Deep in the mountains of the Land of Whirlpools, northwest region.
The dense forest was alive with the sounds of nature. Two Mist jonin were leaping from tree to tree, moving swiftly through the canopy. Traveling through the treetops was a common habit for many ninja on missions, as it left fewer traces on the ground, reducing the risk of being tracked.
"...Oh, by the way, have you heard about what happened in Wuya Village to the south?"
"Yes, I know. Kaino-sama from the vanguard unit's reconnaissance team was ambushed in Wuya Village. The assassin failed, killing three of Kaino-sama's guards before being taken down by his ninjutsu."
"What a shame. They didn't capture him alive, so we don't know who sent him."
"Wasn't it said to be a Leaf ninja?"
"That's just a conclusion drawn from the clues. The assassin's body was completely destroyed, so there's no way to confirm!"
"Hah! I think it's definitely a Leaf assassin. The Leaf's forces have already reached the western border. That's just what's visible on the surface. Who knows how many they've secretly sent into the Land of Whirlpools?"
"Hmm, true. The Leaf is the most likely suspect."
The two Mist jonin chatted as they moved, not in any particular hurry. Their pace wasn't slow, but it certainly wasn't fast either.
"Hey, do you think that assassin who was chased by the Seven Ninja Swordsmen of the Mist could be a Leaf ninja?" the burly ninja on the left asked casually.
"That… doesn't seem likely," the long-haired ninja on the right replied. "From the intelligence we have, he's most likely a Rain Village assassin! It's hard for other villages to train an assassin of that caliber. But he also used a technique similar to the Hidden Stone's secret arts, so… it's hard to say!"
"Ugh, I wonder how much of our covert operations unit's intelligence he managed to get his hands on. If he has the full list, we're in danger too!"
"No, the full list is only held by the Mizukage and the assistant. He couldn't have gotten it. We don't need to worry. Most of the covert operatives he killed were low-level ninja. This means that even if he has some of our identities, it's only low-tier intelligence…"
**BOOM!!!**
The ground in front of them suddenly exploded, and a figure burst out from underground. Amid the flying debris and dirt, the figure twisted in mid-air, landed on a tree, and stood blocking their path, holding a sword in each hand!
Cloaked in black, wearing a wide-brimmed hat, short in stature, with a slender katana in his right hand…
It was him!
The assassin!
The two Mist jonin immediately realized who they were dealing with. They leaped apart, each landing on a separate tree. As they jumped, they both drew their katanas, holding them defensively in front of them, their full attention focused on Haruto Saito!
Haruto crouched on the tree branch, his arms spread wide—one holding the **Mountain-Cleaver Blade** in front, the other gripping the **Swift Edge** behind him. He assumed an unusual dual-sword fighting stance.
"It's you!"
"It's you!"
The long-haired ninja and the burly ninja both stared at Haruto, their expressions darkening.
According to the intelligence they had, this assassin was at least elite jonin level!
And the two of them were only jonin!
Even two jonin would struggle to defeat an elite jonin!
"We'll split up and escape… Report to the higher-ups! At least one of us can make it out alive!" the long-haired ninja said quickly. He was smart—he didn't choose to fight Haruto, knowing they stood no chance.
When faced with an unbeatable enemy, running was a perfectly valid strategy. There was no shame in it!
This wasn't a combat mission—they were being hunted!
"Go!"
"Retreat!"
The two ninja leaped away, landing in the underbrush and sprinting off in different directions!
Haruto hadn't expected them to run so decisively. His eyes darted around, and he quickly made a decision. He jumped down from the tree and chased after the burly ninja! He'd kill him first!
The burly ninja was running wildly through the trees.
Haruto pursued relentlessly!
The distance between them closed rapidly!
Haruto was faster. Even without using any special abilities, his running speed far surpassed that of an average elite jonin, let alone a regular jonin!
The burly ninja heard the sound of footsteps closing in behind him. He felt like he was going insane. His luck was terrible—Haruto had chosen to chase him first.
Gritting his teeth, he formed hand seals while running and spun around.
"Wind Style: Great Breakthrough!" He exhaled a powerful gust of wind.
Haruto, however, simply ducked. He didn't even bother countering the jutsu. As he ran, he sank into the ground, using the **Earth-Style Subterranean Voyage** technique to close the distance underground. In just a few seconds, Haruto emerged from the ground behind the burly ninja, his blade slashing furiously!
The burly ninja didn't even finish his jutsu before he had to turn and block Haruto's attack.
*Clang! Clang! Clang! Clang! Clang! Clang!*
The burly ninja managed to block six of Haruto's strikes. On the seventh strike, Haruto's **Swift Edge** sliced across his ribs. On the eighth strike, Haruto's **Mountain-Cleaver Blade** tore him apart!
Done!
Haruto could finally look down on jonin. They were too weak!
"Thirty-nine," Haruto muttered, collecting the dropped cards. He then leaped back into the trees.
He looked in the direction where the long-haired ninja had fled. He couldn't see him—the forest was too dense—but he could sense that the long-haired ninja had stopped running. He was hiding about half a kilometer away.
He must have thought that hiding would fool Haruto. Running would only expose his location through sound and chakra, making him easier to track.
But if he stayed hidden, and if Haruto didn't have any special tracking abilities, finding him would be difficult.
"Tch! Good thing you didn't run," Haruto muttered, jumping down from the tree and sinking back into the ground.
---
The long-haired ninja lay hidden in the tall grass beneath a towering tree. The weeds were over a meter high, and on one side was a massive tree with a trunk over three meters in diameter. On the other side was a smaller tree of a different species, its branches draped with vines…
The spot wasn't particularly well-hidden, but it was common in the mountains. The more common it looked, the less attention it would draw.
He knew the assassin would come after him!
There had been a fight, and the assassin would undoubtedly win. That's why he had chosen to hide. Running would only get him killed.
The long-haired ninja lay on the ground, covered in a thick layer of fallen leaves, completely motionless. He had stopped circulating his chakra, leaving no trace of his presence.
"You won't find me… you won't find me… you won't…" he repeated in his mind.
*Squelch!*
A blade suddenly pierced through the ground beneath him, stabbing straight through his head! The tip of the blade emerged from the pile of leaves, blood dripping from it, before retracting back into the ground.
Golden light flashed as cards flew out.
Haruto emerged from the ground, collected the cards, and muttered, "Forty."
Two more kills!
These two had been easy. If they had chosen to fight Haruto, he might have had to use his full strength, and the battle could have dragged on. But they had chosen to run, splitting up in the process, which made killing them much simpler. Especially the long-haired ninja, who had just lain there, practically handing himself over to Haruto!
In truth, the long-haired ninja had known Haruto could travel underground. But he hadn't expected to be found so easily, nor had he anticipated that Haruto could attack directly from below. And so, he died.