Whoosh!
Whoosh, whoosh!
Several kunai sliced through the night, glinting coldly under the moonlight as they shot toward Mei Terumi's hiding spot.
Her pupils contracted instantly.
Not good—I've been discovered!
She truly hadn't expected this.
She had carefully avoided patrol units and hidden sentries on her way in—
Yet she was still exposed.
No need to guess.
There had to be additional shinobi concealed around the Clan Head estate, waiting silently.
They had spotted her the moment she approached the perimeter.
I miscalculated, she sighed inwardly.
As the kunai struck the tree trunk where she had been perched—
Mei vanished in a flash of Body Flicker.
The moment she vacated the shadows, three figures stepped out from obscure corners near the estate wall.
One wore a fox mask.
One a tengu mask.
One a cat mask.
Mei's brows furrowed.
ANBU?
No… Root.
Konoha's ANBU answered to the Hokage.
Root answered to Uchiha Yusuke.
ANBU would not casually operate inside the Uchiha district.
So these were Root operatives.
The irony made her smile bitterly.
She had infiltrated to see Yusuke—
Only to be intercepted by his own subordinates.
"Who are you?!" the cat-masked shinobi barked. "This is Uchiha territory!"
"This is not a place you can approach," the tengu-masked operative added—her voice clearly female.
The fox-masked one stepped forward coldly.
"Anyone sneaking here at night has ill intent. No need for talk. Take her down."
Mei was dressed in black night attire, her face partially veiled.
They couldn't see who she was.
Nor could they recognize her.
Realizing concealment was pointless now, Mei spoke calmly:
"I apologize. I mean no harm. I only came to see someone very important to me."
"Important?" the fox mask scoffed. "If that's true, why sneak in? Do you even know where you are?"
"Enough talk," the cat mask said sharply. "We capture her first."
Seeing their stance shift toward attack, Mei exhaled softly.
"I truly have no ill intent…"
"Save it for interrogation."
The fox-masked operative drew his blade and lunged with swift killing intent.
Mei had no choice.
If words wouldn't work—
She would force her way through.
Let's just hope the disturbance doesn't grow too large… explaining this to Yusuke-kun later would be troublesome.
She dodged the incoming blade effortlessly.
But before she fully regained footing—
Another attack came.
"Chakra Scalpel!"
The tengu-masked female operative formed a glowing blue blade along her forearm and slashed toward Mei's torso.
If that connected—
It would be no different from being cleaved by steel.
Mei tilted backward just enough to avoid it—
Then seized the woman's arm.
With a clean pivot—
She flung her across the clearing.
Before Mei could settle—
Another attack followed.
"Fire Release: Great Fireball Technique!"
The cat-masked operative expelled a massive fireball that roared toward her.
Mei didn't move.
She formed hand seals rapidly.
"Water Release: Water Dragon Bullet!"
A roaring water dragon surged forth.
Steam exploded violently as water met flame.
But the fireball was extinguished in seconds—
And the water dragon continued forward, smashing into the cat-masked shinobi.
He cried out as he was blasted backward.
One move.
Neutralized.
"Damn it!"
Seeing his comrade fall, the fox-masked shinobi roared:
"Uchiha-ryū Kenjutsu: Dark Current Slash!"
He blurred forward at extreme speed—
His blade flashed—
Slash!
Blood sprayed.
The black-clad intruder was cut cleanly in half.
"Got her," he breathed.
But suddenly—
"Watch out!" the female operative shouted from behind.
The fox mask froze.
The bisected body dissolved—
Into water.
"Water clone?!"
Too late.
"Water Release: Great Waterfall Technique!"
Mei had already appeared behind him.
A massive torrent erupted forward.
He barely turned his head—
Before the crashing flood swallowed him whole.
His scream was brief.
Silence followed.
Only one opponent remained.
The tengu-masked woman—Nono.
Her breathing steadied despite the situation.
"You… who are you?" she demanded. "What do you want here?!"
Mei regarded her calmly.
The woman had skill—
But she was outmatched.
Still—
She hadn't killed her.
Perhaps because they were both women.
Or perhaps because Mei truly didn't wish for bloodshed.
"I told you," Mei said quietly. "I only came to see someone important to me."
Nono didn't buy it for a second.
She needed to stall.
Reinforcements would arrive soon.
Hold her. Just hold her.
Mei glanced around.
Time was ticking.
She had already created noise.
Root would detect this quickly.
She had to move.
Looking at Nono, she asked one final time:
"I don't have time to waste here."
"Are you still going to stop me?"
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