Trap

Evening.

Anko and Oda came to Hyuga Kagami's room to visit him.

As former subordinates of Orochimaru, Hyuga Kagami, Anko, and Oda were all in the same boat. They were close in age and belonged to the same squad, so they got along fairly well.

After chatting for a while, Oda suddenly smiled. "Kagami, you really picked a bad time to get sick."

Hyuga Kagami looked puzzled. "Why?"

Oda explained, "The captain just assigned Anko and me a special mission. If we complete it successfully, we might be transferred back to the village and never have to endure this wind and sand again!"

"A special mission!?" Hyuga Kagami froze for a moment, then said, "I wish you both success."

For some reason, Hyuga Kagami was suddenly struck by a bad feeling. But it was a rule among ninja not to pry into one another's missions, so despite his suspicions, he said nothing more.

Oda patted Hyuga Kagami on the shoulder and laughed heartily. "Don't worry. The village won't forget outstanding ninja like us who've experienced war. Before long, you'll be transferred back too. For now, just focus on recovering."

Hyuga Kagami warned, "Be careful."

After chatting a little longer, Oda and Anko left Hyuga Kagami's room.

In the blink of an eye, three days passed.

Still in the adaptation period, Hyuga Kagami was occasionally tormented by dizziness and stabbing pain. Yet that torment was not bitter, because every wave of pain came with an increase in strength.

Though he had not conducted any precise tests, Hyuga Kagami secretly estimated that the amount of chakra in his body was already more than ten times what it had been before he injected the Genetic Fluid.

There was no clear standard for ranking ninja. The assessment of Genin, Chunin, Jonin, and even Kage-level ninja changed depending on the environment and the era.

Take Hyuga Kagami, for example. Before injecting the Genetic Fluid, he had really only been an experienced Genin. Aside from the most basic Three Basic Jutsu, Gentle Fist, and rudimentary Summoning Jutsu and Sealing Jutsu, he could barely use any other Ninjutsu.

Even so, the village had promoted him to Chunin, and he had led teams on several reconnaissance missions.

Still, there was a vague standard that everyone generally accepted.

For example.

A ninja who could use E-rank Ninjutsu, or wield their own bloodline ability, could be considered to have reached Genin standards.

Someone who could cast C-rank Ninjutsu multiple times could be considered a Chunin.

Someone who could cast B-rank Ninjutsu multiple times and was proficient in one of Ninjutsu, Genjutsu, or Taijutsu, or possessed a powerful bloodline ability, could be considered a Jonin.

As for Kage level, it was really just the outstanding one chosen from among the village's strongest ninja. Thus, the concept of Kage level differed from era to era.

For that reason, chakra reserves had become one of the key measures of a ninja's strength.

If Hyuga Kagami's previous strength could only be considered Genin level, then his current chakra reserves had clearly surpassed those of an ordinary Chunin and were rapidly soaring toward the level of an ordinary Jonin.

Three days of adaptation had also allowed Hyuga Kagami to barely use his eyes.

Upon careful observation, he discovered that his eyes had become like flawless sky-blue gemstones, gleaming with a soul-stirring radiance that made people unable to resist becoming immersed in them.

At the same time, he discovered that the Caged Bird Seal on his forehead still remained, though it seemed to have lost its effect.

That was only natural. The Caged Bird Seal targeted the Byakugan and all the cranial nerves connected to it. Now that Hyuga Kagami's eye sockets no longer held Byakugan but Tenseigan, the seal formula had not been damaged, yet it had effectively undone itself.

Just as Hyuga Kagami was estimating how much longer the Tenseigan's adaptation period would last, he suddenly sensed a familiar chakra rapidly approaching the outpost.

Without a second thought, Hyuga Kagami hurriedly supported himself against the wall and left his room.

Before long, a slight figure rushed into the outpost.

It was none other than Mitaraishi Anko, who had gone out with Oda a few days earlier to carry out the special mission!

Anko looked terrible. Her face was nearly bloodless, her body was covered in wounds, and her breathing was chaotic, as though she had endured one desperate battle after another.

With the vigilance he had honed in war, the instant Hyuga Kagami identified the visitor as Anko, his hand slipped into the Ninja Tool Pouch at his waist and drew a Kunai. Beneath his Goggles, the Tenseigan shone brilliantly as he searched for any pursuers who might be trailing behind her.

But with just a quick sweep, Hyuga Kagami found no enemies behind Anko and breathed a sigh of relief.

The other ninja in the outpost also gathered around, some bandaging Anko's wounds while others asked her about the details of the attack.

Standing nearby on full alert, Hyuga Kagami used the Tenseigan's unparalleled perception to notice that squad captain Mitsui Chuichi's face flashed with an inexplicably strange expression when he saw Anko. It seemed to be a complicated look mixed with surprise and anxiety.

In an instant, a grim suspicion rose in Hyuga Kagami's heart.

In truth, he had considered this possibility long ago. He simply had never dared to be certain—or rather, he had never wanted to be certain.

Instinctively, Hyuga Kagami put a little distance between himself and Mitsui Chuichi.

But Mitsui Chuichi's attention was entirely on Anko at the moment, and he failed to notice anything unusual about Hyuga Kagami. With a grim face, he merely asked Anko, "Was the mission completed?"

Anko stared coldly at Mitsui Chuichi. "We were ambushed the moment we reached the agreed location. It was a trap. Oda died on the spot, and I hid in the desert for two days before barely managing to escape back!"

Mitsui Chuichi's expression became slightly unnatural. "Perhaps the undercover agent we planted among the Sunagakure Ninja was exposed, which is why you were ambushed. I'll report this to the village."

With that, Mitsui Chuichi hurried away. Hyuga Kagami said nothing either and silently helped Anko to her feet.

After returning to Anko's room, Anko suddenly asked Hyuga Kagami, "Have we been abandoned by the village?"

Having been accepted as Orochimaru's disciple, Anko was obviously not foolish. This so-called special mission had been strange from start to finish, and she had naturally noticed it with her sharp instincts.

As he wrapped Anko's wounds, Hyuga Kagami said, "Don't overthink it. Missions going wrong is common enough. You just haven't been through enough yet."

Seemingly persuaded by Hyuga Kagami, Anko said nothing more, and her expression returned to its usual numbness.

After tending to Anko's wounds and confirming that no enemies were approaching the outpost, Hyuga Kagami returned to his room.

The moment he lay down on the bed, Hyuga Kagami's face darkened uncontrollably. Gritting his teeth, he thought, How could they do this!? How dare they do this!?