Yako's vision shifted.
He was back—back to the night of the last full moon.
He lay hidden within the treetop canopy, watching over the Senju compound.
Damn it. ANBU was too dangerous. He hadn't even witnessed the Nine-Tails' sealing transfer—killed during reconnaissance before the main event.
Every month he'd tread carefully, yet not once had he made it safely to the next full moon. Since crossing into this world, he hadn't even had the chance to trigger a draw himself.
[Arc of the Moon activating!
Host receives one resurrection per month, revived at the previous full moon.
One draw awarded:
1 - B-Rank Earth Style: Earth Spike Lance (Novice)
2 - Body-Type: Great Rock Body (Strength Enhancement)
3 - A-Rank Earth Style: Earth Substitution (Novice)]
His primary chakra nature was Earth. All three options were a perfect fit. Hard to choose.
Earth Spike Lance—B-rank, creates hardened rock spikes to attack enemies.
Currently, his only Earth Style was a getaway jutsu—Earth Style: Hidden Fish in Stone. What he lacked was an offensive jutsu.
Choosing Earth Spike Lance would give him solid mid-range offense and round out his combat style.
Second option—Great Rock Body, an enhanced physical body.
Many Iwa shinobi were huge, musclebound, packed with raw power. That had to come from constant strength training. If he chose this, his constitution would improve significantly.
Third—Earth Substitution, an A-rank technique.
Yako thought back to his last battle before death.
When he had leapt at the Iwa Jonin, the guy was still maintaining a forest of Earth Spike Lances. It had definitely been the real body.
When he struck with his blade, the Jonin had raised an armored forearm to block. Then, without a sound, the Jonin dissolved into mud—Earth Substitution—leaving behind a feeling of uncanny sorcery.
After a brief hesitation, Yako chose the third option.
Living longer meant more chances to fight. Defense was the best offense. Improving survival was top priority.
So far, he had always died before the full moon.
He longed to die on the fourteenth—to choose his own death, trigger a reward himself.
If he could survive an entire month, he could provoke a powerful target on the fourteenth and claim a worthy prize.
The Senju clan head… the Uchiha patriarch… the Third Hokage—any of them would yield monstrous abilities.
But every time, he died in some mission first.
Yako was already extremely cautious. Every death made him more cautious still, hunkering down until the next full moon.
Earth Substitution was indeed top-tier among substitution techniques.
After selecting it, a wave of knowledge flooded his mind.
He'd hit the jackpot—big time.
Earth Substitution infused chakra into the soil beneath his feet. When danger struck, it instantly swapped his body with the earth below, dodging attacks entirely.
Unlike the D-rank Basic Substitution Jutsu, which relied on visual misdirection using a log transformed by Transformation Jutsu, Earth Substitution didn't need setup. Like flipping a switch, he could swap positions with the ground below in a heartbeat.
It required only half of a single Ox hand seal—fast, hidden, unpredictable, and low on chakra cost.
Combined with Hidden Fish in Stone, he could now execute complete lure-flank-ambush tactics with ease.
As before, in the following days, Fox Squad used the Senju kunoichi to leak the false intel: that Uzumaki Mito's funeral would be held on the fifth.
Purple Cat had already fallen for Yako. Her shyness, her blushing cheeks—he enjoyed her innocence.
Like any man, Yako chased novelty. Recently, he'd spent less time with the bar owner Kyo'i and more time indulging in Purple Cat's naïve charm.
Fox Squad was again assigned to hunt Yamanaka traitors. This time, Yako didn't waste expensive explosive tags. With Earth Style infiltration, he cleanly eliminated the four naked Yamanaka with precision.
He came prepared. Black Ox didn't die this time.
Dying once a month wasn't so bad—his teammates' survival rates improved too.
On the night of the 4th, Uzumaki Mito and Kushina left by carriage.
Kurozaru's unit was sent for recon.
But this time, Yako knew what was coming.
Earth Dragon Bullet thundered toward them, barreling into Kurozaru's formation.
Fox and Shirou's squads were isolated on one side, Kurozaru and Yamonkey's squads on the other.
Shirou used Rotation three times, one ANBU died in the process, and Fox—Yako—got his opening.
Again, Yako used Cloud-Flow Sword Technique, slashing the Iwa Jonin's throat.
Again, the Jonin dissolved into mud—Earth Substitution.
Everything went exactly as before—down to the finest detail.
Yako bent low, half-twisting his torso. His monstrous reflexes let him dodge the kunai strike from behind.
The Iwa Jonin was startled—this Konoha ANBU had skill.
But then, a Earth Spike Lance shot from below, stabbing Yako's lower back.
Two more ANBU charged the Jonin, ready to sacrifice their lives.
Hearing wind tear through the air behind him, the Iwa Jonin spun to meet the threat.
And at that moment—the fallen "Fox" ANBU, limp on the ground, melted into mud.
Yako emerged from the earth behind the Iwa Jonin and drove his blade deep into the Jonin's back.
The Jonin was in the middle of forming hand signs. Panic flashed in his eyes.
What…?
He turned his head and saw the mud trail from the fake Earth Spike Lance, and the ANBU in the fox mask he had thought was dead.
This ANBU—he actually knew Earth Substitution, an A-rank jutsu?
Since when was Konoha's Earth Style this strong?
Even in Iwagakure, Earth Substitution was rare—high difficulty, nearly impossible to obtain.
Yako had landed a perfect strike and was ready to press the advantage—but the Jonin completed his signs.
Dozens of Earth Spike Lances erupted from the ground.
If Yako hesitated a moment longer, he'd be skewered.
No hesitation—Yako quickly formed half an Ox seal.
His body swapped again with the soil beneath him, disappearing underground.
Task completed, the enemy Jonin gravely wounded, Yako slipped away like a shadow.
When he resurfaced, he saw only Shirou and Purple Cat still alive, barely supporting each other.
Everyone else was impaled on the forest of stone lances.
Now five more spears shot toward the last two survivors.
Their eyes behind their masks were wide with terror.
Shirou's pale eyes were terrifying even on normal days—like ghostly cataracts. Filled with fear, they looked even more chilling.
Purple Cat's heart ached—this was it. She was going to die after all.
When Danzō had asked the Yamanaka clan to provide recruits for ANBU, they had all known the death rates were terrifying.
No one really knew what ANBU did—only that Chūnin who joined them rarely came back.
As the eldest of her generation, Yamanaka Ruri had volunteered herself.
Her mother had cried for days.
Her father had died for the village. Her mother had raised her and her sister alone.
For her sister, Ruri stepped forward.
Yet less than six months into ANBU, she was going to die on a mission.
The Iwa Jonin was unstoppable. One jutsu after another, chakra that never ran dry.
Even with a sword still in his gut, he could still kill her and Shirou.
Just as Purple Cat's despair peaked—
The Fox-masked captain arrived.
His silhouette made her want to cry.
Was she… not going to die?
Yako thought to himself—Shirou's Byakugan was crucial. A scouting asset vital to the squad's survival. He had to live.
Water Style: Water Formation Wall!
A wall of water surged forth, shielding Purple Cat and Shirou, smashing through the stone lances.
Yako's brow lifted.
The lances were weaker now. The Iwa Jonin was losing strength after taking that blade to the back.