The fierce wind violently shook the tree branches.
All that could be seen was a vast expanse of white fog, and within this whiteness, deadly danger seemed to be drawing near.
Someone from Konoha used Wind Style, attempting to blow away the dense fog, but the mist quickly gathered again.
Clearly, this was no ordinary fog that could be dispelled by simple Wind Style.
Swoosh!
It was the sound of a sharp object cutting through the air. A kunai, flying from an unknown direction, shot accurately towards the back of Shinji's head.
However, just as the kunai was about to strike Shinji, it surprisingly veered off course on its own, making a large circle around him as if pulled by some force, before landing steadily in his hand.
Sound of surprise faintly echoed from not far away within the dense fog.
The kunai spun lightly in his hand.
The next second, Shinji's body suddenly stopped, and the scenery flying past his eyes froze in that instant.
He landed on a high branch.
The kunai instantly shot out, piercing through the dense fog with a brief whistling sound.
Thud!
Following that, the dull sound of someone falling to the ground was heard.
Within this dense fog, Shinji's visibility was extremely low without the Byakugan, yet he was perfectly aware of everyone's location.
Each surge of chakra, whether familiar or unfamiliar, was exceptionally conspicuous, like flames flickering continuously in the dark night!
He had read countless books on perception-related techniques long ago and had never stopped practicing them.
Shinji then heard another sound, like that of flowing water.
It was a turbulent stream of water surging from the dense fog, spinning rapidly like a sharp spear, charging directly towards his location.
This Water Style wasn't as grand in scale as the Water Dragon Jutsu seen earlier.
Shinji stood rooted to the spot, showing no intention of dodging whatsoever.
As the water stream charged to within inches of Shinji, it was suddenly blocked by an invisible barrier!
The water jutsu was strong, but it could only splatter harmlessly to the side.
Shinji watched the water stream calmly, not a single trace of water on him.
He silently sensed the degree of chakra consumption within his body.
Shinji suddenly leaped up, rushing directly towards the direction the water stream had come from.
A transparent barrier seemed to be in front of him, deflecting all incoming water Jutsu's.
Clearly, the enemy hadn't expected Shinji to trace back to their locating following their Jutsu's.
Seeing their Water Style completely ineffective, a wave of panic surged in their heart.
After this brief distraction, they had no time left to escape.
In the dense fog, one Mist Ninja vaguely saw only a cold, indifferent face before their neck was gripped tightly.
They struggled fiercely, face red, but could only emit a series of gasping sounds.
What terrified them even more was that the chakra within their body began moving uncontrollably, surging through their meridians and internal organs.
Finally, after a muffled sound, the man completely still and was casually thrown to the ground.
Shinji glanced at the corpse at his feet, frowned slightly, then looked away.
'That was…. Too brutal.
'Won't use this move next time.'
…
Someone in the forest used Fire Style; the intense heat evaporated the fog, but it was quickly extinguished by Water Style.
The clanging of colliding weapons, the explosion of explosive tags, and the sounds of screams and shouts rose and fell in succession.
Shinji continued moving through the dense fog, heading into battle with the next enemy.
But this skirmish didn't last too long. The fog quickly began to dissipate, and visibility gradually improved.
The strength displayed by Hiashi and Hizashi somewhat exceeded the expectations of the Mist Ninja.
The Hiding in Mist Technique was like nothing to them.
It didn't cause any hindrance, and instead, it paralyzed the Mist Ninja themselves.
Not only did the combined attacks of many Mist Ninja fail to take effect, but they were all cut down by the two of them.
By the time all sounds ceased, the mist had finally dispersed.
A chilling air settled over the forest.
All twenty-four Mist Ninja were now corpses, lying on the ground or hanging from tree branches.
The area was covered in signs of destruction from ninjutsu and explosive tags. There were still many shallow puddles on the ground and deep craters left by Earth Style jutsus.
The situation on Konoha's side wasn't that positive, however.
Many were seriously injured and were receiving treatment from the team's medical ninja.
One person had also been sacrificed; many were gathered around his body in silent mourning.
The supply escort team consisted of experienced and excellent ninja, whose strong adaptability was only truly showcased when facing this kind of skirmish.
Hiashi's gaze shifted slightly as he looked at Shinji, who was completely unharmed, with only a few bloodstains on his clothes.
Logically speaking, without his Byakugan, Shinji should have been the weakest one among this group...however.
Shinji felt Hiashi's gaze and gave him a slight bow in acknowledgment.
Hiashi withdrew his gaze and was about to walk towards the body of the deceased comrade.
"Lord Hiashi!" Just then, Hizashi's anxious cry suddenly rang out.
He was currently standing beside the spy they were escorting.
Hiashi's heart skipped a beat.
He instantly used the Body Flicker Technique to appear beside Hizashi.
The spy, still tied up on the ground, had no signs of life.
Many kunai were embedded in his body, and blood flowed everywhere.
Hiashi's face instantly turned grim: "How could this happen!"
Hearing this, Hizashi immediately knelt down in apology: "I'm sorry, Lord Hiashi, it's my fault. I was the one originally carrying him, but I saw you being surrounded by many people at the time..."
Hiashi's face was as still as water, cold light flickering repeatedly in his pale eyes.
Hizashi was his guard.
No matter what mission Hiashi was on, Hizashi would always be by his side. For Hizashi, nothing was more important than protecting Hiashi.
Hiashi understood this clearly.
Protecting him was Hizashi's mission and duty; he couldn't blame Hizashi for this.
No one around spoke. Their temporary mission for this return trip was to escort this spy, but now he had died en route.
Hiashi knew clearly what this spy represented.
The mastermind behind this person was a heinous criminal in Konoha, and the purpose of escorting him back to Konoha was to expose this individual!
How was he to explain this to Lord Hokage, how was he to explain it to Shikaku and Minato...
When he left, he had even made a solemn promise to Shikaku.
Hiashi stood still in place for a long time, until Kaito hesitated, stepped forward, and softly called out, "Lord Hiashi?"
Hiashi let out a heavy sigh, then said to Hizashi: "Get up."
"This kind of thing happening is something none of us wanted to see. It's fortunate enough that we survived the enemy encounter on the road. The mission failure is my responsibility as the captain."
Hizashi quickly said: "How can you take responsibility alone, Lord Hiashi?! It was clearly my fault!"
The others nearby also chimed in, saying it was everyone's shared responsibility and shouldn't be borne by Captain Hiashi alone.
Hiashi felt irritable.
He said: "Alright, clean up the battlefield. Bring Renji's body, and let's head back to the village first."
He then noticed Shinji standing not far away, just quietly watching the spy's corpse.