Rumble!
The floor of Room 404 vibrated.
Tonbo, who was deep inside the mind of a Kumo prisoner, snapped back to reality. The Mental Amplifier amplified the sensation, turning the distant tremor into a localized earthquake in his skull.
"What was that?"
He ripped the helmet off. As a Sensor Type, he felt it more acutely than anyone—a disturbance in the natural chakra flow of the land.
Swish!
He closed his eyes, instantly forming the Tiger seal to refine his focus. His sensory net expanded, pushing past the walls of the underground base, past the village gates, reaching out into the forests beyond.
Three kilometers southeast.
The vibrations were rhythmic, violent.
Based on the tectonic feedback and air density shifts... Tonbo calculated rapidly. That's not an explosion. That's pure kinetic force. High-level Taijutsu or Earth Release.
It felt like a Kaiju battle. Or a Tailed Beast.
But then, a memory from his past life surfaced. The timeline. The location. The specific, desperate ferocity of the chakra signature he was barely sensing.
Red Steam.
"Might Duy has opened the Eighth Gate," Tonbo whispered, a chill running down his spine.
"May you live on after me, full of passion, youth, and brilliant smiles."
Tonbo remembered the line from the anime. The Eternal Genin, sacrificing his life to save his son from the Seven Ninja Swordsmen of the Mist.
"Assembly!"
The voice of a messenger cut through the hall.
Tonbo abandoned his thoughts and sprinted to the assembly hall. The rest of the Analysis Team was already pouring in, faces tense.
Inoichi Yamanaka stood on the podium, his face grim.
"Emergency deployment. A massive energy signature has been detected near the southeast border. An Anbu squad is already moving to investigate. You will provide sensory support."
"Mawari. Tonbo. Seishi. Move out immediately."
"Yes, sir!"
Swish!
As they raced across the rooftops of Konoha, Tonbo's expression was serious beneath his bandages.
I hope the plot hasn't changed, he thought. If the Seven Swordsmen decide to push toward the village after killing Duy, this could get ugly.
"When we link up with Anbu, they take command," Mawari shouted over the wind. "Stay sharp."
"Understood."
They reached the main gate in record time.
Two squads of Anbu were waiting, their porcelain animal masks gleaming in the sunlight. The leader, wearing a hawk mask with spiky yellow hair (not Minato, just a random Anbu captain), signaled to Mawari.
Sign: Identify. Confirm numbers. Follow.
Mawari signaled back instantly.
"Move out."
The combined group vanished into the treeline.
So efficient, Tonbo admired. No wasted words. Just pure professional lethality.
"Lord Hokage's orders," Mawari asked as they moved in formation.
"Possible surprise attack from a foreign power refusing to accept defeat," the Anbu Captain replied, his voice muffled by the mask. "Your job is to be our eyes. Scan everything."
"Roger."
Tonbo pulsed his chakra.
Minutes passed in silence. The forest blurred around them.
Suddenly, Tonbo stopped.
"Contact," he announced, his voice cutting through the wind. "Eleven o'clock. Three kilometers out. Three signatures."
The Anbu Captain held up a fist, halting the squad. "Strength?"
"Chunin to Genin level. Their chakra is erratic. They're panicking," Tonbo analyzed. "But I can't rule out a transformation trap."
The other sensors in the squad looked at Tonbo in shock. They hadn't felt a thing yet.
Three kilometers? The Anbu Captain looked at the bandaged boy with renewed interest. That's Jonin-level range.
"Set up an ambush perimeter one mile out," the Captain ordered. "Sensors, keep tracking. If they're hostile, we drop them."
"Yes, sir."
Tonbo crouched on a high branch, kunai ready.
Three signatures. Running towards Konoha. Panicking.
It had to be them. Guy, Ebisu, Genma.
One Mile Away.
Three small figures stumbled through the dense undergrowth. They were covered in dirt and scratches, their breathing ragged.
One of them, a boy in a bright green jumpsuit, was sobbing uncontrollably. Snot and tears streamed down his face, mixing with the grime.
Might Guy.
Beside him, Ebisu and Genma Shiranui looked shell-shocked. They kept glancing behind them, as if expecting demons to burst from the shadows.
They had just stared death in the face. Seven monsters with legendary swords. They should have been dead.
If not for the man they had always dismissed as a failure.
Huff! Huff!
They collapsed against the roots of a giant oak tree, unable to run another step.
"Dad..." Guy wailed, his voice cracking. "DAD!"
"Guy, it's okay," Genma said, though his voice trembled. "Your uncle... he's strong. He'll beat them."
"Yeah," Ebisu adjusted his dark glasses with shaking fingers. "He took on all seven of them. He's incredible."
"NO!" Guy screamed, burying his face in his hands. "You don't understand! Dad taught me that technique! He said... he said he could only use it once! To protect the most precious thing in his life!"
"Once he uses it... he dies! Waaaaah!"
Silence fell over the trio.
Genma and Ebisu stared at the ground. They realized the weight of what Guy was saying. The power to fight seven Jonin wasn't free.
"But... your father also said not to let your youth fade," Ebisu said quietly. "Crying won't help him. We have to survive. We have to get stronger so our comrades don't have to die for us."
Guy sniffled, wiping his nose on his sleeve. He looked up, his eyes red and swollen.
"Yes... I can't cry. Dad wouldn't want me to cry."
Fire kindled in his tear-filled eyes.
"I will not let my youth go to waste! I will become stronger! I will protect my comrades!"
"Hey. Is that Might Guy?"
A familiar voice drifted down from the canopy.
The three Genin froze, instinctively reaching for their weapons. They looked up.
Standing on a branch directly above them, wrapped in grey bandages, was a figure they recognized from the Academy.
Flanking him were four Anbu Black Ops, their swords drawn but held low.
"Tonbo Tobitake?" Genma gasped, lowering his senbon. "And the Anbu?"