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The Black Dragon Gang members kept attacking Hayato from all sides. When they realized just how strong he was—taking down multiple men in the blink of an eye—they started to panic. Even their leader was stunned and terrified. More than anything, he was scared that Hayato might be coming for his turf, his power.
So the leader gave the order—everyone was to join the fight. Hell, he even charged in himself, katana in hand.
But at the end of the day, Hayato was still just a lower-ranked ninja. Sure, he could handle regular guys no problem, but the sheer number of enemies eventually started taking its toll. Even though he was way stronger now than he had been in the past, he couldn't dodge everything forever.
Slowly, cuts began to appear on his body. Blood leaked from his wounds, soaking into his clothes, turning parts of them red.
The blood on him wasn't just his enemies'—some of it was his own. From head to toe, he looked like a man completely drenched in blood, like some kind of walking corpse.
That sight started to shake the Black Dragon Gang's morale. One by one, they began hesitating, some even thinking about retreating. But their leader still had a shred of sense.
He knew that if they didn't take this chance to finish off Hayato now, it would only get harder later. And worse—Hayato might strike first next time. So the Black Dragon leader made up his mind:
Hayato had to die here today, no matter what. If not, it'd be big trouble for them down the line.
"Kill him! Get in there now! If anyone dares to run, I'll kill them myself! I won't spare their families either!" the Black Dragon leader shouted.
"He's just one guy! Just a damn kid! And look at him—he's badly hurt. He's already running on fumes. He can't last much longer. Go! Finish him!"
He kept yelling like that—though he conveniently stayed behind everyone else.
The pain from his wounds was already starting to piss Hayato off. Anger was slowly bubbling up inside him. And that damn gang leader's nonstop shouting only made it worse—like an annoying fly buzzing in his ear. Hayato was so fed up, he honestly wanted to crush him with a single slap.
The gang members, hyped up by their leader's threats, shouted and charged at Hayato again, convinced he was already done for—like he really was on his last legs.
But hidden nearby in the shadows, a few black-clad ninjas wearing animal masks were silently watching everything play out. They were Anbu operatives.
"Hm? From the looks of it, this guy's probably only at the level of a low-ranked ninja. His strength and speed are decent, but he doesn't seem very experienced in combat. What's going on here? Is he hiding his real power? …No, that's not it. Then maybe… it's a kekkei genkai?" one of the Anbu muttered.
They kept analyzing Hayato's abilities and potential. Since they hadn't seen him transform into the Hulk, they couldn't believe that someone like Hayato could actually have that much power.
"He ran all the way from Konoha to the Land of Rain… Could it be? Is Hanzo, the leader of the Rain Village, backing him? Or… did Hanzo actually assassinate Lord Danzo?" one of them wondered out loud, his mind racing with wild theories.
While the Anbu were caught up in their speculation, Hayato's body started to change.
A faint green tint began to spread from beneath his bloodstained clothes. His already strong-looking body started to swell—his muscles bulging like balloons being pumped full of air.
"ROAR!!"
With a thunderous shout, Hayato's body suddenly grew nearly twice its size. He went from just over a meter tall to almost three meters. His once-slim figure transformed into a hulking, muscle-bound green beast.
BOOM!
With a single punch, he obliterated the men standing directly in front of him—blood and body parts flying everywhere. Even the Black Dragon leader, who had been shouting non-stop, was within range of that blow. Hayato sent him flying with one punch like a ragdoll.
"…Whoa. He transformed? That must be his kekkei genkai," one of the Anbu said, narrowing his eyes. "He's definitely gotten way stronger—this level of raw power is on par with those jōnin who specialize in brute strength. Maybe even stronger…"
The Anbu agents were clearly shocked by what they saw. But being who they were, they quickly regained their composure.
"....."