The Manufactured Misunderstanding

Everyone present had already witnessed the Shikai of Kyoka Suigetsu.

This meant they had already fallen into complete hypnosis.

Like prey unwillingly caught in a spider's web, nothing awaited them but impending death; the only difference was the intensity of their struggle.

Pupil and Shackle were each locked in combat with several Hidden Rock Village ninjas.

It had to be said that both Pupil and Shackle were undoubtedly the cream of the crop for their age group!

And this was precisely why Danzo had sent them here.

At this moment, Yamanosuke stared fixedly at Sosuke, his eyes filled with a hint of gravity and seriousness!

In his eyes, the Sosuke before him was absolutely not as simple as he appeared on the surface!

The aura that a powerhouse should possess would never appear on the weak!

Just as a poor beggar struggling to survive in an underground sewer could never possess the vision and measure of a billionaire, a weakling would never display that aura of indifference toward life and chilling murderous intent!

This mission was of great importance!

Yamanosuke knew a little something: this was a joint effort between the higher-ups of his village and personnel within Konoha, attempting to kidnap the princess of the Land of Fire to exert a unique influence over the Land of Fire's Daimyo!

This was a secret operation of the Hidden Rock Village!

Such a major move naturally could not be entrusted to just any Tom, Dick, or Harry!

Yet, Yamanosuke was qualified to take on this special mission; including him, not one of the fifteen Hidden Rock ninjas present had strength lower than that of an elite Chunin!

Such a team could easily wreak massive destruction on some small ninja villages!

"Where did you get this information!?" Yamanosuke stared hard at Sosuke, guarding against any other moves while asking suspiciously!

If it were confirmed that the Hidden Rock Village's intelligence had leaked, then the kidnapping of the Daimyo's daughter would face extreme risks!!

This was news he had to rush back to the village to report!

"Which village are you from?" Sosuke said slowly, his face expressionless.

Hearing Sosuke's words, Yamanosuke was taken aback. Could it be that they just happened to run into each other!?

Suddenly, he realized!

No! This guy was wearing an Anbu mask! How could it just be a coincidence that he was by the princess's side!

Before he could finish the thought, Sosuke's figure suddenly vanished from before his eyes!

A detached voice rang out beside his ear.

"Where... are you looking?"

This sudden voice made Yamanosuke's pupils shrink!

He hurriedly turned his head to look to his side!

The group of Hidden Rock ninjas beside him also looked in astonishment at Sosuke, who had appeared there once again!

They hurriedly formed hand seals, launching ninjutsu collectively toward Sosuke.

Yamanosuke, too, had no time to be surprised by Sosuke's speed. Seeing him standing at his side, he opened his palm toward Sosuke, a vicious expression on his face.

"Earth Style: Sulfur Blast!"

A mound of earth surged rapidly from his hand, suddenly growing to an extreme size like a twisted, deformed monster!

Suddenly, with a "bang," it exploded!

Following the violent burst of fire, massive smoke and dust swarmed over the spot where Sosuke had been, and at this moment, the follow-up ninjutsu from the other Hidden Rock ninjas also rained down into the smoke.

Yamanosuke, who had been blown back by the violent explosion, also had dense wounds on his body, though most of the blast damage had been offset by the giant rock shield his right hand had transformed into!

He looked toward the smoke with a ferocious expression, feeling slightly relieved!

After all, Sosuke's speed just now had been far too eerie; even with his strength, he hadn't been able to track his movements at all. It was truly terrifying!

Off to the side, Shijimi Tamako saw the explosion, her pupils shrinking violently. Unable to believe that the figure had just died like that, she shouted with a trembling voice!

"Aizen!!"

Pupil and Shackle were struggling immensely while fighting the Hidden Rock ninjas!

Seeing this scene, they too were filled with disbelief. Captain Aizen, whose strength had always been unfathomable, had actually been swallowed by the violent explosion!

And if anyone were to accidentally stumble onto the scene at this moment!

They would discover a terrifying phenomenon!

Sosuke had been standing in the same spot the entire time, never having moved at all!

He held Kyoka Suigetsu lightly in his hand, a smile on his lips as he watched the people on the field running and dodging, as if everything had nothing to do with him!

Only when his eyes caught a glimpse of that weeping figure did he furrow his brows slightly, but he soon felt a sense of relief.

Everything... was merely to step onto a higher plane.

"Shackle! What do we do! Captain Aizen is dead!" Pupil kicked away a Hidden Rock ninja in front of him with great effort, shouting at Shackle at the top of his lungs.

Beneath the mask, Shackle was actually a very handsome youth.

Only those snow-white eyes were somewhat frightening; at this moment, the skin around the corners of his eyes was bulging with knotted veins, as if they were channeling some mysterious power into those snow-white pupils.

He tightened his face slightly, his Byakugan piercing through the dust to see the figure lying on the ground within the smoke, which made his expression turn incredibly grim, and he did not answer Pupil's question.

Just as the group became dejected over Aizen's death!

"Forget it! Shackle! We have no way to complete this mission! We need to retreat immediately, or else we'll end up dying right along with Tamako!!"

Such a jarring remark reached the ears of both Pupil and Tamako!

At these words, Tamako was already unable to speak, merely shedding tears of sorrow as she stared at the dust-choked spot that had claimed Aizen.

Shackle, meanwhile, turned his head and roared at Pupil!

"Pupil! You bastard! Do you even know what you're saying!!"

For a ninja, the completion of a mission must be the highest priority, even if it means sacrificing one's own life.

This was the universally accepted creed of the ninja world!

Beneath Pupil's mask, a pair of blood-red eyes were wide open, looking strangely at Shackle, who had suddenly roared at him; he could not understand why he was being scolded like this!

He had only said, "Then we must protect Miss Tamako until the very last moment!!"

Why would that earn such an angry shout from Shackle!?

Just then!

Shackle watched helplessly as a Rock Ninja rapidly snuck up behind Pupil!

"Pupil! Look out!!"

The moment the words left his lips.

Pupil, hearing him, instinctively opened his blood-red eyes wide to scan his surroundings with extreme vigilance!

However, there was not a trace of an enemy!? This Shackle! Could he have fallen under a genjutsu? Why on earth was he shouting nonsense!!?

"Puchi!"

The sound of a blade piercing through flesh brought his wandering thoughts to a halt!

Pupil stared with his wide Sharingan, looking on in disbelief at the kunai that had burst through his chest!

How is this possible!! When did he get behind me!!? How could he have hidden from my Sharingan until now! To think I would be taken out by something like this...

Pupil looked at the kunai protruding from his body, unwilling to accept his fate!

He died just like that; as his life force ebbed away, his body went limp and collapsed to the ground. Even in his final moments, his blood-red eyes were still filled with slow-dawning disbelief and deep, lingering resentment...

Shackle also looked on in shock, unable to believe that both Pupil and Captain Aizen had fallen in the line of duty.

Off to the side, Sosuke, who everyone believed to be dead, was completely unscathed!

A faint smile played on his lips; he was utterly indifferent to what was happening here, or rather, everything was simply playing out exactly as he had orchestrated.

He walked slowly into the dust, casually making his own clothes look a bit disheveled, then lifted his head slightly, the corners of his mouth curling upward beneath his mask.

Since the mission is over... then it is time for all the characters to take the stage...