Turning a few pages, a mission caught Hyuga Kyo’s attention.
“Eliminate the rogue ninjas within the Land of Fire…”
All A-rank missions involve ninja combat, so Hyuga Kyo had three principles for choosing a mission.
First, the distance should be short. If the mission location was too far, unexpected incidents could occur on the way, especially since the war had just ended, and the world was still in turmoil.
Second, the enemies should not be too strong.
Third, the enemies’ backgrounds should be simple to avoid entangling themselves in complex grudges.
Therefore, this mission to eliminate rogue ninjas within the Land of Fire perfectly fits Hyuga Kyo’s criteria, making his eyes light up.
Handing the mission scroll to Guy, Hyuga Kyo pointed at the mission to eliminate the rogue ninjas and asked, “How about this mission?”
Guy responded, “I have no objections!”
After accepting the mission, they set off immediately.
On the way, Hyuga Kyo and Guy analyzed the detailed information about the mission they had received from the mission center.
The mission was commissioned by the Daimyo of the Land of Fire. Recently, a group of rogue ninjas had been attacking several villages near the border with the Land of Waves, causing significant casualties and property loss.
The information indicated that the group of rogue ninjas consisted of five to seven individuals, suspected to be defectors from Kirigakure, with considerable strength and ruthless methods.
Due to the war, the number of defecting ninjas had been increasing each year. All the major ninja villages, including Konoha, had them. However, most of these war-escaping defectors took refuge in smaller countries without ninja villages. It was rare for defectors to openly attack within the Land of Fire.
Hyuga Kyo warned, “These rogues wouldn’t dare to plunder within the Land of Fire unless they were strong. Don’t let your guard down!”
Guy nodded earnestly.
Noticing that Guy seemed a bit tense, Hyuga Kyo thought for a moment and then said, “But there’s no need to be too nervous. These rogues who only target civilians may not be as strong as we think. As long as we perform normally, completing the mission shouldn’t be a problem.”
Guy clenched his fist, “I’m not afraid of them!”
A few days later.
Hyuga Kyo and Guy, following the trail, arrived at a village that had been attacked not long ago.
The village was in shambles, bodies were scattered everywhere, the air was thick with the stench of blood, and cries of agony and weeping filled the atmosphere.
Hyuga Kyo approached a survivor and asked, “We are ninjas sent by Konoha. Please tell us who attacked you.”
The survivor, looking somewhat dazed, stared at Hyuga Kyo for a long while before answering, “I don’t know who they were. They killed everyone they saw and left afterward.”
Hyuga Kyo, unaffected by the village’s tragic state, calmly asked, “How many of them were there? When did they leave? In which direction did they go?”
The survivor pointed in a direction, “They went that way! I… I don’t know how many of them there were or when they left.”
Hyuga Kyo looked intently in the direction indicated by the survivor and then said coldly, “Let’s go after them!”
Guy, already filled with righteous anger, nodded vigorously, “Yes!”
In the Hyuga clan, tracking was a fundamental skill. Every Hyuga who had been to the battlefield was a tracking expert, and Hyuga Kyo was no exception. He quickly found the traces left by the enemies.
Soon, they arrived at a muddy area.
After examining the footprints in the mud, Hyuga Kyo said, “There are five to seven of them. Their steps are a bit hurried, indicating they are in a rush.”
Guy urged, “Then let’s hurry and catch up!”
Hyuga Kyo shook his head and pointed to a tree not far away, “Don’t rush. Look at the moss on that tree!”
Following Hyuga Kyo’s gaze, Guy saw a faint, partial footprint on the moss and wondered, “Why is there a footprint there? Could someone else be tracking this group of rogue ninjas?”
The footprints on the tree, clearly not belonging to the group of rogue ninjas in the mud, indicated that another group of ninjas was also on the trail.
“Since we’ve taken the mission, the village wouldn’t send others. So, I suspect the other trackers might be from Kirigakure.”
Hyuga Kyo’s speculation wasn’t baseless. The information indicated that the rogue ninjas were defectors from Kirigakure, so it was logical that Kirigakure would send a pursuit team.
Faced with the involvement of another ninja village, Guy was uncertain, “What should we do then?”
After a moment of thought, Hyuga Kyo firmly said, “Anyone who hinders our mission is an enemy!”
“But…”
“No buts. We continue.”
After some more tracking, Hyuga Kyo and Guy had to stop. In front of them were two groups of ninjas facing off against each other.
One group consisted of four individuals, all dressed in Kirigakure’s assassination unit attire. The leader, who wasn’t wearing a mask but had his lower face covered with bandages, seemed to be Zabuza Momochi, known as the ‘Demon.’
The opposing group had only two people, members of Konoha’s Anbu. One of them, smaller in stature with white hair, wore a fox mask. Hyuga Kyo recognized him as his former classmate, the genius ninja Kakashi Hatake.
Tension was high between the two groups, and they looked ready to fight at any moment.
Upon seeing more Konoha ninjas arriving, Zabuza drew the long sword from his back, signaling he was ready for a fight.
Standing on a branch with one hand on his hip, Hyuga Kyo looked down at the Kirigakure ninjas arrogantly and said dismissively, “Get lost!”
Zabuza, enraged, shouted, “Do you want to die, kid?!”
Ignoring Zabuza, Hyuga Kyo ordered calmly, “Guy, teach him a lesson.”
Having become accustomed to following Hyuga Kyo’s commands, and seeing that the opponents were from Kirigakure, Guy charged at Zabuza with a loud shout.
Taken aback by Hyuga Kyo’s audacity, both the Kirigakure and Konoha sides hesitated. However, they made room for Guy and Zabuza to fight one-on-one.
As a Taijutsu specialist, Guy immediately engaged in close combat, giving Zabuza no chance to use ninjutsu.
Confident in his swordsmanship, Zabuza fearlessly fought back, clashing with Guy in a fierce battle.
Punches and kicks flew, and the air was filled with the sounds of their intense clash.
At that time, Zabuza had already made a name for himself in Kirigakure, though not yet one of the Seven Ninja Swordsmen. His attacks were fierce and deadly!
Meanwhile, Guy was in a period of rapid growth, with his speed and strength increasing daily. He was no longer the underachiever from the academy.
Their battle quickly reached a fever pitch, affecting a wider area and forcing the Kirigakure ninjas and Konoha Anbu to retreat further back.
Not long after, Guy landed a kick on Zabuza’s sword, and both leaped back, disengaging…
Become a Patron read up to 40 chapter ahead public release ^_^
Please join Discord Server so we can talk ^_^
