With the speed of the Seven Ninja Swordsmen of the Mist and Kuro, it would take less than a minute to cross Great Wave Village from east to west.
Under the night sky, shadows leaped and dashed forward.
"This is the place!" Kuro rushed into a courtyard, its massive body crouching slightly. It bared its sharp claws, its eyes fixed on the wooden house ahead, ready for battle.
Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!
Momochi Akahara and the others also appeared in the courtyard, lining up and staring at the wooden house.
Silence!
The wooden house was dark, with no sound coming from inside.
"Is he inside?" Momochi Akahara asked again.
"It's his scent!" Kuro confirmed.
"Go!" Momochi Akahara barked.
The seven figures vanished simultaneously, flickering like ghosts in front of the wooden house. The walls, doors, and windows of the house were smashed through, and the sound of destruction echoed! Then, silence returned.
"Where is he?"
"Where did he go?"
"Kuro! Get over here!"
Momochi Akahara's furious roar came from inside the now-damaged wooden house.
Kuro, still in the courtyard, immediately leaped forward, covering over twenty meters in a single bound. It entered the house through a broken window, but there was no sign of the target. To be precise, there was no one inside.
Momochi Akahara and the others were already spreading their senses outward, trying to detect if the target had somehow escaped unnoticed—or if Kuro had made a mistake.
"It's his blood!" Kuro walked to the table in the room and smashed it to pieces with a single swipe of its paw.
Under the table was a large pool of dried blood. Judging by its color and state, it had been there for over two hours.
"What's going on?" Momochi Akahara asked in a deep voice, though he didn't direct his anger at Kuro.
Kuro's status was special. It was the summoning beast of the former commander of the Hidden Mist's vanguard force, Hōzuki Sakayu, and it also had a contract with Hōzuki Sakayu's son, Hōzuki Iekatsu, the current commander of the vanguard force. As a member of the Hōzuki clan, Kuro had already retired due to its age.
This time, the Seven Ninja Swordsmen of the Mist had asked for its assistance in hunting down the target.
It was Hōzuki Iekatsu who had summoned it.
Kuro was here to help, but it wasn't subordinate to anyone and didn't take orders from anyone. Even within the Hōzuki clan, it was treated like a revered elder. Even Hōzuki Iekatsu had to address it as "Lord Kuro."
In the Hidden Mist Village, ninja hounds were rare, and Kuro was the only experienced, powerful, and elderly ninja hound.
"Akahara," Kuro sniffed the blood, its massive body circling the pool. It tilted its head and looked at Momochi Akahara. "I tracked him through the scent of his blood. The scent of his blood outside his body is stronger than the scent of his blood inside his body. That's why this pool of blood attracted me more. But if his scent appears in two directions at the same time, I will always follow the scent of his active blood…"
"He's here!"
Kuro continued to circle the room.
"This place is filled with his scent. He's nearby, very close. Because it's so close, his scent is everywhere, causing confusion! I need to change my method to find him!"
******
At the same time.
Three blocks away, in a smaller, somewhat rundown house.
"What's that noise over there? I'll go check it out!" Oshima Koji stood by the window, pushing it open a crack to peer outside.
"Don't!" Haruto grabbed him, his eyes wide behind his mask.
Half a minute ago, Haruto had been startled awake by the presence of powerful chakra signatures entering his sensory range—not just one or two, but eight! And one of them didn't even feel human.
Now, he could guess what was happening.
The commotion was coming from the house where Tsunade had taken him earlier. It was there that Tsunade had beaten him up, causing him to spit blood, and then healed his injuries. Oshima Koji had also met Tsunade in that house.
That house was under attack.
"Is it them? Could it really be them?" Haruto's eyelids twitched rapidly. He needed to confirm. He clasped his hands together and formed a hand seal.
"Secret Technique: Trace Marking!"
His mental perception rapidly expanded in all directions!
In an instant, Haruto could sense the eight powerful chakra signatures more clearly. To be precise, seven of them were monstrously strong, while the eighth—the non-human one—was merely strong.
This was the first time Haruto had sensed the Seven Ninja Swordsmen of the Mist at such close range! He had only observed them from a distance before, so he wasn't familiar with their chakra signatures.
But he could confirm it was them!
There was no other team in the ninja world with such a configuration—seven Kage-level or quasi-Kage-level ninja together. Each of them was incredibly powerful, and there were exactly seven of them. If Haruto couldn't figure out it was them, he'd be an idiot!
"It's them!" Haruto's expression changed. He canceled the sensory technique and turned to Oshima Koji, speaking quickly. "Go! Leave now! Head north! Don't stay with me!"
"What… how… what's happening?" Oshima Koji was stunned, not understanding what Haruto meant.
"No time to explain. If you don't want to die, leave now! I'm leaving too!" Haruto said rapidly, forming another hand seal and vanishing!
**Earth Release: Underground Movement Technique!**
He burrowed into the ground!
Run!
Haruto had told Oshima Koji to head north because he planned to go south. He didn't want to drag Oshima Koji into this, and he wasn't sure if his underground escape would even work. Could they still track him?
Probably!
After all, he had run for over four hours, and they had still caught up!
Moreover, Haruto usually traveled three to four meters underground, at most five meters. At that depth, the earth's barrier wasn't much of an obstacle.
"Hey…" Oshima Koji wanted to say something, but Haruto had already disappeared. He blinked, thought for a moment, then turned and dashed to the back window. He leaped out, his speed increasing rapidly as he fled!
He had listened to Haruto. As an informant, Oshima Koji's work was inherently dangerous. This wasn't the first time he'd encountered a sudden crisis, but he had always survived because he knew how to avoid danger!
This time, regardless of whether Haruto's warning was true or not, he decided to run first!
******
In the damaged wooden house, a low growl suddenly sounded.
"I've found him! He's moving! Follow me!"
Boom!
The wooden house was completely shattered by a massive force as the ferocious ninja hound burst out. It leaped over the courtyard wall and began to sprint, constantly adjusting its direction. It could smell the scent it had locked onto, moving at a speed no less than that of a jonin.
The Seven Ninja Swordsmen of the Mist followed Kuro like the wind.
They sped through several blocks, vaulted over a row of houses, and climbed onto a wall. Kuro spoke again: "He's ahead! He's underground!"
"Everyone, fall back! Damn it, I'll blast him out!" Momochi Akahara roared, sheathing his sword and leaping into the air, forming hand seals.
**Water Release: Great Flood Technique!**
Boom! Boom! Boom!
Momochi Akahara spewed an enormous amount of water. The torrent slammed into the ground like a tidal wave, sweeping forward and obliterating everything in its path—houses, streets, entire blocks—all destroyed by this terrifying S-rank water release forbidden technique.
The ground shook violently under the impact of the massive flood.