The blaze quickly alerted the nearby Konoha ninja.
The first to arrive was a patrol squad.
The three had just crossed a hill when they saw that the forest ahead had already become a sea of flames.
Waves of fire dozens of meters high swept across the treetops, thick smoke blotted out the night sky, and burning branches constantly snapped and crashed to the ground.
"How did it spread this fast?"
A Konoha ninja's expression changed drastically.
"The wind direction is shifting. The fire has already spread east!"
After only a few glances, the squad leader immediately made his judgment.
"Send an emergency signal and request support from every nearby squad!"
"You two, come with me. We'll contain the fire first!"
A signal flare shot into the night sky and exploded beneath the thick smoke.
Before long, two more Konoha ninja squads arrived. There was no time to ask what had happened. Everyone immediately scattered and formed hand seals.
"Water Release users to the front!"
"Earth Release users, cut off the fireline!"
"Everyone else, clear away flammable material! Don't let the fire spread any farther!"
Several ninja charged toward the edge of the inferno at once.
"Water Release: Water Shock Wave!"
"Water Release: Water Formation Wall!"
Massive torrents of water crashed into the burning forest, and white steam instantly billowed upward.
On the other side, two ninja pressed both hands against the ground.
"Earth Release: Earth-Style Wall!"
Earthen walls rose one after another, forcibly dividing the area where the fire raged most fiercely. The rest used Wind Release to redirect the smoke, then swiftly felled the outer trees to clear a firebreak.
But the fire was simply too large.
Great Fireballs had ignited multiple areas in succession. The firelines connected to each other, already forming a massive wildfire. The moment Water Release suppressed one patch of flames, another side ignited again.
"There are at least two ignition points here!"
A Chunin responsible for fighting the fire wiped the water from his face, his voice hurried.
"No, more than two."
The squad leader crouched on the scorched ground and picked up a piece of burnt, cracked earth.
"The ignition points are too scattered. An ordinary forest fire couldn't have spread this far in such a short time."
The ninja beside him caught his breath.
"Someone set the fire deliberately?"
"At least several large-scale Fire Release techniques were used."
The squad leader stood and looked into the depths of the blazing forest.
"A battle took place here."
The moment he said that, the expressions of several nearby ninja changed.
Such extensive traces of Fire Release could never have been caused by an ordinary clash. Besides, this area was not far from Konoha.
"Put out the fire first."
The squad leader gave the order in a low voice.
"No one enters the central area without authorization. Wait for ANBU to deal with it."
The firefighting continued for nearly two hours.
By the time the last open flame was extinguished by Water Release, the once-lush forest had become a field of scorched earth. Broken trunks lay scattered in every direction, the ground was covered in thick black ash, and the air reeked of charred smoke.
Several masked ANBU ninja descended from the treetops.
Arriving alongside them was a squad of Root ninja with no identifying marks whatsoever.
The two sides merely exchanged glances. Neither stopped the other.
The ANBU captain walked up to the Konoha ninja who had first discovered the fire.
"When did you find it?"
"An hour and a half ago."
"Did you see anyone suspicious?"
"No. By the time we got here, the entire forest was already burning."
"What about traces of battle?"
"The fire was too intense. We didn't enter the central area."
The ANBU captain nodded and raised his hand in several gestures.
Several ANBU quickly dispersed.
The Root ninja also entered the burn site, inspecting the destroyed ground, rocks, and trees. They did not exchange a word, yet their movements were extremely practiced. It was obvious that they were searching for traces left behind by the battle.
Half an hour later, an ANBU ninja stopped before a patch of shattered ground.
He brushed aside the black ash, revealing the remnants of stone spikes beneath.
"Traces of Earth Release."
Another ANBU landed beside him and observed the scene for a moment.
"The rocks pierced upward from underground. There were at least five attack points. The caster was highly proficient with this technique."
"Can you identify them?"
"No. The destruction is too severe."
Not far away, a Root ninja picked up half of a charred insect wing from the ashes.
Only a fingernail-sized fragment remained, its edges already carbonized.
Yet when the surrounding Root ninja saw it, they all stopped moving at the same time.
"Kikaichū."
"The Aburame Clan?"
"Send it back for confirmation."
A Root ninja took the insect wing and sealed it inside a small bottle specially made for preserving evidence.
The ANBU captain noticed the scene as well.
He did not step forward to contest it. He merely asked quietly, "Have any Aburame Clan ninja been carrying out missions in this area recently?"
The ANBU beside him took out the mission records and searched through them quickly.
A few breaths later, his hand stopped.
"There was a three-man squad."
"Mission rank?"
"A-rank."
"Members?"
The ANBU looked at the names in the record, his tone gradually turning grave.
"Captain Takeno Sota, an elite special Jōnin. He previously served in ANBU and specializes in Earth Release."
"Member Ayakawa Yukina, a special Jōnin from a branch family of the Aburame Clan. She specializes in controlling Kikaichū."
"The last one..."
He paused.
"Uchiha Lieyang, a special Jōnin with the Three-Tomoe Sharingan. He specializes in Fire Release, Genjutsu, and throwing ninja tools."
For a moment, no one spoke.
Earth Release.
Kikaichū.
Large-scale Fire Release.
Every trace remaining at the scene perfectly matched that three-man squad.
The ANBU captain took the mission record and read it carefully.
"Their mission area was here?"
"Yes. Their mission was to infiltrate and confirm intelligence on a group of rogue ninja, then eliminate the targets if necessary."
"When were they supposed to return?"
"Last night."
"Any contact signal?"
"None received."
The ANBU captain turned to look at the utterly burned forest.
All three special Jōnin had vanished.
There were no bodies, no ninja tools, and no distress signals.
The A-rank mission had completely failed, and the scene contained battle traces corresponding to all three of their abilities.
This could never have been an ordinary accident.
A Root ninja took the intelligence record handed over by his companion and quickly scanned the three names.
When he saw Uchiha Lieyang, his gaze beneath the mask noticeably paused for a moment.
"Expand the search area."
"Prioritize confirming Uchiha Lieyang's whereabouts."
The ANBU captain turned to look at him.
"The other two are missing as well."
"Takeno Sota and Ayakawa Yukina were acting under mission orders."
The Root ninja's voice was cold.
"Uchiha Lieyang is different."
"How is he different?"
The Root ninja did not answer.
He put away the mission record and directly ordered, "Seal off the news. Organize every trace at the scene overnight and send them separately to the Hokage Building and Root."
The ANBU captain fell silent for several breaths, but did not stop him.
Everyone present understood that if the three had encountered foreign enemies, the scene should not have contained only traces caused by their own abilities.
What about the enemy's ninjutsu?
What about the enemy's bodies?
Even if the blaze had destroyed every trace, it should not have erased them so completely.
Moreover, Uchiha Lieyang's Fire Release was perfectly capable of creating a wildfire that incinerated everything.
Every suspicion fell upon the sole Uchiha.
Dozens of miles away stood a secluded town.
Dawn had yet to arrive, and few pedestrians could be seen on the streets.
The shadow clone carried Lieyang past the night watchmen, entered the room through the inn's rear window, and shut it again behind him.
The room was small.
Aside from a bed, a table, and a chair, there were no other furnishings.
The shadow clone placed Lieyang on the bed and immediately examined his original body's condition.
A high fever.
An erratic heartbeat.
Breathing that alternated between rapid and slow.
His limbs were still convulsing, and the blood vessels beneath his skin throbbed constantly, as though they might rupture at any moment.
The joints in his right arm had shattered, the wound at his waist was still bleeding, and the bite marks left by the Kikaichū covered his entire body.
Yet those external injuries were not the truly dangerous part.
The shadow clone's memories were linked to those of the original body.
He could clearly feel that Lieyang's internal organs had suffered damage several times worse than his external wounds.
Before you continue