Ueno Kei stared at the scene before him, utterly speechless. A Konoha Ninja dressed as an Anbu had a young woman slung over his shoulder. She was unconscious, and Kei felt a headache coming on.
Had the Konoha Anbu taken up kidnapping people now? Kei grumbled to himself.
Of course, it was just a wild thought that had crossed his mind out of boredom. It was obvious the Anbu was on a mission, and the girl was surely an important part of it.
Still, if you're on a mission, then get on with it. Why drag me into this? Kei groaned inwardly. He was only a student at the Ninja Academy.
But he'd run into an Anbu who was asking him to help complete a mission. Wasn't that ridiculous? The Anbu took on missions, and now they wanted a ninja-in-training who wasn't even a Genin to take part in one of this caliber.
Kei cursed his luck silently, his mind racing as he searched for a way to get out of this.
But he had a feeling that the eyes hidden beneath the Anbu's mask were fixed on him.
It made his skin crawl, and he swallowed nervously.
"Ueno Kei, you should understand that this matter is very important to the village. I'm not asking you to hold off the enemy. Just take this girl back to the village and find Lord Hokage. Besides, we've already sent up a signal. If we're lucky, you'll run into reinforcements on the way back."
The Anbu spoke coldly.
"Sir, I..." Kei hesitated, starting to say something.
But the Anbu waved a hand, cutting him off. "You have no choice. If you're a ninja of Konoha, then you must be prepared to sacrifice everything for the village!"
Kei fell silent, realizing there was no room to negotiate.
Just then, the Anbu across from him suddenly tensed. Kei sensed it too and immediately turned, leaping to the Anbu's side. He narrowed his eyes at the four black-robed figures who had appeared behind him.
"Hmph. They caught up after all," the Anbu muttered, his voice full of resentment. Kei's eyes shifted as he wondered if this was his chance to slip away. The newcomers were clearly after the Anbu and the girl he carried.
Kei had never considered himself a good person. The Third had saved his life, so he owed him a debt of gratitude. But Kei would never throw his life away over something like this.
He believed in repaying kindness and settling grudges, but he also treasured his own life. The miseries of his previous life and what had happened to his parents in this one had taught him one thing: people had to live for themselves first!
Otherwise, everything else was meaningless!
But reality never aligned with ideals. While Kei was weighing his options, the Anbu beside him unceremoniously lifted the girl from his back and placed her on Kei's.
Kei's eyes widened, and he hurriedly caught the girl and got her onto his back.
"Hey, what are you—" Kei hadn't finished speaking when a hail of Shuriken and Kunai came flying from ahead.
The Anbu immediately drew a Kunai with his right hand and swiftly knocked aside the incoming Shuriken.
Kei jumped backward, getting clear of the spot.
"Leave at once! I'll hold them off! Remember, head straight for the village!" the Anbu ordered in a low voice, his back to Kei as he faced the black-robed figures warily.
Kei gritted his teeth, a fierce look flashing across his face. There was no point dwelling on it now. Those black-robed figures didn't look like decent people either.
Kei nodded firmly, coating the soles of his feet in chakra. He released it in an instant and darted away, his figure quickly fading into the darkness.
The black-robed figures watched Kei leave.
Two of them immediately sprang into motion, intent on chasing after him. Clearly, they planned to leave two behind to deal with the Anbu while the other two pursued Kei.
A cruel expression appeared beneath the Anbu's mask. He released all his chakra and formed Hand Seals, creating three clones.
Two of them shot toward the two black-robed pursuers like cannonballs, while the original and the remaining clone charged the other two. The Anbu had no hope of surviving or defeating them. His only goal was to hold all four off and give Kei enough time to get far away.
The longer it took for them to find Kei, the safer the mission's target would be.
Clang! Clang! They exchanged blows several times in a matter of seconds. The two black-robed figures were forced back, and the Anbu blocked the path of all four.
The three clones had vanished. The Anbu's clothes were in tatters, and he stood gasping for breath. Even if the four weren't fighting at full strength, one Anbu couldn't hope to match them. He had the sense that they were holding back, but this wasn't the time to dwell on it.
"Cough, cough." The Anbu suddenly shuddered. Their clash had clearly left him badly wounded.
Before the Anbu could react, one of the black-robed figures formed Hand Seals. His gaze beneath the hood was cold as he looked at the Anbu like a dead man. The moment the Anbu's eyes met the figure forming the seals—
He froze. Terror appeared beneath his mask, as if he had seen something horrifying. Then his expression twisted in pain, and the Kunai clenched in his hand fell straight to the ground.
The Anbu's eyes instantly grew unfocused, his gaze vacant as his body twitched faintly. Just then, two other black-robed figures rushed in, Kunai in hand, closing in from either side.
Before the Anbu's mind could sink completely into confusion, his thoughts suddenly cleared, and he snapped back to his senses. Seeing the two Kunai rushing toward him, his pupils contracted. He could almost feel the chill of their points.
He twisted his feet to either side, dodging blows to his vital spots.
A soft "splurt" sounded as a Kunai pierced his skin.
Blood sprayed. The Anbu's body jerked, and he shot away, retreating several steps.
"Hm?" The burly black-robed man who had formed the Hand Seals looked at the Anbu in surprise. He was one of the black-robed leaders, Kurama Yewu. His strength was among the greatest in the Kurama Clan, nearly on par with a Jonin's. And the genjutsu he had just used was no ordinary technique.
He hadn't expected the Anbu to break free through his own power, even after falling under the genjutsu.
While Kurama Yewu was astonished, the Anbu silently counted himself lucky.
Fortunately, he had already identified them as rogue members of the Kurama Clan, so he'd remained on guard against their genjutsu. The Kurama Clan was renowned as a ninja family that specialized in genjutsu.
The Anbu didn't know much about genjutsu and wasn't skilled at using it. All he could do was place a powerful seal inside his own mind.
If someone cast genjutsu on him, the seal would activate automatically, violently stimulating his mind and breaking the illusion. But this method caused severe damage to the brain. Even using it once could leave him with irreversible consequences.
But at this point, the Anbu had no other choice.
### I've been getting a little more support in the form of follows and recommendations, and even though it's slow, it feels pretty rewarding. Feel free to leave a review whenever you like. Ye will read them and try to reply. Also, what exactly is a Qidian Bookstore contract? I've seen fanfics signed with contracts, but aren't fanfics not supposed to be contracted? ...Yikes.
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