Sewage Erupts, Severing Throats; Ultimate Slaughter Reveals Sharpness

The scent of death was so real, so tangible.

It manifested in the cruel gaze beneath the Anbu ninja's mask, in the cold lamplight reflecting off the short sword in his hand, and in the thick, nauseating stench of blood that washed over them.

Haku's mind went blank, her body bound by invisible icy ropes, unable to move even a finger. In her small world, only the approaching, ever-enlarging shadow of death remained.

It's over...

A thousandth of a second before the sharp short sword could slice through her throat, a slightly impatient shout came from the stone platform:

"Wait! We need a live one!"

The Chunin who had been sitting cross-legged, sharpening his blade, suddenly stood up, his voice carrying an unquestionable command, "Her appearing here alone is too suspicious! She might know where other remnants are hiding. Capture her alive and bring her back for interrogation!"

This shout was like a metal rod forcefully jammed into a high-speed killing machine.

The charging Anbu ninja's movement abruptly halted, the killing intent in his eyes slightly receding, replaced by a hint of impatience. He instinctively altered his attack trajectory, transforming a fatal horizontal slash into a grab aimed at Haku's shoulder.

The killing blow had become an arrest.

This fractional-second change became the sole fulcrum for life and death.

The bone-chilling threat of death receded slightly, the fear that had surged like a tide torn open by a crack. Mizuki Han's emotionless command, like the deepest brand, instantly exploded in Haku's mind.

"...No matter what happens, don't look back."

"...If you get caught, jump into the water."

The instinct for survival, at this moment, overwhelmed everything!

Haku's stiff body seemed to be injected with an electric current. Relying almost entirely on muscle memory, she suddenly rolled to the side, a clumsy but precise dodge that evaded the grasping hand.

"Hm?" The Anbu ninja let out a soft sound of surprise, clearly not expecting the terrified little girl to react.

Haku didn't dare to stop. She scrambled to her feet, not even looking in the direction Han was hiding, just desperately remembering the single command—along the left wall, towards the narrowest passage, run!

"Little brat, still trying to run?"

The Anbu ninja's temper flared slightly. He snorted coldly, chakra erupting beneath his feet, his speed suddenly increasing. Like a cat playing with a mouse, he leisurely followed behind Haku.

"Splash... splash..."

Two figures, one large and one small, one in front and one behind, stirred up waves in the knee-deep sewage. The sound of splashing water from their running and pursuit echoed in the vast Underground Reservoir, sounding particularly jarring.

On the stone platform, the Chunin who had ordered them to capture her alive stood with his arms crossed, watching the cat-and-mouse game with amusement. In his opinion, it was only a matter of time before his companion caught the unarmed little girl.

This area was now safe.

His attention was drawn to the distant chase, and a cruel smile even curved his lips. He enjoyed hearing the desperate gasps of prey before they were caught.

He didn't notice that right behind him, in the murky sewage he considered the safest place, a pair of eyes silently opened.

What kind of eyes were they?

There was no anger, no tension, not even a trace of human emotion. It was a pure, cold darkness, like an abyss beneath permafrost, reflecting only the most primitive, purest logic of slaughter.

The time had come.

The roles of hunter and prey would be completely reversed in the next second.

Mizuki Han, hidden in the dark passage, slowly exhaled the last breath from his lungs, turning into a string of tiny bubbles that dissolved into the sewage. His body, like a boneless mollusk, glided forward silently in a way that defied human mechanics.

No splash, no sound.

He was a part of this sewage.

When his figure appeared in the shadows behind the Chunin, the latter was still completely unaware, engrossed in watching the distant chase.

Han's right hand slowly rose from the water.

Drops of foul liquid slid down his pale arm, and in his palm, a short blade made entirely of ice emanated a faint chill. This Ice Blade was not perfectly transparent but had a hint of murky discoloration, making it almost invisible to the naked eye in the dim light.

This was the ultimate camouflage, the most deadly fang.

Distance, three meters.

Two meters.

One meter.

Han's footsteps landed on the dry stone platform, as light as a feather.

The Chunin seemed to finally sense something. He felt a sudden drop in temperature at the back of his neck, an inexplicable chill causing the hairs on his body to stand on end.

"Who?!"

He spun around abruptly.

But all he saw was a fleeting, blurry ice-colored afterimage.

And a chillingly sharp line that sliced across his entire field of vision.

"Chh—"

The sound was as faint as tearing a piece of wet paper.

Mizuki Han's figure brushed past him. The Ice Blade in his hand, at an incredibly tricky angle, precisely cut through the softest, most unguarded skin of the Anbu ninja's neck.

Trachea, carotid artery, vocal cords...

Every tissue capable of producing sound or sustaining life was cleanly severed in that tenth of a second.

The Chunin's pupils dilated to their absolute limit in an instant!

His mouth flew open, desperate to let out a shrill scream and warn his distant companions. But his severed windpipe allowed only a despairing, wheezing rattle of "Hah... hah..." to escape.

A massive torrent of blood surged from the wound in his neck like a bursting dam.

His body swayed, and the mask slid from his face, revealing features twisted by extreme shock and agony. He reached out a hand as if to grasp at something, but it ultimately fell limp.

"Thud."

The corpse pitched forward, falling into the sewage and splashing a small spray of water, which was immediately drowned out by the louder sounds of the chase in the distance.

From the sudden eruption of violence to the kill, the entire process took no more than two seconds.

Silent. Soundless.

Ultimate slaughter is exactly this clean and efficient.

Mizuki Han stood where he was, his slightly heaving chest revealing that he, too, had been under immense psychological pressure. He did not look at the corpse gradually cooling in the sewage, nor did he touch the supplies that were now within easy reach.

His gaze, sharp as the keenest falcon, remained locked onto the other end of the Underground Reservoir.

Haku and the other Anbu ninja had already vanished around the corner of that narrow passage.

"Splash... splash..."

The sound of the chase continued, proving that the bait plan was proceeding smoothly.

However, the very next second.

That continuous splashing came to an abrupt halt.

The entire Underground Reservoir instantly plunged into an eerie, deathly silence, leaving only the "drip-drop" of water from the stalactites above—one beat, then another—as if striking directly against one's heart.

Had the guards pursuing Haku heard the commotion over here?