Part 2: The Attack & The Escort
A sudden, ground-shattering explosion tore through the silence of the night.
BOOM!
The force of the blast ripped through the earth, sending violent tremors surging straight beneath Red Bowl. Dishes shattered, timber groaned, and the floor tilted violently beneath their feet.
High above the rooftops, the village siren suddenly roared to life—a wailing, high-pitched alarm echoing across the entire sky, signaling a code-red emergency evacuation. Down the main thoroughfares, heavy footsteps thundered as sirens flared. Squads of village police and defensive units flooded into the streets, shouting orders to civilians, herding terrified families into reinforced underground bunkers, and drawing their weapons as they charged straight toward the plumes of smoke to engage the threat.
Inside Red Bowl, Haruto, Kaito, and Ayame flinched, instinctively pulling in close to one another under the deafening din of the alarm.
"What was that?!" Kaito shouted, his voice nearly drowned out by the piercing siren.
In a fraction of a second, Shisui drew a kunai, the cold steel gleaming in the dim light. "Everyone outside! Move!"
Miri snatched a heavy short blade off the counter, her knuckles turning bone-white. "Stay together! Don't let go of each other!"
They burst through the doors of Red Bowl into the open air. A massive column of pitch-black smoke spiraled into the sky just several blocks away, painted red by the flickering embers below. Police officers were barking commands through the ringing air, guiding running crowds toward the emergency shelters as dark figures clashed along the skyline.
Then, another detonation ripped through the air—closer, louder, and far more violent.
BOOM!
A rain of pulverized stone, shattered glass, and scorching debris erupted skyward, cascading down onto the cobblestones like deadly hail.
"Something's happening across the entire sector!" one of the seniors shouted, pulling his weapon into a guard stance as police squads rushed past them toward the frontline.
Shisui scanned the darkness above, his sharp eyes cutting through the haze and smoke. "Keep your eyes open! They're using the chaos—"
Before the words could fully leave his mouth, a shadow plummeted straight from the rooftop above with terrifying speed.
"Haruto!"
A massive Hunter clad in dark, heavy armor snagged Haruto by his collar, lifting the boy off his feet with monstrous strength and yanking him upward into the air.
"LET GO OF ME!" Haruto screamed, kicking wildly as the ground dropped out beneath him.
Kaito's eyes stretched wide in horror. "HARUTO!"
Shisui reacted in a flash of pure instinct. He leaped onto the nearest wall, drove his foot into the stone, launched himself higher into the night, and swung his kunai in a lethal arc. The Hunter was forced to drop Haruto a fraction of a second before the blade sliced through his arm.
Haruto plummeted through the air, but Shisui caught him mid-fall, landing heavily on the cobblestones.
"Got you!" Shisui breathed, shoving Haruto firmly behind his back.
Haruto clutched Shisui's arm, his heart hammering against his ribs. "What was that?!"
"No time!" Shisui growled, standing tall as a human shield.
Three Hunters dropped onto the street surrounding them, weapons drawn, while five more materialised on the overhanging eaves above like vultures.
Miri's eyes widened as she took in the ambush. "Everyone, protect the children!"
The academy seniors instantly fanned out into a defensive ring. One Hunter rushed forward, his blade carving through the air. Shisui met him head-on.
CLANG!
Sparks erupted as steel bit into steel. The Hunter brought his blade back for a brutal follow-up, but Shisui ducked beneath the sweep, drove a chakra-infused kick straight into his opponent's knee, and sent the man crashing hard onto the pavement.
Another Hunter lunged at Shisui's blind spot from behind. A senior turned just in time, swinging his own weapon.
CLANG!
The senior blocked the fatal strike and slammed his boot squarely into the Hunter's chest, driving him backward into the smoke.
Two more Hunters charged the perimeter together.
"Left side!"
"I've got it!"
Two seniors moved in flawless tandem—one locked blades to absorb the momentum, while the other delivered a sweeping counter-strike that left the attacker stumbling back into the shadows.
Miri stepped forward as an agile Hunter tried to slip past their frontline. She threw a kunai with terrifying force. The Hunter twisted violently aside, the blade embedding itself deep into the stone wall behind him with a loud THUNK. Miri closed the gap instantly, striking his wrist to disarm him and driving an elbow into his ribs, forcing him away from the children.
Kaito grabbed Ayame's trembling hand, gripping it so tightly his fingers turned pale. "Stay close to me!"
Ayame gave a sharp nod, her breath coming in short gasps.
Haruto scanned the battlefield in desperation. Hunters seemed to pour from every alley. Suddenly, a hulking attacker slipped past the seniors' line, charging directly toward the triplets with a cold, predatory glint in his eyes.
Haruto stepped backward in terror. "He's coming!"
Miri whirled around, stepping straight into the monster's path.
CLANG!
The Hunter's heavy weapon slammed into hers, the force sending shockwaves up her arms. Miri held her ground, shoving him back with a burst of raw physical strength. "Not them!"
The Hunter attacked again—a savage overhead strike. Miri blocked it. He swung again. She deflected. Again. She parried.
Then Shisui appeared beside her like a phantom. Working together, their relentless combination of strikes forced the heavy Hunter backward step by step until the attacker suddenly vanished into a dense cloud of rising smoke.
Shisui raised his guard, scanning the haze nervously. "Where did he go?"
A sharp, piercing whistle echoed down the street. Then another.
Armored police units appeared from both ends of the road, carrying torches and heavy riot shields, pushing citizens along to safety while rushing combatants into position.
"POLICE!"
The village police force flooded the sector like a tidal wave. Seeing the overwhelming numbers, the Hunters scattered instantly—some vaulting onto rooftops, others disappearing into dark side streets.
"Don't let them escape!"
The seniors gave chase. A fleeing Hunter turned and hurled a heavy shuriken, but a police officer deflected it effortlessly with his gauntlet. "Keep moving! Secure the perimeter!"
As the battle spilled down the main street, another squad of officers broke off and moved directly toward the triplets.
The lead officer shouted above the blare of the sirens, "Get the children out of here!"
Miri looked at them, her eyes narrowing in suspicion. "Who are you?"
"Special squad. We're taking them to safety," the officer replied smoothly.
Another violent explosion echoed in the distance, rattling the surrounding buildings. The officer pointed toward the rising fires and siren-lit skies. "This entire area is becoming an active battlefield."
Shisui looked toward the triplets, then back at the heavy fighting spilling down the boulevard. "Take them!"
Miri hesitated, her gut churning. "Wait—"
The officer stepped closer, his expression resolute. "Your priority is keeping them alive."
Shisui clenched his jaw until it throbbed. "...Fine."
The officers quickly encircled Haruto, Ayame, and Kaito, cutting them off from Miri and Shisui. "Stay between us. Do not fall behind."
Haruto nodded quickly. Kaito held Ayame's hand like a lifeline. The three siblings were escorted away into the dark.
Behind them, Shisui and the seniors continued to push back the remaining Hunters while sirens continued to wail across the village. Miri watched the children's small figures disappear into the gloom before raising her weapon as another enemy charged her. "Come on!"
None of them noticed...
The officers escorting the three siblings were already steering them down a dark, unmapped alleyway—a route completely separate from the genuine village evacuation paths. And with every step they took, the sound of actual battle and village sirens grew fainter, and the presence of real village shinobi dissolved into absolute nothingness.