He had once learned of the Dragon Vein's existence from a book and, by a stroke of luck, obtained a method that could use the Dragon Vein to grow stronger.
Then, before he defected, a map marked with the Dragon Vein's location appeared in Sunagakure.
How could he possibly restrain himself?
So, without any suspense, he seized it and defected.
A pursuit was inevitable.
But as one of Sunagakure's special jōnin, he was not someone just anyone could hunt down.
And without stopping his escape for even a moment,
before the true jōnin could catch up, he had already fled far away.
Unfortunately, although he had memorized the map, he had not had time to destroy it.
So it would not be long before the pursuers arrived as well.
And he did not have much time left.
He opened his canteen and took a drink.
The light in his eyes grew brighter and brighter.
If he had made the right choice this time, then the day he turned his life around had surely come.
Unlike Hinata and the others, Mukade had an extremely detailed map.
Although the map was not on him, he had naturally etched his destination firmly into his mind.
So, without the slightest hesitation, he headed straight toward the direction of his dreams.
When he saw that pitch-black underground cave entrance,
he could not help but feel a surge of excitement.
That's right, that's right, this is the place. The map was correct. That was what Mukade was thinking at the time.
But before he could celebrate for long, he seemed to sense something.
His body immediately performed a Donkey Roll across the ground.
Several sharp whistles cut through the air and shot past where he had been standing.
Several kunai embedded themselves in the ground nearby.