Yajima Junito never believed in luck.
Before obtaining intelligence and preparing to make his move, he had already steeled himself with the resolve to go all out against his target—to kill without a shred of mercy.
However,
The moment he actually set foot in this burial ground he had chosen for his target—this three-hundred-meter-long alleyway—his heart gave a sudden, slight tremor.
It wasn't just because of the cruelty and eeriness revealed in that brat's pure white eyes, but because—
The environment had changed.
This was an ordinary street in the Hidden Leaf.
Precisely because it was ordinary, the houses were nothing like the uniform, neat Japanese-style courtyards within the Hyūga clan grounds. They lacked unique architectural features, built mostly on principles of pragmatism, fusing various styles: Hakka, cylindrical structures, towers, and Japanese torii gates. They were arranged in a staggered, uneven pattern.
The only commonality was that these buildings were all at least four stories high, and the entire alleyway was laid out facing southeast.
As the sun sank in the west, the long shadows cast down, enveloping the entire alley.
For an assassin, this place was sparsely populated with poor lighting—truly an excellent treasure ground for stalking, assassinating, and burying the evidence.
But,
The situation had shifted slightly.
When the target becomes aware of the assassin's intent, this kind of environment transforms into a natural and perfect hiding ground for the target to evade pursuit.
Just like right now.
Whoosh!
Just as Yajima Junito steadied his stance and cast a sinister gaze upon the face of the white-eyed brat not far away, a kunai knife used the shadows cast by the buildings to slice a cold, sharp arc through the air, shooting straight for his throat!
Relying on ninja instincts carved into his muscles, Yajima Junito immediately raised his hand, hooked a kunai from his ninja pouch, and swung it in a rotational arc!
Clang!
The two kunai collided, striking sparks and emitting a crisp sound in the desolate alley.
However, a subtle difference in the sensation made Yajima Junito's heart skip a beat. His gaze involuntarily followed the deflected kunai as it fell—tied to the tail of the kunai was a paper-wrapped pellet.
The sparks that had splattered out struck the pellet.
In the next instant—
Bang!
Violent smoke was released from it!
Yajima Junito immediately held his breath and covered his nose. Tapping his toes on the ground, he leaped backward out of the smoke's range, his eyes darting rapidly while in mid-air to capture the target's figure.
However,
When he looked again toward Hyuga Yu's position, all he could see was an empty alley and...
A pair of shoes that had been taken off?
"That brat... fled?" Yajima Junito's expression, hidden under his cat-face mask, changed slightly.
"No!"
He reacted in an instant.
Intelligence stated that Hyuga Yu had not mastered the Body Flicker Technique. Furthermore, the Body Flicker creates a distinct whoosh sound when used.
Ruling out the possibility of Yu using the Body Flicker to escape, and seeing the shoes on the ground, Yajima Junito immediately formed a judgment—
Threw a smoke bomb to block vision.
Quickly took off shoes during the process to move and hide, avoiding the sound of footsteps.
Because he couldn't outrun me, he hid in the shadows of the buildings, attempting to muddle through and survive.
Yajima Junito took a deep breath, his gaze turning icy.
"However,"
"Unfortunately, you chose a dead end!"
He cast his gaze into the shadows of the alley not far away.
The alley formed a "T" shape. Yajima Junito had arrived later but blocked the rear section leading toward the apartments. With Hyuga Yu's speed, it was impossible for him to have escaped from the other end in that split second.
Therefore, Yajima concluded that the brat was currently hiding within this dead-end alley. Perhaps hiding behind a dumpster, or maybe helpless enough to be praying to the gods, executing a clumsy Transformation Jutsu to become a telephone pole or a wooden gate, covering his mouth and sobbing, hoping not to be discovered.
Yajima Junito curled the corners of his mouth slightly, revealing a mocking smile.
Tap, tap!
He began to walk forward, his grip tightening on the handle of his kunai. His gaze was gloomy and sharp; he looked just like a butcher about to deprive a lamb of its life.
As he took his steps,
In the next instant,
Yajima Junito, who came from the Village Hidden in the Mist, was proficient in the Hiding in Mist Technique, and had trained his hearing to acuity through assassinations within the mist—
He faintly heard a sound behind his own back.
Creak... creak...
It sounded like that.
Like someone walking on tiptoes across sand; despite being careful to the extreme, it was inevitable that a slight sound was made.
Yajima Junito felt it was strange. He abruptly whipped his head around to the limit of 130 degrees behind him.
The gloomy alley was as desolate as before. Looking further out, the three Hokage Rocks were plated with a brilliant gold rim under the glow of the twilight.
There was nothing behind him.
"Phew..."
Yajima Junito exhaled, thinking he might have had an auditory hallucination.
He turned his head back, preparing to step forward again.
But just as he twisted his head back, that sound—faint as an ant crawling—rang out again!
Creak, creak!
This time, the footsteps were brisker and cleaner, as if someone had lightly taken a step to the other side.
Yajima Junito's heart skipped a beat.
He couldn't have heard it wrong this time.
This was unmistakably a ninja footwork known as the "Nanba Walk"—a gait capable of silencing the sound of a ninja's footsteps, leaving absolutely no noise even when walking on old, creaky wooden floors.
However, this was only theoretical silence. To some ninjas with hearing far beyond ordinary humans—ears sharp to a near-inhuman degree—even this footwork would leave extremely faint "traces."
And as a Mist ninja proficient in the Silent Killing Technique, Yajima Junito happened to be exactly that kind of keen-eared ninja.
Which meant—
That brat was right behind him?!
At this thought, Yajima Junito felt as if ants were crawling all over his back. Without further hesitation, he spun his body around abruptly like a spinning top!
However...
In his field of vision—both behind him and in front of him—there was still nothing!
The shadows cast by the buildings swallowed everything, making it impossible to determine the enemy's location through light and shadow.
But Yajima Junito was absolutely certain: there was someone behind him!
Creak, creak!
The footsteps, continuous and faint like a death warrant, rang out again!
As he constantly scanned the empty alley, those creaking footsteps seemed to follow the turning of his head, constantly sounding from behind his back!
Yajima Junito felt his heart beating faster and faster, his emotions growing increasingly irritable.
"Heh!" His face was slightly pale, but he forced a sneer.
"Brat, do you think playing these tricks on me will work!?"
"I'll just—"
While speaking, Yajima Junito's hands were faster than his mouth. He swiftly raised his hands and formed three hand seals: "Ox—Snake—Ram," attempting to quickly unleash a ninjutsu to alter the bizarre situation he was facing.
"Water Style: Hiding in Mist Technique!"
The Hiding in Mist Technique. This ninjutsu was the precursor to the Silent Killing Technique. By converting chakra into mist and expelling it from the mouth or beneath the feet, it created a dense fog environment.
At the same time, this water mist, permeated with his own chakra, possessed a crude sensory effect.
If there really was someone behind him, they would immediately be marked by Yajima Junito. He could then use the water mist to blind the opponent's vision, making them unable to keep up with his movements, effectively countering the bizarre "invisibility jutsu" the opponent was displaying.
Whoosh!
A large amount of dense fog was generated by Yajima Junito, permeating and expanding outward!
He finally grasped the situation behind him.
However,
What terrified Yajima Junito was—
Behind his back, where he now seemed to have grown an eye and could finally observe,
There was still nothing.
"Haa... haa..."
Faced with this horrifying turn of events, Yajima Junito could no longer maintain his composure. With his heart pounding rapidly against his chest as if about to explode, he gasped for breath.
"Where? Where? Where?"
"Where the hell is that brat!?"
Blood vessels gradually crept into his eyes, and his chakra began to surge madly.
The violent mist completely lost control. With the continuous input of chakra, it kept generating and expanding. To find Hyuga Yu, he spared no cost, even risking the exposure of his identity as a Mist ninja.
The dense fog enveloped the entire alleyway and the buildings within hundreds of meters!
Finally,
Yajima Junito's eyes lit up. He jerked his head to look in a specific direction and couldn't help but let out a ferocious grin.
"I found you, brat!"
However,
The response he received was—
Szzzt!
In a flash,
The wind roared!
Reflecting the last ray of sunlight at dusk,
An arrow, 1.15 meters in length, thunderously pierced through the surging thick fog!
Under Yajima Junito's stunned and uncomprehending gaze, it drew a brilliant, golden arc of killing intent.
With a forceful posture that was faster, more urgent, and harder to evade than any ordinary ninja's shuriken throw—
The arrow pierced through Yajima Junito's brow!
Thus,
The 32-year-old Kirigakure Chūnin, Yajima Junito,
Died.