Night Raid

The night was as black as ink, shrouding all of Konoha in silence.

After the turmoil of the Nine-Tails Rebellion, Konoha's defenses had become extremely tight. ANBU ninja were stationed throughout the village, patrolling day and night to safeguard its peace. The villagers had long since fallen asleep, and the streets were utterly silent. Only moonlight spilled down, making the village seem especially tranquil.

The Uchiha compound was guarded even more heavily.

The clan's elite ninja took turns standing watch, their vigilant gazes sweeping the surroundings. No one dared let their guard down in the slightest.

Their leader, Lin Chen, was Konoha's guardian deity and the faith of the Uchiha Clan. No one would be allowed to disturb him.

Within the courtyard, Lin Chen sat cross-legged with his eyes lightly closed. Spatial power flowed slowly around him, merging with the chakra between heaven and earth as he entered a state of cultivation.

After several great battles, his strength had already become unfathomable. Now, as he cultivated in silence, his control over spatial power grew ever more refined. The power within him rose steadily, bringing him another step closer to a higher realm.

Though he appeared to be meditating with his eyes closed, his senses had actually spread outward, covering the entire Uchiha compound and even most of Konoha. Not the slightest disturbance could escape his perception.

He had long sensed that a mysterious force lurking in the shadows was stirring, so naturally, he would not lower his guard.

At midnight, all was still.

A nearly transparent black figure, ghostlike in appearance, evaded the patrols of Konoha's ANBU and the Uchiha guards before silently infiltrating the Uchiha compound. He moved with extreme speed, without stirring even the faintest breeze. A layer of cold, dark chakra enveloped his body, completely concealing his presence.

The black figure was clearly a top-tier assassin. His stealth techniques had reached the pinnacle. He avoided every sentry along the way and darted straight toward Lin Chen's courtyard, his target clear—Lin Chen!

There was only one thought in his mind: kill Uchiha Lin Chen, remove this greatest obstacle, and pave the way for the organization's future plans!

In his eyes, no matter how powerful Lin Chen was, he was cultivating in the dead of night. His vigilance was bound to be relaxed. As long as the assassin got close enough to launch a fatal sneak attack, he would surely succeed in one blow!

Before long, the black figure arrived outside the courtyard wall. Concealing himself in the shadows, he stared through a gap in the wall at Lin Chen, who sat quietly within. A trace of viciousness flashed through his eyes.

Slowly, he drew a Kunai coated in deadly poison from his waist. It gleamed with an eerie chill. Not only did it contain lethal poison, but it had also been imbued with a special sealing technique. Once it struck its target, it could seal their chakra and leave them helpless at another's mercy.

"Uchiha Lin Chen, die!"

The black figure roared inwardly as his body shot forward like an arrow leaving its bow. He smashed through the courtyard wall in an instant and charged at Lin Chen. His speed reached its limit, tearing through the air as the Kunai in his hand stabbed directly toward Lin Chen's heart. Every move was deadly, leaving no room for mercy!

A fierce gust swept across the entire courtyard, filling the air with a cold, sinister killing intent.

Only then did the Uchiha ninja standing guard outside react. Their expressions changed drastically as they cried out, "An assassin! Protect the leader!"

They hurriedly formed hand seals, intending to intercept him, but it was already too late. The assassin had closed in, and the fatal attack was right before them!

Everyone's hearts leaped into their throats, their faces filled with panic and dread.

Yet in the face of this lightning-fast, fatal ambush, Lin Chen remained seated with his eyes closed. His expression did not change in the slightest, as though he had not noticed the danger at all.

Just as the assassin's Kunai was about to pierce Lin Chen's heart—

Lin Chen finally opened his eyes slowly. There was not a trace of panic in them, only indifference and coldness.

"Courting death."

The two casual words rang through the courtyard like shattering ice.

Before the assassin could react, Lin Chen raised a finger slightly. Without forming hand seals or using chakra, an invisible force of space erupted instantly, forming an indestructible spatial barrier before him.

Clang!

The assassin's Kunai slammed into the spatial barrier with a crisp metallic crash. Sparks flew everywhere, but the blade could not advance even an inch, as though it had struck an invisible mountain.

"What?!"

The assassin's pupils shrank sharply, and terror filled his face as a storm surged through his heart.

His all-out fatal ambush had been blocked so easily?

Before he could recover, Lin Chen's gaze turned cold, and his fingers pinched lightly.

Crack!

Space suddenly twisted. A terrifying force of spatial compression instantly trapped the assassin's body. His entire body stiffened, leaving him completely unable to move. The Kunai slipped from his hand and fell to the ground, while the chakra in his body was thoroughly sealed, leaving him unable to mobilize even a trace of it.

A moment ago, he had been a murderous top-tier assassin. Now, like an ant caught by the throat, he floated helplessly in midair, staring at Lin Chen in terror as his entire body shook uncontrollably.

He had never dreamed that his carefully planned ambush would end like this.

The young man before him was countless times more terrifying than the intelligence reports had described!

"Y-you... what kind of monster are you...?"

The assassin's voice trembled, his words incoherent. His eyes were filled with utter terror, and all his earlier viciousness had vanished without a trace.

Lin Chen slowly rose to his feet and looked at him impassively. His tone was cold enough to pierce bone. "Speak. Who sent you? What is this force in the shadows plotting?"

He could sense that the dark chakra within this assassin was exactly the same as the dark chakra that had remained inside the Nine-Tails. It was the work of the mysterious force from the secret realm that night.

The assassin clenched his teeth, a vicious glint flashing through his eyes. He tried to detonate his chakra and end his own life to keep the secret.

"Before me, you don't even have the right to kill yourself."

Lin Chen snorted coldly, and the force of space suddenly tightened.

Bang!

The chakra inside the assassin was instantly sealed completely. The meridians throughout his body were bound by spatial power, leaving him unable to move in the slightest. His attempt at self-destruction was strangled before it could begin.

"I'll ask one more time. Who is behind this? What is your plan?"

Lin Chen's voice carried an unquestionable pressure, crashing down upon the assassin's heart like heavenly thunder.

The assassin's mind collapsed. Unable to resist any longer, his face turned pale as paper as he stammered, "It's... it's the Kaguya Remnants. We were ordered by the higher-ups to assassinate you. The purpose is to clear away obstacles, gather the Tailed Beasts, revive Lady Kaguya, and rule the Ninja World..."

The Kaguya Remnants!

The chill in Lin Chen's eyes deepened.

Just as he had expected, the force lurking in the shadows was made up of Otsutsuki Kaguya's remaining followers. Their obsession ran deep, and they still dreamed of reviving Kaguya and taking control of the Ninja World.

"Besides you, how many others are lurking around Konoha? Where is your base?"

Lin Chen continued questioning him. He intended to root out these hidden tumors completely and eliminate all future trouble.

The assassin did not dare conceal anything. He hurriedly revealed everything he knew. "There are twenty more top-tier assassins hiding in the forests outside Konoha, waiting for orders. Our temporary base is at Cloudbreak Cliff, a hundred li west of Konoha!"

After learning all the information, the assassin no longer had the slightest value to Lin Chen.

Lin Chen's gaze remained indifferent, without a trace of pity. He flicked his finger lightly.

A tiny spatial blade sliced through the air in an instant and pierced directly through the assassin's body.

Pfft!

The assassin could not even let out a scream before his body was shredded by spatial power into a cloud of blood mist. He vanished completely between heaven and earth, leaving behind not even a trace.

The entire exchange had lasted only a few short seconds.

A top-tier assassin comparable to a jonin had been casually killed with a flick of Lin Chen's finger, like an ant, without any ability to resist.

At that moment, Fugaku, the Uchiha ninja who had rushed over after hearing the commotion, and the members of Konoha's ANBU all stood dumbly at the courtyard entrance. They stared at the scene in shock, unable to come back to their senses for a long while.

A midnight assassin's attack—such a dangerous situation had been resolved so effortlessly by Lin Chen. The assassin had not even managed to get close before being instantly killed!

Such strength was terrifying beyond measure!

"Leader!"

Fugaku was the first to recover. He hurried to Lin Chen's side, his face full of guilt and self-reproach. "We failed in our duty and allowed the assassin to infiltrate. You were disturbed because of us. Please punish us!"

The Uchiha ninja and Konoha ANBU members all bowed in apology as well, their faces filled with unease.

Lin Chen waved a hand and spoke calmly. "This has nothing to do with you. The Kaguya Remnants in the shadows acted deliberately. Their target was me. No matter how strict the defenses were, they would have found a way to come."

"Then... how should we deal with these remnants?" Fugaku hurriedly asked, his eyes filled with anger.

Those people had dared to launch a night raid and assassinate Lin Chen. Their crimes were unforgivable!

Lin Chen looked toward the west of Konoha. A cold gleam flashed in his eyes as he said icily, "Since they've delivered themselves to us, not one of them will leave."

"Pass down my order. All Uchiha elites are to mobilize and coordinate with Konoha's ANBU. Head to Cloudbreak Cliff immediately and wipe out those remnants. I will go personally and clean up these petty scum."

"Yes!"

Everyone answered in unison, their hearts brimming with fighting spirit.

With Lin Chen acting personally, those so-called Kaguya Remnants were nothing more than turtles in a jar. They would be utterly helpless!

Lin Chen's figure flashed, and he vanished from the courtyard in an instant, racing toward Cloudbreak Cliff at extreme speed. Only an afterimage remained behind.

Tonight, he would thoroughly wipe out this group of Kaguya Remnants and make an example of them, letting every petty villain lurking in the shadows know the consequences of provoking him!

Anyone who dared challenge him or covet Konoha had only one path ahead—death!