"Teleportation of this level? This ability... looking at his age, he must be Senmei Asahi from Konoha!" The expression on the scarred man's face turned grave.
In the shadowed history of war, the name Senmei Asahi was not one to be taken lightly. He was the youth who once held off five thousand enemy shinobi and gravely wounded the Tsuchikage, even if it had been while assisting Namikaze Minato. That kind of battlefield support wasn't something just anyone could offer. Scarface, though a jōnin of Kirigakure, felt the weight of that reputation press down on him like a boulder. This wasn't a mere child—they were facing a monster in the making.
"That kid went inside!" one of the Kirigakure shinobi shouted.
"Chase him!" Scarface barked through gritted teeth, hate burning in his voice.
Letting a boy slip right under his nose—especially one as infamous as Asahi—was an utter humiliation. Regardless of age, a failure was a failure, and Scarface felt the sting of shame burn hotter than the mist around him.
*BOOM!*
An explosion roared from the mouth of the cave. Scarface and his squad halted instinctively. Inside, a faint smile curved Asahi's lips.
He had set the trap the moment he entered.
Though the ninja world now spoke of Asahi's Chakra Enhanced Fist and mastery of the Flying Thunder God Technique, they had all but forgotten the foundation of his skills—trap-setting with explosive tags. Long before he'd learned space-time ninjutsu, Asahi had mastered the art of misdirection and calculated destruction. And now, with five perfectly placed explosive tags, the cave's entrance collapsed, sealing the Kiri-nin outside. It wasn't enough to bury the cave entirely, but it was more than sufficient to delay pursuit.
Now isolated, Asahi wasted no time.
He moved deeper into the cave, his eyes sharp and senses on high alert. The network of tunnels was vast, winding like a labyrinth. Even with his kunai-marked escape routes, finding Rin wouldn't be easy. Every fork in the path forced a decision, and each time, he drove a Flying Thunder GodKunai into the stone before exploring further.
*Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!*
A cluster of shuriken sliced through the darkness, coming from a blind spot. Asahi jumped back instantly, weaving hand seals.
Earth Style ∙ Mud Wall!
The wall shot up just in time, the steel edges of the shuriken embedding themselves harmlessly into the rock. The attack wasn't random. Someone was close. That meant Rin had to be nearby too.
"Who's there?!" came a cold voice from the shadows.
Asahi didn't bother to respond. Instead, he hurled three special kunai toward the sound. The clang of metal deflecting metal echoed in the gloom—three targets confirmed.
He vanished in a flicker of light.
*Fwoosh!*
In the next moment, he was among the Kiri-nin. A flurry of punches, precise and devastating, landed with deadly force. Caught off guard, the three shinobi crumpled before they could even register the danger.
With the corridor cleared, Asahi pressed forward. Soon, the tunnel opened into a large stone chamber, dimly lit by weak lanterns. His eyes locked on the figure lying bound and unconscious in the center—Nohara Rin.
Without missing a beat, Asahi pressed ten remaining explosive tags to the rocky wall near the chamber entrance. If Scarface and the others broke through, they'd be greeted with fire.
"Who's there?!" a Kiri shinobi growled, turning toward the sudden intruder.
"Rin!" Asahi called out—but she didn't respond. Her expression was calm, unnaturally so. It didn't take long to realize she had been put under a powerful genjutsu.
The chamber wasn't empty. Six Kiri shinobi stood guard, alert and ready. Their chakra signatures told Asahi all he needed to know—mid to high-ranking jōnin. One more shinobi lay unconscious near Rin, also in a Kirigakure uniform. Judging by the chakra leaking from him, this was no ordinary man.
"The Three-Tails Jinchūriki." Asahi muttered.
"Have you already transferred the Three-Tails?" he asked sharply, his tone grave.
"What?!" one of the Kiri shinobi recoiled in shock. "How do you know about that?!"
"Little brat! Tell us your name!"
Asahi's smirk deepened. "So you haven't succeeded yet."
"You think you can stop us alone?!" another one growled. "You've got guts, kid—but you're going to die for it!"
Without answering, Asahi pulled six special kunai from his pouch and threw them in six different trajectories—one at each shinobi. No one noticed that two of those kunai were aimed near Nohara Rin and the unconscious Jinchūriki.
"Get him!"
One of the Kiri-nin lunged, blade flashing through the air.
*Clang!*
Rather than dodge or use his signature technique, Asahi activated his Hardening Technique and blocked the strike with his forearm. Then, quick as lightning, he drove a kunai into the man's throat. As the Kiri-nin gurgled his last breath, Asahi leaned close and whispered mockingly, "So much for the legends of the Blood Mist."
He didn't give them time to mourn.
Earth Style ∙ Earth Dragon Bullet!
The jutsu erupted, a massive stream of earth and debris tearing through the chamber. As the Kiri-nin scattered to avoid it, Asahi vanished once again in a flicker of light.
In a fluid chain, he reappeared by the Three-Tails Jinchūriki, then by Rin, and finally, the three of them disappeared together.
A heartbeat later, shouts of alarm filled the chamber.
"He escaped! Stop him!"
Back at the safehouse, a flash of light announced Asahi's return.
"Asahi! You're back!" Kurenai exclaimed, eyes wide with relief. Then, noticing the others he had brought, she stepped back in shock.
"Wait—is that Rin? And... who's the Kiri ninja?"
"Things have changed." Asahi said breathlessly. "The Kiri-nin planned to make Rin the new Jinchūriki of the Three-Tails and then send her back to Konoha. The goal was to unleash the tailed beast and destroy the village from within. But I was already tracking the Jinchūriki and waiting for the transfer. Not only did I save Rin—I took the Three-Tails Jinchūriki too."
Asuma stared at the unconscious Kiri shinobi, stunned. "You... snatched the Three-Tails right from under their noses?!"
Asahi smirked. 'That's the power of space-time ninjutsu. I wondered how Uchiha Obito feels when he plays with the entire ninja world. Right now... I can kind of understand.'
Kurenai clenched her fists. "Kirigakure… how could they stoop so low?!"
But Asahi raised a hand calmly. "Let's not forget—we planned to release the Three-Tails in their village too. In war, strategy knows no honor. If they plot against us, it's evil. But if we do it? It's just tactics."
Kurenai looked away, unable to refute the truth of his words.
Asahi turned his gaze toward the horizon, the weight of his decision pressing heavily on his shoulders.
"Next…" he said, voice steady, "I'll take the Jinchūriki into Kirigakure myself. Once inside, I'll release the Three-Tails and let it wreak havoc."
He clenched his fists, eyes burning with resolve.
"This war… can end now."
*****
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