Revenge Plan

The two did not spare the people on the ground another glance before turning and vanishing into the depths of the forest.

"Hidan, send a signal and request backup immediately. I have a feeling Konoha has someone we shouldn't underestimate."

"What? Who could possibly kill us?"

"Just do it when I tell you to. It's not like you'll lose any sacrifices."

"Fine, fine. I'll do it."

When Yunju dropped down from the canopy, the first person he saw was Asuma lying on the ground, followed by Ino, Choji, and Shikamaru. The three were scattered across the ground, each of them bleeding.

His gaze swiftly swept across the battlefield before stopping at the fresh wound in Asuma's chest—a penetrating injury, a full size larger than the previous one. His lung had been torn, his diaphragm completely severed, two ribs broken, and the outer layer of his heart damaged.

He was completely unconscious. When Yunju pressed a hand against him, he felt no active chakra flow at all, only a faint trace of lingering warmth on the surface of his body.

"He's still alive," Yunju said. "But we need to get him back to Tsunade's operating table. I can't perform a complete repair here."

Jiraiya stood behind him, already gripping a kunai. "I'll go after them. We finally tracked down Akatsuki's trail."

"You won't catch them." Yunju lowered his head as green medical chakra flowed from his palm into Asuma's body, first sealing the tear in his aorta, then forcibly suppressing the bleeding in his lung. "They were a step ahead of you. Those two left no chakra traces when they departed. Even if you chase them, you won't know which way they went. And I need someone to help carry him back."

Jiraiya fell silent for a moment, then put away his kunai. "All right. Then we can only return to the village."

Shikamaru climbed up from the ground, his expression ugly—not just from exhaustion, but something else. He crouched beside Asuma and looked down at his teacher's wounds. His fists clenched, loosened, then clenched again. "Hidan's jutsu is a curse. He uses Asuma-sensei's blood as a medium and stands within a magic circle. Any damage he inflicts is transferred to the other person at the same time."

"A magic circle?" Yunju turned to glance at him.

"It was circular, with concentric rings and triangular symbols at three points," Shikamaru said.

"I dragged him outside the circle's range, and the curse was interrupted. But before that, Hidan had already injured him—internal injuries. The synchronization in that instant was irreversible. Breaking the circle couldn't undo it."

Yunju nodded, carefully lifted Asuma onto his back, and fashioned a simple restraint harness with chakra threads.

"Back to the village. We can't jostle him on the way; his organs won't hold up." Yunju rose and took two steps with Asuma on his back, then looked back at Shikamaru. "Your analysis was accurate. If you hadn't identified the magic circle's weakness immediately, he'd already be dead. You did very well."

Shikamaru looked at him without answering. But his shoulders loosened slightly. His lips moved. "Yunju?"

"Yeah."

"When Asuma-sensei wakes up—" Shikamaru paused, then corrected himself. "When he's healed, do you want to come with me to get revenge? To kill them?"

"Let's get him back to Konoha first. Asuma's life comes first."

No one spoke on the way back to Konoha.

By the time Asuma was brought into Konoha Hospital, Tsunade was already standing outside the operating room.

She took one look at Asuma's condition and said nothing, taking him directly from Yunju. The operating lights came on.

Shikamaru sat on a bench outside the operating room with his head lowered, elbows braced on his knees and fingers interlocked.

Yunju walked over and sat beside him.

The two remained silent for a while.

"Everyone did their best in their own place."

"I know." Shikamaru raised his head. "I know we did our best. But I also know that if it happened again, I wouldn't let this happen."

Yunju did not argue.

He and Shikamaru had not been particularly familiar before, but after their brief exchange, he had a rough idea what kind of person Shikamaru was—someone who spoke little, thought deeply, and was willing to take responsibility for what he believed in. "You said you wanted to talk to me after Asuma woke up. Say it now."

Shikamaru turned to look at him. "You and Jiraiya are investigating Akatsuki?"

"Yeah."

"When we chased Hidan and Kakuzu, I saw some things. Kakuzu's body should have five hearts, and each one can use a different chakra nature transformation. Hidan needs to maintain the magic circle to keep the curse active. Also, some kind of medium is coated on Hidan's scythe. As long as it cuts the skin, it can draw blood. Kakuzu handles the rear guard, while Hidan draws blood and curses people. The two complement each other."

Yunju listened without interrupting.

"I analyzed the direction they retreated in. They're still within the Land of Fire," Shikamaru said. "If they keep heading that way, they might approach the areas around Konoha."

"You mean they'll come for the Nine-Tails jinchuriki?"

Shikamaru did not answer directly, but his gaze said everything. "I plan to pursue them."

Yunju looked at him. "By yourself?"

"With all of Team 10, plus you guys," Shikamaru said, "we'd be a very strong team."

Yunju was silent for a few seconds. "How long until your injuries recover?"

"Three days. Four at most."

"Mm." Yunju stood and dusted off his pants. "I'll talk to Jiraiya. Investigating Akatsuki was our mission to begin with. If we run into them, we'll take them on together."

Shikamaru stood as well. "Thanks. I'll also convince Naruto and the others to join us."

Yunju had already turned and taken two steps. He waved a hand. "Save your thanks. Say it after the fight."

The operating room lights were still on.

At the end of the corridor was a window, and moonlight streamed through it, falling across the backs of the two figures.

Two days later, Kakashi Hatake from Team 7 arrived. Yamato said he would bring Naruto and Sai, who were undergoing special training, to provide support afterward. For now, Team 10, Jiraiya, Yunju, and Kakashi Hatake would act together.

Sakura Haruno went to see Tsunade. She wanted to begin learning more advanced medical ninjutsu. Yunju believed the battles she had experienced had spurred her on.

Shikamaru began explaining the tactics he had devised.

Yunju glanced at everyone present, then turned to Jiraiya. "Jiraiya, what do you think of our plan to form a team and hunt down Akatsuki's Hidan and Kakuzu?"

Jiraiya closed the scroll and tucked it into his robe. "Pooling our intelligence and judgment isn't a bad idea. Besides, I didn't witness Kakuzu and Hidan's fighting style firsthand. We'll do as Shikamaru says."

Shikamaru pulled a folded sheet of paper from his pocket, unfolded it, and spread it against the wall. Several rough lines and markings had been drawn on it in charcoal. "This is their retreat route, based on rough markers I made along the way. If they continue in this direction, their next stop will be the hilly region between the Land of Fire's border and Grass Village, where they'll resupply. The terrain there is suitable for an ambush."

Yunju looked at the map, his finger moving slowly along several of the lines. "What if they change course midway?"

"They won't," Shikamaru said. "I've gotten a sense of Kakuzu's temperament—he'll choose the shortest, fastest route to his destination. They just collected the high bounty on Chiriku from the Temple of Fire. They'll take the body to an exchange station to claim the reward, and they have to pass through the wilderness road in the eastern Land of Fire. They won't take a detour. This is the only route where we can intercept them."

Jiraiya gave a grunt. "You've got your own ideas. Not bad."

"Then get ready," Yunju said. "We move at any time."

Shikamaru folded up the map and returned it to his pocket. When he turned to leave, his steps were lighter than when he had arrived.

Yunju stood where he was and watched him walk away, then leaned back against the wall and closed his eyes.