Uchiha Haruki's intuition wasn't wrong—Kirigakure truly was targeting him.
In this surprise attack, although the Mist Village hadn't dispatched scouts in advance to assess the Eagle Cliff outpost, they had learned from a spy that he was the one stationed here.
And Kirigakure had already tasted his power more than once. They were fully aware of how difficult he was to deal with, and knew that ordinary methods would never be enough to capture him.
So, they made special preparations for this operation.
The "Four Mist Sealing Formation" currently being executed by the four Mist ANBU was tailor-made specifically for Haruki.
This time, Kirigakure's goal wasn't just to seize Eagle Cliff—it was to eliminate him.
That's right—at this point, his value was on par with capturing a full Konoha outpost and opening the gate for a full-scale invasion.
Their original plan had been to launch an assault on the outpost and lure him out during the battle. Then, when he revealed himself, they would trap and kill him.
But unexpectedly, Haruki had shown up before the battle even began.
So the four Mist ANBU immediately sprang into action, sealing him inside the formation.
Upon seeing Haruki trapped, Uchiha Tekkō suddenly stopped and called out, "Captain!"
As he spoke, he turned back, ready to attack the Mist ANBU who were maintaining the barrier.
Several other Konoha shinobi hesitated briefly but also came to a stop, prepared to follow him.
Whether they admitted it or not, Haruki was the backbone of their entire force. If he fell here, the outpost would be lost for sure.
There was no way they could let Haruki fight alone.
But the moment Haruki saw their reaction, he frowned and shouted sharply, "Don't come over!"
Startled by his commanding presence, everyone froze in place.
At the same time, the Mist shinobi advanced quickly, blocking the path between Haruki and the other Konoha ninjas—cutting off any chance of reinforcement.
At this point, even if they wanted to help, they couldn't.
Haruki didn't care. He continued shouting, "Go! Don't worry about me!"
The Konoha ninjas still looked uncertain.
Meanwhile, the four Mist ANBU activated the next phase of the sealing formation.
A white mist began to rise inside.
At first, it was light—like morning fog in the mountains. It slightly obscured vision, but one could still make out the surroundings.
But it quickly thickened, becoming dense and impenetrable.
This was why the formation was called the Four Mist Sealing Formation.
Clearly, Kirigakure had thought this through thoroughly. Afraid that a standard barrier wouldn't be enough to stop Haruki's Sharingan, they had designed a specialized sealing array.
This fog not only disrupted his perception but also neutralized the visual prowess of the Sharingan.
Haruki could only sigh. Never underestimate the resources of a major shinobi village. Once they uncover your secrets, endless targeted tactics will follow.
Fortunately, his strongest trump card was still hidden.
Before using that, however, he wanted to test—could he break out with just his own strength?
With that thought, Haruki formed hand seals and quickly performed a jutsu:
Wind Style: Great Breakthrough!
He took a deep breath—his chest swelling—and then exhaled violently.
A howling gale infused with wind chakra roared from his mouth, slamming into the white fog ahead.
In a blink, the dense mist was blown away.
Haruki spotted the barrier's location. His hands formed another seal as he shifted to a water-based chakra technique:
Water Style: Water Dragon Bullet!
ROAR!
A massive water dragon formed, roaring and launching itself toward the watery barrier.
But what appeared to be a thin, rippling screen was as hard as steel—the water dragon struck it head-on without making the slightest dent.
Haruki's expression didn't change.
He raised his hands and quickly formed another set of seals, this time for a technique more aggressive and suited to piercing strong defenses:
Wind Style: Blade of Wind!
A massive wind blade—over ten meters long—materialized between his palms and shot toward the barrier at blinding speed.
Yet, the moment it struck, the once rigid barrier turned soft, like a flexible membrane.
The wind blade cut into it deeply, causing a pronounced bulge in the surface of the barrier.
But that was all.
Within less than a heartbeat, the wind blade dissipated entirely.
This tactic of using softness to overcome strength made Haruki narrow his eyes.
As the mist began to reform around him, he didn't waste time. He formed seals once more, opened his mouth, and unleashed another jutsu:
Fire Style: Dragon Fire Technique!
A fiery column shot from his mouth, transforming into a blazing dragon that crashed into the barrier with a roar.
BOOM!
The fire dragon struck—but the barrier remained unchanged. The anticipated water-vs-fire reaction didn't even happen.
In an instant, the dragon dissolved into falling embers, drifting away.
Haruki muttered under his breath, "As expected… sealing techniques are the most overpowered force in this world. There's just no logic to it."
Although he hadn't yet tested Wind Style: Rasenshuriken, based on the current situation, he probably didn't need to.
That jutsu, while powerful, was still a physical attack. Against a barrier built like a rule-based sealing technique, it likely wouldn't be effective either.
As for the time he shattered Yukikaze's ice prison with it?
That was only possible because the ice cell was a regular jutsu, not a sealing or barrier technique.
Naturally, it could be broken through.
But now, this "Four Mist Sealing Formation" was a true, high-grade sealing jutsu, not something that could be broken by conventional means.
Unless he had absolute power, there was no way out.
These thoughts raced through Haruki's mind.
Meanwhile, the mist he had blown away with Wind Style: Great Breakthrough regathered, once again shrouding his vision.
Looking around at the thick, white fog, Haruki murmured, "Perfect timing."
Then, with a single thought, the three tomoe in his eyes elongated and merged, transforming into a black sun—
He had activated his Mangekyō Sharingan.
The next moment, the ocular jutsu "Ten no Mikage" (Heaven's Veil) in his left eye was triggered.
Haruki's feet sank into the water—phasing directly through the barrier below.
Not even the slightest resistance.
"Of course… Ten no Mikage really is an invincible technique," Haruki thought.
He swiftly approached one of the Mist ANBU from below.
Once he got within one meter, he deactivated Heaven's Veil, and with it, closed the Mangekyō Sharingan.
The Mist ANBU sensed something almost immediately—but by the time he reacted, it was too late.
CRACK!
Haruki burst out of the water, grabbed his throat, and activated Chakra Absorption. Within a second, he had drained all his chakra dry.
Then, with a twist of his hand—crack—he snapped the ninja's neck.
Just like that.
That was Haruki's style—simple, direct, and deadly.
Since conventional means couldn't free him, he immediately used his trump card—giving the enemy no chance to respond.
As the saying goes: "The longer the night, the more likely the dream."
If the enemy went through all this trouble to trap him, they probably had more plans lined up. Haruki had no intention of seeing what they were.
His best option was to get out now—fast.
**********************************************************************************************Hey everyone! Want to read ahead and unlock up to 100 early-access chapters? 📖Plus, enjoy even more exclusive novels! Join my Patreon now and dive into the adventure!
patreon.com/Rawink00