"Captain, it looks like something fell down," the Anbu Ninja from earlier whispered to Sarutobi Shinnosuke.
"Go take a look," Sarutobi Shinnosuke said with a frown, a faint sense of foreboding rising in his heart.
The Anbu Ninja nodded and was about to go check when, suddenly, a pure-white blade pierced through his chest.
The Anbu Ninja screamed and died instantly.
"Shimada!" Sarutobi Shinnosuke cried in alarm. A sudden chill ran through him, and he sprang away from the Anbu Ninja called Shimada. The two remaining Anbu followed close behind, drawing their swords and bracing themselves for battle.
Just then, Sarutobi Shinnosuke felt something catch his foot. He looked down and saw his wife's head. Her eyes bulged, her face frozen in terror. She was most certainly dead.
"Shizuka!!!" Sarutobi Shinnosuke roared, his eyes bloodshot. He whipped around to face Shimada's body, pierced through by the blade, and demanded, "You bastard, who are you?"
"My, my. Weren't you looking for me just now? Well, here I am." Chiya pulled out her blade and slowly emerged from the darkness, wearing a smiling mask.
"It's you. Fujiwara Chiya!" Sarutobi Shinnosuke seethed with rage, killing intent gleaming in his eyes. But as a Konoha Jonin who'd spent years clawing his way through piles of corpses, he quickly regained his composure and exchanged a glance with the two Anbu beside him.
The two Anbu nodded to each other. Their hands flashed through Hand Seals, and they plunged their blades into the ground as chakra gathered in their throats.
"Fire Style: Fire Dragon Bullet Technique!"
"Wind Style: Gale Slash!"
The Sarutobi Clan were skilled in Fire Style, and Sarutobi Shinnosuke's teammates were among the best of them. They were already a match for most Uchiha.
Sarutobi Shinnosuke, meanwhile, had trained in Wind Release in addition to his Fire Style. He swiftly leaped behind the other two, formed Hand Seals with his empty left hand, and exhaled a blast of wind pressure over his sword.
They used Fire Style as a feint, then, while their opponent dodged, Sarutobi Shinnosuke would use Wind Release to cut them down.
Years of working together had given them perfect coordination.
With this tactic, they'd slain countless powerful foes.
"Too slow."
Before they could even launch their techniques, Chiya was already in front of the two Anbu. She swung her blade and cut off both their heads, snuffing out the Fire Dragon Bullet before it could form.
Sarutobi Shinnosuke's expression changed abruptly. That level of Body Flicker Technique was beyond anything he could handle.
He couldn't help thinking of the late Fourth Hokage, Namikaze Minato.
There was no time to dwell on it. While Chiya was busy killing his two teammates, Sarutobi Shinnosuke swung his sword, now coated in wind pressure, and slashed at her with a blade of wind.
Chiya stood right where she was, calmly watching the wind blade approach.
Just as Sarutobi Shinnosuke thought she had nowhere to dodge, Chiya slowly raised her left hand and extended her index finger.
With a sharp clang, Chiya caught Sarutobi Shinnosuke's wind blade with her bare hand.
"That's some impressive Wind Release. To have trained your Wind Nature Transformation to this level makes you one of the best. But unfortunately, it won't help you. A ninja battle is a battle of chakra. With only the amount of chakra you've used to create that wind pressure, all I need to do is gather Fire Style chakra, which counters Wind Release, in my palm to neutralize it."
Chiya curled her index finger around the blade. As Sarutobi Shinnosuke stared in shock, she slashed down.
Blood sprayed everywhere.
A savage, terrifying wound split Sarutobi Shinnosuke from his right shoulder to his left abdomen.
"How is this possible?" he murmured weakly. The sword slipped from his hand, and he fell, unwilling to accept his defeat.
I've wasted so much time. I hope I'm not too late. I can't let Uchiha Fugaku's Mangekyō Sharingan go.
Thinking this, Chiya flicked the blood from her blade and left Sarutobi Shinnosuke where he lay. In a flash, she vanished, racing toward the Filial Son's home.
After Chiya had gone, a giant Pitcher Plant slowly emerged from the ground. White Zetsu said, "That guy's way too strong. He caught a wind blade with just one finger! Even Lord Madara, before awakening the Rinnegan, wouldn't dare do something that crazy."
"Looks like he's mastered some kind of Nintaijutsu similar to the Fourth Raikage's Lightning Release Chakra Mode," Black Zetsu said, voicing his guess.
"What do we do? Should we follow them? Itachi's mission is to kill Chiya, after all. He still doesn't know Chiya has joined Akatsuki. If either of them dies, Akatsuki will lose an important member," White Zetsu said.
Black Zetsu thought for a moment. "Let's find Obito. We can't interfere in a battle between the Mangekyō Sharingan and Senjutsu."
With that, the giant Pitcher Plant slowly sank into the ground and disappeared.
Meanwhile, Chiya had arrived at the Filial Son's home.
Sensing Fugaku and his wife, Mikoto, inside the house, as well as the chakra of the Filial Son, who was still slaughtering Uchiha in the distance, Chiya murmured, "Looks like I made it in time."
As she spoke, Chiya stepped forward, pushed open the door, and entered. She saw Uchiha Fugaku and Uchiha Mikoto kneeling on the tatami, waiting for their son to slaughter them.
"You?" Fugaku looked surprised. Mikoto did too.
Then Uchiha Fugaku asked, "Did the Third and Danzo send you to kill us? You don't need to do that. If possible, I'd rather die at my own son's hands."
"Who said I came to kill you? Didn't you just meet Itachi the turncoat with a Shadow Clone? Have you seen me kill a single Uchiha?"
Chiya rolled her eyes, silently adding that the most she'd do was retrieve his bloodline and Sharingan after Itachi killed him.
"Then why did you come?" Uchiha Fugaku asked. Now that he thought about it, she had a point.
"Nothing much. I just want to take your Mangekyō Sharingan after your precious son kills you."
"Rather than have your eyes taken by that patricidal, matricidal Filial Son of yours, or fall into Danzo's hands—or someone else's with ulterior motives—you might as well give them to me."
"At least because of Izumi, I won't harm the Uchiha."
Chiya spoke candidly, her gaze drifting toward Uchiha Mikoto.
Her long, inky-black hair fell softly over her shoulders, giving her a gentle air. She wore a neat, form-fitting dress in pale purple, its cut perfectly outlining her mature figure.
Below the dress, her long, dazzlingly white legs caught the eye, stirring a sudden heat in the heart. A white sash encircled her slender waist, emphasizing its delicate curves.
She was the very picture of a traditional Japanese beauty.
For someone orphaned from birth who had never known a mother's love, she was irresistibly comforting—and devastatingly alluring.
Chiya couldn't help sighing inwardly. What a stunning woman. It was a shame she was about to die.
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