After resting for several minutes, Hyuga Tianyi forced himself to endure the weakness and dizziness from vomiting as his gaze swept over the wreckage.
He couldn't stay here!
The two explosions had been far too loud. They would inevitably draw scouts, whether from the Hidden Rain Village or other ninja villages. Either way, it was too dangerous.
He gritted his teeth and braced himself against a tree trunk with his nearly numb right hand. The wound on his left shoulder split open again from the violent vomiting and movement, sending a piercing, dull ache through him.
Tianyi frowned and quickly searched the Rain ninja whose body remained relatively intact, finding several damp Ration Pills, a small roll of fairly clean bandages, and two Kunai.
His movements were swift, even carrying a trace of the practiced efficiency and coldness of a battlefield survivor that he himself had not noticed.
He casually stuffed the mud- and blood-stained supplies into his ninja tool pouch, then gave the two Rain ninja corpses one final glance. There was little emotion left in his eyes, only deep exhaustion.
Then he turned and plunged into the depths of the rain curtain without looking back.
The rain was his best cover at the moment. Its rushing sound concealed his far-from-light footsteps, while the flowing puddles constantly washed away his tracks and bloodstains.
Every five minutes, he activated the Byakugan, keeping it at the lowest possible level—only enough to see through and sense chakra within one kilometer ahead, conserving chakra.
Throughout the night, the Byakugan allowed him to detect hostile chakra signatures roaming in the distance several times in advance. He hid early in cracks between rocks or within dense treetops, holding his breath and concentrating until the danger had passed.
After an entire night of tense travel, Tianyi finally stopped when the first faint rays of dawn pierced the clouds and illuminated a relatively open forest slope ahead.
The shape of the slope, the arrangement of several particular distant rocks... gradually overlapped with a corner of the memories in his mind.
That was right... this was the place. About five kilometers ahead lay the forward reconnaissance camp that Leaf Village had established on the border of the Land of Fire, designated "B-7"!
His spirits lifted, and despite his nearly senseless left arm, his legs quickened their pace.
Suddenly, just as he entered this seemingly ordinary stretch of woods!
Whoosh! Whoosh!
Two figures dropped soundlessly from the dense canopy like ghosts, one in front and one behind, perfectly blocking both his path forward and his retreat.
Both wore Leaf Village forehead protectors and standard Chunin flak jackets. Their eyes were sharp, their hands already resting on their ninja tool pouches, and they exuded the capable vigilance of men tempered by war.
"Stop!" The Leaf ninja in front spoke in a low, oppressive voice. "Password? What unit are you attached to? Who is your squad leader? Identification number!"
Tianyi did not panic and try to explain. He merely slowly raised his right hand to show that he meant no harm.
His face was pale, his entire body drenched and muddy. The blood seeping through the bandage on his left shoulder was especially glaring in the morning light. Anyone could tell that he had been through a fierce battle and was in terrible condition.
Yet his eyes struggled to remain clear as he stared directly at the ninja questioning him.
"...The patrol squad I was in... was ambushed by the Hidden Rain Village to the northwest yesterday. We were wiped out." His voice was hoarse and dry, but he stated the facts as clearly as possible. At the same time, his gaze swept over the Leaf Village symbols on the two ninjas' forehead protectors. Finally, he took a deep breath and shouted, "Is this... proof enough?"
Before his words had even faded, his hands formed seals. His eyes briefly closed before snapping open!
"Alert!!!" The two Leaf ninja immediately drew their Kunai, ready to attack.
Buzz!
"Byakugan!" The two Leaf ninja cried out almost simultaneously. The vigilance in their eyes was instantly replaced by surprise. Based on the news sent back yesterday, his squad had been ambushed by a large force and should have been completely wiped out. It was incredible luck that he had made it back.
And in Leaf Village, the Byakugan was the best proof of identity. It was almost impossible to fake. Still, this kid had formed hand seals right in front of them—he had nearly gotten himself killed by the two of them!
"One of the Hyuga Clan." The questioning ninja's tone softened somewhat.
"Name? Squad designation?"
"Hyuga Tianyi... Border Regular Reconnaissance Seventh Squad. My squad leader is Chunin Tetsuya." Tianyi accurately reported the information from his memories, then deactivated the Byakugan. Keeping it active was too much of a burden in his current state. His vision darkened, and his body swayed.
Seeing his reaction, the questioning ninja finally confirmed both his identity and his condition.
He stepped forward, his tone softening slightly. "Hang in there, Hyuga. You're lucky. This is the outer perimeter of the B-7 camp. Aoki, take him inside, straight to the medical tent! I'll continue standing guard!"
The ninja named Aoki answered and quickly stepped forward, catching Tianyi as he nearly collapsed.
"Follow me. Watch your step."
Supported by Aoki, Tianyi staggered through the last stretch of trees, and the view before him suddenly opened up.
In a cleared forest glade, dozens of tents of varying sizes stood in neat order, surrounded by simple traps and warning barriers.
The air carried the scent of medicinal herbs, cooking smoke, and sweat. Quite a few exhausted-looking ninja were moving about, while the groans of the wounded drifted faintly from afar.
Finally... he was safe, at least for now.
The moment he stepped into the camp's boundaries, the breath he had been forcing himself to hold finally gave out. Boundless darkness, accompanied by utter weakness, swept over him.
Just before he completely lost consciousness, Tianyi vaguely felt himself being swiftly lifted and carried toward the medical tent. The camp's noisy voices seemed to linger by his ears.
Deep in his fading consciousness, one final thought flickered:
"I survived... The next contact... is at ten tonight..."
Municipal Police Bureau, Director's Office.
It was already past one in the morning. The ashtray on the desk had long been overloaded with burnt cigarette butts, and the air was thick enough to choke on.
Director Wang Jianguo sat behind his desk, leaning back against the sofa. His eyes were bloodshot, and his fingers unconsciously tapped the tabletop, producing dull, rhythmic clicks.
Old Li stood by the window, staring at the sleeping city outside. His back was stiff, and he did not even notice that the cigarette in his hand had burned down to his fingertips.
In the corner, the young officer who had spent the entire night rushing around with Old Li could no longer withstand the onslaught of exhaustion.
Slumped in his chair, he let out faint snores. Yet even asleep, his brow remained tightly furrowed, as if he could find no peace even in his dreams.
1:10 a.m.
The outskirts of H City, a military base.
The deep night sky was torn apart by the thunderous roar of massive engines. A huge Y-20 transport aircraft with a hard, imposing silhouette steadily landed on the heavily guarded runway under the escort of two fighter jets.
Flanking it were a J-16D specialized in electromagnetic suppression and a J-20 stealth fighter representing the most advanced aerial power on the planet!
The transport's hatch opened, revealing a combat squad dressed in special operations gear, their faces painted with camouflage.
They moved swiftly and silently, spreading out in an instant to occupy every key tactical position around the runway. Their icy gun barrels pointed into the darkness beyond, forming an absolute security perimeter.
Only then did a lieutenant colonel in a crisp military service uniform step steadily out of the hatch, two bars and two stars displayed on his shoulder boards. His face was resolute, and his precise age could not be discerned. Most striking of all, however, was the pair of handcuffs locked around his left wrist, the other end attached to a pitch-black briefcase without any markings.
Without exchanging any pleasantries, the lieutenant colonel briefly returned the base commander's salute, then quickly boarded one of three military vehicles waiting nearby, surrounded by the combat squad.
The convoy left the airport and merged onto the empty suburban roads of the early morning.
At every intersection along the route to the Municipal Police Bureau, traffic police wearing reflective vests had already been deployed.
They stopped the few vehicles still on the roads.
Every traffic light along the convoy's route switched to green.
The convoy sped along silently, moving at great speed yet remaining exceptionally steady. Outside the windows, the city's nightscape rapidly retreated.
At an intersection where they had just been relieved, two young traffic police officers rubbed their reddened, freezing hands and watched the convoy's taillights fade into the distance, unable to stop themselves from whispering.
"My God... what a formation!" The younger officer lowered his voice, his eyes full of shock. "This is the first time I've ever seen anything like it! What kind of important figure came in? Or were they escorting something incredible?"
The older officer hurriedly jabbed him with an elbow and cautiously looked around. "Shh! Didn't you see the captain's expression? It's a top-secret operation! Pretend you saw nothing, and keep anything you know buried in your gut! Hurry up and pack up. We're leaving, we're leaving... It's freezing in the middle of the night. At least we can finally go back and catch a bit of sleep."
The two quickly packed up and withdrew, and the intersection returned to silence.
1:50 a.m.
"They're here!" Old Li, who had been watching outside the window the whole time, suddenly turned and spoke in a low voice.
A moment later, clear, powerful footsteps with a uniform rhythm sounded in the corridor, drawing closer from afar.
Director Wang Jianguo immediately stood and quickly straightened his appearance. The officer dozing in the corner was jolted awake as well and hurriedly stood at attention.
There came a knock at the office door—neither too heavy nor too soft, exactly three times.
"Come in," Director Wang said in a low voice.
The door opened. Two special forces soldiers with sharp eyes and efficient movements entered first. After swiftly scanning the room, they stepped aside.
Then the lieutenant colonel carrying the black case strode inside.
His gaze landed first on Director Wang Jianguo, then swept across Old Li before finally settling on the conspicuous evidence bag atop the desk.
Without any unnecessary introduction, the lieutenant colonel gave Director Wang Jianguo a standard military salute. His voice was steady and solemn. "Comrade Wang Jianguo, Comrade Li Xianghua. I have been ordered to assume full authority over Incident 'Dragon City' and all related physical evidence, personnel, and information. This is the transfer order."
With his right hand, he took a document bearing a top-secret seal from inside his uniform and handed it over.
Director Wang Jianguo took it with both hands, drew a deep breath, and quickly read through it. His expression grew even more solemn.
He returned the salute formally:
"Understood! Everything is ready. Please issue your instructions!"
Before you continue