Tanaka injured

Only then did Tanaka get a clear look at his opponent. It was one of the Sakai Family guards who had entered the cave earlier.

The guard vanished in a blur and appeared in front of Tanaka. So fast, Tanaka thought. The guard kicked straight at his chin, but Tanaka raised his right hand to block it, then swept his right leg toward the man's waist. The guard held an arm across his waist and blocked the attack solidly with a bang. Seeing that his attack had failed, Tanaka quickly retreated.

The guard blurred forward, charging straight at Tanaka. Tanaka's lips curled upward, and he shouted, "Eight Trigrams Sixty-Four Palms!" Hyuga Tanaka seemed to stand within the eight trigrams as both hands struck the guard's body in rapid succession.

Caught off guard and unable to resist, the guard flew backward like a sack and crashed heavily to the ground.

A dozen more people appeared around them, all guards who had entered the cave earlier. Hyuga Tanaka looked at the two men standing in front, who appeared to be their leaders, and demanded, "Who are you?"

The man in the lead said, "I didn't expect anyone to find this place. Naturally, we can't let you leave."

The other man said, "Sakumo, finish him off quickly. We have other things to do."

"Don't be impatient, Sasuke," Sakumo said, walking slowly forward. "It's not often I find interesting prey. Let me have some fun with him."

Hyuga Tanaka's expression grew grave, and he assumed a fighting stance.

Sakumo stopped two meters away from Hyuga Tanaka and thrust his right palm at him. Hyuga Tanaka sensed danger and instinctively turned sideways. With a bang, a palm print appeared on the wall behind him.

Hyuga Tanaka was shocked. Sakumo gave a smug smile, leaped over his head, and kicked down at him.

Hyuga Tanaka raised both hands to block the kick. Bang! He couldn't withstand it at all and staggered backward.

Sakumo landed and followed up with a spinning back kick at Hyuga Tanaka's waist. Hyuga Tanaka stumbled backward, narrowly avoiding the attack.

Sakumo gave a sinister smile and, before Tanaka could regain his footing, struck out with his right palm. Hyuga Tanaka was off balance and couldn't dodge. The blow slammed into his stomach, making him spit out a mouthful of blood. He flew backward and crashed heavily to the ground.

Sakumo leaped above Hyuga Tanaka, his face full of cruelty, and drove his knee into his stomach. Tanaka spat out another mouthful of blood and lost consciousness.

Sakumo stood up and was about to deliver the finishing blow to Tanaka.

Suddenly, there was a bang, and smoke enveloped the entire cave. Sakumo shouted, "Careful, there's an intruder!" Sensing someone beside him, he struck out fiercely with his right hand. A muffled groan came from the smoke; Sakumo had clearly hit the intruder. By the time the smoke cleared, Tanaka and the intruder were gone.

"We can't let them escape," Sasuke said. "The plan isn't finished yet. We absolutely can't let word get out." The group quickly gave chase.

Uzumaki Hane had been searching the town for Sakai Fuji when someone happened to see him heading into the forest. Uzumaki Hane ran straight into the forest to look for him.

Suddenly, loud shouts and the sounds of fighting came from the distance. Uzumaki Hane hurried toward them.

Before long, Uzumaki Hane saw Sakai Fuji sent flying by a palm strike. Tanaka lay on the ground as well, his fate unknown.

Uzumaki Hane rushed to Tanaka's side. Finding that he had only lost consciousness and wasn't in mortal danger, Hane felt slightly relieved. But when he saw Tanaka's miserable condition, his eyes filled with killing intent. Uzumaki Hane looked at the dozen or so men in front of him. He had seen them before; they were Sakai Family guards.

"Another little fish," Sakumo said. "Isn't this the Konoha brat? Looks like we've had a good catch today."

"Stop playing around and finish them off," Sasuke said. "We've already wasted plenty of time. If the family head blames us, we'll all suffer." At Sasuke's words, Sakumo seemed to recall something terrifying. He shuddered and said nothing more. Sasuke immediately ordered his men to surround Uzumaki Hane and the others.

Despair filled Sakai Fuji's face as he watched the dozen or so guards approach. Sakai Fuji had already fought them many times, and even taking on one of them was a struggle. If they hadn't been unable to use Ninjutsu, they would probably have killed him long ago. Every time, he had only managed to use Ninjutsu to flee in a sorry state. Now there were a dozen of them, as well as two even stronger men. At the thought, Sakai Fuji lost the courage to fight.

He shouted to Uzumaki Hane, "Run! Every one of them can at least match a Chunin. We're no match for them. Run!"

Uzumaki Hane ignored him. Looking at the unconscious Hyuga Tanaka, he slowly stood and moved step by step toward the enemies.

The dozen or so men closed in around Uzumaki Hane and the others, only to see Uzumaki Hane step forward, clearly intending to fight.

The guard at the front jeered, "I didn't expect anyone to dare resist." The guards behind him joined in the laughter.

Uzumaki Hane ignored their mockery and walked to within three meters of them before stopping. His killing intent had reached its peak, and it swept toward them in a powerful wave. Everyone felt a chill wash over them and instinctively went on guard.

Uzumaki Hane thrust out both hands, transforming them into an enormous magma fist that hurtled toward the dozen or so men.

"Great Eruption!"

The moment the enormous magma fist appeared, it engulfed the guards. A terrifying wave of heat washed over them all, making them feel as though they were inside a furnace. Even the air burned, and the surrounding trees began to smoke.

The guards wanted to dodge, but there was nowhere to run. Utter despair filled their eyes as they watched themselves being swallowed by magma, which left a vast pool in their place.

Sakai Fuji stared at the scene before him, which resembled a volcanic eruption, stunned with fright.

Sakumo and Sasuke watched their subordinates reduced to ashes. They swallowed and exchanged a glance, their hearts overwhelmed by fear, and instinctively wanted to flee.

After killing the dozen or so underlings, Uzumaki Hane's killing intent had not diminished. Instead, it boiled over. He walked across the magma toward Sakumo and Sasuke. With every step he took, the magma seemed to come alive and flow onto his body.

To Sakumo and Sasuke, Uzumaki Hane looked like a demon king. Every step seemed to tread on their hearts, casting the shadow of death over them. They realized that if this continued, the fear in their hearts would consume them both.

They both shouted, as though trying to dispel the fear in their hearts, then charged at Uzumaki Hane.

Uzumaki Hane transformed both hands into magma and reached for them.

The two men leaped, dodging Uzumaki Hane's Magma Arms. They moved above him, one to his left and one to his right, and swept their right legs toward him with a howl, shaking the air.

Bang! Magma erupted from the ground, forming two walls on either side of Uzumaki Hane.

Bang! The magma walls failed to withstand the full force of their kicks and shattered completely. Both men struck Uzumaki Hane hard.

But Uzumaki Hane acted as though nothing had happened. He reached out, grabbed their legs, and said coldly, "Die like this." His body began to swell, slowly enveloping them both in magma. Their screams continued until the magma finally melted them.