Caught in the Undercurrent

"It's over. I'm not really going to die, am I?" Recalling everything since his transmigration, Hyuga Gen suddenly felt a pang of reluctance.

The light grew dimmer and his consciousness gradually blurred. In his daze, he seemed to hear the others calling out in panic.

But that didn't matter, nor could it change anything. He could only continue to sink into the depths of the pool along with the vortex, where the undercurrents were treacherous and survival was a one-in-ten-thousand chance.

The group on the bank watched in despair as Hyuga Gen vanished. Once the water surface calmed, Might Guy released his grip on Uchiha Izumi.

He had saved the three of them but failed to save Hyuga Gen; it wasn't that he didn't want to, but there simply hadn't been enough time.

Uchiha Izumi was the most devastated. She knew that if not for her, Hyuga Gen wouldn't have sunk so quickly. He had pushed her away, preventing her from being pulled into the vortex, while his own momentum had only accelerated his descent.

She had tried to swim over to grab him, but Might Guy had seized her and pulled her to the bank. She knew Might Guy had done the right thing—otherwise, both of them might have been dragged in.

Thinking of everything she had experienced with Hyuga Gen, and imagining a future world without him, her chest ached for some reason, leaving her struggling to breathe.

Is this the pain of losing a friend? Uchiha Izumi asked herself, but she could find no answer.

"There must be another exit to the undercurrents here. Perhaps he has his own destiny and might just survive. I'll call everyone to help search the area later," Bu Qianfan offered in consolation.

Seeing no reaction from the others, he fell silent. To be honest, even he didn't believe his own words. Being swept into an undercurrent was a death sentence; the chance of survival was far too slim.

"Sigh, let's go. We still need to complete the mission," Might Guy said heavily. They couldn't stay here forever; there was no point.

With that, the group set off, with only a short distance left to travel. Uchiha Izumi followed along, dazed. Of course, no one noticed that at this moment, she had awakened her Sharingan.

Far away in Konoha, Hyuga Natsu suddenly felt a heart-wrenching palpitation. She stood up, looked toward the northwest, and murmured, "Brother Dongyi." She didn't know why, but she felt as if something terrible was about to happen, a sensation that made her deeply uneasy.

"Sister Xia, who is Brother Dongyi?" the little girl beside her asked curiously, blinking her large, dark eyes.

Clearly, she had overheard Hyuga Natsu's murmurs. Seeing that Hyuga Natsu seemed strange, she etched the name Hyuga Gen into her mind.

"He? He is Sister Xia's childhood sweetheart," Hyuga Natsu said, crouching down to stroke Hanabi's head with a smile.

"What's a childhood sweetheart? Is it edible?" Hanabi asked adorably.

Hyuga Natsu just smiled gently and didn't answer. The unease she had felt earlier seemed to dissipate under Hanabi's question.

Perhaps I'm overthinking it. Brother Dongyi is so strong. I wonder what he's doing now. Is the Land of Waterfalls that far? It's already been half a month, Hyuga Natsu thought to herself.

"Come on, let's go see your sister," she said, leading Hanabi toward the dojo where Hyuga Hinata was training.

Meanwhile, in a dim house in Longyue Town, two people were speaking.

"Is the rest of the stuff ready?" Water Snake asked sharply.

"Lord Water Snake, I have prepared it, but... but..." The fat merchant rubbed his hands, unable to continue.

"But what? Speak up!" Water Snake had little patience left. Time was life; he planned to leave as soon as he got the money. This place was no longer safe, and he wanted to find somewhere else to continue his life of luxury.

"It's just that my nephew didn't die, so..." The rest went unsaid; Water Snake understood his meaning perfectly.

He didn't even finish the mission and still wants money? He's dreaming, he thought, though he lacked the courage to say it aloud.

"So they really haven't died yet," Water Snake's mood soured instantly. After using his last two ninjutsu, he had assumed the impact on Might Guy might be minimal, but he had at least expected to kill the weakest one, Bu Qianfan. He hadn't expected to fail even that.

This left him feeling incredibly frustrated. After all that, three of his own men were dead, while not a single one of theirs had fallen.

Of course, this was an error in intelligence; they had only focused on Bu Qianfan and paid little attention to the others. If Water Snake knew that a Byakugan-wielding genin brat had been dragged into the undercurrent by his jutsu, he might have found some solace.

"So what? Think carefully before you answer," Water Snake grabbed him by the throat, lifting his two hundred pounds of fat into the air, his expression menacing. He didn't want to waste any more time.

Only when the merchant's face turned red and then blue did Water Snake release him. The fat merchant collapsed to the floor, gasping for air, having narrowly escaped death.

"Do you understand now?" Water Snake looked at the merchant with a sneer, holding him in complete contempt.

"I understand, I understand," the merchant broke into a cold sweat, realizing this was a master he could not afford to offend. He regretted it bitterly; he had truly invited a wolf into his house.

Before long, three crates were brought in. After inspecting the goods, Water Snake stored them away using a scroll.

"Right, there's one more thing. You need to compensate me," Water Snake said, his eyes dark and inscrutable.

"Lord Water Snake, w-what is it?" the merchant asked tremblingly. He had nothing left to give this demon.

"Thanks to your accurate intelligence, my three subordinates are dead. So, you can go keep them company in the grave." Before the fat merchant's terrified eyes, his throat was slit. He collapsed, twitched a few times, and then went still, dying with his eyes wide open in shock.

Seeing the man lying there like a dead pig, Water Snake's mood seemed to improve, his earlier frustration swept away.

This feeling was truly wonderful. He loved the sensation of holding the power of life and death over others; it was truly intoxicating. This was the reason he had always worked so hard to cultivate.

Finding a good spot, he quickly ignited a fire. Soon, the entire house was engulfed in flames, roaring as it burned. He left, slowly vanishing into the night.

On the other side, Might Guy's group had delivered Bu Qianfan to his home. Just as they were preparing to rest under Bu Qianfan's arrangements, they noticed a fire in the distance and rushed toward it.

They helped the villagers put out the blaze and contained the spread. Might Guy felt this fire was not simple; it was a bit too coincidental.

Thinking of the guy who had run off earlier, his intuition told him this fire might be related to him. He didn't know if he could still find the man, but he assumed he had already fled.

Might Guy made a mental note of him. If they met again, he would never let him escape like he did today.