My Kidney's Gone?

After completing several D-rank missions in a row, Hyuga Satoru and the others were summoned by Aburame Shibi to a training ground one day.

After briefly explaining the mission requirements, Aburame Shibi spoke in a deep voice.

"Do you all understand the requirements of this mission?"

"We understand," Anko said, raising her hand hesitantly. "But Shibi-sensei, isn't it too difficult for our first mission outside the village to be a B-rank mission?"

Leaf Village scouts had discovered traces of Stone Shinobi activity at the border of the Grass Country. They appeared to be searching for supplies, and their mission was to stop them from bringing those supplies back.

Any mission involving conflict between shinobi from two nations started at B-rank at minimum.

"The strongest enemy is only a Chunin. If I were alone, I could finish this in an instant. This is training for all of you."

"That's really direct." Anko's mouth twitched slightly.

Hyuga Satoru's eyes flickered. Stone Shinobi activity had been discovered at the border. That was a sign that war was approaching. It seemed the brutal Third Shinobi World War from his memories was not far off.

With the makeup of their squad, the strategic value of his Byakugan, and Aburame Shibi's versatility, the mission they were carrying out would certainly not be a simple one.

Uchiha Rin did not think that much about it. She was simply eager to get started.

"Then it's settled. You have half an hour to prepare supplies. Gather here again in half an hour."

After several days of travel, Hyuga Satoru and the others finally reached the location marked in the intelligence. Looking out from the branches, they could see a lush green plain.

"According to the latest intelligence, that group of Stone Shinobi will be transporting a batch of supplies through here. Our mission is to stop them from taking the supplies back."

Hyuga Satoru hid in the brush, silently observing the changes around them.

Searching for supplies at a time like this was undoubtedly preparation for war. Cutting off the Stone Shinobi's supply preparations might delay the arrival of the Third Shinobi World War. What he lacked most right now was time.

His Byakugan had been activated to its limit. After more than a year of training, its range had expanded to three kilometers.

Before long, a disguised merchant caravan appeared in his field of vision. Through the Byakugan's perspective, he could clearly see the considerable chakra flowing within their bodies.

"They're here!" Hyuga Satoru said in a low voice. "Three o'clock, three kilometers away. There are five of them: four Chunin and one Genin."

"Five shinobi?" Anko instinctively swallowed.

"With Shibi-sensei here, we shouldn't need to worry too much, right?"

She turned around and immediately broke out in goosebumps.

Huh? Where was Shibi-sensei?

He had been right here a moment ago. How had he disappeared?

The brush where they had been hiding was completely empty. Apart from the three of them, there was no one else.

"Forget it, don't worry about Shibi-sensei. He's probably hiding somewhere else to watch the battle. For now, we'll have to rely on ourselves."

Hyuga Satoru took a deep breath, calming his emotions as he looked at the two girls.

"They should pass through here in about ten minutes. Let's decide on a battle plan first. First..."

Anko and Rin listened in silence.

Yantu walked at the front of the formation. The five-person convoy looked like an ordinary merchant caravan, but upon closer inspection, shuriken, kunai, and other standard shinobi equipment could faintly be seen beneath their travel-stained plain clothes.

This supply handoff had gone exceptionally well. As long as they delivered the supplies back, they would surely receive a reward from the Tsuchikage.

Yantu thought happily to himself. Their team had set out from the Land of Crafts, passed through the Grass Country, and was now getting closer and closer to the Land of Earth.

As they passed a patch of brush, an unexpected change erupted!

A kunai suddenly shot out from the brush, flying straight at him.

An ambush?

Did an attack of this level really think it could hurt him? Yantu's eyes turned cold.

He raised his kunai to block its path, but just as it was about to be deflected, its trajectory abruptly changed. It curved in an eerie arc and embedded itself firmly in his throat.

Yantu's pupils abruptly contracted. His mouth fell open, his face filled with disbelief. He wanted to say something, but his mouth was full of red, bubbling blood.

"Captain Yantu!"

"Damn it!"

"Enemy attack!"

After witnessing their captain's gruesome fall, the Stone Shinobi squad quickly calmed down after a brief moment of panic. They tore off the cloaks used for disguise, revealing full sets of standard shinobi equipment.

Since they had already fallen into an ambush, their identities had clearly been exposed long ago. Maintaining their disguises would only make combat more inconvenient.

At the very instant they tore off their disguises, three figures burst from the grass, charging the Stone Shinobi with kunai in hand.

"Byakugan? Three little brats actually managed to kill Captain Yantu..."

The tall Stone Shinobi gritted his teeth. He looked toward the wagon and shouted, "Haito, guard the supplies. Leave these three brats to us."

"Yes!" the lean Chunin shouted.

When Hyuga Satoru saw that one of the remaining Stone Shinobi had not charged over and had instead chosen to guard the supplies, delight rose in his heart. That made it three against three, greatly reducing their pressure.

"Rin and I will handle those two Chunin. Anko, hold off that Genin."

"Got it!"

The opponent facing Hyuga Satoru was the tall Stone Shinobi. His muscles bulged, and in terms of height, Hyuga Satoru only came up to his waist.

Hyuga Satoru threw several shuriken in succession. Their trajectories abruptly changed midflight, but his opponent blocked them with a kunai, suffering only superficial wounds.

"Brat, was that how you killed Captain Yantu?"

The tall Stone Shinobi gritted his teeth as he stared at the bloody cuts carved into his body by the shuriken.

"Controlling shuriken, what a strange ability. No wonder Captain Yantu got caught by it! But it's useless now."

Hyuga Satoru's expression did not change. Using Electromagnetic Force to alter the shuriken's trajectories was indeed strange, but its greatest use was catching opponents off guard. Once they were prepared, its effectiveness dropped sharply.

Exposing that ability in exchange for the life of the strongest enemy was a profit no matter how he calculated it!

On the other side, Uchiha Rin's expression was somewhat grave. She held a kunai in each hand, blocking the ninja sword slashing toward her at high speed.

"A sword-wielding shinobi? What a pain."

She performed a backflip to evade the ninja sword cutting across her waist and abdomen, then spat disdainfully.

It had to be said that sword-wielding shinobi were rather effective at countering someone like her. Kunai had too short a reach to give her an advantage in close combat, while using ninjutsu would let her opponent rapidly close the distance. For a time, the battle fell into a stalemate.

Anko's situation was equally perilous. The Genin fighting her had far more combat experience and kept her firmly suppressed.

Hyuga Satoru withdrew his gaze and thought, I can't drag this out any longer. I have to end this quickly and support them.

The tall Stone Shinobi facing him seemed to see through his thoughts and laughed. "As long as I'm here, you'll never be able to support them."

"We've dragged this out long enough. It's time to end it."

"Secret Technique! Rock Armor Technique!"

The Stone Shinobi suddenly formed hand seals. Dense rock spread over his entire body like armor, and his already tall body grew several sizes larger, making him look like a rock giant.

The giant opened his mouth, producing a rumbling sound like wind blowing through a mountain valley.

"Byakugan brat, you're a shinobi of the Hyuga Clan, aren't you? I only avoided close combat earlier because of your Gentle Fist. In this state, your Gentle Fist can never break through my defense."

He charged at Hyuga Satoru, his massive rock fist aimed directly at his head.

"Who told you I use Gentle Fist?"

Hyuga Satoru raised an eyebrow, crouched slightly, and drove his palm into the man's side at lightning speed.

With a dull boom, violent pain made the Stone Shinobi's pupils contract. He looked down to see that the entire section of his side where Hyuga Satoru's palm had struck was gone, leaving a horrifying, blood-red hollow.

Huh, where did my kidney go?