The breeze of the rainy night carried damp mist through the ancient, spacious covered corridor.
Chenshu Senju remained seated steadily on the tatami in the middle of the courtyard, the hot tea in his hand still slowly steaming.
At that casual taunt, Itachi Uchiha's gaze instantly turned icy.
His whereabouts had been completely exposed. The infiltration plan was officially ruined.
Since he had been discovered, there was no need to keep hiding.
Itachi had never been one for pointless words. The three tomoe in his Sharingan spun wildly.
"Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh!"
Itachi's hands nearly became blurred afterimages as several shuriken, shrieking through the air, sliced through the night rain and shot straight for Chenshu Senju's vital points.
This was more than a probe—it was the Uchiha Style Shurikenjutsu he took such pride in. Every shuriken came from an impossibly tricky angle, sealing off every route of escape.
Yet Chenshu Senju did not even raise his eyelids.
Seriously? That same worn-out opening move again.
Couldn't he come up with something new? Did he think this was some street punk brawl?
"Crack, crack, crack!"
Without even forming hand seals, Chenshu Senju casually tapped the edge of the tea table.
Several thick wooden vines surged up like mad pythons bursting from the earth, weaving together precisely in midair to form a shield.
A crisp barrage of clangs rang out.
The shuriken, carrying immense momentum, could not even scrape the surface of the Wood Release. They fell uselessly into the muddy puddles as though they had struck steel plates.
"If that's all you can do, then tonight is going to be quite disappointing," Chenshu Senju said lazily, taking a small sip of tea.
That lofty attitude pushed Itachi's nerves to their limit.
Too strong. This level of effortless control over Wood Release was suffocating.