Chapter 19: The True Escort Target
The attack had been a surprise, but it was still a testament to the boy's skill. He was no ordinary shinobi.
"Forget the target! Kill the kid first!" the Iwagakure rogue-nin yelled to his remaining comrades, his hands already flying through a series of hand signs.
Neji's eyebrow twitched when he heard the word "target." So, their objective isn't the grain after all, he thought. Could it be...?
A theory began to form in his mind. Without breaking stride, he charged straight for the Iwa rogue-nin leader.
By now, the man had completed his jutsu.
"Earth Release: Rock Fist Jutsu!"
His arm was instantly encased in a thick layer of solid rock. He threw a vicious punch, aiming to pulverize the approaching Neji.
Just before the blow landed, Neji shifted his stance, crossing his arms in front of his chest.
The rogue-nin, having committed to the attack, couldn't pull back. The rock-hard fist slammed into Neji's forearms, sending him flying backward with tremendous force.
The remaining Chūnin and three Genin, who had been bracing for an attack, breathed a sigh of relief. The enemy was strong, but the advantage was still theirs.
It was only when they saw the look of sheer horror on their leader's face that they realized Neji, who had been sent flying, was now hurtling toward them at an even greater speed.
It was too late to use a jutsu to evade. A flock of black lightning birds erupted from Neji's body, their piercing cries an assault on the eardrums.
Two of the Genin were the first to be engulfed by the black lightning, dying instantly.
The remaining Chūnin used the opening to try and escape with an Earth Release Body Flicker. But Neji wasn't about to let him get away.
"Divine Air Strike!"
He threw a punch through the air, sending an inconspicuous sphere of pure chakra flying toward the fleeing ninja. It entered the man's chest without a sound.
The Gentle Fist's penetrating force invaded his body and, in an instant, exploded from within.
Thump.
The Chūnin fell backward onto the ground. From the outside, there wasn't a single scratch on him, but his heart had been turned to dust.
Screeeech!
Neji's backward momentum finally began to slow. He stabbed a kunai into the ground, his feet sliding for another five or six meters before he came to a stop.
"Black lightning... A secret jutsu?!"
The Iwa rogue-nin glanced at the corpses of his three comrades, then his eyes fixed on the black electricity crackling in Neji's hands. His teeth began to chatter.
He suddenly remembered seeing a very similar black lightning from a distance on the battlefield years ago. The terrifying man who had wielded it had left a deep psychological scar on him, a Chūnin at the time. Even now, the memory made him break out in a cold sweat.
Could it be the same technique?
Neji pulled his kunai from the ground, a smirk on his face. "Show me what you've got. Don't let me kill you this easily."
"I've never seen such an arrogant brat," the Iwa-nin snarled, his eyes narrowing.
The kid didn't meet my attack head-on. He used my own force to kill my comrades. That means his strength is about equal to mine, or maybe slightly greater. If I fight to the death, I might have a chance of winning.
But he has backup, and she won't be any weaker than he is. More importantly, escort ninja are notoriously difficult to deal with. It's not worth risking my life for such a small fee.
The Iwa-nin decided to retreat.
As Neji charged toward him, he flew through another set of hand signs, then slammed his palms on the ground, pouring half his chakra into the jutsu.
"Earth Release: Earth Flow River!"
A six-meter-wide patch of ground in front of him instantly liquefied, surging forward in a muddy tide.
Neji backflipped through the air, his feet occasionally tapping the churning mud to propel himself further away. The wave of sludge pursued him relentlessly until he was more than ten meters back, finally clear of the jutsu's range.
By then, the Iwa-nin was already a hundred meters away and disappearing into the trees.
"Impressive," Neji noted. "When it comes to Earth Release, he's far superior to me."
Neji didn't give chase immediately. He waited a moment, and once the rogue-nin was a full kilometer away, he created a Lightning Clone and sent it silently after him.
"Neji, hang on! I'm coming!"
Yugito's voice called out from the distance. She was at least as strong as Neji, if not stronger. It was no surprise that she had dealt with her opponents so quickly.
With the attacking ninja either dead or fled, the battle was soon over. The convoy had suffered heavy losses, and the guards were filled with a murderous rage. They hunted down and slaughtered every last one of the bandits before their bloodlust was sated.
Just then, Tokugawa Takahara, along with the woman and the boy, approached Neji and Yugito. "Ninja-sama," he asked anxiously, "are you alright?"
Neji didn't answer. He just looked at the man with a knowing, half-smile.
Beside him, Yugito, also sensing that something was wrong with this attack, stared at Tokugawa with a cold expression.
Under their intense scrutiny, Tokugawa began to sweat. He feigned ignorance, about to ask what was wrong, when Neji suddenly spoke. "An explanation would be nice, Tokugawa-san."
Tokugawa swallowed hard. "Ninja-sama, I don't know what you're talking about."
"This attack," Yugito said, her voice sharp, "involved two Tokubetsu Jōnin, three Chūnin, and five Genin. Tokugawa-san, for all the world, one would think you were transporting gold, not grain."
"This... this situation... I had no idea!" Tokugawa stammered.
"Then tell me this," Neji cut in. "Why did this mother and son suddenly join the convoy just before we left? Why did the main force of the attacking ninja target the carriage they were riding in? The real 'cargo' you hired us to protect... it's them, isn't it?"
As he spoke the last sentence, the color drained from Tokugawa's face.
A fine sheen of cold sweat broke out on his forehead. "Ninja-sama," he pleaded, "let me explain. It's not what you think. They... they..."
"Sigh."
The woman stepped forward and bowed deeply to Neji and Yugito. "I'm so sorry. We deceived you."
"Mishiba, this was my idea," Tokugawa said, his shoulders slumping in defeat. "If anyone should apologize, it's me."
With the truth out, there was no point in hiding it any longer. He bowed low to the two shinobi. If this had been any other ninja team, they would have been in serious trouble. Fortunately for him, they had gotten Neji and Yugito. The shinobi world was like that; you never knew when an unforeseen complication would arise.
Yugito waved her hand dismissively. "Just tell us everything you've been hiding. We'll decide whether to continue the mission based on the situation."
Tokugawa sighed and began his story. "Mishiba is not my relative. She is my lover. And this boy... is my illegitimate son."
Both Yugito and Neji were taken aback.
As Tokugawa continued, the whole story came to light. The Tokugawa were one of the most prominent merchant families in the Village Hidden in the Grass. He and Mishiba had been childhood sweethearts, but for the sake of his family's interests, he had been forced into an arranged marriage with another woman. He had sent Mishiba to live in the far-off Land of Lightning, and they had a son together.
A few months ago, Tokugawa's eldest son and heir had been killed by bandits while on a business trip. To ensure the continuation of his family line, Tokugawa had sent for his younger son to be brought back from the Land of Lightning. But two separate caravans had been ambushed and wiped out by "bandits" on the way.
Finally, Tokugawa had decided to come himself, using the grain purchase as a cover to secretly bring his son home to Kusagakure.