After parting ways with Hyuga Kai, Tatsuma hoisted Hyuga Miyako onto his back and sprinted toward the camp, his head snapping back every few seconds to check their rear.
The frequency of the firelight in the distance was dwindling. The battle was clearly reaching its conclusion, but the epicenter of the flashes was steadily inching closer to the Konoha camp. Tatsuma's expression turned grim.
This meant the Konoha shinobi were losing ground, being beaten back step by bloody step.
On his shoulder, Miyako opened his eyes weakly. "You're... the boy Kai and Chinto mentioned... Tatsuma, right?"
"Lord Miyako, please don't speak," Tatsuma urged, his voice tight. "I've managed to stop the bleeding for now, but you're still in critical condition."
Tatsuma pushed himself harder, his legs burning as he accelerated. After a moment of silence, Miyako spoke again, his voice a raspy whisper. "Tell Tsunade... Chiyo was a decoy. Her showing up so publicly... it was just a distraction."
Miyako's throat seemed to seize up. He took several shallow, jagged breaths before forcing the words out. "The Third Kazekage... is here."
Tatsuma nearly stumbled. "The Sand has deployed their Kazekage?!"
The Kage of a village represented more than just an elite combatant; they were the symbol of the nation itself. Once a Kage took the field, it usually meant one of two things: a fight to the death, or a village so desperate they had no other cards left to play.
But Sunagakure wasn't at that stage yet. By deploying the Kazekage now, they were effectively shattering the unspoken rules of border skirmishes. The current friction had only started because of the murder of Chiyo's family; it was a conflict, not yet a total war. A Kage had no business being on the front lines this early.
Miyako nodded weakly. "That's why... why this ambush was so devastating."
Tatsuma realized the horror of the situation. Given the speed of the Hyuga squad and the nature of their reports, they hadn't even had time to gather real intel on the Suna camp. They had likely been spotted and intercepted the moment they got close. The Kazekage, having already broken the rules by being there, certainly wasn't going to let a Hyuga scouting party escape to tell the tale.
It explained why the squad had fallen so quickly—and why the six reinforcements Tatsuma brought had been routed in minutes. Only a Kage possessed the power to dismantle veteran shinobi that efficiently.
"Cough... stop running," Miyako wheezed, coughing up a mouthful of blood. "Do me a favor... destroy my eyes. I can't... I can't do it myself."
Tatsuma didn't stop. He buried his head and kept running, ignoring the request. Miyako gasped for air, his voice becoming desperate.
"The Hyuga Main House... the eyes of the Soke... they cannot fall into enemy hands. And... we... we can't both escape. You still have a chance."
"Not a single one of my teachers taught me how to kill a comrade!" Tatsuma snarled.
He adjusted his grip on Miyako, who was slipping down his back, and channeled every drop of chakra he could spare into stimulating his leg muscles. But he knew the truth. At this speed, without anyone to run interference, they would be caught in minutes.
"Enough! As a... as a sensory ninja... failing to detect him... was a grave dereliction of duty," Miyako's voice was fading. "I've led my clansmen and comrades to their graves... I have no right... no right to live! If... if you really are the genius they say... you should know that killing me is best for you... for me... and for the village."
Tatsuma gritted his teeth, refusing to answer. The sounds of combat behind them were getting louder, then, in an instant... they stopped.
Tatsuma's sensory field flared. A massive, terrifyingly powerful surge of chakra had just slammed into his range. He suspected it was the Third Kazekage himself—or perhaps one of his top lieutenants.
"Rotation!"
Another burst of chakra erupted nearby. Feeling the familiar vibration behind them, Miyako let out a weak, hollow laugh.
"Kai... so you learned it after all..."
After that soft murmur, Miyako used his stump of an arm to shove against Tatsuma's back with all his remaining strength. He tumbled off the boy's shoulders and hit the ground. Tatsuma skidded to a stop and turned to pick him back up, but Miyako cut him off.
"Destroy... my... eyes!"
"But—"
"Boy, you don't have the... the standing... to change my fate. Do it."
Tatsuma stared at him. His breathing, already ragged from the sprint, became erratic. Finally, his eyes hardened as he made his choice.
"I'm sorry, Lord Miyako."
Miyako nodded and closed his eyes. Tatsuma flicked his wrist, a kunai appearing in his hand. With a swift motion, the blade slashed across Miyako's eyes. The man's body gave a single, sharp twitch.
"I will tell my teacher about everything you've done for the village. Lord Miyako... you were a ninja worthy of respect."
As the words left his lips, Tatsuma drove the kunai upward, beneath Miyako's jaw. In a single, clean thrust, the blade pierced through the base of the skull and into the brain. Miyako's life was extinguished instantly.
Rustle—!
A figure burst from the dense foliage, charging straight for Tatsuma. He didn't have the heart to listen to the ill-timed pings of the system in his mind. He glanced one last time toward the distant area where the sounds of fighting had vanished.
As the assailant closed in, Tatsuma yanked his kunai free and hurled it. The pursuer jerked his head to the side to dodge.
But as Tatsuma threw the blade, chakra began to swirl violently in his right palm. A golden sphere of condensed energy hummed to life. The Rasengan. Tatsuma had learned it in secret long ago, but he had never had a reason to reveal it—until now.
BOOM!
Tatsuma lunged, slamming the sphere toward the man's chest. The sudden, handseal-less technique caught the ninja off guard, but he managed to cross his arms just as a puppet lunged forward to shield him.
The puppet was blasted into splinters. Tatsuma caught a glimpse of the man's shocked expression, but he didn't stick around to chat. He threw a smoke bomb, and before the cloud could even expand, he vanished using the Body Flicker Technique.
This man wasn't the Kazekage; perhaps Miyako's body had successfully bought enough time to stall the leader. But the young man pursuing him was clearly an elite Suna puppet master. Tatsuma knew he was no match for him in a straight fight; that ambush had been his only shot, and it had been blocked.
Without the weight of Miyako on his back and without the need to follow a predictable route, Tatsuma's true speed was unleashed. He led his pursuer on a chaotic, irregular chase through the heart of the Land of Rivers.
It wasn't until sunset the following day that Tatsuma finally limped back into the Konoha camp. The moment he crossed the perimeter, ninjas rushed to inform Tsunade, who had just returned from her own engagement.
Tatsuma walked into the medical tent like a ghost. His eyes were glazed, and he began to treat the scrapes and cuts he'd picked up during his escape with mechanical, hollow movements.
"You brat!"
Tsunade burst into the tent, her face a mask of fury. She had intended to tear into him for leaving without orders, but the moment she saw him, the words died in her throat.
Tatsuma looked up, forcing a fragment of awareness back into his eyes. "The Kazekage is on the move. Chiyo was just a smoke screen to hide his tracks."
"What?!"
The news hit Tsunade like a physical blow. She gripped a table to steady herself. "How do you know this?"
"We found Lord Miyako. He told me before he died."
"Where is he? Where are the others?"
"Dead. All of them. And I... I killed Lord Miyako with my own hands."
Tatsuma swallowed hard, his stomach churning. The bile rose in his throat, and he fought the urge to vomit. Tsunade's eyes softened, and she realized the truth instantly.
"He ordered you to do it, didn't he?"
"...Yes."
Confirming her suspicion, Tsunade nodded firmly. "The information you brought back is vital. And listen to me... you didn't do anything wrong."
She stepped closer, her voice dropping to a low, commanding tone. "Hyuga Miyako died at the hands of the Sand. That is the only story. No matter who asks—even when you ask yourself in the middle of the night—that is the only answer. Do you understand?"
Tatsuma looked at her and gave a slow, numb nod.
"Get some rest," Tsunade said. "I need to report this to the village immediately."