Late at night on the 4th day, a carriage quietly departed from the Senju Clan compound.
The doors and windows of the carriage were tightly shut.
Inside sat only two people — the elderly Mito Uzumaki and the young princess of the Uzumaki Clan, Kushina.
Following behind in the shadows were Senju Rinki, Tsunade, and every jonin of the Senju Clan.
Behind the Senju escort trailed the ANBU of the Hidden Leaf Village.
Yagami thought to himself, So the transfer of the Nine-Tails' Jinchuriki is finally about to begin…
To prevent the Nine-Tails from rampaging and destroying the village, the higher-ups and the Senju Clan had decided to conduct the critical sealing transfer at Mount Ushino, ten kilometers northwest of the village.
Yagami's gaze lingered on the carriage in the middle of the road.
If I were to die at Mito Uzumaki's hands… could I draw some kind of heaven-defying power from it?
Maybe the Sage Body of the Uzumaki Clan? Some secret sealing arts? Or perhaps even fragments of the Nine-Tails' power?
Just the thought made his blood stir.
Today was the fourth day of the month — eleven days until the full moon. If he were to die now, he'd have to survive eleven days after reviving.
But with the ANBU's current tense atmosphere, surviving eleven days would be difficult. If he died on some mission in that span, it'd be a disaster.
Living longer was the ultimate truth — taking unnecessary risks wasn't worth it.
As Yagami's thoughts wandered, the captain of the Black Ape Squad returned from the front of the ANBU column and gestured silently to the three teams following behind.
The Black Ape Squad broke away from the main unit and sped north.
Yagami glanced back at Mito's carriage, puzzled. Where are we going now?
Not only the Black Ape Squad, but two other squads also split off, disappearing in different directions.
A few kilometers later, the Black Ape captain gathered the team leaders and spoke in a low tone:
"All three of your squads have secretly transmitted information before. The Senju Clan will be holding Mito Uzumaki's funeral tomorrow.
According to border intelligence, a powerful force has broken through the Land of Fire's border defenses and entered deep into our territory.
Our squad's mission is to locate that power, identify them, and determine whether their target is Mito Uzumaki.
White Ram, your squad will handle reconnaissance. The other two will focus on combat."
The ANBU with the white ram mask was from the Hyuga Clan — a skilled scout whom the Black Ape captain had fought hard to recruit.
The squad reached Mount Ushino first and began scanning the surroundings.
An hour later, White Ram suddenly made a signal.
"Four suspicious figures spotted — nine o'clock direction! Enormous chakra signatures, moving fast!"
The Black Ape Squad immediately moved to confirm their identities.
When a ninja force marches, it always deploys intelligence operatives to scout ahead and detect enemies early.
Those four suspicious figures were likely a reconnaissance squad sent to infiltrate their main formation.
The Black Ape Squad accelerated and closed in.
White Ram's team stayed in the rear, Fox and Monkey squads flanked the sides, while the captain remained in the center.
White Ram shouted, "They've spotted us! They're heading straight toward our position!"
The captain responded sharply,
"This is the heart of the Land of Fire — don't waste time. Engage at full strength and crush them!
Purple Cat, get ready! Extract information from their brains once they're down!"
The ANBU known as Purple Cat tensed.
This was her first time facing powerful enemies since joining the ANBU.
Anyone who could break through the border defenses and infiltrate the Land of Fire had to be formidable.
"They're here! Earth-Style: Stone Dragon!"
A massive dragon made of rock surged forward, smashing through a dozen trees in its path.
What a terrifying jutsu.
That single technique alone confirmed their foe was a jonin!
Except for high-ranking direct-line jonin, most jonin pursued personal goals and rarely stayed hidden within the ANBU for long.
Jonin preferred to walk under the sun — completing missions, earning merit, and building reputation.
The ANBU were absolutely loyal, but they didn't have many jonin among them.
Facing a jonin-level opponent, even the Black Ape captain felt uneasy. He was only a special jonin — still a step below.
Still, there was no room to back down.
They all leapt to the sides, dodging the incoming Stone Dragon that barreled past.
The dragon split the battlefield in two.
To the north of it were the Black Ape captain and Monkey Squad; to the south, Fox Squad and White Ram Squad.
"Not good!"
Three enemy ninja suddenly emerged beyond the Stone Dragon, rushing straight at the captain.
A full squad's combined strength was formidable — but half a squad against a jonin-led team was dangerously risky.
Yagami and White Ram jumped simultaneously, leading their squads over the Stone Dragon to support.
But the dragon's back suddenly arched upward, hurling Fox and White Ram Squads into the air.
They tumbled midair.
Yagami and White Ram managed to land steadily, though the weaker members crashed to the ground in disarray.
White Ram fixed his gaze on the relaxed stone ninja jonin ahead and said firmly,
"Fox, your close combat is the best among us. We'll fight with everything we have to give you one opening."
"Got it."
On the other side, the captain and Monkey Squad were already clashing with three Iwa ninja.
They had to regroup fast — or they'd be picked off one by one.
Purple Cat and another ANBU provided long-range kunai support as White Ram charged forward.
"Earth-Style: Stone Lance!"
The enemy jonin formed hand signs — four stone spears shot from the ground.
"Rotation!"
White Ram spun, forming a chakra dome around himself — the Hyuga Clan's secret technique, Rotation.
The stone spears shattered against it.
The Stone jonin's eyes lit up with interest. A Hyuga with such skill was rare.
Without pausing, he continued weaving signs — one after another, waves of stone lances erupted.
The ground turned into a forest of spikes, stone lances bursting out like bamboo shoots.
White Ram advanced rapidly, spinning again — another Rotation shattered several more spears.
But jonin-level jutsu weren't easy to break. After two Rotations, White Ram was already gasping for breath.
As another volley of stone lances shot up, he forced his chakra to flow again and used a third Rotation.
This time, one of the stone lances pierced through the dome — stabbing straight into his abdomen.
"Keep charging!"
An ANBU leapt off White Ram's shoulder, hurling himself at the enemy jonin.
He barely got airborne before another stone lance impaled his midsection.
Yagami followed right after, stepping on the dying ANBU's back to propel himself forward.
Seizing the moment between the enemy's jutsu, he closed the distance.
His blade came down in a brutal arc.
The Stone jonin dropped his hand signs and raised a metal-clad arm to block.
"Cloud-Style Swordsmanship!"
At the last instant, Yagami shifted the downward slash into a diagonal cut toward the neck.
The essence of Cloud-Style swordsmanship was timing — the feint had to come so late that no one could react.
His eyes flared with anticipation.
The blade connected — cutting cleanly across the jonin's throat.
With ranged support from the kunai, White Ram's sacrifice, and a teammate's body as a foothold, Yagami finally landed a decisive strike.
Yet in the next heartbeat… despair set in.
Something felt wrong.
That wasn't the feedback he should've gotten from cutting flesh.
The "body" suddenly melted — turning into a pool of mud.
Earth Substitution Technique!
The same A-rank replacement jutsu beloved by the Third Hokage himself!
The Stone jonin's real body appeared behind Yagami.
He bent instinctively, barely dodging the kunai aimed at his back.
His reflexes were extraordinary — but even so, he couldn't avoid the next attack.
A stone lance shot up from the ground, piercing clean through his chest.
[Detected host death. Arc of the Moon initiating…]
Died in the outer scouting mission… what about the main battlefield then…?