Digging Out Eyes

The kunai only slightly deflected the Exploding Blade Shibuki's trajectory, Hyuga Yu shot out from the explosion's smoke, his heels dragging for over ten meters on the ground before he stopped his momentum.

At this moment, his left shoulder was a bloody mess, and his left hand had lost all feeling.

But Hyuga Yu's expression remained calm, his gaze so cold it was almost devoid of human emotion.

He looked up and saw—

Two figures leaped out along the path Ao had taken to ambush Hyuga Natsu.

One of them was tall with long limbs, wearing a black shirt and gray ninja boots, a Kirigakure Anbu mask on his face, and wielding a ninja tool like a long needle.

It was the wielder of Nuibari from the Seven Ninja Swordsmen of the Mist, Kushimaru Kuriarare!

The other person was leisurely strolling out of the forest, arriving beside the Exploding Blade Shibuki he had thrown. He pulled the door-sized blade from the ground and slung it over his shoulder.

This man had a long, donkey-like face, thick lips, sharp teeth, long black hair styled into upright braids and a long beard, with layers of bandages wrapped around his head and neck.

It was the wielder of Exploding Blade Shibuki from the Seven Ninja Swordsmen of the Mist, Munashi Jinpachi!

Kushimaru Kuriarare turned his head and, through his mask, coldly swept his gaze over Ao on the ground, his voice chilling as he said, "Ao, you talk too much."

On the ground, Ao coughed up blood, a grin splitting his lips. He didn't argue.

In fact, the reason Hyuga Yu, who had his Byakugan constantly active, hadn't spotted Kushimaru Kuriarare was because Ao had deliberately led him to that position, forcing Hyuga Yu to face him constantly, thus losing that one degree of vision behind his head.

Simultaneously, while taking a detour to ambush the Hyuga Main Family, Ao had left markers for the Seven Ninja Swordsmen of the Mist following behind. (PS: This was Ao's habit; he did the same when tracking Danzo during the Five Kage Summit.)

If Hyuga Yu hadn't been about to finish him off, Ao wouldn't have exposed the two of them prematurely.

Ninja moved quickly, and with the two battlefields less than two kilometers apart, disregarding Chakra consumption, the two, using the Body Flicker Technique, could traverse the distance in just over ten seconds. Upon seeing the markers Ao left, they understood Ao's plan.

Munashi Jinpachi was different from Kushimaru Kuriarare. While he didn't mind using ninja tactics for ambushes, he preferred a grand spectacle. He let out a scoff and reassured the two, "Isn't this more interesting?"

"It's been a long time since I've seen such an interesting brat. This green Chakra... tsk, he's completely different from other Hyuga."

Munashi Jinpachi suddenly swung his blade, its edge covered in Explosive Tags, pointing directly at Hyuga Yu's face. He bared his sharp teeth and sneered, "You better give me a bigger surprise, kid!"

Facing the Seven Ninja Swordsmen of the Mist, who treated the battlefield like a playground, Hyuga Yu narrowed his eyes slightly. Ostensibly, he stared at his enemies as if facing a great threat, but in reality, he was looking in another direction.

Not long ago, Hyuga Genko had been blown away by a trap set by Hyuga Natsu. Hyuga Natsu immediately went to check on his condition.

Clearly, even a Main Family member like Hyuga Genko, who lacked much ninja experience, wasn't so easily killed by an Explosive Tag. When the explosion occurred, he instinctively released Chakra from his acupoints to resist some of the damage.

However, Hyuga Genko's current state was not good.

He was covered in burns, both his legs were broken, and his lips trembled as he opened his eyes dazedly after a while.

Fortunately, his Byakugan were still intact.

Hyuga Genko breathed weakly, looking around in a daze. When he saw Hyuga Natsu's somber expression, his gaze flickered away.

Hyuga Natsu, looking at Hyuga Genko, who was still alive, her expression sank. Her eyes fixed on his palms as she guarded against him forming hand seals for the Caged Bird technique, reaching for the ninja tool pouch on her back.

Soon, a smile, like those from the past, appeared on her face:

"Young Master Genko, are you alright?"

"I... I..." Hyuga Genko instinctively wanted to say he was fine, but after seeing his condition, the words wouldn't come out.

He swallowed and, as his evasive gaze fell upon Hyuga Natsu's movements, he seemed to realize something, his face contorting slightly.

He tried to shift his body backward, as if instinctively wanting to distance himself from Hyuga Natsu.

"I think I vaguely heard... the Main Family's true guards have arrived... Who... who is it?"

"Can't you see for yourself?"

Hyuga Natsu smiled, shifting her shoulder to block Hyuga Yu's figure not far behind her.

"Gather Chakra in your eyes and activate your Byakugan, and you'll see."

When Hyuga Yu was interning at Konoha Hospital, Hyuga Natsu had assisted as a nurse.

Even at Konoha Hospital, removing an eyeball was an extremely difficult surgery, requiring the top medical personnel to perform it.

Especially if the goal was to ensure the eye remained perfectly intact and functional for future use.

Of course, in the wilderness, the environment was not nearly as favorable.

Hyuga Natsu had once inquired Hyuga Yu about this matter.

He answered like this:

"It's difficult to achieve sterility in a wild environment, but there's a way to remedy it—Chakra."

"By concentrating Chakra in the eyes, a sterile layer that lasts for a very short time can be formed. After accomplishing this, cut the conjunctiva in a ring around the corneal margin, separate the conjunctiva and subconjunctival tissue downwards, then sever the rectus muscles connecting to the eyeball and the optic nerve, and the eyeball can be dug out nicely."

Hyuga Natsu watched Hyuga Genko with a smile.

Hyuga Genko swallowed hard, feeling increasingly uneasy.

He couldn't understand why someone would look at him with such a sweet smile after being betrayed.

Why wasn't she angry?

Even now, she could have slapped him and cursed, "I was blind to agree to the proposal of a beast like you!"

But Hyuga Natsu did nothing, just smiled and said softly:

"Young Master Genko, what are you afraid of?"

"The Main Family's guards have arrived, you're safe now. You can open your Byakugan and take a good look."

Hyuga Genko rubbed his palms on the ground, scratching and digging, grabbing a handful of dirt, and asked evasively, "Heh heh... haha, Natsu, just tell me directly, that person is—"

However, Just then, a thundering footstep sound that seemed to split the earth erupted from not far away.

Following that, "—BOOM!!!"

With a roar, a terrifying vortex of flames rose behind Hyuga Natsu!

One green, two black, three figures tangled together, The glint of blades, the flash of fire, and an extremely brilliant silver light, all intertwined and shone at that moment!

Upon seeing the tall figure entwined with green Chakra, A flicker of horror, then a flicker of understanding, crossed Hyuga Genko's eyes.

The next instant, Countless complex emotions turned into a resolve to destroy everything.

Hyuga Genko's expression turned fierce!

He suddenly threw the dirt he was holding at Hyuga Natsu's face, then, raising his only usable hands fiercely, formed a hand seal.

Two cold lights shot from Hyuga Genko's eyes, the skin on his face contorted grotesquely, and he sneered menacingly:

"With you two mongrels, servants, bitches!"

"You want my eyes? All of you die!!!"

However, In the very next blink of an eye, A tall, calm, indifferent figure appeared before Hyuga Genko, with one eye unable to open and blood gushing out.

"Too slow, Natsu."

Hyuga Genko's eyes widened in disbelief as he looked at Hyuga Yu, who had appeared before him with no expression, then glanced down at the undeniable hand seal for the Caged Bird he had formed.

He opened his mouth, his throat dry.

The next instant, A large hand reached out, completely stealing all of Hyuga Genko's sight!

"Curse Removal Technique!"