Kill, Longing

"Kid, you didn't expect that, did you? What's the use of knowing so much if you still die? That's how unpredictable ninjas are!" Green-haired Takagi chuckled sinisterly. In the end, wasn't it still Takagi who would emerge victorious?

But the next moment, his smile vanished.

"Bang!"

With his hand suddenly empty, Takagi's already severely injured body lost its support, staggered through the white smoke, and fell to the ground.

Takagi struggled to lift his head, his gaze piercing through the white smoke and projecting forward.

There, Taiichi was smilingly staring at him, the light of the Mystical Palm Technique still glowing on his hand. "After all this time, the Clown is still me. As expected, those who use clones are all filthy-hearted." With these last thoughts, the Green-haired Takagi closed his eyes forever.

Looking at the green-haired ninja who was finally dead, Taiichi couldn't help but sigh.

As a Medical Ninja recognized by Tsunade, how could Taiichi not be able to tell whether someone was truly unconscious or faking it, whether they were truly dead or pretending to be dead? It can only be said that the green-haired ninja's death was not unjust.

He never bothered to understand Taiichi properly from beginning to end. He was blinded by rage throughout the entire pursuit, only wanting to rely on his Jonin strength to kill Taiichi, and he didn't even make good use of his subordinates.

Little did he know that ninjas are a class known for their high attack and speed, but also for their extreme fragility; the slightest mistake could mean certain death. Even the Third Raikage wasn't as reckless as him. Under these circumstances, if he didn't die, who would?

Having considered the gains and losses of this battle, Taiichi's injuries no longer hindered his movements. This game of hunting by wolves was finally coming to an end, except that the originally delicious prey had ultimately transformed into a ferocious tiger, tearing the wolves that came to hunt him to pieces.

Taiichi picked up the Short Sword that had been placed aside, slung it back on his back, and hid under a large tree on the way they had come. He planned to wait for the two Chunin while recovering his depleted Chakra.

Slower than expected, when the two Chunin aside the leaves blocking their path and arrived at the battlefield, they were immediately stunned by the devastation. What terrified them even more was that the person not far ahead was none other than the Takagi who had previously threatened to Jonin them.

In the instant they were shocked, a figure wielding Short Sword suddenly charged down from a nearby tree, using the immense momentum of his descent to cleave a Chunin air.

Taiichi used the recoil from the clash of weapons to steady himself, and before the Chunin next to him Chunin react, he slashed at his neck with his sword.

It was only then that the ninja, who was always a beat behind, came to his senses and tried to retreat and dodge, but the power of his main body was far superior to that of his Shadow Clone.

Seeing his opponent retreat and dodge, Taiichi didn't stop and charged straight forward, while sheathing his sword and gathering strength. When the two were close, he suddenly thrust out his Short Sword.

The already panicked ninja became even more disheveled. Facing the Short Sword thrust Kunai at him, he could only barely deflect it with his Short Sword, his body staggering from the impact.

Taiichi seized the opportunity, using the force of the opponent deflecting the Short Sword to twist his waist and spin around. With the power of the turn, the Short Sword drew an arc and slashed hard at the ninja's neck, decapitating him in one strike.

From the moment Taiichi cleaved the first ninja away to the moment he beheaded the second ninja, only a few seconds had passed. At this point, the ninja who had just been cleaved away was getting up from the ground.

Seeing the brat who had killed his companion in such a short time, fear finally broke through the ninja's psychological limit. He no longer dared to fight forward, turned around and desperately tried to escape the clutches of that terrible brat.

Faced with an enemy who was clearly terrified and fleeing in panic, Taiichi shook his head helplessly. Before, when he ran away, he knew to use a Fire Style for cover, but this kind of escape, leaving his back to the enemy, was just pure suicide.

Taiichi composed himself, took a few steps forward to close the distance, and then Body Flicker thrust forward, his Short Sword easily piercing the ninja's heart.

Taiichi was even too embarrassed to accept the head given to him.

Looking at the scene, Taiichi finally breathed a sigh of relief. The tracking, lurking, chasing, and counter-killing that had been going on for most of the day was the most intense battle he had ever experienced. A slight mistake could have led to a tragic death.

But every effort has its reward, and he reaped a great deal from such an intense battle.

[After a fierce battle, your Ninja Class Experience +1000]

[Congratulations, your Genin class level has been upgraded to Lv6 (824/1000)]

[Attribute Points +1, Skill Points +1]

Name: Taichi Matsushita Occupation: Genin Lv6 (824/1000)

Talent: Diligence Makes Up for Mediocrity, Academic Overachiever, Potent. Age: 8 years old. Physique: 21.

Strength: 20

Agility: 19

Spirit: 24

Chakra: 17000 (17200)

Attribute Points: 15

Skill Points: 16

Fire Nature Transformation Lv7 (1081/1200)

Wind Release Nature Transformation level 7 (1046/1200)

Water Nature Transformation Lv8 (212/1400)

Earth Style Nature Transformation Lv1 (82/100)

Lightning Nature Transformation Lv0 (63/100)

Yang Release Nature Transformation Lv6 (839/1000)

Yin Release Nature Transformation Lv3 (234/400)

Chakra Shape Transformation Lv7 (124/1200)

Chakra Control Lv6 (511/1000)

Skills: Advanced Taijutsu Lv1 (920/2000), Advanced Meditation Lv1 (934/2000), Advanced Swordsmanship Lv1

(1240/2000) Derivative Skill: Blade Momentum (Guardian)

Evaluation: You seem to have discovered a way to quickly advance. So what are you waiting for? Eternal Genin isn't a good thing. In this battle, the biggest gain was a huge amount of professional experience, which directly raised your level by almost two levels and replenished the Attribute Points and Skill Points consumed in the battle. As for other skill experience, you gained even more.

However, the previous stat allocation left Taiichi puzzled. Now that he had some time, he focused his attention on the constitution panel.

[Constitution: 21 (1/2)]

"Does this mean I need two attribute points to reach 22? Then I'll be even less likely to have enough Attribute Points in the future. And this damn panel doesn't even have any instructions on how to use it," Taiichi thought bitterly.

My training in Advanced Taijutsu and Advanced Meditation has slowed down recently. It seems I need to pay more attention to these two skills in the future. After all, basic physical fitness is fundamental. Without a solid foundation, no matter how powerful you are, it's just a castle in the air.

After calming down, Taiichi started cleaning up the scene, especially the body of that Jonin. He definitely needed to seal it up and take it back to see if he could get more information from his corpse.

After everything was finished, Taiichi returned along the same route. "I wonder how Yohei is doing. That guy looked like he was saying goodbye to me when he left!" Thinking of this, Taiichi felt a warmth in his heart.

The place where Taiichi and Yohei first parted ways, where the sea of fire once filled the sky, is now reduced to a few scattered points still burning, with crackling sounds of wood popping out from time to time. This is the result of Taiichi's efforts to cover Yohei's retreat.

Four figures suddenly appeared at the scene; they were Yohei and his companions who had come to the rescue.

Looking at the scene that had turned to ashes, Yohei became even more anxious. Although the fire had concealed his escape route, it had also increased the difficulty of their search.

But considering Taiichi's possible situation, Yohei resolutely disregarded the still-burning scene and rushed in to search for clues. He activated his Sharingan and tried his best to capture even the smallest trace.

--

Seeing this, Captain Yamaguchi and his two companions remained silent and quietly dispersed to search for clues.

A short while later.

"Captain, over here." Yohei was the first to spot the traces, and Captain Yamaguchi and the others quickly moved closer to Yohei. When they saw what Yohei had discovered, they were all taken aback.

There were three corpses. Masasuke Yamaguchi crouched down and carefully examined the marks and postures on the bodies, quickly arriving at the answer, "These two were probably killed by Taiichi. One died from a knife wound, and the other two died from Fire Style."

As he spoke, he stood up and looked around at his surroundings, picturing in his mind how Taiichi had killed the two men. Soon he arrived at the big tree where Taiichi had hidden and found the traces he had left when Taiichi escaped.

"Come on, this way!" Yamaguchi Seisuke called out to everyone and rushed into the Masasuke Yamaguchi.

Now it was Yamaguchi's turn to take Yamaguchi lead, and the task of tracking down the trail was beyond the capabilities of Yohei, a complete newbie.

Yohei was extremely excited to see that the Captain had found the traces so quickly, because the sooner Taiichi was found, the safer he would be.

Following the trail, the group stopped frequently to search for more clues, and finally discovered a second battle site in another dense forest.

Just as the group was preparing to survey the scene, Captain Yamaguchi shouted, "Who's there!"

Realizing what was happening, Yohei and Yuka quickly assumed a fighting stance, facing the direction in which Captain Yamaguchi had shouted, since they had no idea how many pursuers there were.

The rustling sound of leaves coming from behind Yohei nervously sweat, which flowed into his eyes but he dared not wipe it away.

"Captain, it's me!"

Taiichi's voice came over, and at that moment, Yohei seemed to hear heavenly music. Before Captain Yamaguchi could speak, he had already rushed out.

At this moment, Taiichi also revealed his figure from the dense forest. His face had many scratches, his clothes were torn in many places by Kunai, his left arm was still hanging down unnaturally, and he would sometimes cover his chest and cough twice.

Seeing Taiichi's disheveled appearance, Yohei worriedly checked him over, even activating his Sharingan to get a closer look.

Fortunately, after a thorough examination, it was found that although Taiichi looked miserable, he did not have any obvious injuries, which put Yohei at ease.

Seeing Yohei rush over and touching and examining him, Taiichi felt a little awkward but also very happy. Yohei had not only brought the news back to the outpost but had also called for reinforcements to come to his aid. Although they arrived a little late, he still appreciated their kindness.

Looking at Yohei's Sharingan, which now had Two-Tomoe, Taiichi more moved. If Yohei hadn't valued him so much, his One-Tomoe Sharingan wouldn't have been stimulated to evolve into Two-Tomoe.

But then I thought about it again. Yohei was only about 11 years old, so advancing to the Two-Tomoe at this age was quite early.

The key issue is that his Sharingan is evolving too fast. It's only been a little over a month since he awakened it, and he's already at the Two-Tomoe. He's showing it off so openly. I wonder what the village will think when they hear the news.

Putting aside his thoughts, these were just Taiichi's guesses, and he couldn't say them aloud. He could only be more careful in the future.

"Alright, Yohei, be gentle! My left hand and chest bones were just set, they're not fully healed yet, don't break them again," Taiichi joked.

But Yohei took it seriously and immediately withdrew his hand that was still checking.

At this moment, Captain Yamaguchi and the Yuka brothers also came forward, looking at Taiichi with amazement.

"Taiichi, how are you? Are you alright?" Captain Yamaguchi asked with concern.

"Fortunately, I was injured. That Jonin who was chasing me Jonin me and I killed him by trap. All these injuries are from him." As he spoke, Taiichi took out Storage Scroll containing the Jonin's corpse from his Ninja Tool Pouch and handed it to Captain Yamaguchi.

"Captain, this is the body of that Jonin. Hopefully, we can find some clues inside when we get back."

Masasuke Yamaguchi took the scroll from Taiichi, his gaze towards Taiichi filled with complex emotions. How much progress had Taiichi made in such a short time?

Every mission is a huge leap forward for him. At this rate, it won't be long before he truly possesses the strength of Jonin.

"Alright, let's head back to the outpost then," Captain Yamaguchi said.

"Yes."

Two hours after Taiichi group left, the place welcomed another group of visitors, namely the other two Jonin from the cave and their subordinates.

"So, did you find Takagi?"

"No, but the bodies of the five Chunin went with him have all been found. I guess he's not in much better shape."

"Damn it, I told you long ago not to get involved in the power struggles of these great ninja villages. Now look what happened, we didn't accomplish anything and just lost a Jonin."

"What, trying to back out? Don't forget you've already received the deposit. Unless you quit, the mission still has to go through."

"Damn it, damn it." With that, the man punched the tree trunk beside him repeatedly, breaking the entire trunk in just a few blows.

"Alright, you've vented enough. Let's go back and report." With that, he turned and left without looking back.

Seeing this, the others had no choice but to follow them back.

Outpost 7.

After a long run, the group finally returned to the outpost.

--

Upon returning, Taiichi immediately followed Captain Yamaguchi to the central camp to report on the details of the mission. Accompanying him were not only the people who had gone out to rescue, but also Saori, who had been anxiously waiting at the outpost entrance since hearing the news.

When Saori saw Taiichi return, she couldn't hold back her tears and said, "Thank goodness, thank goodness, it's so good that you're back!" while wiping away her tears.

"This time, the group that came to hunt us down consisted of one Jonin and five Chunin— "

The report stirred the emotions of everyone present. It involved not only a contest of wits and strength, but also a lot of luck. If there had been even the slightest mistake, Taiichi would never have returned unscathed.

If these Bounty Ninja had been just a little more cautious, they wouldn't have ended up being wiped out like this.

"Taiichi, you've really worked hard this time. If it weren't for your timely intelligence, the outposts might have been attacked by now," Chiba Jonin said sincerely.

"Lord Chiba, you flatter me. This is all I should do," Taiichi replied humbly in response to the compliment.

"That being said, you will still receive the rewards you deserve. I will report all your performances truthfully in the mission report. The village will certainly not let you down then," Chiba Jonin gave a positive reply.

Taiichi and the others were overjoyed to hear this. Taiichi had been worried about not having enough mission records to exchange for more Ninjutsu, and now they had a new source of income.

For the next few days, the Team 8 remained stationed at the outpost, only occasionally going out to complete patrol missions. Perhaps the Outpost 7 had inflicted heavy losses on the Bounty Ninja, making them think that this place was a tough nut to crack.

The Outpost 7 remained untouched until reinforcements arrived.

With this, Taiichi and his team's outpost duty came to an end, and the Team 8 could finally return to the village to report for duty.

Looking back at the outpost that was gradually receding into the distance, Yohei's eyes were filled with reluctance.

"What, don't you want to go back to the village?" Taiichi teased from the side when he saw this, and Captain Yamaguchi and Saori also turned their gazes to Yohei.

Yohei felt embarrassed by the stares and quickly explained, "No, this is where my Sharingan evolved, it's a blessed place for me."

"Come on, let them have an easier time. If you stay here and say something so jinxed, who knows what might happen?" Taiichi exposed Yohei's true colors.

Saori covered her mouth and chuckled. Yohei's jinx had come true twice during this mission.

"Alright, enough joking around," Captain Yamaguchi said. "It's sad to experience this kind of garrison mission for the first time, and to say goodbye to comrades you've fought alongside. But you'll get used to it after experiencing it many times."

"Captain, I don't think this is meant to comfort you. It just makes me feel even more uncomfortable," Yohei muttered.

"Hahahaha." Everyone laughed, but whether there was joy, sorrow, or helplessness in their laughter was a matter of opinion.

The return journey was peaceful, and the group wasn't in a hurry, chatting and laughing as they returned to Konoha.

Unlike before, this time Captain Yamaguchi didn't give everyone much rest time. He directly arranged to meet the day after tomorrow to continue the mission, and then he left.

Watching Captain Yamaguchi leave, Taiichi and the other two exchanged bewildered glances, clearly unsure of what had happened—whether the village's workload had suddenly increased or something else entirely.

Yohei and Saori looked at Taiichi expectantly, wondering if the usually clever Taiichi had any unique ideas.

Faced with their gazes, Taiichi was also a little troubled. "You two don't need to look at me like that. I'm confused too. Maybe it's just because we've passed the rookie phase and we'll have to take on more missions from now on."

Upon hearing this, the two felt that it might actually be true. After all, they themselves hoped to perform more missions, not only to earn mission rewards but also to enrich their resumes and lay a good foundation for future promotions.

After their fruitless discussion, the three of them went home.

On the way, Taiichi thought about what he had gained from this mission, especially how he had directly completed the training process of One-Handed Seal by adding points. He couldn't help but think of Minato, who was still troubled by this matter. Minato had led him into the sect, and now that he had completed his training, he naturally had to give back.

With this in mind, Taiichi made a decision: he would go to Minato's house the next day and tell him all his insights and experiences, hoping that Minato would be home.