"Whoosh—!"
The sound of something breaking through the air suddenly rang out!
"Enemy attack!"
A Sarutobi ninja shouted a stern warning, but it was already too late.
Several shuriken shot out from the depths of the forest, accurately hitting three young ninjas in the back of their hearts.
Screams rang out as bodies fell to the ground.
"Uchiha pursuers!"
Someone shouted in panic.
Asuma turned around abruptly, the cigarette falling from the corner of his mouth.
From the shadows of the forest, seven Uchiha ninjas slowly walked out.
Leading them was Uchiha Tekka—the man who had pierced Utatane Koharu's heart with a kunai at the meeting last night.
"Sarutobi Asuma,"
"By the order of the Godaime Hokage, I am taking you back."
Tekka's voice was cold.
"Of course, a corpse... is also fine."
Then, Tekka's gaze swept over the trembling young ninjas behind Asuma, a cruel arc curling up the corner of his mouth.
"Dream on!"
"Fūton: Fūjin no Jutsu (Wind Release: Dust Cloud Technique)!"
Asuma shouted angrily, his hands forming seals rapidly.
Violent wind whipped up sand and stones, obscuring vision.
But the Uchiha's Sharingan remained clear even in the sandstorm.
"A petty trick."
"Katon: Gōryūka no Jutsu (Fire Release: Great Dragon Fire Technique)!"
Tekka sneered, the Three Tomoe rotating in his eyes.
Flames turned into a giant dragon, breaking through the sandstorm and rushing straight at Asuma!
"Genjutsu: Jubaku Satsu (Demonic Illusion: Tree Binding Death)!"
Kurenai attacked at the same time, attempting to control Tekka with Genjutsu.
However, Tekka's Sharingan rotated slightly, and the Genjutsu was easily seen through and reflected!
"Ugh!"
Kurenai groaned, blood spilling from the corner of her mouth—her Genjutsu had been reflected back!
"Kurenai!"
Asuma was shocked and wanted to go forward to rescue her.
But the other six Uchiha ninjas had already surrounded them.
Their movements were swift and coordinated, every attack aimed directly at vitals.
The young ninjas of the Sarutobi clan were no match at all. In just a few breaths, five more fell.
"Damn it..."
"Are you really going to kill us all?!"
Asuma gritted his teeth, tightly gripping the Chakra blades in his hands.
"Kill us all?"
"When your Sarutobi clan tried to contact Kumogakure and sell out Konoha's intelligence, why didn't you think about killing us all?"
"When the Konoha higher-ups planned the Uchiha extermination, why didn't you think about cruelty?"
Tekka tilted his head, as if hearing something funny.
Where did this little Sarutobi horse get the qualifications to say such things?
"What did you say... !?"
The information was too shocking, and too huge.
Asuma found it difficult to react for a moment.
"It seems you still don't know."
"This was found in your clan head's study, secret communications with Kumogakure..."
"Why do you think we, the victors of the Ninja War won with our lives, still have to pay reparations?"
Tekka took out a scroll from his chest and threw it casually on the ground.
His face wore mockery, ridicule... and disgust!
The scroll unrolled, and the handwriting and seal on it were indeed the secret code of the Sarutobi clan.
"No... impossible..."
Asuma murmured.
"Nothing is impossible."
"So, it's not us killing you all, it's you... seeking your own death."
"Kill."
Tekka's voice suddenly turned cold.
Six Uchiha ninjas pounced simultaneously!
Asuma and Kurenai stood back to back, resisting desperately.
Sparks flew from the collision of Chakra blades and kunai, Genjutsu and Katon intertwined, and the forest was in chaos.
But the gap in strength was too big.
On the Uchiha side, all six were Three Tomoe.
This was considered the last dignity Kaze gave these guys.
On the Sarutobi side, except for Asuma and Kurenai, the others were Genin or newcomers who had just graduated.
One by one, they fell.
Blood stained the forest floor red.
"Kurenai, run quickly..."
Asuma's roar was interrupted by the intense pain of a kunai piercing his shoulder.
"Asuma!"
Kurenai wanted to help, but was entangled by two Uchiha ninjas.
Despair.
Deep despair.
"It's over, son of Sarutobi Hiruzen."
Tekka slowly walked up to Asuma, the kunai in his hand pressed against his throat.
At the instant Uchiha Tekka made his move, Sarutobi Asuma reached out and pulled the rushing Kurenai in front of him.
"Pu!"
With a tearing sound, a bright blood flower bloomed on Yūhi Kurenai's neck.
Her eyes were filled with disbelief and confusion.
Reflecting... Sarutobi Asuma fleeing rapidly.
"Truly... worthy of being you... Sarutobi Asuma..."
The corner of Uchiha Tekka's mouth rose slightly, then he held the short sword ready to continue the pursuit.
"Susu..."
A black shadow shot from the depths of the forest, fast as lightning!
Tekka's expression changed, and he retreated abruptly.
The black shadow flew past his cheek and nailed into the tree trunk behind him.
It was a pitch-black kunai, engraved with strange runes.
"Who?!"
Tekka shouted sternly.
From the depths of the forest, a figure slowly walked out.
He wore a black robe, the hood covering most of his face, revealing only a pale chin.
Most striking was his right hand... that hand was covered with strange black patterns, like some kind of cursed seal.
Or like... living runes.
"Uchiha Tekka."
"Retreat, or choose to fight me..."
The black-robed man's voice was hoarse and unpleasant, as if he hadn't spoken for a long time.
"Who are you?"
Tekka narrowed his eyes.
The black-robed man didn't answer, just raised that hand covered with black patterns.
The next second, the shadows in the forest seemed to come alive, turning into countless black snakes, winding towards the Uchiha ninjas!
"This is..."
An Uchiha ninja exclaimed, trying to support with Katon.
But the long snakes passed through the flames and suddenly attacked him.
A snake wrapped around his ankle and pulled violently...
"Crack!"
The sound of bone breaking.
A scream rang out.
"Retreat!"
Tekka made a prompt decision and threw a smoke bomb.
He had roughly figured out the identity of the person in front of him.
That S-rank missing-nin.
One of the legendary Sannin... Orochimaru!
Although the person in front of him was somewhat different from the Orochimaru in Uchiha Tekka's knowledge.
But that signature attack just now, he wouldn't mistake it!
The smoke cleared, and the black-robed man lifted his hood.
Revealing a pale, broken face.
"Even Sarutobi Asuma is being pursued. My dear teacher, what exactly did you do?"
"What kind of changes have occurred in the current Konoha?"
Orochimaru said, as a large number of ninjas appeared around him.
They were not here to coordinate with Orochimaru in battle, but to clean up the battlefield.
These corpses were very good materials for Orochimaru!
As for Orochimaru, he looked in the direction of Konoha.
After a while.
Orochimaru raised his finger and stuck out his tongue.
Cursed seals began to circulate on Orochimaru's tongue...
"Cursed Seal · Spirit Kai!"
As Orochimaru released the cursed seal, in a room inside Konoha, a young girl's eyes suddenly became hollow.
The girl was Orochimaru's former disciple—Mitarashi Anko.
Mitarashi Anko stood up and pushed open the door.
After a few Body Flickers, she disappeared from there.