Asuma, Hyuga Yu, Akimichi To, and Chiriku all witnessed it.
Their pupils widened. Their faces tightened.
For a heartbeat, none of them could react.
It felt unreal.
That had been an Inuzuka jonin.
One strike.
A single strike had cleaved both the jonin and his ninja hound cleanly down the middle. From beginning to end, neither of them even managed to release a single technique.
This was the confidence Kazuki had when he killed Danzo.
This was the confidence Kazuki had when he fled Konoha.
Hyuga Yu and Akimichi To both felt their bodies go cold. The hair on their arms stood on end.
They had been advancing together with the Inuzuka jonin—
The moment the situation turned, they immediately retreated to Asuma and Chiriku's side.
Drip.
Blood slid from the blade.
Kazuki stood in the center of the wolf's corpse, expression blank, his white robes soaked red. His right hand held the sword steady as he faced the four of them.
After cutting down the three-headed wolf, the blade itself had reached its limit. Several deep chips had formed along its edge.
Kazuki's Yachiman Mangekyo Sharingan, which had dimmed earlier, now burned crimson again—brighter than fresh blood.
It looked wicked.
Cold.
Anyone who met that gaze felt as though they were staring into a bottomless abyss.
"Haa…"
Asuma exhaled slowly, forcing himself to steady his breathing.
He hadn't even attacked yet, but he already knew—
If he did, the outcome would likely be no better than the wolf's.
At this point, the victor was already decided.
Asuma met Chiriku's eyes.
They chose the only remaining option—
A final gamble.
Their feet slammed into the wooden floor, shattering it.
Their momentum surged forward like a crashing wave as they rushed Kazuki from both sides.
Hyuga Yu and Akimichi To attacked head-on.
Gentle Fist strikes rained down in a dense barrage—each blow aimed at Kazuki's tenketsu to disrupt his chakra flow.
Akimichi's enlarged fists followed like cannon shells, powerful enough to crush bones and organs alike.
Four shadows moved at once, lightning-fast.
"This," Kazuki said calmly, "is what the Mangekyo looks like at full strength."
He did not move.
His eyes shifted.
Blade-shaped patterns rotated within the Mangekyo Sharingan. Blood vessels spread across the whites of his eyes.
Yin chakra erupted like a tidal wave.
His crimson gaze swept across the four attackers—
Just one glance.
A sea of Yin chakra surged outward, crushing through the mental defenses the sutras had granted them.
That Yachiman chakra flooded into their pupils.
And within their eyes—
The mark of the Mangekyo appeared.
Buzz—
Asuma's wind-coated chakra blade froze mid-thrust.
Chiriku's fist, wrapped in Buddhist light, halted in midair.
Hyuga Yu's Gentle Fist stopped a hair's breadth before striking Kazuki's chakra points.
Akimichi To's iron-heavy punch locked in place, unable to move.
Just one millimeter more—
The chakra blade would have pierced Kazuki's heart.
The glowing fist would have shattered his temple.
The Gentle Fist would have severed the tenketsu in his chest.
The enlarged punch would have crushed his kidneys.
But now—
Kazuki had seized complete control of their spirits and chakra.
He withdrew his gaze.
Turned his back.
And began walking toward the door.
The four men stared at him as despair filled their hearts.
When Kazuki took his first step—
Thump. Thump. Thump.
Akimichi To's face twisted.
His body remained frozen in his punching stance, but inside his ears a violent drumbeat echoed uncontrollably.
His chest began pounding on its own.
His chakra surged wildly toward his heart like countless streams rushing into a river.
It felt as though the organ would burst through his ribs.
Boom—
The pressure exceeded what flesh could endure.
His heart exploded inside his chest.
Akimichi To's eyes bulged as his expression twisted in horror—
And he fell dead.
The beating of their hearts had become the countdown to their execution.
Kazuki took three more steps.
Boom.
Boom.
Boom.
Hyuga Yu.
Chiriku.
Asuma.
One after another, their hearts exploded in the same way—crimson blooming inside their chests like grotesque flowers.
This was the ultimate expression of Yachiman's control over another person's chakra—
Forcing their chakra to gather at a single point…
And stealing their lives directly.
Thump—
The three remaining men collapsed to their knees.
Even in their final moments, they couldn't believe it.
They hadn't even touched the hem of Kazuki's robe—
Yet their consciousness had vanished, their thoughts severed, their lives ended.
Asuma's eyes slowly closed.
Kazuki never looked back.
Life and death were simple.
Asuma had chosen to hunt him.
He should have accepted the consequences of failure.
Kazuki could already tell from the details—
This pursuit had not been an official mission from Konoha's leadership.
First: Hiruzen would never send his only remaining son on a mission this dangerous.
Second: Kurenai Yuhi had withdrawn, yet no one condemned her for it.
For shinobi, missions always came first.
If an order came from the village, refusing it meant betraying Konoha.
So this—
Had been a personal hunt.
An interception led by Asuma himself.
The goal was obvious: capture Kazuki's Uchiha squad and drag them back to Konoha.
It would have been an enormous merit.
The kind people dreamed of—like defeating Orochimaru after his defection.
Asuma didn't have the courage to pursue Orochimaru.
But with the Fire Temple backing him—
He had believed he could handle a Kazuki who was exhausted from constant escape and not yet fully recovered.
If Konoha had still been hesitating about launching a full-scale manhunt…
Then after tonight—
Hiruzen's Konoha would unleash the most relentless pursuit imaginable against the Uchiha fugitives.
Kazuki stepped outside the cabin and looked up at the full moon hanging in the night sky.
Pale moonlight illuminated his calm face, revealing not the slightest trace of regret.
Text appeared in his mind.
Side Quest: Heavenly Punishment
Kill Sarutobi Asuma, Hyuga Yu, Akimichi To, Inuzuka Akiyama, Yukimaru.
Mission Complete!
Reward: Weapon — Dark Moon.
Kazuki raised an eyebrow slightly.
He focused his senses.
Within his storage space, a long, perfectly straight black blade stood silently.
The sword looked as though it had been forged from night itself—both hilt and blade pitch-black, its edge impossibly sharp.
"So this is Dark Moon…"
Kazuki closed the storage space, suppressing the urge to draw it immediately.
He lifted his head and gazed toward a distant section of the mountain.
His Mangekyo Sharingan seemed to pierce through the dark forest and lock onto something far away.
A masked man.
Kazuki narrowed his focus, testing the distance.
Too far.
With his current ocular power, he could not control someone from a kilometer away—
Especially someone who also possessed the Mangekyo Sharingan.
That hidden presence—
Was exactly why Kazuki had refused to exhaust his remaining Yin chakra earlier.
Far away, on a tree branch—
The masked man felt a pressure settle over him.
The pattern in his eye rotated.
The Kamui Mangekyo Sharingan surfaced.
Beneath the mask, his twisted expression formed into a cold smile.
"So your Mangekyo can control others."
"Dangerous."
"If you don't have another trump card…"
"Then tonight—those Uchiha Sharingan you carry…"
"And your Mangekyo…"
"I'll be taking them."
He tapped his foot lightly against the branch, as if sending a signal.
Want More? Get up to +60 Extra Chapters on Patreon!
➤ https://www.patreon.com/aureliusstudios
➤ +300 Power Stones = +1 Extra Chapter Drop!
Thanks for the support!