Ao's fingers gently brushed over the Hidden Mist insignia carved into his forehead protector. His young face still carried traces of blood, and his eyes burned with the desire to prove himself.
"It's him! He killed our comrade!" Tonbo Fubuki shouted angrily.
"Why such fury? You killed one of mine as well." Ao stood on a tree branch, speaking coldly.
"Ao… this could be trouble."
The others didn't recognize Ao. After all, Kirigakure was isolated on a massive island off the mainland, and large-scale battles with Konoha were rare. For the Leaf shinobi to feel unfamiliar with this young Mist ninja was only natural.
The last time Konoha and Kirigakure clashed in full-scale war had been more than twenty years ago, during the previous Shinobi World War—far in the past now.
But Kaede Tsukasa recognized him immediately, even though Ao had not yet obtained the Byakugan.
"The enemy claims to be a Mist jōnin, though it could be a psychological tactic," Kazamatsuri Takuno whispered. "They have three shinobi, and we have four, but no jōnin among us. Our best hope is to stall for time or retreat, and pray that nearby comrades notice the commotion and rush over."
Takuno himself was only a chūnin. The others were genin, none of them gifted prodigies with overwhelming jutsu. Their chances of victory were slim.
But no matter how slim the odds, surrender was impossible. And the Mist would never accept the surrender of medical-nin inside the Land of Fire.
Without warning, a thin mist began to rise among the trees. Takuno spun a kunai around his fingertips twice before hurling it forward.
"I'll cover the retreat!"
Tsukasa barked the order, grabbing two injured comrades who were unable to fight and tossing them backward.
Almost at the same moment, a kunai with an explosive tag came flying toward him. Luckily, Takuno's kunai struck its hilt in time, diverting it. It grazed Tsukasa's clothes before pinning itself into a tree trunk two meters away.
Boom!
The explosion ripped through the forest, showering splinters everywhere. Tsukasa staggered under the shockwave, forced back by the blast.
Ao's figure appeared right in front of him, hands flashing through seals.
"You seem to have the numbers, but not for long. Water Style: Water Shrapnel Jutsu!"
Dozens of pressurized droplets rained down in a deadly barrage.
Takuno ripped open his medical pouch—bandages burst out and scattered in the air, forming a net. Fubuki tried to deflect the droplets with a kunai, but as an ordinary genin, he lacked both strong taijutsu and even basic combat composure. He managed to slice through two droplets, but the third exploded against him—piercing straight through his right shoulder. The wound drained his strength and warmth with frightening speed.
Takuno and Fubuki were lucky enough to survive Ao's jutsu, but not everyone shared their fate.
"Now, it's three against three."
Two Mist shinobi slipped past like wraiths, their bodies covered in gruesome wounds. They finished with a swift strike at the neck of the medical-nin.
In the blink of an eye, Konoha's side had already lost one.
Those two who were already badly wounded had their injuries split open again. Without immediate treatment, they wouldn't last long.
The situation had already deteriorated beyond saving. Unless Konoha reinforcements arrived right now, there was almost no hope of survival.
Don't be fooled—Ao might often seem like a clown: yelling "retreat" the moment he saw the Yellow Flash, or again when he encountered Shisui of the Body Flicker. But because of that, he always avoided danger ahead of time and managed to live on.
In its own way, the ability to act decisively was a remarkable talent.
And now, Ao had already decided—he could quickly kill the Konoha shinobi in front of him, and then escape from the Land of Fire.
Kazamatsuri Takuno roared: "No matter if we can beat them or not, there's no chance of reaching the border. Our mission has already failed! I'll hold them off—you run!"
"You can scatter and flee. Maybe one of you will survive," a Mist ninja mocked.
"Impossible! Konoha shinobi never abandon their comrades!"
Takuno launched himself forward, trying to tie down two of the Mist and buy time for the others to escape.
But given his strength, it was far too much for him to handle.
"We're doomed. We won't last a few minutes. Even if reinforcements came, it'd be too late. Damn it, damn it!! This is all my fault—I doomed you all!" Tonbo Fubuki slammed his fists against his own head in anguish. He had always been a hot-tempered type, and now he couldn't control his emotions.
Young genin were, after all, still young.
But really, who wouldn't break down? To suddenly have hope, only to see it torn away in the next moment, that so-called hope revealed as nothing but a weapon of despair wielded by the enemy—anyone would falter.
Ao was already clashing with Takuno, while the two Mist shinobi rushed at Fubuki and Tsukasa. As long as they avoided the chakra scalpels of the medical-nin, victory was certain.
"Don't dwell on it! Run! Do as the captain said—split up!"
Tsukasa didn't hesitate. Enduring the agony from the blast earlier, he turned at once.
To him, there was never a conflict between mission and comrades—the only thing that mattered was what would keep him alive.
Those words about "anyone who doesn't value comrades is worse than trash" meant nothing to Tsukasa. In truth, most Konoha shinobi wouldn't take them seriously in a life-or-death moment either.
But even so, as he turned to flee, Tsukasa dragged along the two injured comrades he had thrown earlier, one under each arm, leaping deeper into the forest at a pace far slower than he would have liked.
Thud!
Takuno, whose taijutsu was far from exceptional, was quickly overwhelmed in close combat. Ao's horizontal kick snapped several ribs and sent him flying, blood spraying from his mouth.
"Tsukasa… even on the brink of death, you still protect your comrades. Truly admirable… Then I won't let you down. Even if it costs my life, I'll make sure you get away! Earth Style: Earth Wall Jutsu!"
Takuno seized the brief moment, pressing his trembling hands against the ground. He had to buy time, even knowing that Tsukasa, carrying two injured comrades, would find it extremely difficult to escape.
Suddenly, a wall of earth rose up, blocking the Mist ninja's line of sight. Takuno knew it wouldn't last long, but even a few extra seconds could make a difference.
When Ao destroyed the Earth Wall with his Water Style jutsu, the Konoha shinobi had already vanished amidst the scattering dust.
"They haven't gone far—an unremarkable chūnin and two genin nearly out of chakra… and one of them is carrying two badly wounded comrades. Hmph, how foolish. Kifu, take care of that idiot—kill them all."
Ao snorted coldly, unsurprised by the scene. Konoha shinobi always seemed this way, constantly talking about comrades, bonds, friendship… using lofty morals to prove their worth? No… perhaps it was a way to quell fear and hesitation, enhancing combat effectiveness. In that sense, it was a clever tactic.
Kirigakure, however, was different. Ever since the violent Third Mizukage took power, countless lives had been taken. Mist shinobi lived in constant paranoia, reporting and watching one another, killing each other off. The village had begun to earn the ominous nickname "Village of Blood Mist."
…
Tsukasa coughed violently, blood streaming visibly from the corner of his mouth. Even so, he refused to abandon the two gravely wounded comrades.
Anyone witnessing this would instinctively feel that Tsukasa was a true embodiment of the Will of Fire.
"Caught up yet?"
Tsukasa's face showed no surprise. Gaining these few extra minutes was already a rare achievement.
"I've heard that Mist shinobi are generally cruel and coldhearted. I expected you to toy with me for a minute or two, enjoying the thrill of a small-village ninja challenging a large-village shinobi."
The Mist ninja named Kifu appeared on a branch ahead of him.
"Small-village ninja? Don't underestimate Kirigakure. At your age, in your physical condition, you'd be blown over by a gust of wind. Even in Konoha, you'd be a nobody—who cares about you?"
He watched Tsukasa panting, gently setting the two injured comrades down, and taunted:
"Are you an idiot? You're in terrible shape and you're carrying two people while fleeing… your speed is far too slow! Mission and your own life are what matter most. Yet you prioritize your comrades over both. No wonder Captain Ao called you a fool."
"I'm not sure if Takuno will survive Ao's attack, but that doesn't change what needs to be done… Thanks. You've given me another minute—I think that will be enough."
After setting down his comrades, Tsukasa's hands were covered in blood, one still forming a hand seal. He had been quietly gathering chakra all along.
"I felt something was wrong when I saw Fubuki and the two badly injured ones. That's when I began preparing my strategy. Facing you head-on would be hopeless. Also, my jutsu requires time to properly execute… The stronger the target, the more preparation time I need."
Not only was his chakra nearly depleted, but these two gravely injured shinobi were still fairly strong, meaning Tsukasa needed extra time to perform what he had planned.
Fortunately, he made it in time.
"Good, boy. You've shown proper respect when facing a strong opponent. I'll let you die without pain—"
The enemy misunderstood, thinking Tsukasa was praising him. He immediately fired three Senbon needles.
"No, that's not it. I have enough time. That damn fool is you."
Tsukasa cut him off, slamming a hand into the ground.
Summoning Jutsu!
The earth suddenly churned like boiling water, and a pitch-black coffin burst out of the ground.