Iwa-nin

Following the map's guidance, Hyuga Mirai and Yuhi Kurenai cautiously arrived at Konoha's intelligence-gathering outpost. When they were still 1.5 kilometers away, Hyuga Mirai directly activated his Byakugan.

"Four people. Each of them has more Chakra than you do, Kurenai."

"Mirai-kun!"

Yuhi Kurenai puffed out her cheeks and glared at Hyuga Mirai in displeasure. However, the next second, her expression froze as she recalled what Kaminari Kaede had said.

"Four people? Mirai-kun, isn't an intelligence outpost supposed to have only three people?"

Hyuga Mirai nodded and said, "That means there is a fifty-percent chance that some of them are enemies. Kurenai, keep watch here while I go notify the Captain."

With his Byakugan, he could monitor the area from afar, so having Yuhi Kurenai follow the markers left by Kaminari Kaede to report back was the best choice.

As for tracking markers, they had practiced it many times at the Ninja Academy.

"Then, Mirai-kun, you must be careful."

Hyuga Mirai smiled. "Don't worry. Go and come back quickly, and keep yourself hidden so no one notices you."

Yuhi Kurenai nodded to show that she understood, then immediately headed back the way they had come, preparing to find the markers Kaminari Kaede had left behind.

Meanwhile, Hyuga Mirai kept his Byakugan active and watched the four people inside the outpost closely.

The Hyūga Clan's Byakugan could be said to be immensely versatile. Telescopic vision was only one of its abilities; it could also see everything behind obstacles. Hyuga Mirai was not strong enough yet, otherwise he would have been able to see the faces of the four people inside the intelligence outpost from 1.5 kilometers away.

But to achieve that, even a Jonin from the Main Family probably could not manage it.

The farther away the target, the weaker the Byakugan's vision became. Within fifty meters, Hyuga Mirai could clearly read the words on a scroll through a wall.

But at a distance of 1.5 kilometers, he could only see the Chakra outlines of four human figures. Even seeing their Meridians was difficult.

The Sharingan is the ultimate manifestation of Yin Release. Then the Byakugan, which is also one of the three great Eye Techniques, should be related to Yin Release as well. If I nourish the Byakugan with Yang Release Chakra, perhaps I can raise its limits.

Hyuga Mirai silently considered it. This was only his speculation, and he had not conducted any actual experiments. Still, nourishing the Byakugan with Yang Release Chakra should not harm him.

"Let's give it a try."

Hyuga Mirai immediately formed hand seals and refined Yang Release Chakra within his body.

With his exquisite Chakra control, he guided the Yang Release Chakra toward the Meridians and acupoints around his eyes.

Then, Hyuga Mirai felt as though his eyes had been wrapped in a warm current. The sensation coming from them was exceptionally pleasant.

"Let's test the Byakugan's limits again..."

Hyuga Mirai raised his head. The Meridians on both sides of his face had faded considerably and no longer looked as "ferocious" as when he had activated the Byakugan earlier.

"It reaches farther than before, around three kilometers. I didn't expect Yang Release Chakra to truly improve the Byakugan's abilities. And it feels wonderful, even more comfortable than soaking in a hot spring."

Hyuga Mirai thought with a slight curl of his lips. He could feel that regularly circulating Yang Release Chakra through the Meridians and acupoints around his eyes would greatly benefit his Byakugan.

The nourishment from Yang Release Chakra had not only improved the Byakugan's telescopic vision, but also allowed Hyuga Mirai to barely make out the faces of the four people inside the outpost.

"They really are Iwa-nin. It seems the intelligence personnel have already been dealt with."

All four wore Iwagakure forehead protectors, but Hyuga Mirai did not see the corpses of any Konoha Ninja. After watching for a while longer, he deactivated his Byakugan.

The consumption was a little high. Five minutes of use was equivalent to casting a Mystical Palm Technique.

Even a Chunin would not be able to sustain it for long. Besides, in the Hyūga Clan, anyone with even slightly outstanding talent would focus on cultivating the Gentle Fist, rather than proactively studying Medical Ninjutsu like Hyuga Mirai.

Since a fight might break out soon, Hyuga Mirai did not keep his Byakugan active. He watched from afar and only activated it from time to time to observe the situation inside the outpost.

Before half a day had passed, Hyuga Mirai noticed someone approaching from behind. Through his Byakugan, he recognized the newcomer's Chakra reserves, but even so, he did not lower his guard. Only after Kaminari Kaede approached and exchanged the code phrase with him did Hyuga Mirai lower the Kunai in his hand.

"Not bad vigilance."

After walking over, Kaminari Kaede praised Hyuga Mirai, then asked, "What's the situation here?"

"They're Iwa-nin."

Hyuga Mirai answered with certainty, "Someone came out earlier wearing an Iwagakure forehead protector. Judging by their Chakra reserves, all four should be around Chunin level."

After hearing Hyuga Mirai's words, Kaminari Kaede turned to look at Hyuga Kiyomi.

After Hyuga Kiyomi activated her Byakugan and looked toward the intelligence outpost, she nodded at Kaminari Kaede, signaling that Hyuga Mirai was correct.

"Four Chunin."

Kaminari Kaede pondered silently. The situation in the Grass Country was complicated. Though it was nominally a neutral country, it had been treated as a buffer zone by the Land of Fire and the Earth Country. Both Konoha and Iwagakure continuously planted agents and scouts throughout the Grass Country.

What they could confirm now was that the personnel at several other Konoha intelligence outposts had all been killed by Iwa-nin. They just did not know how much intelligence the enemy had intercepted.

"Hyuga Mirai, Hyuga Kiyomi, the two of you will use your Byakugan to circle this outpost once. Do not trigger any traps. Once we engage, I will kill two of them as quickly as possible. Hyuga Kiyomi, hold one back. Hyuga Mirai and Yuhi Kurenai, the two of you hold off the other."

After pondering for a moment, Kaminari Kaede began laying out the battle plan.

Hyuga Kiyomi usually displayed the greatest strength. Her Gentle Fist was exceptionally refined, and once she closed in, even a Chunin caught off guard would quickly fall into a disadvantage.

Meanwhile, Yuhi Kurenai and Hyuga Mirai could coordinate at range and in close combat. The three of them did not need to kill their opponents; as long as they held the Iwa-nin back for a while, Kaminari Kaede could finish his enemies and come support them.

"Understood!"

The three answered in unison, then dispersed to make preparations.

Checking the surrounding traps and whether there were any Iwa-nin ambushes required the Byakugan.

After Hyuga Mirai and Hyuga Kiyomi swiftly inspected the area within five kilometers, they returned and gave Kaminari Kaede a hand signal. Then they prepared to begin the fight.

Even now, the Iwa-nin inside the outpost had not noticed anything outside. Perhaps they simply did not believe that Konoha could react so quickly and send people to the Grass Country after they had just wiped out Konoha's intelligence personnel.

Kaminari Kaede slowly crept close to the outpost, then rapidly formed hand seals with both hands.

"Earth Style: Rock Golem!"

After forming the seals, Kaminari Kaede pressed both hands to the ground. As he channeled Chakra, Konoha's intelligence outpost immediately began to shake violently.

The earth instantly split open into more than a dozen fissures, and the intelligence outpost collapsed into them.

"Enemies! Get out and fight!"

The Iwa-nin inside reacted the moment Rock Golem appeared and immediately called to their companions as they fled from the small house.

"Fire Style: Fire Dragon Bullet!"

Seizing the opportunity, Kaminari Kaede used Fire Style to split apart the formation of the four-man Iwa-nin squad. Seeing the Fire Style divide their enemies, Hyuga Mirai and the other two struck at the same time, attacking the two Iwa-nin nearest to them!

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