The Resolve to Be Killed, the Right to Wield a Blade

Screech!

Before Yun Chuan’s words could reach anyone’s ears, they were drowned out by the sharp, piercing whistle of something cutting through the air.

In the Scarred Sand Ninja’s shrinking pupils, a cold gleam tore through the curtain of rain like a sword, leaving a trail as it flew straight toward him. Its sound pierced the howling wind and rain like the blare of a horn.

"Damn it!"

Startled, the Scarred Sand Ninja instinctively tugged the Chakra threads connected to his puppet.

Clack! Clack-clack!!

The puppet’s hollow abdomen flew open, firing a rapid barrage of Kunai and shuriken that formed a wide, indiscriminate assault.

In his panic, he unleashed all the hidden weapons he had stored at once.

"How many Senbon do you have? How many times can you dodge… or block them?" Seeing this, the Scarred Sand Ninja’s thoughts raced as he took half a step back. He could no longer tell whether he was questioning Yun Chuan or himself.

At that moment, no matter how unwilling he was to admit it, the urge to retreat had already taken root in his heart.

That brat was simply too strange.

He was not closing the distance by relying on speed to dodge. He was knocking down the hidden weapons head-on with Senbon.

It was as though… he was using him to hone his Senbon-throwing technique…

He was not one of those stubborn, down-and-out samurai. He had no samurai creed about fighting to the end. When faced with an abnormal situation, all he needed to do was retreat safely and report it to his superiors afterward.

"Besides, Sensei should have noticed something by now and be rushing over here…"

But just as that thought surfaced in the Scarred Sand Ninja’s mind—

Buzz! Buzz-buzz!!

From Konan and Yahiko’s perspective, Yun Chuan, who had leapt into the air, had almost turned into an afterimage beneath the moonlight.

If his earlier movements had been high-speed motion, then he was now even faster than before. With Yahiko and Konan’s current dynamic vision, they could barely catch the movements of his Senbon throws.

They could only see starlight bursting between the two of them several times like fireworks.

Sharpness against sharpness, metal clashing against metal.

The fewer, smaller Senbon triggered a chain reaction in an instant.

One Senbon knocked down a Kunai and snapped in two, yet in an eerie manner, it pierced through two more Kunai, sending them off their original paths toward Yun Chuan.

Sparks splashed down like rain, showering the ground from midair. Dense, continuous, piercing metallic hums filled the air, stirring up broad ripples in the rainwater.

Broken Kunai and Senbon littered the ground, their mirror-bright edges reflecting the Sand Ninja’s terror.

"How is that possible?!"

The Scarred Sand Ninja’s first reaction was that he had encountered someone from the Uchiha Clan. He instinctively looked toward Yun Chuan’s eyes to confirm his suspicion.

Yet he did not see the expected crimson, nor even the original deep blue.

All he saw was a frigid gleam reflecting the gentle moonlight, descending into the corner of his vision from below his side.

At that moment, he instantly realized something.

But he only had time to react, not to act.

Under the effect of "Breath Concealment," it was a slash quieter than even a ghost.

With his reaction speed, he could no longer evade it.

One slash was all it would take to sever his head.

"This time, I caught you." A hoarse voice sounded behind the Scarred Sand Ninja.

In an instant, the fear of death consumed his mind and snapped the string called reason.

A crazed expression appeared on the Scarred Sand Ninja’s face. His eyes held nothing but animalistic savagery, and his body, stripped of all capacity for thought, moved toward Yun Chuan on instinct.

Yun Chuan immediately saw through his intentions. His originally head-severing horizontal slash shifted into a great diagonal cut, slashing down from the shoulder to the groin.

Seven Nights Assassination Art: Flash Sheath: Labyrinth Shamon!

Clack! Crack!!

Brilliant sparks bloomed, beautiful as silver blossoms on an iron tree.

But what fell as glittering fragments were not sparks, but thick blood and pale splinters of bone.

The chipped, battered short blade in Yun Chuan’s hand was lodged in the Scarred Sand Ninja’s chest, blood streaming endlessly down his body.

"Argh!!"

Enduring unimaginable pain, the Scarred Sand Ninja let out a howl. His eyes, on the verge of bursting, were filled with bloodshot veins, while his face twisted into a grotesque knot.

But he had realized that what he faced was not a "Ninja" who could be judged by common sense at all. It was a ghost that had already surpassed the very concept of an ordinary Ninja!

If he continued clinging to the fantasy of escaping unscathed, the next thing cut open would definitely be his head!

Thus, even as pain nearly drowned his mind, he still tried to grab Yun Chuan’s blade with his left hand while smashing his right elbow toward Yun Chuan’s throat, seemingly intending to trade injury for injury in pursuit of a slim chance at survival.

At the same time, his fingers flexed ever so slightly as the Chakra within his body poured out in an instant.

Clack! Clack! Click!

Behind Yun Chuan, the previously motionless puppet extended black chains from the dark openings in its robes, like serpents emerging from a cave.

Saw-toothed blades on the chains gave off bizarre rattles as they spun rapidly toward Yun Chuan in twisted, unnatural angles no human body could possibly achieve. The blades tore through the air like spinning wheels.

If those chain blades wrapped around him, he would undoubtedly be shredded to pieces by the saw teeth.

The Scarred Sand Ninja himself would suffer the same fate.

Unfortunately, Yun Chuan answered the blood-weeping, tear-shedding struggle of a trapped beast with a smile.

"You dodged?" Yun Chuan wore a faint smile as cold and pale as his complexion. Lowering his gaze, he softly said, "That works too."

At least you would not die so quickly.

Bang!!

Yun Chuan gripped the hilt with both hands, raised one leg high, and kicked him beneath the chin, using the force to pull the short blade from the bone.

Seven Nights Assassination Art: Flash Step: Six Hares!

Yun Chuan evaded the terrifying thorn-like chain blades with an uncanny posture, passing by the Scarred Sand Ninja with his blade in hand.

It was a dance made of movements no human should be capable of, combining deadly intent and elegance into a suffocatingly eerie beauty.

This was the "Seven Nights Assassination Art," capable of accelerating from a standstill and performing movements ordinary people could never execute at extreme speed.

Screech!

At that moment, a wind more clamorous than the night breeze swept through the alley.

Bright red blood slid down, soaking his face.

A red line gradually crawled across his face, splitting open bit by bit, inch by inch, before stopping at his cheekbone.

The torn flesh overlapped with the ugly scar on his face. Familiar pain spread inch by inch, finally awakening the suffering he had long cast into the depths of his memory.

"Impossible…"

The Scarred Sand Ninja’s lips parted slightly. A hoarse voice full of confusion, death, and despair emerged from his throat. "You are… that brat… the one I killed…"

A year ago, the war faction of the Land of Rain, led by Hanzo of the Salamander, had emerged. They attempted to drive the Ninja of Konoha and the Sand Ninja out of the Land of Rain through war, bringing true peace to the country.

After becoming a Chunin, he had received an A-rank mission for the first time.

The mission required him, under the command and leadership of a Jonin captain, to assassinate the "Elders" of the Land of Rain who secretly supported Hanzo of the Salamander and the other members of the war faction.

There were usually several "Elders." They were important ministers and advisers who assisted the Lord, commanded samurai, and managed state affairs. They played the role of chief stewards, jointly assisting the Lord in governing political, economic, and military affairs.

To ensure that the Land of Rain would continue obediently serving as a buffer zone and battlefield between the great nations, thereby reducing and avoiding the effects and damage of war to their own countries, Sunagakure and Konoha tacitly joined forces with the peace faction of the Land of Rain to assassinate the war faction.

During that operation, he had merely tagged along for bounty money and merit. But at his teacher’s command, he had also eliminated all the family members of one of the "Elders."

If he remembered correctly, that Elder’s surname had been…

—"Muyama."

"Looks like you remembered."

Yun Chuan’s voice came from behind him, carrying a trace of regret. He sighed. "If you had remembered to finish me off back then, perhaps there would not be an ‘I’ now."

When Yun Chuan first arrived in this world, he opened his eyes to see a Kunai and a grinning face.

At first came pain and resentment, followed by despair, emptiness, and deathly stillness.

Only when he formed a connection with the Root in the state between death and survival, understanding the essence of "death," did he struggle his way back from hell into the human world.

"Then perhaps I should thank you?" Yun Chuan said in a tone that made it impossible to tell whether he was mocking him or joking.

Thud!

As he spoke, Yun Chuan casually released his grip. Driven by instinct, the dazed and terrified Scarred Sand Ninja clutched his chest with both hands and collapsed to the ground.

"Cough, cough! Spare… spare me… I didn’t want to…"

Blood continued to spill from his mouth, yet driven by his will to survive, he struggled and crawled like an insect.

If someone kindhearted witnessed such a miserable sight, they would surely feel pity and silently watch him die.

After all, he was only following orders. It was not as though he—

"Argh!!"

Yun Chuan stepped on his bloody spine, instantly making him let out a shrill cry like a dying animal.

Then Yun Chuan lightly nudged him with the tip of his foot, turning the Sand Ninja, who had been lying face-down with his back toward him, onto his back to face him.

"…" The Scarred Sand Ninja’s gradually unfocused gaze met Yun Chuan’s eyes.

They were deep blue eyes, reflecting red rain and mist, yet devoid of even the slightest trace of pity.

Gradually, the figure in the Scarred Sand Ninja’s eyes overlapped with the small figure from his memories.

Back then, after cutting his face, that boy had fallen into a pool of blood and looked at him just as calmly as he did now. His gaze had been focused and earnest, as though he wanted to carve that face into his mind forever…

"When we first met, your face was already this ugly. Now that you’re about to die, don’t make such an ugly expression anymore, all right?"

Yun Chuan looked down at him and softly smiled. "In these final moments, keep looking at my face. Remember my face well."

"If your soul’s death can shine brilliantly enough, perhaps it can lure certain ‘things’ the way mine did?"

With that, he raised the short blade, which was nearly broken.

"Cough, cough!" Looking at the blade the youth had raised beneath the moonlight, the Scarred Sand Ninja seemed to fall into a strange peace. His mouth opened as though he wanted to say something, but he could only cough up blood and make hoarse hissing noises.

Blood flowed beneath his feet along with the rainwater, carving winding grooves across the ground. The crimson rain mist and the two people staring at one another formed a brutal, grotesque painting.

In the final frozen moment of that painting, the short blade pierced his heart.

"I’ll wait for them to come seek revenge on me."

Looking at the face that still carried venomous resentment, Yun Chuan merely said in a low voice, "Only those prepared to be killed have the right to wield a blade, isn’t that so?"

Squelch!

The head with its brain pierced rolled into the pool of blood, moonlight reflected in its eyes. The sound echoed through the rain and mist, lingering for a long time.

Say what he wanted, joke as he pleased, Tsukimiri Yun Chuan would not make the same mistake that man had.

Drip.

No one knew how much time had passed.

Amid the howl of wind and rain and the sound of wild dogs tearing at corpses, a set of footsteps suddenly rang out.

Then came the pained whimpering of a wild dog. After a crisp crack of breaking bones, the rain curtain returned to deathly silence.

The stillness was not broken until a woman’s voice spoke.

"Tomeme…"

Two figures, one tall and one short, stood side by side in the rain wearing raincoats. The most eye-catching feature was the dark red short hair beneath one of the raincoats.

Beside him stood a woman with long brown hair and concern written across her face.

"Hah… I know."

The red-haired man’s tone carried a chill. The veins at his temples throbbed as he tossed the lifeless wild dog in his hand aside and took a deep breath. "I’m starting to hate this place more and more. Even stray dogs dare bare their teeth at me…"

At his feet lay a corpse, its face mangled beyond recognition by the wild dogs, resting silently in a pool of blood.

The body was covered in wounds deep enough to expose bone. Its pierced heart was clearly visible, and bright blood still streamed from the wound.

The blood flowed like thick lava, viscous red slowly spreading and creeping outward as if someone had spilled a bucket of red paint there, staining the surrounding ground beneath the soaking rain.

A battle had taken place here. As for the person who survived in the end, it was obvious that it had not been her husband’s student…

"What a cruel person."

The brown-haired woman drew a deep breath. The anger in her eyes was nearly tangible, and her low voice was filled with fury. "Even the rain here reeks of blood."

It felt as though bloody water had turned into mist and risen into the sky.

Becoming dark red clouds, then falling as scarlet rain.

As long as one breathed the air here, it felt as though one could smell the blood that had gushed out when a blade split skin.

As long as one looked at the scene before them, it felt as though one could see his screams before death and the cold ruthlessness of that person’s blade.

Like a traveler walking through the forest, coming across the corpse of prey mauled by a beast, seeing the body before them gnawed clean.

Even though the predator had long since eaten its fill and left, the traveler would still be intimidated by the lingering violence in the air.

"His brain was destroyed. A very cautious person."

The red-haired man called "Tamome" crouched down and carefully inspected the traces left on the corpse. Before he knew it, his brows had gradually furrowed. "…And there are only wounds made by sharp weapons."

"Sharp weapons?" The brown-haired woman’s gaze flickered, her expression turning grave. "Could it be the White Fang of the Leaf?"

But relations between the four great nations were already extremely tense. Although they were only probing one another within the Land of Rain for now and had yet to invade each other’s borders, Sunagakure and Konoha had long deployed troops along their frontiers.

She and her husband had not gone home to see Scorpion for several months. The White Fang should have been guarding the border like them, so why would he suddenly appear in the heart of the Land of Rain?

"No, Saori. It couldn’t have been Hatake Sakumo."

Tamome shook his head and said quietly, "Though that bastard’s Thousand Years of Death is disgusting, given the honor of his former samurai family, he would never choose to torture a Chunin to death… nor would he need to."

As he spoke, his figure vanished from beside the corpse. He appeared among the scattered fragments of Ninja tools, then looked up at the two corpses in the alley.

"Someone exceptionally skilled in Assassination Art, Ninja tool throwing, and swordsmanship." Though most of the evidence at the scene had already been washed away by the rain, he still roughly determined the enemy’s abilities.

He seemed more like one of those self-taught Ninja from Amegakure. They were best at all kinds of messy Assassination Arts and techniques, and sometimes they produced surprising Ninjutsu and talents.

Just as he used the Body Flicker Technique into the alley and was about to inspect the corpses—

Screech!

Tamome noticed the barely audible sound, and his pupils instantly contracted.

The next moment—

Boom!!

The explosions of several Exploding Tags shattered the silent rainy night. Flesh and blood from the corpses scattered and splattered like rain beneath the blast!

At the same time, in a small alley at a street corner several kilometers away.

Feeling the faint tremor beneath his feet, Yun Chuan stopped walking. Looking at the thick smoke rising in the distance, he smiled. "I hope you like my welcome gift."

"And I hope you don’t die to the White Fang before you find me."