Divide and Devour!

"Where did this giant bird come from? Damn it, let go of me!"

The eagle's attack had been too fast and sudden. On top of that, the three of them had been moving at a high speed, and the eagle had collided head-on with them. Its sharp talons had sunk straight into the burly fat man's shoulders, lifting him into the air and carrying him off into the distance with a flap of its wings. Now that he'd been seized, the fat man began cursing and swearing.

"Beast, die!" After flying for several dozen seconds, the fat man had regained his composure. He slammed a fist into the eagle's belly. The eagle cried out in pain, and the Genjutsu was immediately broken. Its talons loosened instinctively, dropping the fat man. But in those few dozen seconds, it had already flown more than a kilometer away, dozens of meters above the ground. The fat man plummeted straight down.

"Boss, should we go find Third?" the skinny Sand Ninja asked the one in white robes in a low voice.

"No need. We're only a kilometer away. Third will catch up on his own soon. Don't waste time. We have to get ahead of that brat Mirai Uchiha and intercept him before he reaches the Central Tower!" The Sand Ninja in white glanced indifferently in the direction where Third had landed.

"Right." The skinny Sand Ninja nodded slightly. He still felt that something was off, but didn't dwell on it. As the boss had said, it was only a kilometer. There was no need to go out of their way to look for him.

"Damn beast! You're lucky you got away. If I see you again, I'll rip off every feather on your body and cook you for dinner!"

After landing, the fat man was in a sorry state. If he hadn't been somewhat capable, a fall from dozens of meters up would have reduced him to a pulp. He touched the wound on his shoulder and grimaced in pain. The eagle's talons had been incredibly powerful; they'd gouged several holes in both his shoulders, and dark red blood was still flowing from them.

Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!

Just then, several sounds cut through the air. A few Kunai circled around the fat man before binding him. Three silver threads became visible in the sunlight. They were Chakra Threads.

"Who's there? Show yourself!" Though he was bound, the fat man didn't panic. He stood up and shouted at the sky.

Thud!

His shout cut off abruptly as a fist-sized stone struck him in the forehead. The fat man instantly turned into a pile of loose sand. It had only been a Sand Clone. At the crucial moment, the fat man had been quick-witted enough to use the Substitution Technique before the Kunai reached him, while his real body had slipped underground with Earth Release.

Mirai stepped out of the woods and looked at the ground. "Come out. In front of these eyes, all your pathetic tricks are useless!"

From the moment he'd attacked, Mirai's eyes had been fixed on the fat man. How could he not know that the fat man had used the Substitution Technique to escape, then burrowed underground with Earth Release?

Not long after Mirai finished speaking, the fat man rose from the ground, his face bright with excitement. Looking at Mirai, he shouted, "You're Mirai Uchiha, aren't you? You're even stronger than Elder Chiyo and Lord Kazekage said. No wonder they sent three Jonin to kill you!"

At that, Mirai realized the fat man was all brawn and no brains. He hadn't even needed to ask, and the fat man had already spilled everything: they'd sent three Jonin to kill him!

Since they were here to kill him, there was nothing Mirai needed to ask. The best answer was to fight until the enemy was dead. He fixed his Sharingan on the fat man, leaned forward, and charged.

"Bring it on!" The fat man's eyes lit up when he saw Mirai come straight at him. He threw a punch.

Thud! Thud! Thud!

The fat man was burly, but that didn't hinder his agility. No matter how fast Wenxuan attacked, the fat man managed to block him. That surprised Mirai a little, but only a little. The Uchiha Clan wasn't famous for Taijutsu; it was famous for the Sharingan.

After stepping on the fat man's arm and using the force to flip backward, Mirai landed opposite him. His scarlet Sharingan gazed coolly at the Sand Ninja. Even after fighting for so long, Mirai wasn't winded. The fat man, however, was in a sorry state. He'd barely kept up with Mirai's Taijutsu, but his bulky build limited his stamina, and his shoulder was injured. By now, he was gasping for breath.

"Not bad, kid! Let's go again!" The fat Sand Ninja took a couple of breaths, grinned, and charged at Mirai. This time, he decided to take the initiative.

Yet Mirai seemed not to notice the fat man's movements. He watched calmly from start to finish, his eyes as still as a placid well. It was as if the fat man were nothing but a lowly Genin in his eyes. This attitude infuriated the fat Sand Ninja. He was a Jonin, after all, and had killed countless enemies during the Shinobi World War. When had anyone ever dared look down on him like this?

Boom!

The fat man's fist struck Mirai square in the chest. But before he could smile in victory, the Mirai who'd been hit suddenly grinned. Then his whole body blurred and transformed into a flock of cawing crows, their feathers drifting through the air.

"What? Is this Genjutsu?" The fat Sand Ninja stared in confusion. He couldn't understand when he'd fallen under the Genjutsu. He knew the Uchiha Clan's Sharingan well, so he'd avoided looking into Mirai's eyes during the fight. He shouldn't have been susceptible to Genjutsu. So what was going on?

"This is my world. Here, I am God. If God wants you dead, you cannot live. Die!"

Mirai's cold voice came from the void, slipping into the fat Sand Ninja's ears. The fat man was about to sneer, but then a sharp pain shot through his heart. His breath caught, and his mind went hazy. By the time he came to, the scene before him had changed. There were no crows, no feathers.

A strange crackling sound caught his attention. He looked down, and his eyes widened. A Kunai had pierced his chest, straight through the heart. An Explosive Tag was burning at its end.

"No, I don't want to die! I'm a Jonin from Sunagakure. I don't want to die..." The fat man fumbled to pull off the burning Explosive Tag, but time waited for no one.

Boom!

A violent explosion rang out, cutting off the fat man's voice. A severed limb fell at Mirai's feet, still trailing thick black smoke.

Ding! Congratulations, host, on killing one Jonin. Reward: 5,000 points. Please check your balance!

Hearing the system notification, Mirai narrowed his eyes slightly. He paid no attention to the still-burning corpse and turned to leave.

"I have 11,000 points now. That should be enough to upgrade my eyes!"