Chapter 163: Infiltration? No, a Raid!
Muherr's hesitation didn't last long; it crumbled under the weight of Ronin's
persistence.
The mercenary leader knew Ronin wasn't a fool. If the boy was volunteering for a deep-level scout, he clearly had a trump card. Furthermore, sending Vanessa in alone was a risk Muherr wasn't entirely comfortable with.
So, while the main unit held a defensive perimeter outside the tower, Ronin and
Vanessa entered the darkness together.
Vanessa's ability was exactly what Ronin had suspected: Shadow Traversal.
She could manipulate her own shadow, and the moment it touched another shadow,
it opened a specialized spatial pocket that could house her entire physical
form. In the Nen chart, she was a classic Emitter with a sub-affinity for
Manipulation.
While Vanessa moved like a ghost through the ink-black corners of the building,
Ronin's strategy was significantly louder. He used Shadow Clone Jutsu to
generate decoys, sending them into side rooms to draw out any lurking predators.
By making his clones the primary targets, he cleared a safe path for his main
body to advance.
When necessary, he would step out of the silence to deliver a swift, lethal
strike.
It wasn't an infiltration; it was a high-speed, single-man blitz.
Muherr had been right—Ronin didn't possess "stealth" abilities in the
traditional sense. Even in his library of Jutsu, there were few that catered to
pure invisibility. But the Shadow Clones were a perfect workaround.
The monsters in the building were primitive. They attacked the first "living"
target they sensed. They lacked the cognitive depth to distinguish a Chakra
construct from a flesh-and-blood human.
Vanessa, watching from the safety of the shadow world, was stunned by Ronin's
methodology. Even as she marveled at his ability to split his presence, she
didn't slow her descent.
Ronin continued the cycle: spawn a clone, wait for it to lead the swarm away,
and move the main body forward.
After a certain distance, he would dispel the clone, reclaiming the residual
Chakra. The monsters never followed the trail back.
This confirmed two tactical details:
1. The predators in the building had fixed territories. They weren't persistent
hunters; they were "guardians" of specific zones.
2. The "immune system" of the city lacked organization. There were no scouts or
relay-beasts to signal a building-wide alert.
They navigated the long, debris-choked corridors until they reached the entrance
to the first basement level (B1).
Vanessa had vanished into the floor. Ronin assumed she had already slipped into
the lower level.
He had to admit, her ability was god-tier for exploration.
But a thought crossed his mind. Vanessa wasn't in Beyond Netero's final team in
the manga.
Did she lack the ambition for the Dark Continent? Did she retire to become a
full-time Hunter? Or... did she simply not survive long enough to see the
voyage?
If it was the latter, the Mahavi Ruins were her most likely grave.
Based on his interactions with Muherr, Ronin knew the Rock Mercenaries would
spend years here if the payout was high enough. If Vanessa was destined to die,
it was here, in this dark, prehistoric skyscraper.
He shook off the thought. Vanessa didn't seem like the type to abandon the unit.
If she was in danger, the ruins must hold something far more dangerous than
raptors.
Ronin's Shadow Clone took the first step onto the basement stairs.
A Glow-Stone sat at the bottom of the flight, casting a dim, sickly light.
Vanessa must have tossed it to create the shadows she needed to move.
The clone expanded his En. Combined with the Sharingan, the limited light of the
stone was enough to illuminate the entire hallway.
On the surface, it looked clear. But under the Sharingan's scrutiny, the
darkness beyond the light's reach was vibrating with weak energy signatures.
Dozens of them.
Through his En, Ronin felt the monsters huddling in the dark, watching the light
like moths, waiting for a target to emerge.
"HEY!"
The Shadow Clone let out a deafening shout.
The sound echoed through the hollow basement, bouncing off the stone walls.
For a heartbeat, the entire underground space fell into a heavy, unnatural
silence.
"COME AND GET ME, YOU UGLY BASTARDS!"
The clone's taunt was even louder this time.
Hiding in the shadows, waiting for an opening to move her next glow-stone,
Vanessa froze. Her eyes went wide with shock.
What is he doing?! Is he suicidal?!
The basement erupted. The rhythmic thud-thud-thud of a hundred feet and a chorus
of unearthly screeches answered the challenge.
A tide of monsters surged out of the darkness, charging the stairwell in a
mindless, predatory frenzy.
Ronin's clone didn't retreat. As the first raptors reached the bottom step, his
hands were already a blur of seals.
Fire Style: Fire Dragon Flame Bullet!
Three roaring dragons of white-hot fire manifested in the narrow stairwell. With
a silent snarl, they lunged downward, meeting the charging swarm head-on.
The inferno illuminated the entire B1 level, revealing a sea of chitinous bodies
and snapping jaws.
Vanessa adjusted her position in the shadows, her heart hammering. The sheer
number of predators hidden in the basement was staggering.
How do they all survive down here? What do they eat?
The fire dragons slammed into the front line. There was no hesitation. The
monsters simply threw themselves into the flames, using their own bodies to
smother the heat.
They were burning alive, but they didn't stop. The survivors trampled over their
charred comrades, closing the distance to the boy on the stairs.
Ronin watched the pile of corpses grow. He noted a strangeness in their
behavior.
He ignored the dwindling dragons and began weaving a second jutsu. This time, he
wasn't taking shortcuts. He was using the full 44 Hand Signs.
But before he finished, he shouted toward the darkness: "Vanessa! Get behind me
or get clear! This is about to get messy!"
The monsters didn't know fear. They saw the fire dying and redoubled their
charge.
They had extinguished the dragons with dozens of sacrifices. The stairwell was
now a charnel house of burnt meat and choking smoke, but the path was clear.
They lunged for the boy, seeing him as a rare, delicious prize.
But Ronin's hands locked into the final seal.
Fire Style: Intelligent Hard Work (Zukokku)!
☆☆☆
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