The Dawn That Dispels Darkness!

"Huh? What's this?"

Haku, who Shinji had spontaneously invited out for a late-night snack, found a sticky note on the table after returning to his apartment.

He stepped forward and picked up the note. His expression immediately turned serious.

At the same moment.

Karin, who returned home late, also discovered a sticky note by her bedside.

She hesitated for a moment before stepping forward to pick it up and read it. Her expression changed, and she subconsciously turned her head to look at the wall clock.

In Shinji's apartment.

Just like when he was preparing to repel an invasion last time, he neatly arranged all his Ninja Tools on the bed. He carefully inventoried them as he packed them into his ninja tool pouch.

Then, he secured the spoils from last time, the spider silk, onto his wrists, hiding them within his sleeves.

After completing all this, he glanced at the clock, then lay down on the bed and closed his eyes to rest.

The entire apartment fell silent, leaving only his gentle breathing and the monotonous yet precise ticking of the clock's gears.

Nine o'clock.

Ten o'clock.

Eleven o'clock.

Time slowly passed, and the hour hand finally pointed to twelve.

Almost the instant the hour hand made a slight sound, Shinji, who had been resting with his eyes closed on the bed, opened them and sat up.

At this moment.

There was no hesitation or indecision in his eyes. He quickly formed hand seals and completed the Transformation Technique, increasing his height to that of an average adult. Then, he donned the black cloak with red clouds and put on a mask.

[Invasion Area Locked]

[Junior Lantern Bearer, please prepare to repel the invasion]

As he put on the mask, the voice of the Lamp sounded in his ear at the opportune moment.

He slowly closed his eyes, and when he opened them again, his eye sockets were filled with the Mangekyo Sharingan, shining with an eerie light. "Let's go!"

Swish!

He vanished from the apartment without a sound.

Whoosh

Whoosh

The howling cold wind swirled with fallen leaves in the air.

At this moment, a figure appeared out of thin air.

The swirling fallen leaves seemed disturbed by the figure that suddenly appeared, scattering in a panic to the ground, merging with the soil.

Taking a step and landing on the fallen leaves, Shinji looked around. "Where is this?"

Swish swish!

Soon, two more figures appeared out of thin air.

Without a doubt, these two were Haku and Karin, whom Shinji had recruited as his attendants.

Unlike Shinji, who already had experience, Haku and Karin directly collapsed onto the ground, their eyes filled with terror and shock.

"Space-Time Ninjutsu?"

They were both still shaken.

In an instant, they had gone from their rooms in Konohagakure to this outskirts. The only explanation they could think of was Space-Time Ninjutsu.

And in the Ninja World, Space-Time Ninjutsu was extremely rare, the kind you could count on the fingers of one hand with plenty left over.

They had only heard their teachers mention it in class.

They never expected that on their first mission, they would personally experience it, and what puzzled them even more was that they didn't even notice when the jutsu was cast on them.

"Karin!?"

"Haku!?"

Soon, the two, recovering from their shock, recognized each other.

"How come you're here..." Haku paused and tentatively asked, "Did you join the organization too?"

Karin nodded timidly.

Shinji then tossed two red cloud cloaks and two masks to Haku and Karin, saying calmly, "If you want to catch up, there will be plenty of time later."

Feeling the pressure from their leader, Haku and Karin dared not say more and quickly took the masks and red cloud robes.

However, as soon as they put them on, they realized the clothes were too big and didn't fit at all.

"Use the Transformation Technique!"

Shinji instructed, then looked towards the small town in the distance, hidden in the darkness.

The town was pitch black. The ghosts must have already invaded!

Although they didn't understand why the leader would go to such unnecessary lengths, Haku and Karin followed his orders. They first used the Transformation Technique to alter their height and build, then donned their red cloud cloaks and masks before obediently standing behind the leader.

The terrifying power the organization now displayed made them tremble, daring not to harbor any thoughts of defiance.

Seeing that Haku and Karin had recovered from their initial panic, Shinji briefly explained the matter of demons invading the Ninja World while observing the small town in the distance.

Haku grew tense. "You mean there are demons in the town ahead?"

Shinji glanced at Karin.

Karin immediately understood. She closed her eyes, activated the Mind's Eye of the Kagura, and then said hesitantly, "There are indeed quite a few chakra reactions in the town, but they're all strange. This is the first time I've sensed this kind of chakra."

Shinji said slowly, "Demons have no chakra. They only have one way to obtain chakra: by devouring the living beings of the Ninja World and forcibly plundering their chakra!"

Upon hearing this, Haku and Karin imagined the scene, and an involuntary shiver ran down their spines.

Shinji emphasized, "What we need to do is eliminate these invading demons and eradicate them from the Ninja World completely!"

Haku asked with some surprise, "Excuse me, is eliminating these demons the mission of our Akatsuki Organization?"

Shinji said gravely, "Yes, we are the dawn that dispels the darkness!"

Haku and Karin exchanged a glance.

Perhaps because the organization's mission was to protect the Ninja World, the resistance and fear they felt about being forced to join lessened at that moment, replaced by something inexplicable.

On the way to the town, Shinji continued to instruct them, "I've already told you before, at night, you can barely kill demons, so I'll be responsible for the fighting. Your task is only to cover and assist me, understand?"

"Understood!"

Haku and Karin nodded repeatedly.

As if thinking of something else, Shinji briefed Haku and Karin on the Twelve Kizuki just before they entered the town.

He finally emphasized, "Therefore, looking at a demon's eyes is the simplest way to judge its strength. Lower Rank demons, if they haven't obtained any chakra, are roughly at the level of a Chunin, or slightly higher. But if they have obtained chakra, you must treat them as enemies on the Jonin level, and never let your guard down."

After Haku listened carefully, he quickly asked, "Sir, what about Upper Rank demons?"

Shinji shook his head. "I haven't encountered any Upper Rank demons yet."

As they spoke, the three entered the town.

The town was eerily silent, and all the houses were dark, with only the silvery moonlight overhead providing illumination for Shinji and the others.

Shinji glanced at Karin.

Although Karin was a little nervous, she quickly understood. She activated the Mind's Eye of the Kagura, then pointed to a corner not far ahead and whispered, "The strongest chakra is just up ahead."

Shinji looked towards the corner ahead and said, "Haku, you're responsible for protecting Karin."

"Yes!"

Haku drew a kunai and stood protectively beside Karin.

However, just as the three were preparing to move forward, a figure suddenly emerged from the corner ahead.

The figure saw the three of them and slowly spread its arms. "I can smell your scent from this far away. What delicious lambs, come now, go to sleep!"