Senju Arashi

The four of them slowly approached the rogue ninja camp.

From a distance, Qiancao could see dozens of tents standing beside a mountain stream. The rogue ninjas were gathered in twos and threes, drinking and chatting.

Beside a small mountain stood over a hundred wooden crates covered with oilcloth. They were probably the supplies the rogue ninjas had seized.

The night before, Shiri had described the appearance of the rogue ninja leader, Hayasaka Sae, to Qiancao. He had once been a capable ninja, but his face had been burned by Fire Style during a mission.

After being disfigured, he was once mocked by a daimyo who had hired him. In a fit of rage, he stormed the daimyo's residence and burned the faces of both his sons.

After that, the daimyos blacklisted him. He could only gather a group of rogue ninjas who likewise refused to be controlled and make a living by robbing others.

Normally, they were hard to track down because they were always on the move. But this time, their haul was too large, and it included a great many suits of armor and weapons, so they had to find a place to hide and fence the goods.

That had exposed their whereabouts completely. Not only were the Uchiha Clan ninjas hired by Imagawa on their way, but other ninjas were coming as well.

Qiancao surveyed the rogue ninja camp but didn't see Hayasaka Sae. He didn't know whether Sae was away from camp or resting in one of the tents.

If only we had a Byakugan, Qiancao thought regretfully.

From a tree nearby, Shiri also signaled, "Stay put and watch. I haven't spotted the target."

Of the group, Wuming might have been the only one with no interest in searching for Hayasaka Sae. At that moment, she thought, We're so close. I'm starting to feel itchy...

I hope Qiancao can't smell anything unpleasant on me.

It's all the Uchiha's fault. They only let me bathe once every seven days... The Uchiha Clan might as well be destroyed.

Shiri found a treetop far from the camp, bit her finger, and performed the Summoning Technique.

A dark brown eagle appeared out of nowhere and stared intently at the one who had summoned it.

Shiri wrote a note and tucked it into a small box. She had the eagle grip the box in its beak, then patted its wing.

The eagle soared into the sky, carrying Shiri's message toward Imagawa's army.

The sound of its beating wings alerted several rogue ninjas. They picked up their weapons and headed toward the group.

Shiri, Keisuke, and Wuming each used their robes as cloth and performed the Cloth Concealment Technique, hiding all four of them.

The rogue ninjas searched around without finding anything. They decided the others had made a fuss over nothing: they'd gone out to investigate just because they heard a bird flap its wings. Cursing, they returned to camp and continued drinking.

Meanwhile, Hayasaka Sae stood with several loyal followers downstream from the mountain stream, waiting for something.

Hayasaka Sae was on every daimyo's blacklist, yet he had managed to assemble a band of over a hundred rogue ninjas. Of course, this wasn't because he was a master of ninjutsu; a sharp mind was just as important.

The conflicts between the daimyos had grown more frequent, and the vow they had once made to serve the emperor together was already on the verge of collapse.

Powerful ninjas like Hayasaka Sae had long been approached in secret by daimyos.

On the surface, Hayasaka Sae and his men were rogue ninjas. In reality, they did the kind of dirty work the daimyos wouldn't be seen doing.

The Takeda daimyo had been defeated in the battle of Tanzaku Castle and was now in dire need of manpower. These supplies had been taken from Imagawa's samurai at the Takeda daimyo's request.

But Mount Hakkoda and Xiaogu City were now both under Daimyo Imagawa's control, so it would take time for the Takeda daimyo's troops to arrive.

To get the supplies safely into the Takeda daimyo's hands, Hayasaka Sae had deliberately sent his men to spread word in the black market, drawing the attention of various factions and bringing them all to Mount Hakkoda.

He had deliberately set a time for the exchange. Each faction would want to wait until the last possible moment, when the black-market merchants arrived, before making a move. They all wanted to be the fisherman who profited while the snipe and the clam fought.

As the factions held one another in check, the Takeda forces would have time to come and collect the supplies. Hayasaka Sae could then pretend to be overpowered and hand everything over, preserving his cover as a rogue ninja.

The only drawback was that the plan might provoke an attack from multiple factions, making it quite risky.

But Hayasaka Sae, accustomed to living by the sword, actually enjoyed the thrill of such risks. Excited, he waited for the ninjas hired by the Takeda Clan to arrive.

Just as the appointed time came, eight small mounds suddenly appeared in the ground before Hayasaka Sae.

The mounds gradually rose, and eight people burst out of the earth. Their leader was a kunoichi.

She was tall, slender, and well-proportioned, though her bust was particularly impressive. Her milky-white skin was smooth and delicate, seeming to glow in the night.

Her large, bright almond-shaped eyes radiated confidence and boldness. Along with her other delicate features and black ponytail, they gave her a strong, beautiful, and capable air.

Hayasaka Sae, who had traveled far and wide, had never seen a woman so beautiful. For a moment, he couldn't help staring at her, stunned.

The kunoichi seemed accustomed to people reacting to her beauty. She coughed to bring Hayasaka Sae back to his senses, then introduced herself:

"We're ninjas from the Senju Clan. I'm Senju Arashi. The general serving the Takeda daimyo sent us to escort you, Mr. Hayasaka."

Hayasaka Sae was surprised. The Senju Clan had been hired by Daimyo Imagawa for the battle of Tanzaku Castle last month, and they had clashed repeatedly with the Takeda daimyo's forces.

They had even lost many clan members to the Uchiha Clan, who had been hired by the Takeda daimyo. He hadn't expected the Takeda daimyo to hire them now.

As if she had noticed Hayasaka Sae's surprise, Senju Arashi said calmly, "Don't worry, Mr. Hayasaka. Once we ninjas accept a commission, we do our utmost to fulfill it. We don't let personal feelings get in the way."

"Ahem!" Hayasaka Sae coughed and composed himself. "I've certainly heard of the Senju Clan. I hope our cooperation goes smoothly."

The four Uchiha hidden in the trees saw Hayasaka Sae and his group approaching from the distance.

Shiri was delighted to see Hayasaka Sae at the front, but when she recognized the kunoichi beside him, she was taken aback.

"Senju Arashi? What's she doing here?"

While Shiri was stunned by the newcomer's identity, Wuming stared at Senju Arashi's chest, then looked down at her own. She couldn't help thinking how vast the difference between people could be.

Before Hayasaka Sae's group could reach the camp, the leaves near Keisuke, who had been quiet until then, suddenly rustled strangely.

Senju Arashi reacted instantly. Her hands flashed through a series of Hand Seals:

[Water Style: Water Dragon Jutsu!]

A fearsome dragon burst from the mountain stream and shot straight toward Uchiha Keisuke!