged man's expression softened slightly. If Mo Yu was from the Uchiha clan, then the secret signal would make sense, but he wasn't fully convinced yet.
"You say you're from the Uchiha clan, but do you have any proof?"
Mo Yu didn't answer immediately. Instead, he raised his head, and in the blink of an eye, his eyes turned blood red. A single tomoe swirled in each of his pupils.
No need for further words, this was the best proof.
Aside from the Uchiha clan, no one else in the ninja world had the Sharingan.
Seeing this, the Oma shinobi completely believed in Mo Yu's identity, and his expression became far more serious.
Because every Uchiha who awakened the Sharingan had unlimited potential, and especially with how young Mo Yu was, it was almost certain he would become a jōnin in the future.
"Sasuke-san, may I ask what brings you here?"
The Oma clan shinobi's tone changed from cold to friendly.
Mo Yu replied, "To ensure that the little thief doesn't return to Konoha alive. You know, he caused the Uchiha clan to lose face, and he must pay the price!"
The Oma shinobi's face darkened. "Sasuke-san, do you doubt me? A mere chūnin, I don't believe he can escape my grasp. Furthermore, even without my help, the three chūnin sent by the Asahi and Kamejima clans should be enough to deal with that Mo Yu."
Mo Yu said, "No, according to the latest intel from my clan, the three men you sent have already been killed by Mo Yu. And Mo Yu is not a chūnin. He is a jōnin!"
The Oma shinobi suddenly stood up, shocked. "This is impossible! Isn't this Mo Yu just a recent graduate from the Ninja Academy? How can he be a jōnin?"
Mo Yu explained, "Because he isn't an ordinary child. He's a spy from another ninja village who used a forbidden technique to alter his age and appearance, and was sent to Konoha to gather intelligence. This is information my Uchiha clan paid a great deal for."
While speaking, Mo Yu gradually closed the distance between himself and the Oma shinobi. The shocked man didn't realize it.
"Is there such a technique in the ninja world?"
The Oma shinobi still seemed reluctant to believe it.
"This vast world is full of wonders. Maybe it's a forbidden technique developed by some genius recently. Anyway, the plan has changed. We need to capture him alive. You should know what a great achievement it would be to capture a jōnin spy. It would be enough for a jōnin to learn two or three new A-rank ninjutsu, or even one S-rank ninjutsu."
"The credit can go to you, but my Uchiha clan needs to interrogate him first to learn the secrets about him, before you hand him over to Konoha."
The Oma shinobi's eyes immediately turned red with greed.
This was an incredibly tempting offer. The Oma clan was a small family and didn't have any A-rank ninjutsu in their arsenal.
S-rank ninjutsu was out of the question. If they could obtain one or two A-rank ninjutsu from the village, it would be enough to raise their clan's standing for the next decade. Moreover, it would greatly benefit their strength as well.
The Oma shinobi was about to eagerly agree, but then he hesitated, remembering that the person in front of him was a jōnin. A spy capable of such infiltration was surely an experienced and crafty veteran.
Mo Yu spoke again, "Don't worry. To ensure we capture him alive, my clan has laid out a meticulous plan. We're guaranteed to catch him."
The Oma shinobi's eyes lit up. "What plan?"
Mo Yu suddenly lowered his voice.
The Oma shinobi instinctively leaned forward to listen more clearly, only to realize something was wrong. He hadn't noticed that Mo Yu had already closed the distance between them.
"...Kill!"
A roar rang out in the Oma shinobi's ear, causing his mind to blur.
Then, he felt an overwhelming mental force invade his brain, and twisting black shadows appeared before his eyes, rushing toward him.
It was a genjutsu!
"Not good!"
The Oma shinobi thought to himself as he tried to break free from the genjutsu.
But the next second, a dazzling blade of light flashed in the corner of his vision like lightning.
"Ahhh!"
A scream shattered the night's silence, sending countless birds scattering from the trees.
Inside the house, Mo Yu stood holding a large blade.
The blade was blood-red, with drops of blood falling from the edge, splattering on the floor like blooming flowers.
Standing about ten feet away from Mo Yu, the Oma shinobi held his neck with one hand, blood pouring out uncontrollably. His face was full of shock and anger.
The young man's sword was frighteningly fast. If he hadn't relied on his years of experience to instinctively use the Body Flicker Technique to dodge, even by a fraction of a second, he would have been decapitated.
"Why? Why did the Uchiha clan kill me?"
The Oma shinobi still hadn't doubted Mo Yu's identity, since the Sharingan was irrefutable.
"I know," he said, panic in his voice. "You want to take all the credit for yourself, right? If you had just said so, I would have stepped back. Why go so far and kill me?"
The Oma shinobi was furious and afraid, both terrified of the Uchiha clan's power and of almost dying.
"Dead men don't need to know so much."