"Why!?" The kunoichi staggered, her voice trembling in pain as she questioned the figure before her.
Beside her lay the corpses of her two companions.
Hoshigaki Kisame's shark-like eyes were bloodshot. "Silencing my comrades—that is my special mission."
The kunoichi fell to the ground, yet bore him no hatred. Her tone was only weak and fading: "Your life… must be so hard, isn't it?"
Kisame's pupils shrank sharply.
Still, his face remained expressionless as he stepped forward and plunged his blade into her.
Suddenly, a pixel-like block flickered in the sky—and then a figure dropped down from above.
"What the hell—"
Uchiha Natsuki had used Sasuke's space-warping technique, instantly traveling from the Land of Wind to the Land of Water.
But the teleportation point happened to be in midair.
Fortunately, Natsuki's reflexes were excellent—he flipped in the air and landed neatly on the ground.
There were several corpses lying nearby. At the edge of the cliff stood a blue-skinned, shark-faced man.
"Konoha's pursuit unit already?" Kisame glanced coldly at Natsuki before leaping off the cliff.
Rustling erupted from the forest—an entire squad was approaching fast.
Natsuki looked around, then stepped forward. The kunoichi lay lifeless.
"Tsk tsk… Kisame really doesn't hesitate. If I remember right, this girl actually liked him."
"Her last words dealt Kisame a mental shockwave—something he'd carry with him for life."
"Damn you, Obito."
Natsuki muttered with irritation.
Ah well. Since he stumbled across this scene anyway…
He raised both hands. Bang!
First, Natsuki altered his appearance.
Then light glowed from his palm—it was the Mystical Palm Technique, taken from Yakushi Kabuto.
"Tsk, Kisame was ruthless. Right into the heart. At least she probably didn't suffer."
Shff, shff, shff…
The sound of branches snapping came closer—a group of Konoha shinobi burst from the trees.
Leading them was Konoha's interrogation expert, Morino Ibiki, along with six elite ninja.
"Who are you!?"
Natsuki had already used the Transformation Technique, giving himself an anonymous face but wearing a Konoha flak jacket.
One hand pressed Mystical Palm onto the kunoichi's chest, the other casually produced a Konoha forehead protector from his pouch.
"Ally."
Ibiki immediately noticed—the transformation was fake, even the forehead protector was pulled out separately.
But the man was indeed using Konoha's medical ninjutsu. Mystical Palm. That gave him pause.
"What are you doing?" one of the elite demanded. From their trained eyes, they could see the kunoichi had only just been killed.
Natsuki ignored them, continuing to channel chakra.
As expected of a miracle external-healing jutsu—the gaping wound in her heart closed in mere seconds.
"Hey! She's dead already, why waste chakra!?"
Natsuki shot them a glance, then snapped his wrist. His palm slammed down on her chest.
Her body jolted upward.
In that instant, he struck her with two more blows.
Thump thump… A heartbeat sounded.
"Cough! Cough! Haa…"
The kunoichi sat bolt upright, coughing and gasping for air.
She froze. Wasn't she just killed by Kisame?
Ibiki and the six Konoha ninja were stunned. Dead—and brought back to life?
"Don't just stare. You're my prisoner now. Come with me quietly."
The kunoichi looked around. Kisame was gone—only a squad of Konoha ninja surrounded her.
She glanced at the plain-faced man holding a Konoha forehead protector.
So… I've been captured?
She bowed her head in resignation.
Ibiki frowned deeply. "She's our mission target."
Natsuki scratched his head in annoyance. These were Konoha elites, and he wasn't ready to reveal his identity yet.
"No helping it, then."
His tone shifted. The Konoha shinobi instinctively grew wary—but didn't even have time to assume combat stances.
Without Natsuki forming a single seal, golden sand surged from the space behind them, filling the air.
The sky darkened as sand blanketed the world, crashing down like a colossal quilt.
Great Sand Mausoleum Seal!
Rumble! The sand compacted into massive blocks, sealing all seven Konoha elites inside.
Sandstorm winds roared, blinding them.
Ibiki's heart pounded. This is Sunagakure's jutsu! How!?
A technique of this level—without even hand signs!?
Am I going to die here?
The Konoha ninja quailed, struggling against the suffocating sandstorm, bodies immobilized.
Grains of sand quickly bound their limbs, sealing their faces.
In seconds, all were encased—statues of sand.
Natsuki tilted his head at the sight. "So this is… sand sculptures?"
The system's skills were indeed flawless—ignoring environment, no seals required, jutsu triggered instantly.
But leaving now might seem too suspicious.
He controlled the technique, opening holes in the sand prison.
Then he casually rifled through each shinobi's pouches.
From Ibiki's person, he pulled several scrolls. With no time to check, he pocketed them all.
Despair filled the Konoha ninja. They'd been restrained, searched… what next? They'd even prepared their last words.
But then—the sand bindings crumbled to the ground.
The mysterious medic and the revived kunoichi were gone. Only two more Mist ninja corpses lay on the earth.
The squad hurriedly checked each other—everything had been stolen. Even their weapons.
Not even a single kunai remained.
Ibiki's face was grim. His intelligence scrolls were gone.
This mission had been top-secret, detailing the movements of Kirigakure's Cipher Division during an operation. That was why Ibiki had been dispatched personally.
The intel had been correct—the Cipher Division was indeed on this route. But they'd been intercepted by someone eliminating witnesses.
At the dead end, a mysterious man appeared, and with one jutsu immobilized them all.
Fortunately, he hadn't intended to kill—only rob them.
Ibiki scooped up some sand from the ground. It was real sand.
But the Land of Water was damp and solid, its soil hard-packed. This kind of sand didn't exist here.
Unless someone brought it with them—or forcibly transformed the earth.
Who was this man? He knew the Mystical Palm of Konoha, the sealing arts of Sunagakure, and wielded techniques at this level.
Too strange. Far too strange.
Even Ibiki's mind couldn't piece it together. In truth, it was simply Natsuki using skills he'd borrowed—Kabuto's Mystical Palm, Gaara's sand.
"Captain, no survivors found," one of the squad reported.
With no supplies or weapons left, they could only look to Ibiki.
He pondered but found no answer. At last, he ordered the team to regroup and resupply.
This mission had grown stranger than ever.
---
There are 185 chapters on patreon today.
patreon.com/dzeref887