As the night deepened, Asuka could no longer resist his sleepiness and soon fell into a deep slumber.
Seeing that the timing was right, Asuka ordered everyone to increase their speed and rush toward the resting place.
Before long, their figures entered the detection range of the Hyūga jōnin on guard duty.
The experienced Hyūga Branch Family jōnin immediately realized that their team had likely been targeted. From the direction of the approaching group, it was clear the enemy had known their location for quite some time. This meant the enemy possessed a sensory ninja whose detection range far exceeded the Byakugan.
Through his Byakugan, he could also see that many members of the enemy squad possessed jōnin-level chakra.
The moment he confirmed this, he issued a warning.
A sharp whistle cut through the night, instantly waking the sleeping Konoha group.
Startled awake, Hyūga Hayama hurriedly asked,
"What happened? What's going on?"
The Hyūga ninja on duty quickly returned and explained the situation. The senior Hyūga Branch Family jōnin immediately realized they could not fight the enemy head-on.
He instantly ordered a retreat.
Then, without waiting for Hyūga Hayama to fully understand the situation, he grabbed him by the collar, leapt onto a tree branch, and fled at high speed.
---
Chasing from behind, Asuka sensed the movement of their chakra and knew they had been discovered.
He turned to the people behind him.
"They've spotted us. I suspect there are Hyūga Clan ninja among them."
"Mangetsu, Zi, and Mei—you three come with me and pursue them at full speed."
"A, lead the main force and follow behind as support."
"Yes, Captain Asuka!"
Mangetsu and the other two immediately accelerated, chasing after Asuka.
As top-tier jōnin, the four of them were significantly faster than the rest of the group.
Soon, the fleeing Konoha team came into view.
During their escape, the Konoha ninja had set several traps along the way. However, Asuka—who was charging at the front—cleared them one after another, preventing them from slowing down Mangetsu and the others.
"Damn it…" the leading Hyūga jōnin muttered.
He immediately ordered the two patrol squads behind him to stay behind and block the enemy while he continued fleeing with the Hyūga clan members.
Although the patrol squads were clearly unhappy with this decision, they didn't dare to object.
Seeing that the ordinary ninja were being sacrificed to buy time while the elite jōnin continued fleeing, Asuka's suspicion deepened.
It seemed they had truly caught a big fish this time.
He signaled to the three behind him and continued the pursuit, bypassing the blocking Konoha ninja without slowing down.
The two Konoha squads tried to intercept them, but they were quickly stopped by Mangetsu and the others.
Two roaring Water Dragons crashed toward the Konoha squads, forcing them to dodge and defend.
Meanwhile, as Asuka rushed forward, he casually cut down two blocking Konoha ninja with his sword.
Before the Hyūga clan members could escape far, Asuka had already caught up to them.
He formed hand seals.
Several spinning water bullets shot toward the fleeing Hyūga ninja.
Water Release: Water Fang Bullet Technique
Sensing the incoming attack, a Hyūga jōnin turned around and thrust out his palm, releasing a violent shockwave.
Eight Trigrams Vacuum Palm
The powerful air current shattered the incoming water bullets.
The Hyūga jōnin stared at Asuka with a solemn expression. It was obvious he had already decided to sacrifice himself to hold the enemy back.
Although Asuka had deliberately transferred some chakra into his mutant gene pool to disguise himself, the amount of chakra remaining in his body still far exceeded that of an ordinary jōnin.
Facing the determined Hyūga jōnin, Asuka continued his assault.
His hands formed new seals instantly.
Fire Release: Great Flame Bullet
Wind Release: Great Breakthrough
The wind amplified the flames, and the battlefield was engulfed in fire within moments.
The Hyūga jōnin raised both hands and began spinning in place.
Eight Trigrams: Rotation
As a jōnin deeply trusted by the Hyūga Main House, he had been granted permission to learn this secret technique.
A sphere of rotating chakra surrounded his body, continuously fueled by his chakra as it resisted the raging flames.
When the fire finally died down, he barely had time to breathe.
A ninja sword suddenly pierced through his chest.
Using the cover of the flames, Asuka had used Soru to appear instantly in front of him. At the exact moment when the Hyūga jōnin's old strength had faded and new strength had not yet formed, Asuka ended his life with a single strike.
Just like that, the Hyūga jōnin had only managed to delay Asuka for a brief moment before dying.
---
The fleeing Hyūga ninja sensed his death.
The remaining three immediately stopped.
They had clearly realized how powerful their pursuer was. One person alone could not stop him.
Their long cooperation allowed them to make a decision instantly.
The strongest senior Hyūga jōnin would continue escaping with Hyūga Hayama, while the remaining three stayed behind to block the enemy.
Seeing that those who stayed behind were also Hyūga jōnin, Asuka frowned slightly.
"More Hyūga jōnin?"
"Since when has the Hyūga Clan been willing to send so many jōnin to the front lines—and all in the same squad?"
"Could it be…"
To confirm his suspicion, Asuka decided to stop holding back and eliminate them as quickly as possible.
His eyes glowed red.
Before the three Hyūga ninja could react, he cut one of them cleanly in half.
The remaining two immediately recognized the familiar red laser attack and realized who they were facing.
But Asuka gave them no chance to speak.
A dense storm of bone spikes followed immediately.
One of them used Rotation to block the attack while the other hid behind him, guarding against a sudden strike from Asuka.
However, Asuka's strength far exceeded their expectations.
He descended from above while spinning his body. The powerful airflow around him disrupted the rotation of the chakra sphere, grinding down the Rotation technique within moments.
Then Asuka landed on the ground.
He activated a small-scale Sawarabi no Mai.
Massive bone spikes erupted from the earth, sealing off several meters of space.
The two Hyūga ninja, unable to escape in time, were pierced straight through by the spikes.
After using the technique, Asuka didn't even bother checking whether they were dead.
Even if they survived by chance, Mangetsu and the others—who were catching up—would finish them off.
In Asuka's perception, the Hidden Mist main force led by A had already reached the battlefield where Mangetsu and the others were fighting the Konoha squads.
Once freed, the three would rush over to support him.
---
Meanwhile, the last Hyūga jōnin carrying Hyūga Hayama wasn't moving very quickly.
Although he possessed Elite Jōnin strength, he was burdened with dead weight.
Soon, the two were intercepted by Asuka, who was now moving at full power.
Seeing Asuka blocking their path, the Hyūga jōnin's expression turned extremely grim.
Through his Byakugan, he could clearly see the movement of Shikotsumyaku within Asuka's body.
The name Kaguya Asuka immediately appeared in his mind.
Realizing the terrifying strength of the man before him, any hope of escape vanished.
Without hesitation, he pulled out a kunai and stabbed backward toward the Byakugan of the stunned Hyūga Hayama beside him.
Before the mission began, the Hyūga Main House had given him a secret order:
If they encountered a situation where escape was impossible and the Byakugan could not be protected, he was authorized to destroy it first.
However, Asuka had been watching them closely.
The moment he saw the Hyūga jōnin's action, his suspicion was confirmed.
The frightened Hyūga beside him was indeed a member of the Hyūga Main House.
Asuka immediately fired a Spirit Gun, striking the kunai and shattering it.
The next second, he appeared in front of them.
He kicked Hyūga Hayama away while simultaneously swinging the bone blade on his left arm toward the Hyūga jōnin.
Forced to retreat, the Hyūga jōnin stepped back several times before taking the stance of the Eight Trigrams Palm.
Eight Trigrams Sixty-Four Palms
Countless palm strikes rained down toward Asuka.
However, bone spikes erupted from Asuka's body, blocking the attacks and even counter-injuring the Hyūga jōnin. His palms were torn apart by the spikes, becoming badly mangled.
The intense pain caused cold sweat to pour down his face.
A beam of red light flashed from Asuka's eyes, severing both of the Hyūga jōnin's legs.
Ignoring the fallen enemy, Asuka walked over to Hyūga Hayama.
He lifted the boy's forehead protector.
As expected, there was no Caged Bird Seal on his forehead.
Seeing this, Asuka slowly smiled.
--------------Author---------------
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