That chūnin had only a single breath left. Large areas of his body were badly burned—one light strike would be enough to take his life.
Hyuga Hizashi was about to step forward and finish him off, when a sharp whoosh whoosh tore through the air. Hyuga Arin's shuriken arrived first.
The shuriken were reinforced by Bear Wrestling Hands, fast and vicious.
By the time Hizashi noticed, it was already too late to dodge. His eyes widened as he stared at the furious Hyuga Arin.
What the hell did I do to you?
Is he trying to kill me?!
"Rotation!!"
A blue hemispherical barrier rapidly formed around Hizashi. Several shuriken slammed into it and were instantly deflected away.
At that moment, Hyuga Arin rushed over, blade in hand, and chopped down at the chūnin who was still clinging to life.
The head rolled across the ground twice before coming to a stop.
A notification flashed before his eyes.
[Experience +1451]
Hyuga Arin scooped up the items dropped by the chūnin and tossed them into his equipment inventory.
"What are you trying to do?!" Hizashi roared angrily.
Out of nowhere, Hyuga Arin had attacked him.
Hyuga Arin glanced sideways at Hizashi. "You stole my mob. I'll kill you."
It was clearly the final hit already—yet Hizashi still dared to interfere. Did he think Hyuga Arin was blind?
Mob?
Hizashi didn't understand what "mob" meant, but he understood one thing clearly:
Hyuga Arin had attacked him over the final blow on that chūnin.
Was this guy sick in the head?
Who killed the enemy made no difference—kills didn't count as merit anyway.
Hyuga Arin couldn't be bothered to deal with him. He turned and rushed toward the other battlefield.
There was still one chūnin and one jōnin left—maybe he could still harvest them.
But when he reached the second chūnin's location, he saw Hyuga Hiashi lying on the ground, while Tsunade used Mystical Palm Technique to treat him.
Hyuga Arin looked at the chūnin corpse that had already stopped breathing and sighed regretfully.
He hadn't killed him.
No drops. No experience.
Too slow.
He hadn't expected Tsunade to resolve her opponent so quickly.
As expected of one of the future Sannin—even against another jōnin, she could finish the fight this fast.
"Is it over?" Tsunade turned and asked Hyuga Arin.
"All taken care of," Hyuga Arin nodded, glancing at the unconscious Hiashi. His white robes were soaked red with blood.
That guy had it rough.
Hizashi walked over, his expression ugly. He glanced at Hyuga Arin, then at Tsunade, and ultimately said nothing about what had just happened.
Even if he did, Hyuga Arin wouldn't care.
In fact, Hyuga Arin almost wanted Hiashi to realize something clearly:
Sometimes, he was the real danger.
Hyuga Arin didn't say it aloud, but in that hazy instant, Hizashi understood.
He even began to wonder—if Hiashi truly wanted to subdue Hyuga Arin, it would depend entirely on whether his own life was tough enough.
Otherwise, he might die at Hyuga Arin's hands before any so-called "subjugation" succeeded.
"He's out of the danger zone," Tsunade said, stopping her treatment. She turned to Hyuga Arin. "You take over and heal him."
Up to now, Hyuga Arin had never personally treated anyone.
Hizashi's face changed dramatically. "Jōnin Tsunade! My brother's injuries should be handled by you."
Tsunade waved her hand dismissively. "Relax. Hyuga Arin's medical skills are solid. He can treat Hiashi."
Hizashi was practically fuming.
Was he worried about Hyuga Arin's skill?
No—he was worried about Hyuga Arin pulling something shady.
Now he finally understood exactly what kind of person Hyuga Arin was.
This guy was completely insane.
He'd originally planned to help Hiashi subdue Hyuga Arin, turning him into a loyal death guard.
Now?
That idea was dead.
This man needed to taste the power of the Caged Bird Seal.
"Alright, I'll give it a try," Hyuga Arin said casually—though a thought quietly surfaced in his mind.
I wonder if I could "accidentally" kill Hiashi… Would he drop a Byakugan?
A main family Byakugan would be incredibly valuable—it could directly raise the Byakugan skill by one level.
Reality proved Hizashi's worries were entirely justified.
Just as Hyuga Arin stepped forward, Hizashi blocked him.
He urgently turned to Tsunade. "Jōnin Tsunade, my brother doesn't need Hyuga Arin's treatment."
Tsunade frowned, now clearly sensing something was off. Hizashi hadn't been this wary of Hyuga Arin earlier.
She shot Hyuga Arin a suspicious look.
What did this brat do now?
Hyuga Arin simply looked up at the sky, utterly unconcerned.
He'd already figured it out—trying to kill Hiashi in front of Tsunade was basically impossible.
Whether he treated him or not didn't matter.
"Hyuga Arin, go retrieve the supplies," Tsunade ordered.
"Yes," Hyuga Arin responded. He leapt onto a branch and vanished after a few bounds.
Before the fight, they'd stashed the backpacks elsewhere—otherwise they would've interfered with combat.
Once Hyuga Arin disappeared, Tsunade asked in a low voice, "What did Hyuga Arin do just now?"
Hizashi's shift in attitude had been too abrupt. She couldn't ignore it.
Hizashi opened his mouth, wanting to explain—but remembering that this was an internal Hyuga matter, he swallowed his words.
"…Nothing happened."
Tsunade gave him a long, searching look. Seeing that he didn't want to talk, she didn't press further.
…
When Hyuga Arin finally returned carrying all four backpacks alone, Tsunade was still treating Hiashi.
Carrying them was a struggle—even for him: one on his chest, one on his back, and one in each hand.
Without the Byakugan, he wouldn't even have been able to see where he was going.
Under Tsunade's treatment, Hiashi had already woken up, though his face was pale.
Compared to his brother Hizashi, his performance had been… lacking.
If Tsunade hadn't returned in time, he might've already died at that chūnin's hands.
"We'll rest here for now," Tsunade decided after finishing treatment and standing up.
After such a battle, everyone's stamina and chakra were heavily depleted. Another fight now would be extremely dangerous.
"Fine by me," Hyuga Arin said, hopping onto a tree branch and lying down.
Hizashi walked over to Hiashi and whispered something into his ear.
Neither Tsunade nor Hyuga Arin tried to listen—but they could see Hiashi's expression growing worse and worse.
Meanwhile, Tsunade examined the corpses.
Despite the Cloud Village forehead protector on the head, she found an Iwagakure protector inside the ninja pouch.
"They're from Iwagakure."
She frowned.
During missions, disguising one's allegiance like this was common practice among villages.
Hyuga Arin's expression turned strange as he glanced at his inventory.
Based on the drops alone, he was certain—
They weren't Cloud ninja.
And they weren't Stone ninja either.
He knew the drop tables of both major villages well. These items didn't match.
Two of the enemies had dropped three pieces of equipment total—two from genin, one from a chūnin.
A village with this kind of absurd drop rate…
In the guides he remembered, there was only one.
The poorest village in the story background.
Yet the richest village in players' eyes.
Sand Village.
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