[Tl/n: I'll be translating Takahara Shuhei's name as 'Hunter' even when narrating to avoid confusion from now on unless the narrative or conversation explicitly use his name.
I'll alternate between Hatake Sakumo and White Fang though, since he's an established character.]
In the border region of the Land of Fog, close to the territory of the Land of Earth, an Iwagakure ANBU squad was moving swiftly through the forest. It was a typical ANBU team, consisting of four members.
Their masks and uniforms indicated that they were from Iwagakure, and it was clear that they had only recently entered the Land of Fog, as they had not yet swapped their identifiable uniforms for more discreet attire.
"Captain, are we up against Konoha's ANBU this time?" asked one of the members, his voice sounding like he was in his twenties.
"Yes, it's Konoha's ANBU. Be extremely cautious. I've encountered them before... They're tough to deal with," the squad leader replied, his expression darkening beneath his mask as he recalled previous encounters with Konoha's elite forces.
"I can't wait to fight them already!" another member chimed in, his excitement barely contained.
Iwagakure's ANBU had been established because of Konoha's ANBU. Many of their techniques and strategies were modelled directly after Konoha's methods. In essence, Konoha's ANBU had been their textbook.
While they hadn't fought Konoha's ANBU before, they weren't strangers to their reputation.
"Fight them? We've only just entered the Land of Fog. We probably won't run into Konoha's ANBU for another day or two, once we reach the heart of the region," their captain responded.
They were still near the border with the Land of Earth. To encounter Konoha's ANBU here would be highly unlikely, as this area was primarily patrolled by Iwagakure squads. It would be suicidal for Konoha's ANBU to venture this far.
What they didn't know, however, was that a Konoha ANBU squad had indeed infiltrated this area—and had already chosen them as their first targets.
In the shadows of the forest, Mochizuki Hui sensed the approaching Iwagakure ANBU team and turned to his squad. "Four of them—one jonin, three elite chunin. I'll take the jonin. The rest are yours."
"Understood!" came the unified response from his team.
"Move out!" Hui commanded. The four of them quickly sped toward the Iwagakure squad.
There was no need to waste time setting traps. Against ANBU, who were highly skilled in detecting ambushes, it would be inefficient. Given the strength of Hui's squad, they could simply charge in and finish the job directly.
On the other side, the Iwagakure ANBU captain suddenly halted, his gaze scanning the forest.
"Someone's coming!" he said sharply. Since they didn't have a sensory-type ninja with them, they had to rely on their eyesight to identify potential threats.
"Konoha ANBU?!" the captain's eyes widened in disbelief as he spotted the uniforms of the approaching squad.
The rest of his team was momentarily taken aback but quickly regained their composure.
"How did they get this deep into the territory? Could this be part of some larger plot?" one of the Iwagakure ANBU muttered as he unsheathed his sword, preparing for battle.
"It doesn't matter how they got here. They're Konoha ANBU, which makes them our enemies!" The captain growled as he brandished a kunai and charged forward.
While ninjutsu was a major part of a ninja's arsenal, for ANBU, close-quarters combat was equally crucial. At this distance, ninjutsu would be too easy to dodge, and would only waste chakra.
Clang! Clang! Clang!
Leading the charge on Mochizuki Hui's side was Sakumo Hatake, wielding his signature White Fang short sword. He engaged one of the elite chunin from the Iwagakure squad almost immediately.
In just a few exchanges, Sakumo gauged his opponent's speed and strength. It was clear—this ninja was no match for him.
Perfect. Time to test my new sword technique, he thought to himself as he continued the fight without missing a beat.
The Iwagakure ninja facing him, however, was growing increasingly desperate. His opponent was obviously the strongest of the group—he must be the Konoha squad's captain.
How unlucky could he be to go up against him right from the start? His only hope was that his own captain could quickly finish off the enemy and come to his aid.
Similarly, the elite chunin facing Lightning was thinking the same thing, believing he had encountered the leader of the Konoha squad.
Only the Iwagakure ninja fighting Hunter felt that the battle was evenly matched, his focus solely on the fight at hand.
As for the Iwagakure squad captain, when he saw the young, seemingly teenage Konoha ANBU heading straight for him, he sneered inwardly.
This kid's asking for death, he thought. But that suited him fine—he would quickly take out this foolish youngster and then go help his subordinates.
But as soon as he engaged Mochizuki Hui, his face fell.
The boy's strength... It was greater than his own!
What kind of monstrous child is this?! the captain thought, his mind racing as he struggled to keep up with Mochizuki Hui's relentless assault.
Mochizuki Hui, however, wasn't concerned with the man's thoughts. He pressed his advantage, his movements quick and precise. Truth be told, he could easily finish this fight with a single blow. But there was no need for that.
While Mochizuki Hui had techniques capable of a surprise one-hit kill, it wasn't a method based solely on raw strength like Madara Uchiha's overwhelming power or Hashirama Senju's godlike prowess. His "instant kills" relied on the element of surprise, catching the opponent off-guard.
In reality, this Iwagakure jonin wasn't that much weaker than him—just a bit slower and less powerful.
Using his one-hit-kill techniques too frequently would also diminish their value. If his enemies learned about his abilities and gathered data on him, his advantage would disappear, leaving him at a significant disadvantage in future battles.
That was the pitfall of relying too much on "trick" techniques. Look at Hidan from the Akatsuki.
His unusual ability made him a fearsome, capable of killing an elite jonin like Asuma and a jinchuriki like Yugito Nii. But once his enemies understood his technique, his threat level dropped dramatically.
So, instead of using his trump cards, Mochizuki Hui decided to use this fight to hone his skills further.
Slash!
In a brief moment, Mochizuki Hui found an opening and slashed the Iwagakure captain's arm, drawing blood.
"Don't get cocky! you little brat!!" the captain roared, completing a series of hand signs and slamming his hands into the ground.
Earth Release: Multiple Earth Spikes!
A barrage of spikes erupted from the ground, aimed at impaling Mochizuki Hui. If close-quarters combat wasn't working, he would resort to ninjutsu!
Mochizuki Hui darted around, skillfully avoiding the spikes as he leaped through the air. The Iwagakure captain's eyes narrowed as he quickly began forming more hand signs.
Earth Release: Swamp of the Underworld!
The ground beneath Mochizuki Hui softened, transforming into a swamp. Midair, with limited control over his landing, Mochizuki Hui would be swallowed up by the muck as soon as he touched down.
Once he was trapped in the swamp, there would be no escape.
"It's over, kid!" the Iwagakure captain sneered as he prepared to finish the job.
But before he could act, a voice whispered in his ear.
"No, it's over for you."
A sword pierced through his back, the tip emerging from his chest.
Across the swamp, the "Mochizuki Hui" that had been about to fall into the muck vanished in a puff of smoke—it just a shadow clone.
"When... did you…?" the captain gasped, blood dripping from his mouth.
"From the very beginning," Mochizuki Hui replied, withdrawing his blade as the captain collapsed lifelessly to the ground. He turned calmly, surveying the battlefield.
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