"Do you really think that hiding will save you?"
Ryūjin let out a cold, dismissive laugh. With a casual flick of his wrist, he pulled out several Flying Thunder God kunai and scattered them in every direction.
Clang, clang, clang.
The kunai struck the ground, walls, and debris, embedding themselves throughout the area.
The remaining members of the Seven Ninja Swordsmen of the Mist were stunned.
What was he doing?
Did he actually believe he could force them out like this? The throws lacked any obvious precision. It looked reckless, almost careless.
He had clearly missed them all.
Swish.
Before they could make sense of it, Ryūjin Uchiha vanished.
In the next instant, he appeared directly behind one of the Swordsmen.
The man's heart lurched.
Not good.
Before he could react, black flames erupted across his body.
No matter how fast someone moved, they could never outrun sight itself.
"What!"
The remaining Swordsmen were shaken to the core.
Their positions were spread out, separated by buildings and obstructions. Even with the Body Flicker Technique, it would have required multiple consecutive movements to reach that location from where he had stood.
And during that time, they would have countered.
Yet he had crossed the distance in a single step.
Suikazan Fuguki's eyes widened as he noticed the sealing formulas etched onto the kunai handles embedded around them.
"That is not the Body Flicker Technique," he shouted. "It is the Flying Thunder God Technique!"
Realization struck like lightning.
No wonder his speed felt unnatural. This was not high speed movement.
It was space time ninjutsu.
"The Yellow Flash! Damn it, it is the Yellow Flash!"
One of the Swordsmen blurted out instinctively, fear creeping into his voice. The Flying Thunder God Technique was synonymous with the Yellow Flash of the Leaf.
But confusion quickly followed.
The Yellow Flash had golden hair. And none of them had ever heard of him wielding such terrifying black flames.
Was it the Transformation Jutsu?
Or was this someone else who had mastered the same technique?
They had no time to ponder.
Ryūjin moved again.
A kunai flew toward a narrow gap between two buildings.
He vanished.
Another Swordsman screamed.
Black flames devoured him completely.
Amaterasu left no chance for resistance.
Ryūjin's expression remained indifferent, almost bored. Every movement was efficient, precise. He did not rush, nor did he hesitate.
As long as there was a single blind spot, a single opening, he could send a marked kunai through it.
Then he would appear.
Then he would look.
And then they would burn.
"Ah!"
"Ah!"
Two more cries echoed in quick succession.
Five members of the Seven Ninja Swordsmen of the Mist had fallen.
The remaining two were pale, their composure shattered. Pride no longer mattered.
They fled.
Ryūjin did not chase them.
Instead, he calmly retrieved each Flying Thunder God kunai he had scattered. One by one, he removed every trace of the sealing formulas.
He had no interest in leaving evidence behind.
Just as he finished collecting the final kunai, he sensed approaching chakra signatures.
Without a word, he activated the Flying Thunder God Technique and disappeared.
Moments later, Kurenai Yuhi and Might Guy arrived alongside a squad of Anbu, led by the Hokage himself, Hiruzen Sarutobi.
As for the Ryūjin who had been with them earlier, that had only been a basic Clone Jutsu replica. It was convincing enough to fool genin, but standing before the Hokage would have been risky.
So the clone had made an excuse and separated before they returned with reinforcements.
When Hiruzen received word that the Seven Ninja Swordsmen of the Mist had appeared together inside Konoha, he did not hesitate. He immediately mobilized Anbu and rushed over.
Now he stood in the aftermath.
The battlefield was empty.
No bodies.
No enemies.
Only silence.
"Hokage-sama, it is the Kubikiribōchō."
An Anbu member pointed ahead.
The massive blade lay abandoned in the street.
Hiruzen had already seen it. He used the Body Flicker Technique to appear beside it and lifted the weapon.
The weight was unmistakable.
"The Kubikiribōchō was left behind," Hiruzen murmured. "Does that mean its owner was killed?"
"Yes, Hokage-sama," Kurenai replied immediately. "He was burned to death by black flames."
"Right here?" Hiruzen asked.
Kurenai and Guy carefully identified the exact spot.
"Yes, Hokage-sama. It happened here."
Hiruzen drew in a sharp breath.
There were no ashes.
No blood.
Nothing but the sword.
To reduce a man to nothing in an instant, what kind of fire could accomplish that?
It was beyond ordinary comprehension.
Hiruzen personally surveyed the surrounding area. Before long, he discovered four more swords scattered across different locations.
Five in total.
His expression grew heavy.
"Five swords," he said quietly. "Does that mean five of the Seven Ninja Swordsmen of the Mist were killed here?"
His breathing slowed, controlled, but inwardly he was shaken.
From the moment Kurenai and Guy reported the incident to now, only a short time had passed.
In that brief window, someone had eliminated five elite swordsmen whose combined strength rivaled that of a Kage.
The seven blades were symbols of the Hidden Mist. Their wielders would never abandon them willingly.
If the swords remained, their masters were almost certainly dead.
A suffocating weight settled over the Hokage.
Then another memory surfaced.
When Iwagakure had invaded Konoha, there had been a mysterious figure who defeated Onoki decisively.
Black flames.
Overwhelming speed.
Unfathomable power.
Could it be the same person?
Hiruzen's gaze darkened.
If it truly was the same individual, then someone capable of rivaling, or even surpassing, a Kage was moving within the shadows of Konoha.
And no one knew his identity.
---