Night Raid on the Outpost

Night had fallen deep. Only a few dim lights burned in the advance team's temporary camp. The team took turns on watch, with supplies and makeshift tents arranged in orderly rows. Insects chirped through the forest, and now and then leaves rustled in the distance. No one could fully relax.

Ryan hadn't rested. After circling the camp's perimeter on patrol, he returned to the makeshift communications tent at its center. Kazif had just given him a map of the area, a rough survey made during the Association's last aerial reconnaissance flight. It marked the valley, river, hills, and the ravine where the "insect nest" lay.

"You're going over there now?" Kazif stepped into the tent, a kettle of hot water in his hand.

"I won't go in. I'll just take a look around the perimeter," Ryan replied calmly.

"Headquarters said the reinforcements won't arrive for at least two days. Don't charge in or take risks now." Kazif's tone was cautionary. "We can hold out until help arrives. That shouldn't be a problem."

"But they might not." Ryan meant the villagers in the nest. During an earlier fight, they had found scraps of torn clothing inside an insect, with clear signs of human use. There might still be people alive deep inside.

Kazif had no answer. After a moment's silence, he nodded and said no more.

Ryan packed light: a modified communications terminal, a portable Nen-powered light, and, most importantly, his Eye Nen beast. He did not conjure the Sniper Cannon again. Entering Zetsu, he slipped out of camp and headed toward the valley alone.

The jungle was damper at night, the smells of soil and fallen leaves mingling underfoot. His steps made almost no sound. Ryan kept close to the terrain, careful not to disturb the creatures around him. Rather