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Under the cover of night, the Hyuga ninjas infiltrating the Uchiha compound bounded rapidly across the rooftops. From a distance, they could clearly see a massive crowd gathered in front of the central meeting hall.
"What's going on? Was our intel leaked? Are these people here to ambush us?" The speaker was Hyuga Koten, one of the two Special Jōnin on this mission.
Hearing his words, the rest of the Hyuga ninjas visibly paused, hesitation creeping into their steps. If the Uchiha clan really knew about their plan, given the enemy's strength, it would be incredibly difficult for them to leave here alive.
"Calm down," the squad captain, the sole Jōnin of the group, stated coldly. "As ninjas, we must remain calm at all times. Look closely at that crowd—the vast majority of them are just Uchiha children. They couldn't possibly be lying in ambush for us. Unless the entire Uchiha clan has gone insane, that is."
The Hyuga ninjas carefully observed the plaza and, sure enough, realized the crowd in front of the hall consisted almost entirely of kids. A wave of relief washed over them.
Hyuga Koten still frowned slightly. "This whole situation still feels too eerie. Could the Uchiha be using these children as bait to lure us in, only to surround us once we engage?"
The other Hyuga Special Jōnin let out a cold sneer. He had never gotten along with Koten. "Stop joking around. We saw with our own eyes today that their Third Elder took a massive group of garrison ninjas and left the compound. Aside from these leftover brats, there simply isn't enough combat power down there to ambush us. If you're scared, just say so. I'll allow you to cower behind me. It wouldn't be the first time, anyway."
"Both of you, shut up!"
Seeing the two on the verge of a verbal spat, the Hyuga Jōnin barked a harsh reprimand. He couldn't afford internal strife right now. "Regardless of the situation, since we're already here, we just need to go take a look. An opportunity like this is once in a lifetime. If we succeed, we will have rendered a massive, unparalleled merit for our clan!"
"Yes, sir!"
Since the captain had spoken, everyone accepted the order. They accelerated, rushing straight toward the meeting hall.
"They're here. So fast!"
Xuan took a deep breath, gripping a kunai tightly in each hand. Madara had originally wanted to give him a katana, but Xuan declined, saying he wasn't used to wielding one.
The thirteen Hyuga ninjas landed on the roof of the hall. Standing at the very front, the Jōnin looked down at the crowd below with detached eyes. "What are you all doing gathered here?" he asked chillingly.
Uchiha Madara flashed a feral grin, his excitement surging. "Waiting for you, obviously!"
The Hyuga Jōnin's pupils shrank slightly. "So, you do know about our plan tonight?"
Madara was already out of patience for idle chatter. He drew his katana, pointing the blade straight at the Jōnin's face. "You talk too much. All you need to know is that tonight, not only will you die here, but you will also become the stepping stone that makes the name Uchiha Madara famous!"
While I really don't want to complain, listening to you two exchange this edgy, chuunibyou-filled dialogue is physically painful, Xuan thought, glancing between the two of them like he was watching monkeys at a zoo. Neither of them seemed to realize how cringe it was; in fact, they were completely reveling in it.
"Die here? By your hands?" The Hyuga Jōnin looked as if he had just heard the funniest joke in the world and burst into mocking laughter. An eight-year-old Uchiha brat actually claiming he could kill him? It was utterly ridiculous.
"Too much nonsense. Xuan, I'm going in! I'll leave the rest to you!"
Madara dropped into a low crouch and exploded forward, transforming into a blur. In an instant, he appeared right in front of the Jōnin, his katana reflecting a cold gleam as it cleaved down toward the man's head.
So fast! The thought flashed simultaneously through the minds of both the Hyuga Jōnin and Uchiha Xuan.
However, the Hyuga leader was a true Jōnin for a reason. With a slight shift of his footing, he effortlessly dodged the heavy slash. At the exact same moment, he drew the longsword from his back and delivered a backhanded counter-slash at Madara, his speed as fast as a gale.
Madara's gaze sharpened. While suspended mid-air, he executed a seemingly impossible contortion, twisting his body and swinging his blade to parry.
Clang! The sharp ringing of clashing steel echoed far into the night. Madara let out a muffled grunt as he was sent flying backward. Though he had managed to block the blade, he still took a solid kick to the chest from the Jōnin.
"Fire Style: Fireball Jutsu!"
While tumbling backward through the air, Madara's hands rapidly wove a sequence of signs. He exhaled a massive fireball, forcing the Jōnin to halt his pursuit.
The exchange between the two had ended in a flash. Watching from below, Xuan mentally calculated the data. His speed was twice as fast as when we sparred, and his hand sign weaving was a third quicker. And even now, he might not be going all out. He didn't lie—he really was hiding his strength during our matches.
The clash between Madara and the Jōnin served as the opening curtain for the battle. Because their initial exchange had been so fast, both sides had momentarily frozen. Now, awakening as if from a dream, everyone roared and charged at their respective enemies.
Uchiha Hayate, the clan's only remaining Special Jōnin, immediately locked onto one of the enemy Special Jōnin. The two became a tangled blur of clashing blades and flying Jutsu. Their fight was so intense that hardly anyone dared to step near them.
Hyuga Koten let out a dark chuckle. He had thoroughly confirmed that there were no hidden Uchiha experts lying in ambush. It was just these kids! That meant he was free to slaughter them as he pleased. Swelling with smug confidence, he was already fantasizing about the massive rewards his clan would shower him with upon his successful return. Would they let him learn more powerful Jutsu? Could he finally be promoted to a full Jōnin?
Just as he was lost in his daydreams, his vision blurred. An Uchiha child had suddenly appeared directly in front of him, staring at him with a look of supreme arrogance.
"Hey, how about we talk things over?" Uchiha Xuan said to the Hyuga Koten.
Has this brat lost his mind? That was Koten's most genuine thought at that moment.
"Why don't you just kill yourself? That way, you won't have to suffer much pain, and it saves me time. It's a win-win," Xuan stated, his expression completely deadpan and serious.
"You're courting death, brat!"
Koten raged. He felt thoroughly mocked by the little punk in front of him. Reaching back, he drew his longsword and thrust it viciously toward Xuan's chest.
Driven by sheer fury, the strike was as fast as a lightning bolt. Koten felt that this was the most perfect thrust of his entire life. At such a close distance, even a Jōnin would struggle to dodge it.
Sure enough, the longsword sank into the boy's chest without the slightest resistance. He could even see the look of absolute shock frozen on the kid's face. It was incredibly satisfying.
Abruptly, Xuan's expression of shock vanished, replaced by a mocking sneer. "Gotcha!"
"What?!"
Before Hyuga Koten could comprehend what was happening, Xuan's body suddenly rippled.
Caw! Caw! Caw! The harsh cry of crows suddenly filled the air. Xuan's body instantly exploded into a massive flock of black crows, scattering in all directions. The flock swooped down a short distance away, seamlessly reforming back into Xuan's body.
What kind of Jutsu is this?! Ninjutsu in the Warring States period heavily leaned toward straightforward, destructive, and direct killing methods. Seeing such a bizarre, illusion-like technique—one that wouldn't actually be invented for nearly another century—left Hyuga Koten shocked and deeply unsettled.