Recuperation

"Looks like my teammates are clean," Yusuke thought.

Then there was no need to keep pretending.

Terai couldn't understand what he was saying, but he noticed how quickly his two subordinates had been defeated. A flicker of alarm and anger passed through his single visible eye beneath the mask.

I have to finish this quickly, he thought.

"Earth Release: Earth Flow Spears!"

He rapidly formed Hand Seals, and several sharp stone spears shot up from the ground beneath Yusuke!

But Yusuke's figure flickered like a ghost, easily evading them at a speed far greater than before.

He no longer held back. The chakra surging around him suddenly rose to another level.

"What?!"

Terai was startled. His opponent's speed was nothing like it had been moments ago.

"I've had enough fun with you."

Yusuke spoke calmly. The greatsword in his hand hummed as arcs of lightning and flames suddenly coiled around it.

"Try my Thunder-Fire Greatsword."

As he spoke, the greatsword came crashing down toward Terai's face.

Terai hurriedly raised his sword with both hands to block.

The blade and sword clashed for an instant. The next moment, Terai's sword melted in two.

Terror filled Terai's eyes. He managed to take only one step back before the greatsword chopped off his sword-wielding right arm.

Fortunately—or unfortunately for him—his severed arm didn't send blood spurting everywhere, and he wouldn't die from blood loss.

The wound had been cauterized by the intense heat, sealing the blood vessels.

"Impossible! Absolutely impossible!" Terai steadied himself, unable to believe it.

"How much does that old geezer Danzō really know about my strength?"

Yusuke sneered and stepped forward, moving even faster as his sword fell like a violent storm.

Every strike came wreathed in lightning and fire, forcing Terai back again and again. He could only use his left hand to deftly parry with his broken blade, unable to counterattack at all.

Damn it. I'll die if this keeps up, Terai thought. He flung away his broken blade and tried to form Hand Seals with one hand to perform an Earth Release jutsu and escape.

But Yusuke wasn't about to give him the chance.

Yusuke casually knocked aside the short sword flying at him, then released a burst of chakra through his feet and lunged straight at Terai.

He thrust his greatsword forward, taking Terai's left arm in an instant. Then he turned the blade, changing the thrust into a smack—

"Thud!"

Terai's chest shattered. Blood sprayed from his mouth as he fell to the ground like a broken sack, struggling to get up.

Yusuke walked over and pressed his greatsword against Terai's throat.

Inuzuka Go and Hyuga Aya had also dealt with their respective opponents and gathered around.

"Tell me. What other plans do you have?" Yusuke asked coldly.

Terai glared at Yusuke with venom in his eyes, then let out a sneer.

Suddenly, pain twisted his face. A hoarse "hrrk, hrrk" came from his throat. It seemed he wanted to say something, but couldn't get the words out.

Yusuke's eyes narrowed. He moved at once, seized Terai's jaw, and forced his mouth open.

A complex black seal on his tongue was glowing faintly.

"Cursed Tongue Eradication Seal."

Yusuke let go, his voice cold.

If someone tried to reveal Root's secrets, this seal activated and rendered him unable to speak.

It could even destroy the person's brain and kill him if he was interrogated for information.

A mocking look flickered in Terai's eyes. "You see? You'll never get any information out of me."

"Danzō's methods are as underhanded as ever." Yusuke straightened up.

"Captain, who are they? And why are they involved with Elder Danzō..." Inuzuka Go was at a loss. How had this ended up involving Danzō, the Hokage Assistant?

"Go clean things up." Yusuke gave the order without explaining.

Though he was still confused, Inuzuka Go obediently did as he was told. Hyuga Aya's eyes lit up, and she immediately turned to clean up the traces.

Yusuke turned back to Terai. As Terai watched him with a mocking gaze, Yusuke placed his hand on the man's head.

"I'm not going to waste this opportunity."

"Ninja Art: Mind Reading Technique."

As he sensed foreign chakra preparing to invade his mind, the Cursed Tongue Eradication Seal on Terai's body activated.

Terai's eyes gradually rolled back as he let out a piteous scream, drool trickling from the corner of his mouth.

When Inuzuka Go heard that, a chill ran down his spine.

He swallowed and lowered his voice to speak to Hyuga Aya beside him. "Never get on the captain's bad side."

Hyuga Aya ignored the chatterbox and continued cleaning up the traces of the battle.

But she seemed distracted, as if lost in thought.

Terai screamed for two and a half minutes. By then, his eyes were unfocused, and he was completely lifeless.

Yusuke withdrew his hand and wiped it off with a look of disgust.

"Not bad. I didn't get the full picture, but I found other fragments of information in this guy's mind. 'Land of Whirlpools' and 'Sealing Scroll' came up several times."

So one of Shimura Danzō's goals this time is to get the forbidden jutsu scroll on sealing techniques from the Land of Whirlpools? Yusuke reasoned.

The three of them had finished cleaning up the scene, and immediately left the area.

The atmosphere was rather quiet along the way.

Inuzuka Go tried to speak several times, but whenever he saw Yusuke's cold profile and Hyuga Aya's silence, he swallowed his words.

At last, Hyuga Aya, who had been silent all this time, spoke up. "Keeping a secret is a skill, and a talent."

"If you want to betray the captain, you'd better make sure you're capable of it."

"What are you talking about, you ice queen? Why would I betray the captain?" Sparks flashed in Inuzuka Go's eyes.

"I've been impressed by the captain's abilities this whole time. If anything, I'm more worried about you going around blabbing."

Inuzuka Go gritted his teeth as he spoke. Yusuke's strength and cunning had won him over during their journey, and he certainly wasn't about to deliberately provoke an enemy like him.

"Enough." Yusuke cut them off. "Let's find a few more enemy outposts and gather intelligence, then return to the Konoha camp."

"Yes!" Inuzuka Go answered loudly. Hyuga Aya nodded lightly.

Five days later, the Konoha frontline camp was brightly lit.

Yusuke's team had discovered six more enemy outposts.

After handing over the maps of the outposts they had scouted and intelligence on the enemy's forces to the mission team, the three of them were granted three days of rest.

The camp was filled with tension and the smell of blood. The groans of the wounded could be heard faintly.

The three of them were led to a tent, which would be their place to rest.

"Heh, I'm going to the supply station to collect our provisions."

Inuzuka Go called out, then eagerly dashed toward the supply station with Haimaru to get some better food.

As usual, Hyuga Aya stayed silent and walked slowly toward a corner to rest.

Yusuke found a relatively quiet spot and checked his ninja tool pouch.

Who knew when the next battle would come? For a man like me who valued survival above all, caution came first.

Night had fully fallen. Bonfires flickered through the camp, their light somewhat bleak.

Yusuke avoided the crowds and leaped several times to a secluded clearing at the edge of the camp.

He needed to digest what he'd gained from the past few days of fighting. More importantly, he needed to consider how to deal with Shimura Danzō's next moves.

He drew his greatsword. In the cold moonlight, its blade flashed with a streak of icy light.

He took a deep breath and let his chakra flow slowly. Fine arcs of electricity began to dance along the blade.

He practiced changing the shape of his chakra, striving to make it steadier and faster.

Just as he was losing himself in concentration, a cool voice sounded from some distance behind him.

"Captain Yusuke."

Yusuke paused. The arcs of electricity on his sword vanished with a crackle.

"Who's there?" He spun around toward the voice, tapped the ground with his feet, and jumped back several steps to create some distance.

A figure slowly emerged from the shadows. "You're as cautious as ever, Yusuke."