"Someone's coming."
Natsuhiko was walking forward at an unhurried pace when his brows suddenly lifted. He spoke in a quiet voice.
The desert around them was filled with swirling sand, and the strong headwind made visibility incredibly poor.
But no matter how bad it was, Natsuhiko's sensory abilities allowed him to detect every subtle disturbance in the surroundings.
At first, he hadn't paid it much attention.
After all, they had entered someone else's territory. It would be strange if no one noticed them at all.
Besides, their mission had likely been communicated beforehand. If someone was coming to receive them, that would be perfectly normal.
But very quickly, Natsuhiko frowned.
Because the approaching presence had begun to show a surge of chakra.
And the closer it came, the stronger it became.
No matter how he looked at it—
This didn't feel like someone coming to greet them.
It felt more like someone coming to start trouble.
"Prepare for combat."
Natsuhiko didn't know what exactly was happening, but that didn't mean he would sit around waiting.
Years spent in the ANBU had taught him one simple truth: during missions like this, showing weakness was the fastest way to die.
Kakashi immediately became alert the moment he heard the order. The three-tomoe Sharingan in his left eye socket slowly began to spin.
He obeyed Natsuhiko's order without hesitation. Even if the newcomer might be an ally, he trusted Natsuhiko's sensory prowess over his own assumptions.
"Whoosh!"
Sure enough, the very next second, a blazing fireball came crashing toward them.
The trajectory was precise—it was aimed to catch both Natsuhiko and Kakashi while carefully avoiding Yashamaru, who was trailing behind them.
Natsuhiko and Kakashi instantly leapt away to dodge the attack.
But they moved in completely different directions.
Kakashi jumped sideways, avoiding the fireball entirely.
Natsuhiko, on the other hand, moved without the slightest hesitation—
Straight toward Yashamaru.
He had already noticed that the attacker seemed unwilling to harm the prisoner.
In that case, he had no problem letting Yashamaru serve as a human shield.
And if Yashamaru happened to die?
That had absolutely nothing to do with him.
Sure enough, when Natsuhiko positioned himself beside Yashamaru, the next incoming fireball didn't target him at all.
Instead, it shot directly toward Kakashi.
A rescue mission? Natsuhiko thought to himself.
At the same moment, he drew his ninja blade.
With a casual flick of his wrist—
Clang!
He knocked away a kunai that came flying toward him at high speed.
Still holding Yashamaru's body with his left hand, he shifted slightly, ducking behind him, and delivered a chop to the back of Yashamaru's neck, knocking him out.
Even with his chakra sealed, Yashamaru could still move, and Natsuhiko didn't need him causing trouble.
As he finished, a figure began to take shape clearly before his eyes.
Is that... Pakura?
Looking at the woman with hair that mixed deep green and earthy yellow, her attractive features, and the eerie fireballs floating behind her, Natsuhiko recognized her instantly.
But he was also a bit confused.
Pakura was one of Sunagakure's most capable ninja, someone who had gained considerable prestige in the village for repeatedly repelling raids from the Hidden Mist.
Logically speaking, someone of her standing should know the situation.
Even if she wasn't aware of the details surrounding Yashamaru, she should have at least received some sort of notice.
For example—
That Konoha would be escorting a "lost" Sunagakure ninja back to the village, specifically to avoid unnecessary conflict.
So what exactly is this woman thinking?
Natsuhiko narrowed his eyes.
Even if this was ordered by Sunagakure… they wouldn't just ignore Yashamaru's safety like this.
Natsuhiko considered the situation silently for a moment, but soon shook his head.
His sensory perception told him something very clear—
There were no other Sunagakure ninja nearby.
Only Pakura.
Sending just Pakura alone to cause trouble for them… wasn't that basically delivering a bloodline research sample straight to Konoha?
Natsuhiko hadn't paid much attention to Yashamaru's situation before, but he was fairly certain that aside from being interrogated for intelligence, the man had probably left plenty of blood samples behind in Konoha's laboratories.
Pakura might be confident she could handle two ANBU.
Under normal circumstances, that confidence wouldn't be misplaced. Her Scorch Release was notoriously dangerous.
Unfortunately for her—
Her opponents today were Natsuhiko and Kakashi.
And especially Natsuhiko, who—thanks to a certain "cheat-like" advantage—knew quite a bit about this woman already.
"Who are you?"
Pakura asked coldly.
"Why have you captured a shinobi of Sunagakure? State your purpose."
Her gaze sharpened.
"Otherwise, I'll make sure you never speak again."
Natsuhiko simply stared at her in silence.
He had no intention of answering.
Still, he did notice something—this woman was at least somewhat rational.
She had likely recognized their uniforms as belonging to Konoha, which was probably why she had paused to question them instead of attacking relentlessly.
"Not talking?" Pakura seemed to have expected that response.
Her chakra surged more violently.
"Then I won't hold back."
She narrowed her eyes.
"Even if Konoha and Sunagakure are allies."
"Allies?"
At that word, Natsuhiko couldn't help letting out a silent laugh.
If that alliance truly meant anything—
Would Yashamaru have ended up in his custody?
And in the future, would Sunagakure really be so easily manipulated by Orochimaru into launching an attack on Konoha?
Of course, Rasa wouldn't fare any better either.
In the end, he would be murdered by Orochimaru and left to rot in the wilderness.
If there was ever a time when that alliance actually worked, it would be much later—during the rule of Gaara.
But that was only because Gaara had been deeply changed by Naruto Uzumaki. And because Gaara was still young—young enough not to be shackled by politics, personal interests, and the endless calculations that came with power.
While Natsuhiko was lost in thought, Pakura had already launched her attack.
The strange, blazing spheres floating behind her burned brighter and brighter.
Without hesitation, Natsuhiko shoved the unconscious Yashamaru toward Kakashi.
He didn't particularly care whether the man lived or died.
Right now, something else interested him more—
Pakura herself.
In Natsuhiko's memory, this woman was the perfect example of a "glass cannon."
Her strength was unquestionable.
And yet, her death had been one of the most frustrating and tragic in the entire story.
The reason Natsuhiko remembered her wasn't just because she was beautiful.
It was largely because of the absurdly humiliating way she died.
She had been killed right at the gates of the Hidden Mist Village—
Stabbed in the back by a storm of kunai.
And the worst part?
She had been betrayed by her own village.
She was a deeply tragic character.
And that tragedy began with a mission.
Natsuhiko didn't know exactly when that mission would begin.
But he knew it probably wasn't far off.
As an ANBU operative, he had access to a fair amount of intelligence regarding other villages.
For example—
He knew that right now, Sunagakure was being harassed relentlessly by the Hidden Mist, leaving them thoroughly frustrated and exhausted.
Since he already knew that Sunagakure's higher-ups were likely preparing to confront Iwagakure, running into Pakura here was far too suspicious to ignore.
If his guess was correct, then this encounter might allow him to obtain valuable intelligence about Sunagakure.
And if he didn't at least try to take advantage of the situation?
That would be a wasted opportunity.
With that thought in mind, Natsuhiko made a subtle hand signal to Kakashi, telling him to keep an eye on Yashamaru.
At the same time, a faint azure glow began to spread along the blade in Natsuhiko's hand.
The instant Kakashi caught the unconscious Yashamaru—
Natsuhiko had already vanished from where he stood.
His body shot forward like a flash of lightning, and his blade slashed down toward Pakura with a fierce, whistling arc of steel.
"Naïve!." Pakura snorted coldly.
With a light twist of her body, she effortlessly avoided the incoming strike.
At the same time, the blazing sphere hovering behind her lunged forward, crashing straight toward Natsuhiko.
But Natsuhiko was incredibly fast.
He paid no mind to the attack.
With a subtle shift of his body, he slipped past the fireball—and without hesitation, launched a powerful kick toward Pakura.
A cold smile appeared on Pakura's face.
She was a bloodline ninja, after all, and her kekkei genkai meant she wasn't particularly afraid of close combat.
"If you're looking to die," she said icily, "then don't blame me."
Her hands shot downward.
Bang!
She blocked Natsuhiko's kick head-on.
But the moment their limbs collided, her expression changed slightly.
Because the force behind that kick was far stronger than she expected.
When she first saw Natsuhiko and Kakashi, her sharp instincts had already noticed something—
These two ANBU looked quite young.
Of course, the ninja world occasionally produced monsters who were terrifyingly strong despite their age.
But such individuals rarely appeared in the ANBU.
Generally speaking, youth meant limitations—especially when it came to physical strength and chakra reserves.
That was one of the reasons she had been confident enough to attack.
After all, when it came to chakra, she believed she had a clear advantage.
Yet the power in that kick told her something was wrong.
This kid's strength… is way too much.
Even so, her hands never stopped moving.
Ignoring the force pressing against her, Pakura grabbed hold of Natsuhiko's leg.
Then—
The chakra within her body began to surge violently.
"Scorch Release: Extremely Steaming Murder!"
Her chakra erupted.
In the blink of an eye, the Natsuhiko she had seized let out a sharp cry of pain.
Pakura didn't even look back.
Instead, her gaze shifted toward the other opponent—Kakashi Hatake.
Scorch Release was no ordinary kekkei genkai.
Under Pakura's control, she could instantly evaporate all the moisture inside her opponent's body with a single strike.
It was a brutal technique.
Those struck by her bloodline ability often ended up resembling dried-out mummies.
Yet the results were extremely effective.
Such a horrifying death instilled pure terror in anyone who witnessed it.
And once fear took hold of an opponent's mind, openings would inevitably appear.
Moreover, Extremely Steaming Murder could be used in multiple ways.
Pakura could manipulate the burning spheres created by her Scorch Release, controlling them while combining them with taijutsu to launch coordinated attacks.
That was exactly what she was doing now.
And this method made the killing blow even more subtle and difficult to anticipate.
After all—
She had no particular desire to kill.
Especially not when her enemies were ANBU from Konoha.
Even so, Pakura wasn't a fool.
Two Konoha ANBU suddenly appearing within Sunagakure's territory was already reason enough to take action.
Especially when those two ANBU were detaining a shinobi of Sunagakure.
"Hm?"
Just as Pakura was preparing to deal with Kakashi Hatake, her brows suddenly knit together.
Because the Konoha ANBU she had just struck—
Turned into a puff of smoke.
"A shadow clone? When did—"
Pakura had never expected that the opponent who had just attacked her with such speed and strength was actually just a clone.
But she had no time to think about it.
In the distance, a powerful surge of chakra suddenly erupted.
"Earth Release: Earth Flow Spears!"
The moment Pakura sensed the chakra, she had already prepared herself.
As soon as she felt the ground tremble beneath her feet, she leapt upward.
Only by a narrow margin did she avoid the jagged spikes that burst violently from the earth.
But Natsuhiko's attack wasn't finished yet.
In a desert environment like this, he could still use Water Release—but doing so would place a heavy burden on his chakra.
Earth Release, however, was another story.
Thanks to the system assisting him, his mastery over Earth Release was nearly on par with his Water Release.
The only reason he usually preferred Water Release was simply because he liked it better.
"Earth Release: Earth Dragon Bullet!"
With another set of hand seals, the desert ground beneath Pakura suddenly split apart.
A massive earth dragon burst from the sand, roaring as it lunged straight toward her.
Pakura frowned. She was suspended in midair at the moment, leaving her with no room to dodge.
Grinding her teeth, she forced the blazing spheres behind her to intercept the attack.
Boom!
The instant the scorching fireball of her Scorch Release collided with Natsuhiko's earth dragon, a deafening explosion erupted.
The surrounding sandstorm instantly became even more chaotic.
Waves of yellow sand were blasted skyward, swirling violently through the air.
Pakura tumbled to the ground in a somewhat miserable roll.
Several wounds had already appeared on her body.
The explosion had detonated far too close to her—and being midair at the time meant she had no way to retreat in time.
That was the nature of ninja combat.
Unless you had reached the monstrous level of figures like
Hashirama Senju
or
Madara Uchiha—
One moment of carelessness could mean death in the next second.
Pakura frowned deeply.
The ANBU she had been fighting didn't seem to display overwhelming power.
Yet every single jutsu he used—and the way he chained them together—had pushed her into an extremely awkward position.
More importantly—
Beside him stood another Konoha ANBU, watching the battle like a predator.
For Pakura, this situation was extremely unfavorable.
Looks like I'll have to get serious…
And be ready to retreat at any moment.
She thought silently to herself.
Fighting two opponents alone and already suffering a disadvantage—refusing to take things seriously now would be outright stupidity.
Besides, if she truly couldn't win, then retreating was inevitable.
She had a far more important mission to complete.
Dragging out a fight here was clearly unwise.
And if she were killed here, that would be an outcome she absolutely couldn't allow.
But just as these thoughts crossed her mind—
A kunai suddenly flew toward her.
The weapon wasn't particularly fast.
And because of the wind and sand, it seemed to lack much force.
Pakura simply tilted her body slightly and avoided it with ease.
At the same time, the chakra within her body began to surge violently.
But then—
Her eyes suddenly widened.
Because she clearly felt something cold pressed against her throat.
A ninja blade.
Right against her neck.
A calm, almost gentle voice sounded beside her ear.
"Looks like… you won't get the chance to go all out."
Pakura had no idea when he had appeared there.
Nor did she have the chance to ask.
Because a sudden strike landed against the back of her neck.
Pain flashed through her body—
And her consciousness slowly faded into darkness.