What Lies Beyond the Sea

In the forest.

Several figures flitted through the trees like ghosts, racing across branches and leaving the surrounding trunks behind.

Aburame Shibi's deep voice reached the ears of the three behind him.

"Recently, quite a few merchant caravans have been raided in the southern part of the Land of Fire. Our mission is to eliminate those bandits. Don't underestimate them. According to the intelligence, there are quite a few Chunin among them."

"That is secondary. The key is that those bandits are extremely cunning. The intelligence has marked four locations, all of which could be their hideouts. We may have to split up when the time comes."

"Understood."

Hyuga Satoru spoke somewhat helplessly.

Judging by the nature of the mission, this was probably another Anbu mission. Was the Hokage treating them as Anbu reserves?

Still, as far as the mission itself went, it suited them well. Bandits were skilled at hiding, while both he and Aburame Shibi possessed excellent reconnaissance abilities. The reward was also far more tempting than that of ordinary missions.

As long as they cleared out the bandits in that area, they would complete an A-rank mission, and the payment would be quite generous.

So worth it.

Hyuga Satoru could not help smacking his lips.

After two days of travel, they arrived at the location mentioned in the intelligence.

Hyuga Satoru could clearly feel that the air had become much more humid. Sweeping his gaze across the forest, he could see that beyond the gray boundary lay a vast blue sea.

Though it was still far away, Hyuga Satoru felt as if he could faintly hear the sound of the waves.

He had spent his entire previous life inland. This was the closest he had ever come to the sea, and it left him feeling slightly wistful.

Noticing Hyuga Satoru staring at the sea, Aburame Shibi also looked into the distance and said with emotion,

"Every year, the countries beyond the sea send large quantities of goods to the Land of Fire: ninja tools from the Land of Craftsmen, specialties from the Land of the Sea. That is why merchant caravans travel this route so frequently."

"Only after we eliminate those bandits will they feel safer transporting their goods here. That is what you hope for too, isn't it?"

Aburame Shibi looked at Hyuga Satoru with a sly smile.

"Wu, the greatest genius of the new generation, inheritor of the Will of Fire, whose dream is world peace."

Hyuga Satoru smiled helplessly.

"Teacher Shibi, please stop teasing me."

Sure enough, Aburame Shibi had heard those rumors in the Hidden Leaf Village. He even remembered the dream Hyuga Satoru had casually mentioned when they first met.

"Wu, stop being so modest. At the very least, you can't shake off the title of the new generation's greatest genius." Uchiha Rin revealed an envious expression.

When she saw Hyuga Satoru defeat Kakashi so decisively, she had been utterly shocked. After all, she had fought Kakashi before and knew how troublesome he was.

"Rin, even you..."

Anko, on the other hand, unusually did not join the conversation. She merely kept her head lowered, seemingly lost in thought.

"Then let's begin the mission." Aburame Shibi took a breath. "There are four locations marked by the intelligence. Since the enemy's overall strength is not particularly high, splitting up will be more efficient."

Aburame Shibi looked at Hyuga Satoru.

"Then Uchiha Rin and I will be one group. Wu, you and Anko will be another. Any objections?"

"No problem."

Hyuga Satoru nodded. Based on the intelligence regarding the bandits' strength, he alone would be more than enough.

Once the groups were decided, the two teams split up and headed in separate directions.

Hyuga Satoru advanced toward the location indicated in the intelligence. Before long, he discovered the target cave. It was extremely well hidden, concealed beneath dense bushes, with only the cave entrance faintly visible.

"Byakugan, activate!"

Through the Byakugan's vision, the situation inside the cave was laid bare.

The interior was far larger than it appeared from outside. Quite a few ninjas could be seen moving about in an orderly manner, each with clearly assigned duties.

"Anko, there are nine bandits in total. Three are Chunin, two are Genin, and the remaining four do not even have Chakra levels comparable to Genin."

"I'll handle the three Chunin and the Genin. You deal with the rest. Is that alright?"

"Anko?"

Receiving no reply, Hyuga Satoru turned back in confusion.

Anko had her head lowered, looking dispirited, as though she were lost in thought.

"Anko?"

Hyuga Satoru nudged her shoulder.

"Ah!"

Anko immediately raised her head.

"Did you hear what I just said?"

"Ah, understood." Her voice was still weak and listless, and she looked utterly exhausted.

"Forget it." Hyuga Satoru shook his head helplessly. "Rest here for now. Leave all these bandits to me."

As soon as he finished speaking, he took a scroll from his robes. When the white smoke dispersed, a long Ninja Sword appeared in his hand.

Ninja Sword: Long Fang!

Against enemies in groups, a Ninja Sword with such a long blade was exceptionally effective.

"Wait here for me. I'll be back soon."

After reminding her, Hyuga Satoru gripped his Ninja Sword and charged into the cave.

"Enemy attack!"

"What the hell? It's just a brat?"

"Are you tired of living? Let me teach you a proper—"

His words came to an abrupt stop. His pupils trembled in terror as a streak of blood spread from his forehead to his chest, and his body collapsed backward limply.

Nearby, Hyuga Satoru clicked his tongue impatiently.

"Way too much nonsense."

"Bastard! Get him together! He's just a brat! I refuse to believe so many of us can't deal with him!"

"Kill him!"

In an instant, countless Shuriken and Kunai swept toward Hyuga Satoru.

An unbelievable sight unfolded. The moment the Shuriken drew near, they seemed to be lightly brushed aside by an invisible giant hand, curving around his body.

"What is going on? Does this brat know some kind of sorcery?"

Hyuga Satoru suddenly rushed toward the nearest bandit. Long Fang cut through at a tricky angle, its sharp edge slashing fiercely across the man's throat.

"Brat! Die!"

One of the bandits suddenly tore open a scroll. As the white smoke dispersed, a mass of Metal Ninja Tools shot toward Hyuga Satoru, the Exploding Tags attached behind them hissing with smoke.

A fierce glint flashed through Hyuga Satoru's eyes. He assumed a strange stance, planted one foot as the center, and spun at high speed.

"Rotation - Yin!"

A rapidly spinning blue hemisphere enveloped his body. The incoming ninja tools froze briefly in midair the moment they touched it, then blasted outward in every direction at incredible speed.

In that brief instant, the violently flying Metal Ninja Tools engulfed the entire cave interior.

Boom! Boom! Boom!

The fiery flashes of Exploding Tags lit up one after another within the chaotic cave.

The bandit who had torn open the scroll never expected that his furious attack would bury his entire team.

When the explosions finally subsided, devastation filled his sight. Not a single bandit remained alive.

Hyuga Satoru shrugged helplessly. "I was planning to leave you intact corpses."

Rotation - Yin was a secret technique he had developed based on Rotation. While using Rotation, he constructed a repulsive magnetic field with Electromagnetic Force, instantly blasting away any approaching object.

The simultaneously developed Rotation - Yang, on the other hand, drew in nearby objects, similar to Universal Pull.

After struggling through the Ninja World for so long, he was no longer as fragile as he had been after killing someone for the first time, when the experience had tormented him into sleeplessness.

A ninja had always been a profession that walked alongside death.

After storing the items needed to prove the mission's completion in a scroll, Hyuga Satoru left the cave and returned to Anko. She still looked as dispirited as before.

"What exactly is wrong with you, Anko?" he could not help asking.