In a small café in Brooklyn, New York, the morning atmosphere was adorned with the soft aroma of coffee wafting through the air. Sitting in the corner of the room, a woman exuded a charm that was hard to ignore. Her black hair, styled in a hime cut, fell straight down to her hips. Her skin was as white as snow, her lips a natural pink, and her pale lavender irises radiated an aura of mystery.
However, the most striking feature was the green mark on her forehead—a swastika-like symbol, but with additional lines on the left and right, forming a unique pattern that made it difficult for anyone to look away.
That woman was Naori Hyuga. Across from her sat a middle-aged man with a receding hairline and a neat black suit, wearing a serious expression. He was Phil Coulson, who always seemed like he had just stepped out of an important meeting.
"Miss Hyuga, I have a commission. I hope you will accept it," Coulson said without preamble, breaking the silence.
Naori smiled softly. That smile always left people confused—whether to feel calm or wary. "Oh, Agent Coulson. We've known each other for almost three years. Please, just call me Naori."
Coulson gave a small nod but remained stiff. "Very well, Miss Naori. Here's the situation... I need your help with an important mission."
Naori leaned back in her chair, casually playing with the tips of her hair. "You know the rules, don't you? First, explain the mission outline, and then I'll decide whether to accept it or not."
Coulson took a deep breath before responding, "Three weeks ago, Tony Stark went to Afghanistan to deliver U.S. military weapons. After the transaction was completed, he was ambushed and kidnapped on his way back to the base. His current whereabouts are unknown. I need you to go to Afghanistan and bring him back."
Naori's eyes narrowed briefly before she smirked. "Tony Stark? That playboy?" she thought. For a moment, the image of a handsome man with a mischievous smile crossed her mind. Hmm... I admit, even though he's no longer young, he's still quite attractive. If I save him, maybe I could—
Naori suddenly coughed lightly and patted her cheek. "That's not the point!" she muttered softly, feeling her face flush slightly.
Coulson, already accustomed to Naori's peculiar behavior, remained silent. He waited with a blank expression, though inwardly, he was slightly amused.
"Ahem!" Naori cleared her throat, trying to regain her composure. "Well, it's not impossible to save him. Besides, as the most important weapons supplier for the government, it would be a shame if something happened to him."
She opened her shoulder bag and took out a scroll. The scroll was decorated with classic ninja motifs. She handed it to Coulson. "Please, write down the mission details and the reward here."
Coulson took the scroll, slightly puzzled, but complied with her request. 'Why still use scrolls? Don't we have digital documents already?' he thought as he filled out the scroll with the mission details.
When Naori read the details, her expression changed. "One million dollars? Is that all?" she said, frowning. "Do you really care about Tony Stark's safety? A bottle of wine in his house probably costs more than this."
Coulson gave a small smile. "This is a personal commission from me, not from the Strategic Homeland Intervention, Enforcement, and Logistics Division. So, this is all I can offer."
Naori scoffed and crossed her arms. "Strategic... what? Homeland Intervention... Enforcement... Argh! Can't your bureau come up with a simpler name?"
Coulson nodded in agreement, looking slightly weary. "We're considering a new name. Hopefully, it will be shorter."
Naori gave him a skeptical look. "Every time you say that name, I always feel like I'm hearing someone play Scrabble without any rules."
Coulson chuckled lightly. "So, when can you leave?"
"If the pay is increased, maybe right now," Naori replied with a half-joking smile. However, Coulson just shook his head. "I've already prepared all the equipment there. We need to leave now."
Naori stood up and grabbed her bag. "Alright, Agent Coulson. But remember, if Tony Stark starts acting smug, I might just let him stay in the desert a little longer."
Coulson gave a faint smile, knowing that beneath all the jokes, Naori was the most reliable person for this mission.
...
Coulson and Naori flew to Afghanistan aboard a Quinjet.
Even though she had seen it several times, Naori still found herself in awe.
The view outside the aircraft revealed a vast sea of clouds, and Naori couldn't suppress a thought-filled sigh.
'If I had known how enjoyable flying like this could be, maybe back during the Second and Third Shinobi Wars, I wouldn't have hesitated to infiltrate Iwagakure and steal the old man Onoki's flying ninjutsu scroll.'
Thinking back to the Shinobi world, it had been five years since Naori began her journey in this entirely foreign world.
Although she was initially confused, Naori proved to adapt quickly to her new life.
As a ninja, her primary priority wasn't necessarily being an assassin. Especially for Naori, who came from the Branch of the Hyuga Clan.
The most essential skill a ninja must possess is the ability to adapt to foreign environments, as it is through this skill that a ninja can successfully carry out missions like infiltration or assassination more effectively. Without it, a ninja could easily be captured or even executed before achieving their objective.
In her previous life, Naori had lived a relatively comfortable life—surrounded by her complete family and even meeting her grandchildren before taking her final breath. But as a member of the Branch Clan, there were many things she never experienced. For years, she had felt like a robot, living only to serve the Main Family of the clan.
She hadn't even tasted alcohol, except during wedding ceremonies or clan banquets.
'Damn, those conservative clan rules really made me suffer,' Naori thought bitterly.
Fortunately, she was given a second chance at life. Her body was rejuvenated to the age of 20, and all the restrictions that once bound her were no longer in effect.
Naori made a vow to herself: 'In this life, I will enjoy every moment—treasures, thrones, and handsome men! Everything that was once forbidden, now nothing can stop me!'
Naori even got to experience the joy of a relaxed life in university, an experience previously only enjoyed by daimyo families or other wealthy clans.
As for her identity in this world, being a Jonin, Naori had no difficulty crafting the perfect fake ID. Using transformation jutsu, she infiltrated government offices and created a new identity for herself—ID, driver's license, birth certificate, and other essential documents.
Only Coulson's organization had advanced identification systems capable of detecting anomalies in her background. Beyond that, Naori's identity ran seamlessly without any issues.
Naori now had two distinct identities.
First, Hyuga Naori, a Japanese-American woman who had recently graduated with a degree in engineering from MIT. From the moment she first set foot in this world, Naori had been captivated by the technological advancements far surpassing those of the Shinobi world.
With the money she had saved over the years, Naori even managed to establish her own company.
Naori's second identity was as the leader of the mercenary group Kaguya Hime.
When acting as Kaguya, she always used disguises, whether natural ones or through transformation techniques.
To make her disguise flawless, Naori periodically used the shadow clone technique, commanding the clones to transform into other members of Kaguya Hime and roam around, creating the illusion that Kaguya Hime had multiple members.
To most people who knew of her, Naori Hyuga was just one of the many iterations of Kaguya Hime.
For this reason, Naori never revealed her shadow clone technique to anyone, ensuring her cover wouldn't be blown.
As long as there were no other Byakugan users in this world, no one should ever realize that there was only one Kaguya Hime.
Still, despite being a ninja, Naori wasn't foolish enough to rely on kunai as her primary long-range weapon.
Aside from being inefficient and difficult to obtain, the limited and costly supply of kunai, along with their throwing range being no better than a pistol bullet, led Naori to choose another path. Only in certain cases—such as using wind chakra—could a kunai become a more effective weapon, though it would consume a significant amount of chakra.
But who said a pistol's bullets couldn't be infused with chakra?
Naori decided to use a pair of pistols with silencers as her primary equipment. They were more practical, efficient, and, of course, far more suitable for missions that often didn't require overwhelming power.
For close combat? Only someone mentally unhinged would question how a Hyuga ninja fights in close quarters.
For 99% of the shinobi in the ninja world, engaging in taijutsu against a Byakugan user was as good as a direct ticket to death. Except for individuals like Madara, Hashirama, or the Jinchuriki, even ninja like Tobirama or Tsunade would likely choose to avoid close-combat battles with the Hyuga clan if given the option.
Apart from the Gentle Fist being far more efficient than any sword, another reason was that Naori deeply disliked having other people's blood on her body.
With the help of the Byakugan and wind chakra infusion, even a random pistol could be far deadlier than an anti-tank rifle.
Naori slowly drifted off to sleep, though her mind remained restless, filled with various troubling thoughts.
…
When she opened her eyes, the plane she was on had already landed in Afghanistan. In an instant, the outside view shifted to sprawling dusty mountains, reminding her of Sunagakure, the sandy land where she had once undertaken missions.
"Are you sure you want to wear that suit? Isn't it hot?" Naori asked, her eyes fixed on Coulson, who was still dressed in his black suit despite showing visible signs of sweating.
Coulson straightened up, replying in a serious tone, "You may not understand, but a suit is a man's armor. It protects me from danger."
He spoke with a tone so formal and confident.
Unlike Coulson, Naori opted for a white tank top and loose cargo pants, allowing her skin to breathe. Her entire body was wrapped in white cloth, leaving only her eyes visible.
Coulson looked at her and gave a small smile. "If not for your lavender eyes, you'd perfectly blend in as a local."
Naori ignored the comment, her eyes focused on the car Coulson had prepared.
"Isn't your organization rich enough? Why use a car like this? It looks like it belongs in a museum."
"This is a personal mission. It wouldn't be appropriate to use official bureau vehicles," Coulson answered curtly.
"Whatever! Let's just get Tony out of here!"
With that, Naori opened the passenger door and sat down.
As the car drove across the seemingly endless desert, Naori made sure to activate her Byakugan for one minute every five minutes.
Naori's Byakugan had a straight-line viewing distance of up to 5 kilometers, and in 360° mode, its range was 1.5 kilometers—a rare talent among the Branch members of her clan.
Deactivating her Byakugan, Naori said, "Drive at eleven o'clock. There's a terrorist camp ahead. Stop about 1.5 kilometers away from the camp, and I'll handle the rest."
Seeing the veins around Naori's eyes gradually fade, Coulson couldn't help his curiosity. "Don't your eyes hurt? And how do you know they're terrorists?"
Naori smiled faintly. "Alright, since your organization has been a loyal client for the past three years, I'll give you a little insight. These eyes grant me long-distance vision, 360-degree coverage, and X-ray capabilities. Of course, there's a time limit to their usage, but that's a trade secret."
She continued, her smile widening. "As for identifying them? Anyone carrying RPGs and AK-47s while gathering in a desert is 99% likely to be a terrorist. The other 1%? A film crew shooting a movie."
Coulson nodded and said, "Thank you for your answer, Miss Naori. Our bureau's evaluation that you're not a threat to the general public wasn't wrong."
Hearing Coulson's words, Naori chuckled, her tone dripping with sarcasm. "Oh, a threat to the general public? That's just your propaganda. If your people hadn't failed to catch me three times in a row, I'd already be rotting in one of your secret prisons."
Coulson, though a seasoned agent, couldn't hide his embarrassment. "That was just a matter of procedural delays."
Naori let out a small laugh, then added, "By the way, send my regards to that handsome archer agent who chased me last time."
"Agent Barton?" Coulson asked.
Naori nodded with a meaningful smile. "So that's his name? He told me his name was Clyde. After such a delightful evening, he still had the nerve to give me a fake name." To Coulson, however, that smile looked slightly unsettling.
"What did you two do?" Coulson, unable to suppress his curiosity, asked.
"Don't you think that question is a bit rude, Agent Coulson? That night we just… hehe, it's a secret!" Naori said playfully, winking at him.
In truth, they hadn't done anything—or rather, not yet.
When they were about to move on to the final step, Naori used a genjutsu on Barton to extract information about the Strategic Homeland Intervention, Enforcement, and Logistics Division.
While not as skilled as the Uchiha, Naori's genjutsu as a Jounin was more than sufficient to trap ordinary people, especially in situations involving the opposite sex, when the human brain was at its most vulnerable to illusions.
However, instead of obtaining information about his organization, Naori discovered that the agent was actually married!
'Damn! No wonder his kisses and "massage techniques" were so refined!' Naori thought, sighing in frustration. While she liked handsome men, she wasn't bold enough to get involved with someone's husband.
And it wasn't Barton's fault, either. It wasn't like he intended to cheat—he was simply carrying out his mission to get close to Naori and connect her to his organization. One could say Barton's mission was a success.
"All right, we're here. Wait here for a bit, meet me in ten minutes," Naori said calmly.
Though Coulson was curious and wanted to talk longer, he knew what mattered most: their mission's priorities.
Shortly after the car stopped, Naori immediately leaped out and sprinted toward the terrorist camp located 1.5 kilometers away. Her running speed exceeded that of a normal human—around 100 km/h—while the cloth covering her body changed color using a transformation technique, camouflaging her with the desert sands.
With pistols drawn, Naori stayed focused. In less than a minute—54 seconds, to be exact—she reached the terrorist camp.
Coulson and another man monitoring through surveillance cameras were stunned by Naori's extraordinary speed.
"It seems she still has plenty of trump cards she hasn't revealed," said a deep, calm voice belonging to a black man with an eye patch.
The man picked up a tablet from the table and began updating information quickly. On the screen, Naori's profile became even more perplexing.
[Name: Naori Hyuga (Kaguya Hime)
Occupation:
CEO of Hidden Leaf Corp. Leader of the mercenary group "Kaguya Hime."
Gender: Female
Age: 25
Characteristics:
Height: 170 cm Long black hair reaching her hips Pale lavender eyes Green swastika tattoo on her forehead
Address: Manhattan, New York
Abilities:
Illusion arts Long-distance and 360° vision X-ray vision Ability to stand upright on any surface (including water and walls) Expert marksmanship with high accuracy Martial arts focused on acupuncture points, nerves, arteries, and the destruction of internal organs Running speed estimated to be faster than a cheetah
Threat Level: A
Target is under direct surveillance by Nick Fury, Director of the Strategic Homeland Intervention, Enforcement, and Logistics Division.]