"Since the sentries have been dealt with, let's move forward at full speed."
Minato didn't hesitate.
Their mission was to infiltrate deep into enemy territory and assassinate the daimyo.
A mission of no return.
Trying to sneak in unnoticed and simply eliminate the target was unrealistic.
No matter what, after the mission was completed, they would have to face a large number of enemies.
This was a one-time operation.
By eliminating three squads of sentries in one go, they had bought themselves some time for the next phase of the mission.
However, border patrols generally communicated with each other at set intervals to ensure security.
According to the intelligence gathered by Anbu, the next check-in was expected in about three hours.
After all, it wasn't a short distance from Huiren Village.
In other words, Simu's team had nearly three hours to infiltrate Gray Ninja Village.
Once that time passed, the entire country would be placed under strict martial law.
If they failed to act before then, succeeding would become as difficult as reaching the heavens.
As they drew closer to Gray Ninja Village, the defenses grew tighter.
Even with Simu's team having the combined reconnaissance abilities of the Byakugan and Observation Haki,
There was no way to completely avoid the eyes of the Land of Ashes.
Thus, they had to engage in multiple skirmishes.
Each time, they eliminated their enemies as swiftly and silently as possible.
Watching Simu and Minato in action, Harukami Aso was left in stunned silence.
These two—both in speed and technique—were leagues beyond him, an old ninja who had spent decades on the battlefield!
Their progress was incredibly fast.
In just two hours, they had reached Gray Ninja Village, where the daimyo of the Land of Ashes resided.
There was something strange about this nation, a place where ink masters and ninjas coexisted.
Here, the daimyo wasn't just the ruler of the country—
He was also the leader of Gray Ninja Village.
Simu, sprinting forward, glanced up at the sky.
Unnoticed until now, thick clouds had completely covered the heavens.
"We're here."
Minato signaled, and the team immediately moved into formation.
They had arrived at the outskirts of Gray Ninja Village.
With so many ninjas patrolling the area, sneaking in undetected was impossible.
The only option was a frontal assault.
"I can go first," Harukami Aso volunteered.
After all, he hadn't contributed much so far and felt a little embarrassed.
Minato shook his head and pointed to the eastern side.
"Simu, make as much noise as you can over here," he instructed.
"I'll take out the guards to the west while they're distracted. Once the commotion starts, we'll infiltrate, locate the daimyo, assassinate him, and retreat immediately. No unnecessary fights."
Harukami Aso hesitated.
"Wait… shouldn't I go with Simu?" he suggested.
"Wouldn't it be too dangerous for him to handle this alone?"
No matter how strong Simu was, this was the capital of the Land of Ashes.
With the majority of the country's forces gathered here, even he couldn't possibly fend off dozens of ninjas attacking him at once.
Minato gave him a look.
"If you go, you'll only increase the chances of Simu getting caught."
Simu glanced toward the eastern cityscape.
"Be careful. And remember to protect Rei."
"Got it."
Simu then looked at Rei.
He had left a Katsuyu clone with her.
No matter what happened, she should be able to hold out until he returned.
"Alright, I'm going."
Simu created distance with Shave, then shot into the sky like a flash of light.
On the eastern wall of Huiren Village, several ninjas stood guard, lazily scanning the forest.
"You know, it'd be great if we were ninjas from a great nation. We could go to small countries and act like kings."
"Yeah, just look at those Sand Shinobi—they're worth 2.58 million in our village!"
Two guards were chatting idly when another ninja hushed them.
"Keep your voices down. We're on duty."
"What's the point? You think some other ninja village is gonna attack us in the middle of the night?"
"Who would even dare? The girls in Henin Village, maybe—hahahaha!"
Laughter echoed along the city wall.
Then, suddenly—
A figure shot into the sky before their very eyes.
A blinding flash tore through the darkness, splitting the night apart.
"What the hell is that?!"
"What happened?!"
Not just the guards—
The entire village turned their eyes toward the sky.
In the dead of night, someone was setting off fireworks?
Simu, confirming that he had everyone's attention, crossed his hands.
Dazzling rays of light converged at his fingertips.
"Yasakani no Magatama!" (Eight-Span Mirror Beads!)
In an instant, the sky exploded with radiance.
It was as if thousands of meteors were crashing down at once, turning night into day!
"Quick! Defend!"
"Enemy attack! Enemy attack!"
"Where are the Earth Style users?!"
Panic erupted among the ninjas.
Amid the chaos, a dozen shinobi were finally pushed forward.
They quickly formed hand seals.
"Earth Style: Earth Flow Wall!"
More than a dozen thick earthen walls rose from the ground, attempting to shield the city wall behind them.
But their movements were simply too slow.
Before the Earth Style walls could fully rise, a rain of meteors descended from the sky!
The seemingly solid earthen walls crumbled like fragile sand in the face of these blinding flashes.
They shattered upon impact!
Simu's Eight-Span Mirror Beads (Yasakani no Magatama) tore through the defenses of a dozen Earth Style users with ease.
Even the city wall behind them was not spared.
Under the relentless bombardment of flashing light, it was reduced to rubble.
This time, Simu didn't need to hold back.
With an indiscriminate barrage, at least thirty to forty ninjas were killed on the spot.
Of course, most of them were Chūnin and Genin—primarily Genin.
Simu landed slowly, his justice coat billowing in the wind.
The remaining Gray Ninja Village shinobi, who had regained their senses, fixed their eyes on him.
"Damn it… who is this guy?"
Simu's terrifying display of power had left them paralyzed with fear.
For a while, none of the ninjas standing on the ruins of the city wall dared to attack.
That is, until the Jōnin of the Ash Kingdom arrived.
"Jōnin Yamashita…"
"Jōnin Duoliu Huxiang…"
"Jōnin Beiliujiang…"
"The Jōnin are here!"
The arrival of the elite warriors of the Ash Kingdom immediately boosted morale.
In the Ash Kingdom, which revered strength above all else, a Jōnin was second only to the daimyo in status.
They held most of the country's wealth and stood at the pinnacle of power.
Among them, a rough-looking Jōnin with a muscular build stepped forward.
Pointing a massive blade at Simu, he barked, "I don't care who you are—kill him!"
Simu adjusted his glasses and smirked.
"How terrifying… Jōnin of the land."
To the West of Gray Ninja Village—
After Simu obliterated a large section of the city wall with his technique, many ninjas from the west had rushed to the scene.
Only three shinobi remained in this sector.
They were still trying to figure out what was happening when—
A sharp whistling sound cut through the air!
One of the ninjas, reacting instinctively, barely managed to dodge to the side.
He opened his mouth to shout—
But Minato was already there.
Using the Flying Thunder God Technique, he had arrived before the ninja could react.
His golden hair shimmered under the night sky.
With a three-pronged kunai in hand, Minato drove it cleanly into the throat of the nearest ninja.
Before the corpse could even fall, Minato spun his body and hurled it toward another enemy.
The second ninja reflexively reached out to stop the falling body—
Only to realize too late that Minato had left a Flying Thunder God mark on the corpse.
In a flash, Minato reappeared in mid-air.
His hands shot out like lightning, twisting the second ninja's neck with ease.
All of this happened in an instant.
The third ninja had barely turned his head when—
A three-pronged kunai found his throat.
A swift, effortless triple kill.
After executing his flawless technique, Minato paused for only a moment before signaling his team.
Rei, Harukami Aso, and his daughter leaped onto the city wall.
Harukami Aso stared in shock at the eastern side of the village, where Simu's attack had turned everything into a disaster zone.
His face twitched.
"This… this is what you meant by 'causing some noise'?"
Where was the 'some noise' in this?!
If someone told him that Simu was planning to single-handedly take on the entire Ash Kingdom, he might actually believe it!
Minato simply chuckled.
"Simu's methods are always… unique."
But he quickly refocused on the mission.
"Rei, locate the daimyo."
Rei activated his Byakugan.
The buildings ahead faded into transparency before his eyes.
His vision expanded until it finally settled on a large mansion at the center of Gray Ninja Village.
"Found him."
"Lead the way."
Without hesitation, Rei leaped off the city wall, sprinting toward the mansion.
As he ran, he relayed crucial information.
"Most of the Gray Ninja Village Jōnin have been drawn away by Simu. Three Jōnin remain with the daimyo, along with a thirty-man squad."
Minato nodded.
"Harukami Aso, hold back the three Jōnin. Rei and Torika, stop the thirty-man squad. I'll kill the daimyo as quickly as possible and then we'll retreat."
"Yes."
Despite knowing he had the most dangerous role, Harukami Aso didn't hesitate.
He had already accepted this mission knowing he might not return.
If his life could secure the mission's success, it was worth it.
As they neared the mansion, dozens of guards stood outside.
Harukami Aso didn't waste a second.
Forming hand seals, he gathered a massive amount of chakra in his throat.
"Water Style: Water Bomb!"
A tsunami-like roar echoed through the dark night.
A raging torrent burst from Harukami Aso's mouth.
A towering column of water crashed into the guards, sweeping away over a dozen of them instantly.
The sheer force of the impact shattered part of the mansion's outer walls.
Water surged into the daimyo's residence.
Torika wasted no time.
Stepping onto the flooded battlefield, she pulled out a handful of senbon, ready to eliminate the guards.
But something was wrong.
Her senbon hit their targets—
Yet the guards didn't react at all.
Minato's voice rang out sharply:
"Careful! It's a trap!"
Rei's Byakugan flared as he scanned the fallen guards.
His face paled.
"They're not real people… they're puppets!"
They looked disturbingly lifelike.
But in reality, they were puppets crafted from fresh corpses!
A technique meant to deceive—
One designed with the knowledge that the Simu team had a Hyuga among them.
A well-planned trap.
Minato's expression darkened.
Before he could react, the human puppets all began to vibrate.
A chilling realization struck him.
"They have explosive tags inside—!"
In that split second, Harukami Aso made his decision.
Stepping in front of his team without hesitation, he formed another set of seals.
"Water Style: Water Prison!"
The water beneath them rose, forming a protective sphere around his allies.
Then—
A devastating explosion engulfed the battlefield!
Even the Water Prison Technique, cast by a Jōnin, couldn't fully withstand the shockwave.
The sphere shattered.
A rush of air surged into the collapsing water prison, sending Rei, Torika, and Harukami Aso flying.
Minato had already teleported away with the Flying Thunder God.
His sharp eyes scanned the battlefield.
Before he could react—
A voice echoed through the wreckage.
"Well, well… as expected of Konoha's shinobi. Even that wasn't enough to take you down."
A figure emerged from behind the mansion, clapping slowly.
He had short, well-groomed hair, and chakra threads shimmered faintly between his fingers.
A puppet master.
Minato's expression darkened further.
"Sunagakure's 'Human Puppeteer'—Droby."
A sinister craftsman infamous since the Second Shinobi World War.
A man who turned corpses into weapons.
A one-man army.
Droby smirked.
"Such a pity. I was hoping a real shinobi would show up instead of you kids."
Rei and Torika struggled to their feet.
Harukami Aso grimaced.
If he had reacted just a moment slower—
This mission would have already been a failure.
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