404. Lives as Cheap as Grass

Shimura Kabuto's decisive choice to flee truly caught the hidden "snake" off guard.

But to complete the "mission," she couldn't let Kabuto escape so easily.

Thus, she swiftly maneuvered through the forest.

Then, with a flick of her fingers, she unleashed a barrage of senbon needles, their sharp whistling sounds cutting through the air as they sealed off all possible escape routes for Kabuto!

Anticipating this, Kabuto reacted instantly upon hearing the sound.

With a single step on a tree branch, he flipped backward in an almost inhuman motion, plunging headfirst toward the ground and successfully dodging the senbon.

"Thud! Thud! Thud!"

The dense sound of piercing echoed.

The missed senbon embedded themselves deeply into the tree where Kabuto had just stood.

Within seconds, the bark around the senbon visibly blackened and corroded...

"Another poison user. I’ll have to be careful,"

Kabuto muttered under his breath, then turned his gaze to the woman who had landed in the clearing.

Like the other two enemies, she wore a pale mask, her slender fingers clutching a large number of senbon.

She looked almost like... a cat's claws.

"So, you were faking your escape to lure me out."

"You seem quite confident in your abilities, kid."

The newly appeared female enemy examined the boy before her as if he were some kind of prey.

Hearing her words, Kabuto adjusted his glasses with interest and asked,
"To be honest, I’m curious about who you people are."

"How did you bypass all the defenses and enter the military zone? And what gives you the confidence to attack Konoha, the strongest village in the shinobi world?"

Faced with Kabuto's questions, the enemy showed no intention of providing answers.

Instead, she mercilessly hurled another wave of senbon.

"If you want to know, go to the Pure Land and find out!!"

The sharp whistling of the senbon rang out again, forcing Kabuto to dodge frantically.

But this enemy was clearly a master of senbon, launching them in an endless stream, leaving him no room to escape.


Left with no choice, Kabuto activated a jutsu—
"Earth Style: Earth Wall!"

As the earthen wall rose, it finally blocked the incoming senbon.

*I need to find a way to close the distance...*
Kabuto thought, hiding behind the wall.

But in the next second, the enemy's figure emerged from the ground behind him.

It was the Earth-Style Underground Submersion Technique!!

A look of shock flashed across Kabuto's face.

Although he immediately retreated, the enemy's speed far exceeded his expectations.

The senbon in her hand shot out like lightning, piercing Kabuto's shoulder in an instant.

*This is bad...*

He tried to create distance, but a wave of dizziness washed over him.

It was a sign of poisoning!

"Hmph, I thought you were some kind of genius boy with special abilities. Turns out you're just a cocky little brat."

Seeing Kabuto fall so easily into her trap, the woman's eyes filled with disdain.

"Now, let me send you on your way."

In a flash, she appeared in front of him, her kunai ruthlessly slashing toward his neck!

At that moment, a cold glint appeared on Kabuto's glasses.

*Now!*
His previously weak demeanor vanished, replaced by a surge of chakra coursing through his body!

It was well-known that Kabuto was skilled in medical ninjutsu.

Being skilled in medical ninjutsu meant his talent in Yang Release was exceptional.

So, it was only natural that he could use Yang Release chakra to stimulate his cells, granting him superhuman physical abilities, right?

Thus, to the enemy's disbelief, he suddenly erupted into action.

His palm radiated astonishing chakra, sharp as a blade.

First, it severed the kunai, then it pierced straight through the woman's chest.

Before she died, the woman asked in confusion,
"Why...? You were poisoned..."

To this, Kabuto replied calmly,
"You know, I’m a doctor."
"Even a small doctor is still a doctor."

He adjusted his glasses and pulled the senbon from his shoulder.

Along with it came a stream of black poison.

In truth, Kabuto had taken the hit intentionally.

He had sealed certain pressure points in advance to prevent the poison from spreading.

His goal was to make his enemy overconfident, luring her into close range so he could finish her off as quickly as possible.

Of course, if she hadn’t taken the bait, he would have had to resort to his trump card.

Fortunately, this woman wasn’t as cautious as she should have been.

Without time to examine her body, Kabuto forced out the poisoned blood and hurried back to the battlefield...

——————

After Kabuto left, only two enemies remained on the scene.

In this situation, Uchiha Itachi quickly used the smoke as cover to circle behind the enemies and unleash his signature technique—
"Fire Style: Great Fireball Jutsu!"

A wave of scorching heat rushed forward, the dazzling flames immediately drawing their attention.

"Seems we’ve run into quite the impressive kid. To master a jutsu like this at such a young age..."

"But it’s still too slow!"

With this dismissive remark, they swiftly dodged the attack.

However, to their surprise, the fireball that missed them slightly altered its trajectory mid-air, accurately landing beside the Konoha chunin!

The intense heat from the flames rapidly evaporated the moisture in the swamp, turning the once-sticky mud into solid earth.

With this, Captain Ueda only needed a slight effort to break free from his restraints.

"Well done, Itachi!"

Captain Ueda smiled and gave Itachi a thumbs-up.

However, in the next second, a massive stone arm emerged from the ground, firmly grasping his body.

"Earth Style: Stone Hand Technique."

With a hoarse voice, the stone hand suddenly clenched.

"Crunch!"

A sickening squelch echoed as Captain Ueda's body was brutally crushed.

Blood exploded like fireworks, splattering across the night-shrouded ground.

Time seemed to freeze.

Uchiha Itachi, Chino, and the hastily returning Kabuto were all struck with immense shock.


Although they hadn’t spent much time together, Captain Ueda's kind and approachable demeanor had left a deep impression on them.

Yet now, this respected veteran ninja had been snuffed out like a mosquito?

The sheer impact of this scene left the children momentarily stunned.

But the figure slowly emerging from the mud had no intention of waiting for them to recover.

With a hand seal, an earthen spike shot up, impaling the surviving ally who had narrowly escaped death earlier.