Hearing the notifications in his mind that both Uzuki Yugao and Mitarashi Anko's favorability had increased, Furen chuckled softly. He then crouched down in front of Yugao. Before she could ask what he was doing, he flipped over a small stone near her feet. "This stone is dry on the underside and damp on the top."
Anko, recalling the earlier fabricated broken branch, asked, "Could this also be faked?"
"The possibility can't be ruled out... but the moisture on this stone tells us how long ago our target escaped," Furen explained, tossing the stone lightly. "Judging by how dry it is, they escaped less than an hour ago."
Furen looked in the direction where the mossy trail led, still pointing towards Kikyō Castle. Baki had a one-hour lead on them, but if they pursued him with full speed, they could still catch up by nightfall.
After all, Kikyō Castle was located at the border between the Land of Wind and the Land of Fire. If Baki crossed into the Land of Wind, their movements would be much more restricted.
"Let's go, we have to catch up to him!" Uzuki Yugao, acting as the squad leader, immediately gave the order.
Anko and Yugao immediately dashed ahead with full speed, but Furen lingered for a moment. His eyes narrowed as he formed hand seals, secretly summoning a shadow clone. The clone, carrying Moonlight Hayate's sword and blood-stained headband, nodded at Furen before darting off.
The shadow clone used Ice Release to create a slick, frozen surface on the ground in front of it, increasing its speed towards Kikyō Castle.
As expected, the group arrived at Kikyō Castle just as the sun was setting. The small castle was far less bustling than Konoha, and only a few people wandered the streets at night, most of them ninja. Among the shinobi, Konoha ninja were the most numerous.
"Anko, you and Furen go find the Anbu stationed here. I'll track the movements of the Suna shinobi," Yugao ordered before putting on her Anbu fox mask to conceal her identity. Using the Body Flicker Technique, she disappeared in an instant.
Anko glanced at Furen and pointed eastward. "I'll check over there. You take the other side."
Furen nodded and split up with Anko to search for the Konoha Anbu.
Yugao, meanwhile, followed the movements of a Suna ninja, quietly perching herself on the rooftop of a building. After years in the Anbu, she had perfected the art of concealing her presence.
The Suna ninja stood in front of the building but didn't knock on the door right away. He spent a long time looking around cautiously before finally knocking in a specific sequence, indicating that he had a coded signal with whoever was inside.
After several minutes, the door opened, and Yugao's eyes widened in recognition. The one opening the door was Baki, the very target they had lost track of earlier.
Knowing Baki's strength and seeing the number of Suna ninja in the area, Yugao decided against entering and waited patiently. After about an hour, Baki and the other Suna ninja finally left the building.
Once Baki was gone, Yugao carefully sensed her surroundings to ensure no one was nearby. Rather than entering through the door, she quietly approached a window and slipped inside.
The room was small, dimly lit by flickering candlelight, and divided into a few sections. Yugao cautiously searched through each area. When she opened the last door, her heart sank at the sight on the table.
"That's... Hayate's sword!"
Seeing Hayate's sword on the table, a sense of dread overwhelmed her. An ominous feeling rose in her chest.
For Uzuki Yugao, Moonlight Hayate had always been someone she admired—both as a mentor and as a friend. After hearing the report that he had gone missing near Kikyō Castle, she immediately petitioned the Third Hokage for permission to investigate.
Now, seeing Hayate's sword here could only mean one thing... Moonlight Hayate was most likely dead.
As she reached out with trembling hands to take the sword, Furen's voice suddenly echoed behind her. "Careful."
Yugao turned to see Baki, who had somehow reappeared without her noticing, standing behind her, poised to strike with a sword raised high.
In that split second, Furen leaped between them, embracing Yugao protectively and shielding her from the incoming blow.
With a sharp clang, Baki's sword struck Furen's back.
"Furen!" Yugao gasped, seeing the blood dripping from the corner of his mouth.
"I'm fine," Furen said with a strained smile, enduring the pain from the wound on his back.
Seeing Furen injured while protecting her, Yugao's emotions surged. The sorrow of losing Hayate and the fear of losing Furen in the same moment overwhelmed her.
Memories of Furen's warm smile when he had gifted her a rainbow-ice blossom back in the Hokage's office flashed before her eyes, and without realizing it, tears began to stream down her face.
"Am I really going to lose Furen as well... after already losing Hayate?" Yugao whispered to herself as she reached out, pulling the injured Furen into her arms.
Uzuki Yugao's favorability towards you +20%.
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T/N:
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