The mission was supposed to be simple.
At least, that was what Karma thought when he read the scroll.
"Escort three merchants to the eastern settlement, investigate reports of attacks along the route, and return."
B-rank.
The reason was obvious.
Several merchant groups had disappeared over the past month.
The survivors had reported shinobi among the attackers.
Karma rolled the scroll closed.
"So we're expecting rogue shinobi."
Daichi nodded.
"Possibly."
Karma looked at the other members of the team.
Daichi was a Chūnin with years of field experience.
Mika was another experienced Chūnin.
Shun was younger but capable.
And Karma.
Four Chūnin.
A reasonable B-rank team.
They left Konoha shortly after sunrise.
The first day passed without incident.
The merchants talked constantly.
The road was quiet.
The forest was thick.
Karma stayed near the rear of the caravan, his hand occasionally resting against the tanto at his waist.
Madara-sensei had given it to him two years ago.
Since then, Karma had used it almost every day.
It was no longer simply a gift.
It had become part of him.
His swordsmanship had changed too.
Madara had taught him the fundamentals.
Karma had built the rest himself.
Footwork.
Acceleration.
Lightning Release.
Short-range attacks.
Genjutsu.
Perception.
And now Chidori.
He wasn't relying on one thing anymore.
That was the point.
Karma suddenly stopped.
Daichi noticed immediately.
"What?"
Karma looked into the trees.
"Nothing."
Daichi frowned.
"You stopped."
"I know."
"Why?"
Karma's golden eyes narrowed slightly.
Something was wrong.
He couldn't explain it yet.
There was no obvious footprint.
No broken branch.
No disturbed soil.
No chakra signature he could clearly identify.
But his perception felt…
off.
Karma looked at the trees again.
'Someone is watching.'
He didn't say it.
Not yet.
The caravan continued.
A few minutes later, Karma noticed a bird sitting on a branch.
It was completely still.
Too still.
He looked away.
Then looked back.
The bird was gone.
Karma smiled faintly.
'There you are.'
He didn't warn the others.
Instead, he quietly adjusted his position.
Then he waited.
The attack came ten minutes later.
A wire snapped across the road.
"Move!"
Daichi shouted.
Karma jumped.
Explosive tags detonated behind the caravan.
The merchants screamed.
Smoke filled the road.
Shuriken flew through the trees.
The three Chūnin moved immediately.
Mika deflected the first volley.
Shun pulled one of the merchants behind the cart.
Daichi disappeared into the smoke.
Karma remained still.
He closed his eyes.
The world changed.
His Kanzen Saimen stirred.
His perception expanded.
The smoke wasn't just smoke anymore.
He could feel movement through it.
Hear changes in breathing.
See disturbances in chakra.
There.
Three enemies.
No.
Four.
One behind the trees.
Two on the left.
And one…
Karma opened his eyes.
Above.
A figure dropped from the branches.
Karma stepped aside.
A blade passed where his neck had been.
Karma drew his tanto.
The attacker landed several meters away.
He wore a dark cloak.
No forehead protector.
His movements were controlled.
Experienced.
Not a bandit.
The man's eyes locked onto Karma.
"You're the one guarding the rear?"
Karma smiled.
"Looks like it."
The man laughed.
"They sent children now?"
Karma shrugged.
"Apparently."
The man disappeared.
Karma's eyes followed him.
Fast.
Very fast.
'Special Jōnin.'
Karma had fought Chūnin before.
This was different.
The man's movement was cleaner.
His timing was better.
He didn't waste motion.
Karma blocked the first strike.
Steel rang.
The second came immediately.
Karma slipped beneath it.
The third came from behind.
Karma twisted.
The blade passed his cheek.
'He's good.'
Karma jumped backward.
The man smiled.
"You've got decent eyes."
Karma grinned.
"You noticed."
The man attacked again.
Karma didn't meet the blade this time.
He moved.
Lightning chakra pulsed through his legs.
His acceleration increased.
The man's eyes followed him.
Karma changed direction.
The man adjusted.
Karma changed direction again.
The man still followed.
'He's reading my movement.'
Karma smiled.
'Then let's change what he's reading.'
His eyes brightened.
Kanzen Saimen activated.
Subtle.
Almost invisible.
The man's perception shifted.
Not enough to realize something was wrong.
Just enough.
Karma moved left.
The man saw him move left.
Karma was actually moving right.
The blade swung toward the illusion.
Karma slipped past it.
His tanto stopped against the man's ribs.
The rogue twisted away at the last instant.
A shallow cut opened across his side.
He jumped back.
His expression changed.
"What did you do?"
Karma smiled.
"Nothing."
The man stared at him.
Karma could see the uncertainty forming.
Good.
He attacked again.
This time, Karma deliberately allowed the man to read his movement.
A step forward.
A slash.
A retreat.
The man adapted.
Then Karma changed the illusion.
The rogue's eyes saw Karma's body moving toward his right.
His actual body went left.
The rogue swung.
Nothing.
Karma appeared beside him.
The tanto came across.
The man barely blocked.
He kicked Karma away.
Karma landed.
The rogue formed hand seals.
"Fire Release!"
Flames exploded forward.
Karma jumped over them.
The fire scorched the ground.
He landed.
The rogue was already behind him.
Karma turned.
Too slow.
The blade came toward his chest.
Karma twisted.
The blade grazed his shirt.
He stepped inside the man's reach.
Their faces were only a few inches apart.
Karma's golden eyes met his.
Kanzen Saimen deepened.
For a fraction of a second, the man's senses betrayed him.
The ground seemed to tilt.
Karma appeared three steps farther away.
The rogue's attack went wide.
Karma moved.
Hand seals.
Chakra gathered.
Lightning exploded around his hand.
The sound filled the forest.
The rogue's eyes widened.
"What is—"
Karma vanished.
Chidori struck.
The rogue's body jerked.
Karma's hand had pierced through his chest.
The lightning continued crackling around his arm.
For a moment, the two stood completely still.
Karma looked into the man's eyes.
There was surprise there.
Then pain.
Then nothing.
Karma pulled his hand free.
The man collapsed.
The Chidori disappeared.
Karma stood still.
His breathing was steady.
His hand wasn't shaking.
But something inside him had gone very quiet.
He looked at the body.
'He's dead.'
There was no denying it.
No technicality.
No convenient excuse.
Karma had killed him.
He had chosen the opening.
He had used Kanzen Saimen to create it.
And he had finished the fight with Chidori.
A shout pulled him back.
"Karma!"
He turned.
One of the other rogue shinobi had broken through the fighting and was heading toward the merchants.
Karma moved immediately.
The rest of the battle ended quickly.
Daichi defeated one.
Mika restrained another.
Shun drove the final attacker away from the caravan.
The surviving enemies fled into the forest.
Daichi looked toward the dead rogue.
Then toward Karma.
He didn't say anything.
Neither did Karma.
The mission continued.
That was the strange part.
The world didn't stop because someone had died.
The merchants still needed to reach the settlement.
The caravan still needed protection.
The road still stretched ahead.
So Karma kept walking.
That evening, they reached the settlement.
The merchants delivered their supplies safely.
The mission objective was completed.
They spent the night there before beginning the journey home.
Karma sat alone outside the settlement.
He looked at his hand.
There was no blood on it anymore.
He flexed his fingers.
Then closed them.
'So this is what it means.'
He had imagined his first kill before.
Not specifically.
But he had known it would happen eventually.
He had thought it would feel different.
More dramatic.
More terrifying.
Instead…
It felt ordinary.
That was what bothered him most.
A man had died.
And Karma was sitting here thinking about dinner.
He looked toward the settlement.
People were laughing.
Children were playing.
Someone was carrying firewood.
Life continued.
Karma lowered his eyes.
'Was I supposed to hesitate?'
He already knew the answer.
If he had hesitated, the man might have killed someone.
Maybe one of the merchants.
Maybe one of his teammates.
Maybe Karma himself.
He had made the decision.
It had been the correct one.
At least, he believed it had been.
But that didn't make it feel good.
Karma stood.
He walked back toward the others.
Daichi looked at him.
"You okay?"
Karma nodded.
"Yeah."
It was only half true.
But it was enough.
Far beyond the settlement, hidden among the trees, a masked figure watched the camp.
Ren.
He had been observing the mission from a distance.
His orders were simple.
Observe.
Intervene only if necessary.
Do not reveal ANBU involvement.
He had watched Karma fight.
He had watched the rogue shinobi realize too late that his senses were being manipulated.
And he had watched the Chidori strike.
Ren remained still for several seconds.
Then he disappeared into the darkness.
Karma didn't notice.
Not because his perception had failed.
Because Ren had deliberately remained outside the range where Karma would sense him.
The mission wasn't finished until they returned to Konoha.
And neither was Karma's first lesson.