A Glimpse of His Edge at Night

The next evening.

After assigning the watch, Hizashi Hyuga sat down by the campfire. The flames flickered in the night breeze, casting his wavering shadow on the wagon behind him. The camp around him was quiet, broken only by the crackle of burning wood and the occasional whisper from the wounded's tents in the distance.

He closed his eyes, his thoughts drifting back to the day before the troops had set out. That evening, the Third had summoned him alone to the Hokage's office.

"The Sand Ninja won't let the reinforcements reach Kikyo Castle without a fight." The Third sat behind his desk, smoke curling from his pipe and obscuring half his face. "The road there will be difficult."

"I'll do everything in my power. I won't fail you, Lord Hokage."

The Third fell silent for a moment, as though weighing his words. Then he set down his pipe, his gaze piercing through the smoke, his voice a little lower than before. "If—and I mean if—things truly reach a point beyond recovery, I need you to abandon the others and take just one person to Kikyo Castle."

"...Who?"

"Gekkō Byakuya."

That night, Hizashi Hyuga used his clan's resources to look up Gekkō Byakuya's file.

Thirteen years old, a medical Chunin from the ancient Gekko Clan. The file made special note of his close relationship with Lady Tsunade, as well as a title Hizashi had paid no mind to at the time—the "Strongest Chunin."

His first reaction was straightforward: what could be so special about a thirteen-year-old Chunin? No matter how good his Medical Ninjutsu was, he was still just a child who had graduated a few years ago. In Hizashi's eyes, the boy had most likely received special treatment through his clan connections or ties to the higher-ups, and had come to the battlefield to pad his record.

As for the title "Strongest Chunin," he scoffed at it. He had heard of every gifted young ninja in Konoha, and none of them went by that name.

For someone who had long harbored resentment over the division between the Main and Branch Families, people who abused their status to do as they pleased were the kind he despised most.

So from the moment they set out, he had a poor impression of Byakuya.

But over the course of the journey, he discovered that the boy, who had always traveled along in silence, was completely different from what he had imagined.

The first time Byakuya approached him, he had even thought the boy was too nervous to hold back and wanted to cozy up to him. But Byakuya had accurately reported the locations and numbers of the Sand Ninja lying in ambush, down to the exact person, and had even known their squad formations.

He was only a Chunin, yet he dared to argue his case, even contradicting Hizashi, the overall commander, just to ensure that ordinary wounded received treatment in time.

At first, Hizashi Hyuga had watched him with a critical eye, but Byakuya paid it no mind. He simply carried out his duties in silence, using his extraordinary range and precision of perception to help the group overcome ambush after ambush, and his efficient Medical Ninjutsu to get the wounded back on their feet.

As it turned out, treating the wounded promptly not only preserved the entire force's combat strength, but also made every ninja understand one thing: they were not expendable pawns to be sacrificed at will.

Someone protected them in battle, and someone looked after them when they were injured. That sense of security sent morale soaring to unprecedented heights.

Hizashi Hyuga had even begun to think that Lady Tsunade's old proposal to assign a medical-nin to every squad might truly have been the right direction.

Perhaps Byakuya's relationship with Lady Tsunade had nothing to do with his status, but was because he truly had the ability?

His impression had changed so dramatically that Hizashi Hyuga was no longer quite sure how to treat Byakuya.

After all, he was only a young man in his twenties, and his skin wasn't thick enough yet.

Hizashi Hyuga kept his eyes closed, feeling the night breeze sweep through the camp. Thanks to the efforts of the Medical Corps and Byakuya, the force had yet to lose a single member. But he knew that the closer they got to their destination, the greater the obstacles would become. With less than two days' travel left to Kikyo Castle, they had to rest as much as possible while they were safe and conserve their strength.

He didn't know how much time had passed when a hand gently touched his shoulder.

Hizashi Hyuga jolted awake.

The moment he opened his eyes, a layer of cold sweat had already broken out on his back. He had slept so deeply that he hadn't woken until someone touched him. If something had happened during that time...

But he had no time for regret. Byakuya was crouching in front of him, and his words made Hizashi's heart sink.

"Enemies. Approaching from the west. There are at least as many of them as there are of us."

Hizashi Hyuga's heart tightened. The fact that they could send a force of this size to intercept them meant the situation at Kikyo Castle was far from promising.

That made their group, particularly their considerable number of medical-nin and their supplies, all the more important. If possible, he didn't want to fight the Sand Ninja.

But the fact that the enemy was heading straight for their position meant their whereabouts had long since been exposed.

There was no avoiding them.

Hizashi Hyuga stood and swept his gaze over the quiet camp. The campfires were still burning, wounded men were still resting in the tents, and ninja from the Communications Squad were talking quietly not far away. Too many people in this camp couldn't be moved.

"Is there any way around them?"

"Their formation is spread wide. They're surrounding us in an arc. We can't get around them."

"Then we'll have to fight." Hizashi Hyuga turned, his white eyes gleaming coldly in the moonlight. "Pass the order. Everyone, prepare for battle."

The camp sprang awake. Ninja quickly formed ranks in the darkness, the sound of Kunai being drawn rising one after another. Torches were lit in succession, their light flickering over the woods around the camp. The Medical Corps ninja were gathered at the innermost part of the position, with two combat squads guarding them closely. Hizashi Hyuga stood at the front of the defensive line, his Byakugan already activated, his vision piercing the night as he tracked the Sand Ninja's movements.

Byakuya stood among the Medical Corps, his Tachi still hanging at his waist. His Reiatsu Detection had laid out the entire battlefield: the Sand Ninja were approaching from three directions, with the largest force in front and several men on each flank moving around to encircle them. Their ring was slowly tightening. He glanced at the young medical-nin beside him. Some had hands trembling slightly around their Kunai.

"Contact ahead!"

The scouts at the front encountered the Sand Ninja vanguard at the edge of the woods, sparks bursting in the darkness as Kunai clashed. A fierce glint flashed in Hizashi Hyuga's white eyes. He formed Hand Seals—Eight Trigrams Vacuum Palm. A blast of force erupted from his palm, sending a Sand Ninja lunging at him from the side flying into a tree trunk before sliding to the ground. But more Sand Ninja poured out of the darkness. They were indeed no fewer in number than the Konoha force.

The Sand Ninja commander stood atop a jutting rock, looking down over the battlefield.

His name was Sanada, a Sunagakure Jonin who had fought Konoha many times during the Second Shinobi World War. His orders this time were simple: stop Konoha's reinforcements at any cost.

Once Konoha's reinforcements reached Kikyo Castle, the pressure on the offensive at the front would multiply. He had expected a hard fight—the Hyuga Clan's Byakugan was troublesome in both reconnaissance and close combat, so he had deliberately brought three times his usual strength.

But when he got a clear look at Konoha's formation, the corners of his mouth couldn't help but rise slightly.

It seemed the intelligence was true. Konoha's forces were severely stretched because it also had to deal with pressure from Kumogakure.

On Konoha's side, apart from the Hyuga Clan Jonin leading them and a few combat squads, the rest were only medical-nin. If he excluded the medical-nin, his force was twice the size of Konoha's.

He waited no longer. Raising his right hand, he gave the signal for an all-out attack.

Then he saw a boy walk out of Konoha's position, ignoring the leading Jonin's attempt to stop him.

Black hair, a Tachi, and a steady stride. He looked even younger than the medical-nin around him.

Sanada's first thought was that Konoha was so desperate it had sent a child onto the battlefield, but he didn't laugh. Anyone who stepped forward at a time like this was either a fool or genuinely capable. He gestured to the messenger beside him: have the left flank send two men to deal with the brat and keep him out of the way.

Two Sand Ninja Chunin on the left flank received the order and crouched low as they moved to surround Byakuya. Their coordination was seamless: one feinted from the front, his Kunai aimed straight at Byakuya's throat; the other circled behind him, forming Hand Seals to unleash Wind Release and cut off every avenue of retreat. There was indeed nothing wrong with their coordination.

But they had chosen the wrong opponent.

Byakuya's right hand closed on his sword hilt, and he drew faster than the eye could follow. The Sand Ninja attacking from the front saw only a flash of silver. His Kunai snapped, and the back of the blade struck the side of his neck. He dropped to his knees with a muffled grunt. The Sand Ninja behind him had just finished his Hand Seals, but before he could release his wind blade, Byakuya's left index finger was already pointing at him.

"Hadō #4: Byakurai."

Lightning pierced the night. A fist-sized, charred hole blasted open in the Sand Ninja's chest. Still holding his Hand Seal, he fell backward, struck a tree root, and slid to the ground. Less than five seconds had passed between the two men's attack and their fall. Sanada's smile froze on his face.

Byakuya shook the blood from his blade and continued forward. Reiatsu poured out of him.

A pure pressure that reached straight to the soul spread outward like an icy tide, and the Sand Ninja's assault visibly slowed.

It was instinctive, as though they were being watched from above by a higher existence. Even ninja accustomed to killing had to expend extra effort to resist this inexplicable fear.

Hizashi Hyuga, who had stepped out of formation to stop Byakuya, also felt the terrifying pressure. Countless thoughts flashed through his mind in that instant, but as the leading Jonin, he endured the discomfort of having his common sense overturned and gave the right order.

"Everyone, listen up!" Hizashi Hyuga's voice rang out through the night sky, decisive and calm from long years on the battlefield. He attacked at the same time, using Gentle Fist to precisely drive back a Sand Ninja trying to ambush the Medical Corps. "Support Byakuya! Counterattack with everything you've got!"

But Byakuya was faster than he had anticipated.

The Tachi traced a continuous silver arc through the firelight, each slash accompanied by the ring of the blade.

Sanada tried to attack personally and stop Byakuya, but he couldn't keep up with Byakuya's speed at all, nor could he predict his erratic movements.

He had never felt so helpless.

Byakuya never broke stride, moving through the Sand Ninja's encirclement as though no one stood in his way. His left index finger kept changing direction, flashes of Byakurai flaring through the woods. Every flash brought a Sand Ninja down. His scabbard struck the back of a Sand Ninja's head as the man tried to attack him from behind, knocking him unconscious before he could even scream.

Using an incantationless Bakudō, Byakuya twisted the arm of another enemy lunging at him from the side behind his back, then swept his blade across him.

His Shunpo never stopped. Each pause came precisely in the gaps between the Sand Ninja's attacks, giving his opponents no room to breathe.

The Sand Ninja formation began to fall into obvious disarray. Against an opponent who could pinpoint everyone's location in the dark, move at a speed far beyond reason, and hit his target with every strike, any tactic seemed futile. Though they had been the ones to launch the surprise attack, they were now entirely on the defensive. They couldn't even tell which direction the next attack would come from, or whether they would die by blade or lightning.

More frightening still, no matter how they tried to attack, that man always dodged in advance and countered with an even deadlier move.

This was no longer a battle. It was a one-sided slaughter.

"Don't panic! Everyone, close in on me!" Sanada shouted, his voice carrying far through the night.

The Sand Ninja seized on the order like a reprieve, quickly abandoning their targets and closing in on their commander. In the space of a few breaths, a dozen-odd survivors gathered into a circle, backs together and weapons pointed outward, trying to use their tight formation to withstand Byakuya's ghostlike attacks.

That way, as long as Byakuya dared attack any one of them, Sanada was confident he could strike him head-on!

Seeing this, Byakuya smiled instead. Hidden behind a large tree, he secretly activated Transparent Release, his body gradually vanishing from where he stood as though being erased.

"Scattered bones of beasts, spires, red crystals, wheels of steel..."

The low, clear chant sounded from every direction. The Sand Ninja hurriedly looked around, but couldn't see him anywhere.

The Sand Ninja didn't know what he was reciting, but their unease grew stronger as the chant continued. Those few archaic phrases rang so clearly across the battlefield, amid the sounds of combat, that every Sand Ninja could hear them.

"Movement is wind, stillness is emptiness, the sound of spears clashing fills the hollow city!"

Sanada's pupils contracted sharply. He suddenly realized how foolish his order had been.

Gathering together could indeed keep an enemy from approaching them from behind, but it also surrendered the initiative to their opponent and gave him time to prepare a large-scale Ninjutsu at his leisure.

They had become sitting targets!

But it was already too late for him to order them to scatter.

The final words came from overhead. Everyone instinctively looked up and saw a figure gradually appearing in the moonlight.

Chakra surged madly, merging with Reiatsu.

His hands came together, palms facing down and all ten fingers spread, aimed directly at the Sand Ninja huddled below.

"Hadō #63: Raikōhō!"

Lightning thundered from his palms. This was no longer a single bolt like the earlier Byakurai, but a beam.

A column of lightning as thick as a man's waist plunged vertically from the night sky and struck the very center of the Sand Ninja's circle. The earth trembled, and the air within several dozen meters was ionized in an instant. The pungent smell of ozone filled everyone's nostrils. Where the lightning struck directly, there were no screams and no struggles, only a dull burst as a charred crater several meters wide was blasted into the ground.

The Sand Ninja at the edge of the crater were hurled away by the shock wave, their bodies tumbling through the air like dead leaves in a gale before crashing heavily to the ground. Serpents of electricity spread across the earth, crawling over the ankles of the Sand Ninja still standing and swallowing the sounds of their convulsions in the thunderstorm's hiss.

Their gathered formation had not kept them safe. Instead, it had allowed the attack's destructive range to cover them more completely. The circle of more than a dozen men fell apart in an instant. More than half the Sand Ninja lay on the scorched earth, while the few remaining could barely prop themselves up with their swords, swaying on their feet, their faces showing only the daze and fear of having survived.

The battlefield fell so silent that a pin could be heard dropping. Even the Konoha ninja were shaken by the sight. Some of the young medical-nin collapsed to the ground, while others didn't notice their Kunai slipping from their hands.

"Retreat—retreat!" Sanada finally forced the words from his throat, his voice hoarse and shrill, like a beast caught in a trap. The surviving Sand Ninja seized on the order like a reprieve, supported their wounded, and stumbled away into the darkness.

Sanada himself didn't run. He had taken the brunt of the attack, and even if he fled, he might not survive. Besides, someone had to take responsibility for such a complete defeat.

"One last thing. Could you tell me your name?"

"Gekkō Byakuya."

"Gekkō Byakuya? Someone of your caliber had no reputation at all before now... I never expected that I, Sanada, would mark the beginning of a genius's rise to fame throughout the Shinobi World."

"Any other last words?"

"Come on!"

A blade flashed, and Sanada fell.

The blade was fast. He had probably suffered much less at the end.