Haruto Saito had already considered that even if the Blue Feather Eagles were tracking him, he wouldn't be afraid. The Blue Feather Eagles weren't fast enough, and their intelligence transmission capabilities were quite limited. By the time they informed the Misty Hidden powerhouses, Haruto would have already vanished without a trace!
With this in mind, Haruto simply ignored the Blue Feather Eagles afterward!
His attention was entirely focused on Hyuga Domon and his men!
Yet, he never expected that there was already a terrifying Misty Hidden powerhouse nearby—and not just any powerhouse, but the Seven Ninja Swordsmen of the Mist!
Haruto made a decision—if he survived this ordeal, he would definitely buy a fortune-telling book and read it before setting out in the future. His luck was just unbelievably bad!
Through the dense fog, Haruto observed the Seven Ninja Swordsmen of the Mist from afar with his piercing vision.
They were charging toward him at full speed!
A large number of Blue Feather Eagles were also present in the vicinity! Even the ninja squad responsible for summoning and controlling them was nearby!
The situation was crystal clear!
Without a doubt, the Seven Ninja Swordsmen of the Mist had learned that Haruto was in the area, and they were coming to kill him!
The Seven Ninja Swordsmen were closing in from the east!
Meanwhile, from the west, Hyuga Domon led his squad of Hyuga clan members, also rushing toward Haruto!
Haruto was caught in a pincer attack!
Both sides were enemies, and both wanted him dead!
To make matters worse, the Hyuga clan had the Byakugan, while the Seven Ninja Swordsmen of the Mist had the assistance of the Blue Feather Eagles—both sides had incredibly strong reconnaissance abilities!
At first, Haruto felt deeply unlucky—why was life so difficult for him?
But soon, his expression changed, and his eyes lit up!
Was this predicament a bad thing or a good thing? That entirely depended on how he played it out.
And of course, Haruto wanted to turn it into a good thing. For him, a "good thing" meant taking down a powerful opponent and obtaining a kill-reward card!
Now he truly had a chance. Whether it was one of the Seven Ninja Swordsmen or the formidable Hyuga Domon, he had an opportunity to kill them! He only needed to orchestrate a fight between the two groups, create chaos, and make them chase and battle each other. If any of them got separated from their team, Haruto could strike!
But this plan was incredibly risky!
It was practically courting death!
Even if he faced one of the Seven Ninja Swordsmen alone, or fought Hyuga Domon one-on-one, victory wasn't guaranteed. Moreover, setting up this scenario wasn't easy. If he made a mistake, he could expose himself too soon!
If that happened, he would be in a life-and-death struggle once again!
"They're coming... and so are they... The only problem is if the Hyuga clan can't hold out. If the Seven Ninja Swordsmen of the Mist wipe them out too quickly, I won't get my chance... The Hyuga clan specializes in defense; they're extremely resilient..."
Haruto muttered to himself, his eyes flickering with an unusual gleam—part excitement, part anticipation!
"Screw it! No fear!"
Haruto made up his mind!
He clasped his hands together!
Dense fog surged once more as Haruto poured his chakra into the mist, doubling its density. The thick white fog engulfed the tropical rainforest within a one-kilometer radius.
The wind blew, causing the fog to expand even further.
...
To the east, the Seven Ninja Swordsmen of the Mist leaped swiftly through the trees, moving at an incredible speed. They suppressed their presence as much as possible, not revealing the slightest killing intent. Even as they jumped from branch to branch, they barely made a sound.
In the dense tropical rainforest, unless someone was very close, it was nearly impossible to sense their presence.
"Faster! He's just ahead! This time, we must not let him escape!" Momochi Chigen ordered in a low voice, his eyes gleaming with murderous intent.
Not long ago, Momochi Chigen had received a report from the ninja eagle squad—they had spotted a potential target!
A small, childlike figure, no taller than a twelve or thirteen-year-old, with a red left eye and two swords strapped to his body. With all this information, Momochi Chigen was sure—this was the assassin who had killed Fujita Asa!
He had also killed Kaguya Roka and Kurojo, and single-handedly dismantled the Misty Hidden intelligence network in the northern region of the Land of Whirlpools.
This nameless assassin had already drawn the attention of the Misty Hidden leadership!
Now, Momochi Chigen's mission was not just about avenging Fujita Asa and Kurojo—it was an official assignment! If they eliminated this assassin and removed a major threat to the Mist, the Seven Ninja Swordsmen of the Mist would earn significant merit. Their previous failure to protect Kurojo would be overlooked.
Momochi Chigen felt that today was his lucky day!
The intelligence came so swiftly—he had barely finished setting up his operation, and already he had located the target!
This assassin was heading straight for the Poison Forest—it was as if he were delivering himself right into their hands!
Momochi Chigen had a strong premonition.
Today would be the assassin's death day!
...
To the west.
A broad-shouldered, bear-like man in his forties, Hyuga Domon, led multiple elite Hyuga ninjas as they sped through the forest.
"Report! No sign of him yet. He is likely still within the dense fog zone," said Hyuga Kinbai, an elite Jonin, who maintained his Byakugan's long-range observation while running.
"If he's stayed this long, he must be up to something!" Hyuga Domon muttered deeply. "Perhaps... he's training!"
Since entering the Poison Forest, Haruto had repeatedly generated vast areas of thick fog. Hyuga Domon couldn't understand why, so he could only assume it was for training purposes.
It wasn't unusual for ninjas to train while on a mission.
"No matter what he's doing, as long as we haven't seen him leave the fog zone, he's still inside it." Hyuga Domon spoke again, unaware of Haruto's underground escape technique.
"Clan Leader Raita has given a strict order—we must recover our lost secret technique! When we engage him, try to capture him alive if possible. Do not kill him immediately!"
"Understood, sir!" The Hyuga ninjas responded in unison.
"Speed up!" Hyuga Domon commanded.
...
Inside the dense fog zone, Haruto formed hand seals once more!
Poof! Poof! Poof! Poof!
Four white smoke clouds erupted behind him, revealing four shadow clones.
He had to provoke a battle between the Seven Ninja Swordsmen of the Mist and the Hyuga clan. The more thorough his preparations, the better. If they fought naturally, great. If not, he would give them a little push!
Immediately after, Haruto's body shrank and disappeared into the fog.
Using the Hidden Earth Burrowing Technique, he traveled underground, continuously moving southward!
Haruto calculated the timing in his mind.
Approximately three minutes.
Haruto emerged in the southern section of the dense fog zone, appearing directly inside a naturally occurring toxic mist.
The toxic fog only covered about a hundred meters, but it was enough to obscure him from the Byakugan's vision.
The moment he surfaced, Haruto inhaled the poisonous gas and became poisoned!
However, the toxicity wasn't fatal—though prolonged exposure would be dangerous. Fortunately, Haruto could use a healing card to detoxify himself, making this issue negligible.
In the eastern fog zone, the Seven Ninja Swordsmen, being faster, were the first to enter.
From the west, the Hyuga clan ninjas also rushed in.
Both sides were closing in on each other within the fog zone!
The thick fog obstructed their vision.
Haruto couldn't see them either, but his clones could.
Boom!
Suddenly, a thunderous explosion shook the dense fog!
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