Right now, Terumi Uchiha, Gin, Yueji, and Master Long—who was somewhat weaker—were working together.
Their overall strength was no less than that of an elite Anbu squad from one of the Five Great Hidden Villages.
As for Gato Company's side, although the number of hired ninja was considerable—
There were more than twenty in total.
But most were rogue ninja who had fled from smaller hidden villages.
About half of them barely reached genin level;
The rest were only at the level of academy students.
Only the leader showed chakra fluctuations vaguely comparable to a chūnin.
Such a pack of ragtag misfits daring to target Shimoku and the others?
They were just biting off more than they could chew—and asking for their own doom!
Quickly, the first few assassins who jumped out from both sides of the forest were cut down in an instant, dying on the spot before they could even land a blow.
Then, within half a minute,
Terumi Uchiha and the others quickly eliminated the remaining dozen killers as well.
In fact, none of them even used their Sharingan. With just a few low-level ninjutsu techniques, they cleared the battlefield completely.
Thick blood stench spread into the air, staining the ground red.
This terrified the two Gato Company guides—to the point they trembled violently and collapsed to the ground.
"Young Master, cleanup is complete."
"Are these the assassins sent by the [Gato Company]? To think they'd send such weaklings after us... truly overstepping their bounds!"
Shimoku nodded, though he didn't relax.
Instead, he warned them, "This was merely the prelude. The main course has yet to arrive."
Terumi Uchiha and the others: ?????
And just then,
A heavy mist began rising around them from all directions.
Soon enough, it wrapped everything within sight.
"This is... morning fog?"
"No! This isn't natural fog—it contains faint traces of chakra!"
"This must be an intentionally cast ninjutsu!"
"This must be the Hiding in Mist Technique! How is this possible? Could ninjas from Kiri be here?"
Startled, Terumi Uchiha and the others immediately raised their guard.
They quickly formed a protective formation around their Young Master Shimoku, bracing against potential attacks from all directions.
...
The next moment,
On their right side, the mist abruptly condensed inward.
[Shifting Body Technique: Mist Shunshin!]
[Hiding in Mist: Silent Killing Technique!]
Then, a flash of sharp blade instantly appeared, directly aiming for Terumi Uchiha.
"Terumi Uchiha, watch out!"
Gin shouted loudly.
Luckily, already alert and with quick reflexes, Terumi Uchiha reacted promptly.
Instantly activating his two-tomoe Sharingan to predict the attack route,
He counterattacked by flinging kunai, successfully blocking that fierce slash.
"Clang——"
A piercing metallic sound rang out.
The large sword's immense force carved a deep notch straight into the kunai held in Terumi Uchiha's hand.
It even knocked the weapon flying.
Yet, that deadly strike had been deflected slightly by the kunai block.
It merely grazed Terumi Uchiha's shoulder,
Leaving behind a wound not very deep—a mere scratch—and failing to sever his head.
"You're finished!"
Seeing her younger brother injured, Yueji flew into a rage, furious beyond measure.
Fueled by fury, she launched a brutal punch straight into the mist at the shadowy figure.
"Boom!"
The punch was blocked by the flat side of the opponent's large blade.
But the opponent still got sent flying from the immense force.
He retreated over ten meters and once again vanished into the thick mist.
"Riyō, are you alright?"
"I'm fine, just a minor injury."
"But this enemy is really strong! He's on a completely different level than those earlier assassins."
Riyō quickly used chakra to stop the bleeding from his left shoulder wound while warning the others.
His right hand, which had just had its kunai knocked away with a single strike, continued trembling slightly—clear evidence of how powerful the enemy truly was.
...
At the same time.
From deep within the distant mist came a thick male voice.
"What an incredible punch!"
"You're quite skilled. Which village are you from? Why aren't you wearing forehead protectors?"
"Wait... Is that you?"
"The Sharingan!!!"
"You're ninja from Konoha?!"
A surprised shout echoed from within the thick fog.
Zabuza had originally assumed this mission's targets were merely low-level ninja from a smaller hidden village.
He hadn't expected their strength to be surprisingly formidable.
They'd not only managed to counter his unbeatable [Slicing Through the Mist] technique, but also possessed the famous kekkei genkai—the [Sharingan].
"It seems I've run into some tough customers!"
"Ninja from the Uchiha Clan won't be easy to handle."
"Damn it, I should have charged more!"
"I'll definitely go back and ask that bastard Gato for a raise."
Zabuza muttered in regret.
Fortunately, he hadn't rushed forward first—he'd wisely let those cheap underling ninja test them out initially.
Otherwise, he might've already fallen here himself.
...
"Can you see the enemy's position clearly?"
Master Long asked calmly.
Riyō, keeping his Sharingan active, scanned the area and shook his head:
"No."
"There's trace amounts of chakra mixed into this mist, interfering with the Sharingan's tracking!"
"Fog, swordsmanship, impressive strength... You must be that infamous rogue ninja from Kiri, 'Demon of the Hidden Mist'—Zabuza Momochi?"
Yueji, who had extensive mission experience, spoke up.
She immediately recognized the enemy's identity.
Among the Uchiha Clan, she was a rare ninja specializing in taijutsu.
Although she hadn't put her full strength into that earlier punch,
It was no light blow by any means.
Even a seasoned jonin would've struggled to withstand such a blow.
Yet this Demon Zabuza seemed to handle it effortlessly—definitely no ordinary opponent.
"You've actually heard of me? So you really are tied closely to Konoha!"
"Or perhaps... you're the Uchiha survivors who recently defected from Konoha?"
"No matter. All of that's meaningless now—"
"While you remain trapped in my mist, your doom is certain."
"Not that it matters—I'll grant you one small courtesy. I'll try to leave your corpses intact!"
The arrogant threat echoed from all directions within the dense fog.
While speaking, Zabuza deliberately prolonged the conversation to buy time.
Swiftly weaving through the mist, he was scanning for weaknesses and openings among the five opponents.
Striving for a killing blow on his next move!
...
"This casual chatting gets tiresome!"
"Ugh... This mist is way too thick. It's hurting my eyes."
"Better disperse it!"
Shimoku rubbed his eyes, yawned casually, and muttered,
Then he slapped his hands together.
A violent surge of Chakra exploded outward, rippling out from Shimoku like storm winds.
Within just over ten seconds,
The dense mist surrounding them was completely blown away...
"Huff huff—"
After the strong wind, everything became clear.
Meanwhile,
Far in the distance, a certain Mist Demon stood rooted to the spot, sword in hand.
He stared blankly toward Shimoku's direction.
What in the world is that brat?!!!
Though his [Hiding in Mist Technique] wasn't invincible,
This brute-force method of dispersing the mist with sheer Chakra output was something he'd never seen before.
"What in the world is that kid?!!!"
"How can he have such massive Chakra?"
"And protected by four others too. Seems pretty important."
"He wouldn't happen to be a Jinchuriki from Konoha?!!!"
Zabuza thought in astonishment.
Generally only the tailed-beast containers from various villages would have so much Chakra at such a young age.
But how did he hide his presence so well earlier?
Never thought there'd be a day when I misjudged someone.
I thought the youngest one would be the weakest brat. Yet he turned out so powerful!
...
"Nice! Go Young Master!"
Seeing the mist dissipate and visibility return, Gin cheered enthusiastically.
What a pathetic excuse of a [Hiding in Mist Technique].
Before their Young Master, it all crumbled pathetically!
"The mist is gone."
"That guy's too weak for me to bother with. He's yours."
"Especially you three – Riyō, Yueji, and Gin. Practice working as a team and try to capture him alive."
Shimoku waved his hand, giving orders to the rest.
Though Zabuza had decent strength, ultimately he was only about Jonin elite level.
A few days ago, he might have found it fun to test his skills against him.
But now? Not in the mood at all.
After all, what kid takes grown-ups seriously anyway?
Better let Riyō and the others practice their skills.
"We'll handle it!"
Riyō and the others acknowledged, gripped their weapons tightly, and quickly charged toward Zabuza in the distance.
At the same time, far away.
Upon hearing that brat called him 'too weak to even fight'.
Zabuza instantly flew into a rage, furrowing his brows.
He'd never met such an arrogant little punk in his entire life!
The slight intention to retreat he'd had earlier
Quickly solidified into a firm resolve — must kill these reckless Ninja! And that damn kid too!
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