"The matter in Hell Valley has come to an end. It's time for me to return," Night said, turning to Yashiro.
Yashiro nodded. There was a meaningful look in his eyes as he said, "I will handle things here properly. Hachitsutsu 'died in the line of duty.' All experiment records have been destroyed. The sins will be buried underground in Hell Valley forever, never to be restarted."
Night naturally understood the implication and replied calmly, "The ringleader is gone. This won't implicate the Uchiha clan. After all, you count as victims too."
Yashiro secretly breathed a sigh of relief.
If Night went back and added embellishments to his report, the Uchiha clan would inevitably face accountability from the village's high command.
Night took one last look at this valley, which truly lived up to its name "Hell," and turned to leave without hesitation.
His gains from this trip far exceeded expectations. He not only patched up his weakness against genjutsu but also obtained power leading to a higher level.
As for the Chinoike in Hell Valley, thanks to Hachitsutsu's manipulation, they had thoroughly offended the Cloud. Leaving them to fend for themselves was enough.
With his strength qualitatively changed and plenty of points in hand, Night no longer cared much about this pitiful clan.
---
Half a day later, a border town in the Land of Hot Water.
Night booked a deluxe room at a hot spring inn, planning to rest before returning to Konoha in one go.
This simple reconnaissance mission had become so complicated. He wondered what the Third Hokage would think when he saw the mission report.
Perhaps he would have a headache over this ninja with overly strong "subjective initiative."
At dusk, he strolled into the only tavern in town.
As soon as he entered, he saw A (Ei) drinking alone at the familiar window seat.
"Faster than I expected."
A didn't look up, pushing another cup of sake across the table. "I've been waiting for you."
Night sat down calmly, sniffing the sake. "Is the heir to the Cloud so idle?"
"Idle?"
A sneered. "I just want to know what exactly happened in Hell Valley."
"As you saw, everything is normal."
"Normal?"
A looked up sharply, lightning sparking in his eyes. "Captain Hachitsutsu suddenly rotated out? You, a Chunin, taking over as captain? That Chinoike assassin vanishing without a trace or follow-up... You call this normal?"
"Hachitsutsu Uchiha's negligence led to the assassin's escape. Being replaced is only natural."
Night sipped his sake leisurely. "Besides, since when did the Cloud start worrying about Konoha's internal affairs?"
"Don't take me for a fool."
A lowered his voice, his chakra becoming restless. "That excuse isn't enough to convince me."
He stared at Night intensely, the air in the tavern seemingly freezing. Other customers sensed something was wrong and hurriedly paid their bills to leave.
Night put down his cup, a playful glint in his eyes. "So, you plan to make a move here?"
"I said next time we met, it wouldn't end so simply."
Lightning exploded around A. Powerful chakra waves flipped the table in front of him. "Since you won't talk, I'll just have to beat it out of you!"
Amidst blinding lightning, his figure vanished instantly. When he reappeared, he was right in front of Night, a lightning-wrapped fist smashing toward Night's face.
"Eight Gates Released Formation: Third Gate, Gate of Life—OPEN!"
Excitement flashed in Night's eyes as green energy enveloped him. Sidestepping the thunderous blow, he delivered a sharp side kick straight to A's ribs.
BANG!
Fist met foot, creating a deafening boom. The tavern's wooden structure creaked under the impact, spiderweb cracks appearing on the walls.
A fought with increasing ferocity. The Lightning Release Chakra Mode granted him terrifying speed and strength. Every punch and kick was exceptionally swift, generating sonic booms.
The two seemed locked in a taijutsu duel, fighting their way from inside the tavern out onto the street.
Night, who initially planned to hold back, felt his blood pumping from the exchange.
"Fourth Gate, Gate of Pain—OPEN!"
Night increased the intensity of the Eight Gates. Yet even with four gates open, he was still slightly at a disadvantage under A's berserk assault.
The opponent's Lightning Release Chakra Mode was too formidable. As the Cloud's secret technique, it made the user fearless in pure taijutsu duels.
"Is that all you've got?" A roared. "Lightning Oppression Horizontal Chop!"
Speed increasing again, a heavy elbow strike carrying immense force knocked Night back several steps.
Knocking the opponent back with just one hit surprised even A. In the Cloud, aside from his father, the Third Raikage, almost no one could take this hit unscathed.
Night stabilized himself, the corner of his mouth curving up. "Warm-up ends here."
As his voice fell, beneath the chakra cloak of the Eight Gates, golden bone armor emerged from his body, instantly covering his fists. The special chakra of the Yomotsu Hone circulated on his knuckles.
"Try this!"
In the next collision, A was horrified to discover that the Cloud's proud Lightning Release Chakra Mode seemed fragile before those golden bone fists.
"What power is this?!" A was exceptionally shocked.
Night, having decided to go all out, didn't answer. His attacks accelerated abruptly.
Every punch wrapped in golden bone armor struck precisely at the weakest points of the Lightning Release chakra armor.
A could only dodge and defend passively. His extreme speed barely matched Night's, and his vaunted defense was being dismantled bit by bit.
BOOM!
A heavy punch finally broke through the defense, smashing ruthlessly into A's face.
The Lightning Release chakra armor shattered. A was sent flying backward, crashing completely into the already teetering tavern.
Night didn't stop there. He followed up rapidly, entering the tavern with A.
Sounds of heavy impacts rang out. Unlike the earlier back-and-forth exchange, the sounds from inside the tavern were now monotonous—more like a one-sided beating.
The tavern, seemingly having its main beam broken, groaned and creaked before finally collapsing under the burden.
After the tavern fell, Night walked slowly out of the ruins, which were unrecognizable from their original form. He glanced at the Cloud ninjas in the distance who dared not approach.
He then tossed the bruised, swollen, and dazed A toward them. "Thanks for the drinks these past two times."
Looking back at the ruins behind him, clearly beyond repair, he added:
"Remember to pay for the damages."
The Cloud ninjas scrambled to catch A, looking in terror at the figure standing before the tavern ruins before Night swiftly vanished into the night.
Night watched the direction they left, lightly rotating his wrist. This spar hadn't taken much effort.
On the contrary, after this bout of fisticuffs, his muscles and bones felt stretched and relaxed, and even his thoughts seemed much clearer.