Suppressing Mountain Bandits

Hyuuga Nen walked into the room and knelt on the tatami mats. "Teacher, I have arrived," he said, looking at Yamamoto Yuuichirou.

Yamamoto Yuuichirou gave a slight nod upon hearing Hyuuga Nen. He glanced at the others in the room, pulled a scroll from his robes, and placed it on the table.

"You have all been with us for over half a year now. During this time, aside from training, most of your duties have been limited to guard duty or escort missions. It is time to assign you more challenging tasks."

After saying this, Yamamoto Yuuichirou slowly unrolled the scroll on the table.

"Subjugate bandits?" The several youths gathered around the table read the large characters written at the top of the scroll.

"Do you understand what this mission entails?" Yamamoto Yuuichirou asked, his expression stern as he looked at the youths.

"We do," they replied in unison, Hyuuga Nen included.

"Others who joined at the same time as you have already tasted blood, or have fulfilled this requirement during their missions over the past six months. Only you lot are still fledglings."

Upon hearing this, the youths displayed various reactions: some were excited, some worried, some nervous, and others calm.

Hyuuga Nen picked up the scroll and examined it carefully. However, the information provided was sparse, listing only the number of bandits, their location, and their crimes, with no further intelligence.

Since this mission was assigned to us, it shouldn't be too difficult, Hyuuga Nen thought while reviewing the details.

"In addition to you, I have assigned a lead samurai to accompany you. However, do not think of relying on his strength. Under normal circumstances, he will not intervene, even if you face a life-or-death crisis. Do you understand?" Yamamoto Yuuichirou added.

"Very well, go and prepare yourselves. We depart immediately once you are ready." With that, Yamamoto Yuuichirou began drinking his tea alone, clearly signaling that the meeting was over.

Just as he stepped out of the room, Hyuuga Nen heard a voice from behind him. "Nen, I won't lose to you this time! Just you wait!" Miyaichi ran up to his side, his eyes burning with competitive spirit.

Miyaichi was the very person who had fought Hyuuga Nen during the assessment six months ago. Hyuuga Nen turned his head, looked at him, and said in an indifferent tone, "I understand. Go get ready; we leave as soon as you're prepared."

"Hmph! Your tone is truly infuriating. I will certainly not let Teacher Yamamoto down." With that, he turned and left to prepare for the mission.

A few days later, Hyuuga Nen and the others arrived at the foot of a mountain. They stopped in their tracks, gazing at the peaks ahead, which were mottled with patches of white and green.

"What now? Do we charge straight up?" one of the youths asked.

"Let's go to the nearby village first to gather information about the bandits, then we can discuss a battle plan," Hyuuga Nen suggested after a moment of thought.

The others nodded at Hyuuga Nen's words. Because he was the strongest among them, this makeshift squad looked to him as their leader, and no one voiced any objections.

"Then let's split up and gather information, then meet back here," Hyuuga Nen said, before being the first to head toward the village.

A samurai in his thirties followed far behind the group. He watched their actions silently, saying nothing, merely observing.

Soon, everyone returned, and they compared the information they had gathered.

"The numbers match the scroll—thirteen in total. Their specific strength is unclear, but according to the villagers, most of them appear to be ordinary people," Hyuuga Nen said to his teammates while holding the scroll.

"Then we shall wait until nightfall to act. Does anyone have any additional suggestions?"

Seeing that his teammates shook their heads, Hyuuga Nen gave the final order: "Go prepare and get some rest. We move at night."

Late that night, the group crept up the mountain and spotted three men on patrol from a distance.

"The three of us will take out the sentries; you two provide cover," Hyuuga Nen commanded. He, Miyaichi, and another youth quietly moved in.

Hyuuga Nen slipped behind one of the bandits, leaped onto his back, and clamped a hand over his mouth. With his other hand, he drew a short blade and sliced across the man's throat, then delivered a heavy blow to the back of the bandit's head with the hilt of his sword.

Struck in two vital points, the bandit couldn't even cry out; he collapsed to the ground, convulsed for a moment, and then went still.

Nearby, Miyaichi quickly neutralized his target, but the third youth seemed to be having trouble, locked in a struggle with a bandit.

"Help! Help! We're under attack!" the bandit shouted as he ran toward the mountain camp. Hyuuga Nen looked in the direction the bandit was fleeing and saw lights flickering and heard the sound of commotion.

"Stop hiding! Let's go!" Hyuuga Nen shouted. He chased down the fleeing bandit, finished him off, then turned back to regroup with his teammates and headed up the mountain together.

Halfway there, they realized all the bandits had been roused and were rushing toward them.

"Damn it! They're samurai! Prepare for battle!" the bandit leader snarled upon seeing them, then charged forward, weapon in hand.

Hyuuga Nen engaged the leader, realizing he was the only one among the bandits who possessed chakra; the rest were merely commoners. Although it was two-on-one, Hyuuga Nen's teammates felt little pressure, and the bandits soon began to suffer casualties.

"These brats are too strong! Run! Or we'll all die here!" Soon, the bandits lost the will to fight and began to scatter.

Although Hyuuga Nen could only use samurai techniques, the leader was no match for him. Under the pressure of death, the leader dropped his weapon and fell to his knees with a thud.

"I surrender! I surrender! Please, don't kill me!" the leader begged, kneeling on the ground with his hands raised high.

"For a group of wicked bandits like you, our orders are to leave no one alive." As the teammates finished their pursuit and walked back, one of them spoke, stepping toward the leader with the clear intent to finish him off.

Hearing this, the leader's pleading expression instantly turned vicious. "Then you go to hell!" Before the words had even left his mouth, he appeared in front of the youth, pulled a kunai from somewhere, and thrust it viciously toward the boy's throat.

"Move! He's a ninja!" the lead samurai shouted in alarm, drawing his weapon and rushing forward at top speed.

By the time the samurai arrived, the ninja had already slashed the youth's throat.

"Damn it, why is there a ninja here? Get back, all of you! Leave him to me!" the lead samurai roared, engaging the ninja in combat.

Miyaichi tried to step in to help, but Hyuuga Nen grabbed him. "If you go up there, you'll only be a burden and you will die!" Hyuuga Nen said, his expression grave.

Hearing this, Miyaichi calmed down, gritted his teeth, and stepped aside to watch the duel.

The ninja then used a Body Replacement Technique, creating an opening that allowed him to kick the lead samurai away. Seizing the opportunity, the ninja immediately turned to flee.

He ran directly toward Hyuuga Nen, perhaps to vent the frustration of having been suppressed in the earlier fight.

Through the brief clash, Hyuuga Nen had already gauged the ninja's strength to be around that of a genin, though he was clearly injured and no match for the lead samurai.

Watching the ninja charge toward him, Hyuuga Nen had no intention of meeting him head-on; instead, he stepped aside to let him pass.

Watching Hyuuga Nen's movements, the ninja merely froze for a split second before darting past him, casting a single glance back at Hyuuga Nen before continuing his sprint forward.

Watching the ninja's retreating back, Hyuuga Nen gripped his blade with both hands and slashed forcefully in front of him, sending a brilliant, arc-shaped blue blade of light flying rapidly forward.

The running ninja heard the sound of air being torn apart behind him and turned his head, only to see the sword energy flying toward him in shock. He tried to dodge, but his injured body was a beat too slow; the sword energy struck him directly, carving a deep wound from his arm down to his abdomen. Amidst a spray of blood, the ninja crashed heavily to the ground.

He struggled to climb back up, only to see an even sharper streak of sword energy slash into his body. It was the squad leader, who had arrived just in time, pouring his furious, unreserved attack upon the man.

Looking at the motionless ninja and the fallen youth, a strange expression flickered across the squad leader's face. "Congratulations, the mission is complete." With those words, his face returned to its usual icy indifference.

Although the mission was finished, Hyuuga Nen and his teammates showed no signs of joy. Composing themselves, Hyuuga Nen and his teammates buried the fallen youth, cleared the battlefield, and began their descent down the mountain.