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The dark-skinned special jōnin's face paled as he frantically scanned his surroundings—but found no trace of Umino Yoru. 

This only confirmed his fears. 

An elite jōnin-level Shunshin no Jutsu—it has to be! 

Otherwise, how could someone vanish without leaving even a hint of movement? Substitution Jutsu had limited range—yet he couldn't spot Yoru anywhere. 

Only an advanced body-flicker technique could explain this. 

"Saguiya! Watch the leaves—it's a Transformation Jutsu!" 

The spiky-haired jōnin shouted a warning from afar, but it was already too late. 

Scattered across the ground behind the special jōnin were fallen leaves. 

One of them—utterly ordinary in appearance—was actually Umino Yoru in disguise. 

Thanks to his Sound Radar Technique, Yoru had anticipated the enemy's anticipation. 

Reverse psychology at its finest. 

Poof! 

With a soft sound, the transformation dissolved. 

Yoru crouched low behind Saguiya, hands gripping a kunai in a Tiger Seal formation—positioned perfectly at the Sand shinobi's rear. 

"Konohagakure's Secret Taijutsu Technique: True·Thousand Years of Death!" 

With a fierce thrust, Yoru drove the kunai straight into Saguiya's— 

"Feel the pain!" 

Squelch. 

The kunai plunged in to the hilt. 

All the way. 

"AAAAAAAAHHHHHH—!!!" 

A scream so shrill it could shatter glass tore through the battlefield. 

"Hssss—!" 

The spiky-haired jōnin, mid-swing toward Moonlight Yoru, instinctively clenched and sucked in a sharp breath. 

His liver nearly liquefied from sheer terror. 

That could've been me. 

Had this Konoha shinobi used the same tactic on him, he'd be howling on the ground right now. 

Who the hell thinks to Substitute, then transform into a leaf to ambush someone?! 

Only a true tactical monster could devise something so brutal. 

And the skill required— 

Most shinobi struggled to transform into something as simple as a kunai. Yet this guy had turned himself into a leaf? 

How refined is his Transformation Jutsu?! 

Not to mention that "secret taijutsu"… 

No amount of defense could protect that particular weak point. 

The only silver lining? 

Saguiya's sacrifice had exposed this horrifying tactic. Now that they knew, it wouldn't work again. 

But the first victim? 

No one saw it coming. 

Frankly, a clean decapitation would've been more merciful. 

"Yoru, fall back! I'll cover you!" 

Yoru yanked out his fish-gutting shortsword and stepped in front of the wounded Moonlight shinobi, eyes locked on the spiky-haired jōnin. 

"Swift Wind Slash!" 

The Sand jōnin, now fully aware of Yoru's tactical genius, gave him zero time to strategize. 

A single, decisive strike— 

Swish! 

The blade grazed Yoru's throat, severing a lock of hair. 

Cold sweat dripped down his temple. 

Damn… So this is a real jōnin's speed. 

Even with a crippled left hand (and no access to ninjutsu), this guy's swordsmanship was leagues beyond any chūnin. 

"You can't take him. I'll hold him off—get the others out." 

Moonlight Yoru gritted his teeth, reclaiming his fallen longsword with his left hand. 

His stance radiated unshakable resolve. 

Unlike his teammate Sarugei Kagerō, Yoru embodied the true Will of Fire. 

Even knowing they stood no chance, he chose to stay—to die so others could live. 

This one's worth keeping around. 

"Then we fight." 

Yoru shook his head, emotions churning. 

Running now? Impossible. 

Maruboshi Kosuke's patrol was seconds away. If he fled, his carefully crafted "Will of Fire" persona would crumble. 

Just a little longer… 

They just had to hold out until Kosuke's team crossed the river. 

With no other choice, the two fought a desperate retreat—backing across the water's surface toward the opposite bank. 

Clang! 

Another slash—this time across Yoru's chest. 

Had his flak vest not been reinforced with steel plating, that strike would've bisected him. 

The spiky-haired jōnin's blade was merciless. 

Even the water bats—barely a distraction—were cut down mid-flight without a second thought. 

"Hiding steel plates under your vest? Clever. But how many more tricks do you have?" 

The Sand jōnin gathered chakra, clearly preparing a finisher. 

Then— 

Yoru's lips curled. 

His Sound Radar had picked them up. 

Reinforcements. Finally. 

Time to sell the performance. 

If he played this right, his "Will of Fire" would reach the highest echelons of Konoha. 

Maruboshi Kosuke—unofficial disciple of the Second Hokage, close associate of the Third—was the perfect messenger. 

With this reputation as a shield? 

No more front-line cannon fodder duty for me. 

"Yoru, GO! I'll hold him back!" 

Yoru's voice cracked with fake desperation as he ripped out eight explosive tags—plastering them across his own body. 

"Where the leaves dance, the flames will follow!"** 

His roar was full-throated, his "Will of Fire" burning brighter than the sun. 

He charged—a suicidal sprint toward the enemy. 

"SENPAI—!" 

Tears streamed down Yoru's face. 

"You think I'll let you suicide-bomb me?!" 

The spiky-haired jōnin sneered, flicking two kunai with pinpoint accuracy— 

"DIE WITH ME!" 

Yoru ignored the projectiles, charging onward like a man already dead. 

"CAPTAIN! NO—!" 

From the opposite shore, Tezuka and the others watched in agony. 

In their eyes, their leader was sacrificing himself to save them. 

Then— 

Just as the kunai were about to pierce Yoru's flesh— 

"Water Release: Water Dragon Jutsu!" 

A massive water dragon erupted from the river beneath him, swallowing the kunai whole— 

—before surging toward the spiky-haired jōnin in a tidal wave of retribution. 

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