A Mysterious Figure Attacks the Village

Hizashi Hyuga, who was fighting the mysterious masked man, found that the Gentle Fist techniques he had always been proud of vanished like mud into the sea, unable to inflict any real damage on his opponent.

After merely a dozen exchanges, Hizashi was already deeply alarmed, while his opponent strolled along the courtyard wall as if taking a leisurely walk, blocking his attacks with just one hand.

The bright moonlight cast a cold gleam across the White Three-Eyed Fox Mask. The mysterious man seemed to be thoughtfully studying him.

Hizashi Hyuga activated his Byakugan, veins bulging around his temples as he tried to see through his enemy's true face.

Yet beneath that White Three-Eyed Fox Mask lay something like profound darkness, swallowing every gaze cast upon it and making him shudder!

An indescribable sense of terror rose within him, distracting Hizashi for an instant.

Uzumaki Menma seized the opportunity. He clenched one hand into a fist, and the wind from his punch carried a piercing howl as it slammed into Hizashi's face, knocking him off the courtyard wall.

Hizashi spun through the air, abruptly twisted his body, and staggered upon landing, cold sweat pouring down his back.

When he looked up at the mysterious figure still standing atop the wall, it seemed as though a pair of eyes behind the mask were calmly assessing him.

Whoosh—

At that critical moment, Hyuga Hiashi swept through the air like a white falcon and launched a direct attack at the masked man on the wall.

Hizashi Hyuga followed close behind. The two brothers used the Hyuga Clan's Gentle Fist techniques and their seamless coordination to unleash one combined move after another.

Hiashi attacked head-on, chakra gathering in his palms as he shouted:

"Eight Trigrams Palms! Sixty-Four Palms!"

At the same time, Hizashi immediately understood. He adjusted his stance and formed a pincer formation with his elder brother, chakra gathering in his palms as both hands struck out repeatedly. "Eight Trigrams Palms! Thirty-Two Palms!"

Their exquisite Gentle Fist combination was like a woven net of chakra, attacking the mysterious masked man from both sides.

In an instant, three figures flashed and crossed atop the courtyard wall. The collision of chakra stirred up fierce gusts, forcing the nearby Hyuga ninja to shield their faces with their sleeves as they struggled against the raging wind.

"Mini Spiraling Ring!" Uzumaki Menma decided it was enough. His right hand curled around a black Rasengan, which he launched at Hizashi Hyuga's one-degree blind spot.

In that instant, the sense of a deadly crisis engulfed Hizashi Hyuga.

Without hesitation, Hizashi instinctively erupted the chakra within his body from every acupuncture point, forming an azure chakra vortex to protect himself.

"Eight Trigrams Palms! Rotation!"

Boom!

The Mini Spiraling Ring struck Hizashi's Rotation head-on. Its violent Dark Chakra tore through the Rotation's defenses and sent Hizashi flying heavily away.

Pfft—

A mouthful of blood spurted from Hizashi's mouth as his body was hurled several meters away!

"Hizashi!"

Before Hiashi could finish his furious cry, an icy voice suddenly sounded beside his ear.

"Your turn."

At some point, the mysterious masked man had already flashed in front of Hiashi.

The mysterious man's hands were condensed with a massive amount of chakra, vaguely taking the shape of savage lion heads.

"What?! How do you know—" Every hair on Hiashi's body stood on end as he tried to activate Rotation.

However, the mysterious man was several times faster than before.

"Twin Lion Fists!" Uzumaki Menma threw both fists, smashing them heavily into Hyuga Hiashi's chest.

Hyuga Hiashi fell from the high wall like a kite with its string cut.

"Clan Head!" The other Hyuga Clan ninja rushed forward and shielded the fallen Hiashi in their midst.

A full moon hung high in the sky. Uzumaki Menma, wearing the White Three-Eyed Fox Mask, stood imposingly atop the high wall at the entrance of the Hyuga Compound. Behind the mask, an icy gaze seemed to survey the Hyuga Clan's grounds.

"Who exactly are you?!" Hyuga Hiashi rose from the ground. His chest injuries were severe, blood still trickling from the corner of his mouth as he stared in shock at the mysterious figure on the wall.

"Menma, lots of ninja are rushing over." Little Nine-Tails lay on Menma's shoulder within his fur collar, informing him of what it had sensed.

Whoosh—

Uzumaki Menma flashed down from the high wall and appeared beside the corpse of the dead Cloud Village envoy.

"Every gift from fate has its price secretly marked." Uzumaki Menma lifted his White Three-Eyed Fox Mask and spoke to Hyuga Hiashi.

Then he turned to look at Hizashi Hyuga, who had smashed a huge crater into the ground.

"I'll be back."

Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh—

At that moment, countless figures arrived at the Hyuga Compound from every direction.

"Hyuga Clan Head! The Anbu have been ordered to investigate!" An Anbu ninja wearing a cat-face mask, with short white hair and a short sword on his back, landed atop a utility pole beside the Hyuga brothers.

Yet even Kakashi, who had seen countless battles, was shocked by the scene before him.

The Hyuga Clan Head appeared to have suffered serious injuries, while Hizashi Hyuga lay in a massive crater, his condition unknown.

Several Hyuga Clan jonin standing guard nearby watched the mysterious figure in the distance as though facing a great enemy.

"This guy's bounty is no small sum." The mysterious man grabbed a corpse from the ground.

Kakashi focused his eyes and discovered that it was actually the Cloud Village envoy!

"How is that possible?! Wasn't the Cloud Village envoy..." An Anbu ninja landed beside Kakashi and cried out in shock as well.

The mysterious masked man grabbed the Cloud Village envoy's corpse and flashed onto the high wall.

"What incredible speed!" Even Kakashi, as the Anbu captain, found this man difficult to handle.

But the other party had no intention of continuing the fight. Instead, he swiftly departed, vanishing into the night after several flashes.

"Pursue him!" Kakashi gave the order and charged out first. The Anbu ninja followed after him, pursuing the mysterious man.

They absolutely could not let him take the Cloud Village envoy's corpse away so easily. That would undoubtedly be a slap in the face to the Hidden Leaf Village!

A slap in the face to Lord Third Hokage!

Once the mysterious enemy had left and the Anbu ninja had gone after him, Hyuga Hiashi clutched his chest and walked over to Hizashi, who was receiving treatment.

"Brother..." Hizashi Hyuga panted. The Dark Chakra from the Mini Spiraling Ring had torn open his back, exposing bone beneath a bloody wound.

Surviving a direct hit from the Mini Spiraling Ring was already extraordinarily fortunate.

As an S-rank ninjutsu comparable to the Wind Style: Vortex Shuriken, the Mini Spiraling Ring possessed extremely powerful single-target destructive force.

"Don't speak! Homon, take Hizashi to Konoha Hospital immediately!" Hiashi ordered sternly.

"Yes!" Homon Hyuga gave a slight bow, hoisted Hizashi Hyuga onto his back, and raced toward Konoha Hospital.

Looking at the Hyuga Compound after the great battle, Hyuga Hiashi could only feel lingering fear.

If that mysterious masked man had not appeared just now, and he had killed the Cloud Village envoy, there was no telling how severe a diplomatic incident it would have caused.

It might even have prolonged the war between Cloud Village and Konoha, leading to even more casualties.

"But... why did that man... know Twin Lion Fists?!" Hyuga Hiashi felt the lingering heat in his chest.

"That Twin Lion Fists strike..."

"Huh?" A young voice sounded beside him, interrupting Hyuga Hiashi's thoughts.

He turned and saw that his daughter Hinata had awakened at some point.

As she looked at the chaotic scene around her, Little Hinata's baby-fat face carried a maturity that did not suit her age.

"Tch~" Little Hinata put one hand on her hip and curled her lip in disdain. "Old man, did you drag me out in the middle of the night to go shopping or something?"

Pfft—

Hyuga Hiashi felt his chest tighten, nearly coughing up another mouthful of blood.

"Oh no! The young lady's second personality is out again!" Ko Hyuga, a jonin standing beside Hiashi, looked as though he faced a great enemy and silently took half a step back.