Somewhere within the Land of Rain, a pale-faced Kato Dan lay weakly inside a mountain cave.
Since mastering the forbidden Spirit Transformation Technique, he had never once failed.
In direct combat, he wasn't on par with Jiraiya, but on the battlefield, his sheer threat level—three Jiraiyas combined couldn't match it.
Yet somehow, he had been bested by an ANBU wearing a fox mask.
When he had tried to seize control of that squad captain's body, the man had already been possessed by a member of the Yamanaka Clan.
He had never seen such a situation before—two souls clashing head-on—and he had lost that battle.
It taught him a hard lesson, next time, beware the Yamanaka Clan.
Physical wounds could be treated with medicine, but injuries to the soul… only time could heal those.
Dan turned to the two Senju bodyguards beside him.
"Give me another half hour. Then I'll use the Spirit Transformation Technique to scout our return route. If it's clear, we'll head back to the main encampment."
One of the guards—an older Senju—nodded.
"Dan, don't push yourself too far. Don't leave behind hidden injuries."
Dan acknowledged him with a faint nod and lay back, listening to the steady rhythm of rain dripping at the cave's mouth.
Clan Leader Hanaki of the Senju had ordered him to uncover the truth behind the Nine-Tails' transfer of its sealing host.
He had already interrogated a number of ANBU in secret.
Unfortunately, the ANBU command structure was too rigid.
Low-ranking operatives knew nothing—they only executed the squad leader's orders.
Even the squad leaders rarely knew the full mission objectives.
So, for every ANBU he interrogated, he had no choice but to kill them afterward—to keep himself from being exposed.
When the Fox Squad escaped, Dan had been deeply concerned.
If they reported what they'd seen to ANBU command, he'd be hunted.
And from the few squad captains he had captured, he'd gotten no valuable intelligence at all.
Would he have to target a Division Commander next?
He thought of the few he knew—and his expression darkened.
Yellow Dog, a veteran ANBU commander and the Hokage's right hand.
They had fought side by side in the Battle of Mount Ushiga.
His taijutsu and ninjutsu were both formidable, his will unbreakable.
Black Ant, a Nara Clan strategist—another division leader.
His authority was second only to the Hokage and Danzō.
Whom should he strike at first?
Who among them might know why the Nine-Tails had suddenly manifested that monstrous Susanoo armor on the night of the sealing?
The rain intensified, hammering the mountainside.
This cursed country, he thought bitterly. Why do its people endure such storms and starvation without ever moving away?
"Parasitic Insects!"
One of the Senju guards shouted.
Through the veil of rain, tiny insects crawled into the cave, glistening with water.
The three men turned toward the entrance—
and saw two masked ANBU charging through the downpour.
One wore a beetle-pattern mask, the other a fox mask.
Fox mask?
Dan's eyes widened in shock.
Wasn't that the same ANBU captain he'd fought before?
Have I been exposed already?
"ANBU are here to kill me!" Dan barked. "Stop them!"
The Senju guards hesitated only for a heartbeat before acting—
their duty to protect him was absolute.
One Senju warrior darted out of the cave to intercept,
the other stayed at Dan's side to guard him.
"Water Style: Severing Wave!"
A high-pressure stream of water shot from the Senju's mouth, slicing across the clearing like a blade.
Both ANBU were bisected instantly—
even the trees behind them snapped in half.
The Severing Wave was frighteningly powerful.
But the Senju's face turned grim in the next instant.
"Not good!"
The beetle-masked ANBU's body crumbled into a swarm of writhing insects—a Bug Clone!
The fox-masked ANBU melted into mud—an Earth Clone!
These weren't ordinary assassins.
To track Dan down, ANBU had sent their most elite.
"Watch out!"
An explosive seal ignited inside the cave.
One of the Senju bodyguards threw himself backward, shielding Dan with his own body.
The explosion roared, the blast scorching stone and rain alike.
Yagami emerged from beneath the cave floor with a grimace.
Even after a surprise attack, that Senju guard had managed to react—too tough to take down easily.
When the heat of the explosion faded, he stepped outside.
He saw the two Senju guards hauling Kato Dan northward through the storm—
and B already in pursuit.
Yagami immediately gave chase.
Danzō was still hidden somewhere nearby—if he got caught slacking, he'd be the one punished.
After several minutes of pursuit, one Senju guard realized they were being overtaken.
He stopped abruptly.
"Go! Don't worry about me!"
He leapt high into the air, attempting to block B—
but was intercepted mid-flight by the fox-masked ANBU.
So fast!
Their blades clashed—Yagami's ninja sword meeting the guard's kunai in a spray of sparks.
B continued chasing Dan, while Yagami locked the Senju warrior in combat.
The Senju quickly grew uneasy.
This fox-masked ANBU fought like his reflection—
the same Water and Earth Style techniques, the same brutal endurance.
Yagami focused on defense, using Water Style: Water Formation Wall to stall.
He wasn't pressing the attack at all—only buying time.
The Senju suddenly realized the truth—
the fox ANBU's delay meant there were more enemies lurking unseen.
Victory wouldn't be decided between them, but by the ambush waiting in the dark.
He glanced aside—
and saw the beetle-masked ANBU locked in vicious combat with the other Senju guard,
his tactics reckless, almost suicidal, clearly desperate to reach Kato Dan.
Meanwhile, Dan had sat down, hands forming seals.
He was preparing to unleash his forbidden technique.
"No!" the Senju shouted.
Once Dan entered Spirit Form, his body would be completely defenseless—
and in that moment, a shadow loomed behind him.
Danzō.
A kunai in hand, its edge wreathed in a sharp Wind Release: Vacuum Blade.
The blade's chakra edge sliced the raindrops themselves into glittering mist.
Danzō's single visible eye locked on Dan's neck.
As soon as he killed him, all this chaos would end.
He swung.
But three centimeters from Dan's throat, the blade froze mid-air.
Dan's soul had already left his body.
His Spirit Transformation was faster still—no wonder he was so feared.
Danzō's expression shifted—his entire presence subtly distorted.
Then he spoke—but the voice wasn't his.
"Lord Danzō. So it really was you."
Kato Dan's voice came from Danzō's own lips.
"Since you've found me, there's no need for pretense.
I've been investigating the night of the Nine-Tails' transfer.
Whose Sharingan summoned that colossal Armored Susanoo,
the one that caused Lady Mito's premature death?"
Danzō's eyelids trembled violently, his body caught in visible struggle.
"Then answer me this," Dan's voice pressed.
"Why did you suddenly start wearing an eyepatch?"
Danzō's left hand rose slowly—lifting the bandages away.
Beneath them, a new Mangekyō Sharingan glowed crimson through the rain.
"I knew it," Dan's voice hissed.
Danzō's right hand—still gripped around the kunai—snapped upward.
The Vacuum Blade pierced straight through his own throat.
The chakra edge, sharp enough to slice stone and steel alike,
cut through flesh as easily as wet clay.
The blade winked out as his chakra dispersed.
Blood gushed freely, louder than the rain itself, spattering the muddy ground.
Danzō's body toppled forward, landing stiffly in a shallow pool.
He was dead. Again.
Twice in one night?
Even Yagami—who actually had a resurrection system—wouldn't dare die that often.
The blood spread through the puddle, swirling in the rain.
"Lord Danzō!" B shouted, voice cracking.
Yagami didn't feel the slightest joy—only tension, his eyes fixed on the fallen body.
Could it be that…
***
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