The violent explosion engulfed all four of them.
Hyuga Arin was nowhere to be seen. The figures of Rain Tree, Yuka, and Murakami Hana—who had been disguised—collapsed into puddles of water.
All three had been water clones.
At the same moment, the real trio hiding at a distance rushed out.
"I've used up all my explosive tags," Yuka muttered under her breath, though her movements didn't slow at all as she charged toward the blast site.
She wasn't the only one—Rain Tree and Murakami Hana both looked visibly pained as well.
The only one who hadn't used a single explosive tag was Hyuga Arin.
Hyuga Arin: "Explosive tags? What explosive tags? Who ever issued me any?"
Only then did Murakami Hana realize—he hadn't actually provided equipment to Mokuu at all.
In the end, all the costs had come out of their own pockets.
When the three closed in on the explosion site, the four Konoha ninja—scorched and battered—turned and fled toward the forest.
Hyuga Arin suddenly emerged from who-knows-where, tapping the forehead protector on his brow.
"They think we're Iwa-nin. Let's keep chasing."
They had already switched to Iwagakure headbands.
If they'd been wearing Amegakure headbands, those four probably wouldn't have run at all.
Although the Konoha ninja had reacted in time to the explosion, they'd still been injured.
Otherwise, they wouldn't have chosen to flee immediately.
"Pursue!" Murakami Hana shouted, and they all took off after the Konoha team.
"I'll handle the jōnin. You take care of the three chūnin."
Up ahead, the four Konoha ninja split up to escape.
Naturally, the pursuers were forced to split as well.
However—
Using the Byakugan, Hyuga Arin saw clearly that the so-called "jōnin" had only chūnin-level chakra.
Meanwhile, one of the "chūnin" possessed jōnin-level chakra.
It was obvious—their identities had been swapped.
In such a short time, they had already figured out a countermeasure.
The three "chūnin" stayed relatively close to one another, while the "jōnin" rapidly widened the distance.
Murakami Hana didn't think twice and immediately chased after the apparent jōnin.
"They reacted fast," Hyuga Arin couldn't help but praise.
As long as the real jōnin was fast enough, once the distance was wide enough, he could kill the other three quickly and flip the entire battle.
Hyuga Arin didn't warn them.
Instead, he kept hurling shuriken at one of the chūnin, cutting off his escape route.
During a high-speed retreat like this, the man didn't have time to react properly and was forced to separate from his team.
The Konoha ninja's escape routes split into three.
One path: the disguised jōnin (actually a chūnin) with Murakami Hana.
Another: Rain Tree and Yuka chasing the disguised chūnin (actually the real jōnin), along with one genuine chūnin.
The last path: Hyuga Arin and the chūnin he was pursuing.
The Sarutobi jōnin disguised as a chūnin hesitated briefly, clearly wanting to strike first.
But Murakami Hana hadn't gone far enough yet—if he attacked now, their intentions would be exposed immediately.
In that moment of hesitation, Hyuga Arin and his target had already pulled far away.
Gritting his teeth, the Sarutobi jōnin could only continue retreating with his subordinate, widening the distance.
…
Hyuga Arin glanced toward the route with the larger group—their figures were already disappearing.
"If they die, don't blame me," he muttered.
His speed suddenly increased.
Unfortunately, Bear-Palm Strength could only enhance his arms, not his legs, so he couldn't accelerate any further.
Even so, the distance between him and his target steadily shrank.
Feeling the pursuit from behind and the constant barrage of shuriken, the fleeing chūnin realized he couldn't regroup with his teammates and chose to counterattack.
"Wind Release: Wind Cutter!"
Several blades of wind condensed instantly and were hurled backward, slicing through trees like paper.
They screamed toward Hyuga Arin at terrifying speed.
Just as the wind blades were about to hit him, Hyuga Arin vanished.
He reappeared above the chūnin, flipping midair as a bronze blade formed in his hand.
"Bear-Palm Strength! Ignition Flame! Nen Shroud!"
With three enhancements stacked, the blade fell at blistering speed.
Slash.
Flames roared along the blade, the air itself seeming to split apart.
An arm flew high into the air.
At the critical moment, the chūnin twisted his body and barely avoided a fatal blow—at the cost of his arm.
The two were momentarily parallel in midair.
Hyuga Arin murmured softly, "Sorry."
Twisting his waist, he spun midair and slashed again.
This time, the chūnin couldn't evade.
Hyuga Arin landed heavily on the ground.
Above him, the chūnin's body split into two halves and crashed down in front of him.
[Experience: 1890]
He reached down and picked up the dropped item—a forehead protector.
[Konoha Forehead Protector: +100 Defense]
"Good stuff," Hyuga Arin said, pocketing it. There was no time to equip it now.
He looked up toward the distance and rushed toward Murakami Hana's direction.
The other side still had a real jōnin.
Moving swiftly through the forest, he soon encountered Murakami Hana returning at full speed.
Judging by his expression, he'd already dealt with his opponent and realized he'd been tricked, rushing back immediately.
"Where are the other two?" Murakami Hana asked grimly, his earlier smile gone.
"That way," Hyuga Arin pointed toward the remaining battlefield.
"I've already killed one. I was heading over."
"That jōnin was taken down so easily?" Hyuga Arin looked at him suspiciously, his tone openly disbelieving—as if he didn't think Murakami Hana had that kind of strength.
Murakami Hana's mouth twitched.
Now wasn't the time to argue.
"I fell for it. That one was just a chūnin."
Hyuga Arin gave him a look full of contempt, making Murakami Hana seethe internally as he charged ahead in silence.
The two advanced rapidly and soon saw a burst of intense flames in the distance.
"Hurry!" Murakami Hana rolled up his sleeves, revealing strange symbols etched along his arm.
With a surge of smoke, countless bees poured out in a black swarm.
They rushed forward and saw Rain Tree and Yuka, their bodies charred black, falling from above.
Standing atop a tree was Sarutobi Shōji, his gaze locking instantly onto Murakami Hana.
The remaining chūnin—the sensory-type ninja—was nowhere to be seen.
"You check on them. I'll deal with him," Murakami Hana snapped.
With a flick of his sleeve, he vanished into a sea of bees charging toward Sarutobi Shōji.
It looked like a living storm of insects surging forward.
Hyuga Arin leapt down from the tree and rushed toward Rain Tree and Yuka.
Above, the two jōnin were already locked in fierce combat.
Hyuga Arin reached the fallen Rain ninja and pressed his fingers to their necks.
He could still feel heartbeats.
"They're still alive?"
He glanced up at the battle overhead.
Then flames suddenly ignited in both his hands.
He clamped them over their mouths and noses.
The buzzing of bees filled the air.
Explosions of flame erupted one after another as the insects burned.
In Hyuga Arin's hands, the lives of the two Rain ninja drained away rapidly.
If they survived—
Well, then that would be his fault.
⭐ Want more? Read up to 85 chapters ahead on Patreon →
patreon.com/CanonBreaker ⭐
The advance chapters are already written—all that's left is unlocking them.
🔓 BONUS CHAPTER SYSTEM
Every bit of support pushes the story forward:
10 Reviews → 📖 1 Bonus Chapter• 100 Power Stones → 💎 1 Bonus Chapter
🔥 The stronger the support, the faster the story evolves.
🚀 More power. More chapters. More domination.