Chapter 87: Hyuga Arin Picking Up the Scraps

The colors in Hyuga Arin's vision didn't change.

The world was still black and white, and his viewing distance hadn't increased either—after all, visual range depended on the Byakugan's level.

What had changed was that he could now control the size of the image within his field of vision, as well as how his focus converged.

Within a fixed range, he could lock onto a single point and magnify it directly.

To be precise, his eyes had turned into a camera.

Focus. Zoom in. Zoom out.

Functions just like a camera.

By adjusting the amount of chakra, he could do this with ease. No longer was it like using binoculars—

It was a camera now.

"If I could take photos and develop them, I'd be able to cosplay as an actual camera," Hyuga Arin muttered.

…If only he knew how to draw.

His gaze followed the countless water dragons bombarding Hanzo.

Hanzo used the Water Body Flicker Technique to weave rapidly through the group of ninjas.

These ninjas were no pushovers either. One-on-one, they could barely contend with Hanzo for a short time—but not for long.

However, with numbers and coordination, they could completely hold him back.

That said, Hanzo's most terrifying asset wasn't his taiTechnique—

Though even the samurai of the Land of Iron praised his physical combat.

What truly made people fear him… was his poison.

Large quantities of toxins spread across the battlefield, and signs of poisoning had already appeared on the ninjas' bodies.

They likely believed that killing Hanzo was the top priority. Even after swallowing antidote pills, they continued to fight him head-on.

The outer ring of ninjas continuously bombarded Hanzo with ninTechnique, but his Water Body Flicker was simply too fast. They couldn't land a hit at all.

The inner ring could contend with him in close combat, but injuries were inevitable.

And Hanzo's sickle was coated with poison as well.

Any wound inflicted was immediately tainted by toxins.

As the poisoning worsened, they could no longer keep up. Their movements slowed, and as Hanzo darted relentlessly through them, casualties began to appear.

Once the first death occurred, everything spiraled out of control.

The number of fighters in the inner ring rapidly dwindled under Hanzo's hands, forcing the outer ring to abandon their positions and join the close-quarters battle.

But the moment they made that choice, there was no turning back.

Hyuga Arin began edging closer to the battlefield, watching Rain ninjas fall one after another, his face full of pain.

Each one of those was experience points!

And although these people weren't jōnin, the chakra within their bodies was immense—even by chūnin standards.

He strongly suspected they were all special jōnin.

Jōnin were valuable assets in the Rain Hidden Village, not something that could be casually deployed.

It all depended on personal willingness—just like Murakami Hua, who was willing to give his life for Hanzo.

Even Hanzo himself didn't have many jōnin under his command, and Zhengzang certainly couldn't muster many either.

In theory, jōnin within the Rain Hidden Village stood on equal footing with both Hanzo and Zhengzang.

Zhengzang lacked Hanzo's personal charisma. Expecting those jōnin to die for him was nothing but a pipe dream.

So—with no jōnin at all—sending this group of elite chūnin to assassinate Hanzo…

Was Zhengzang dreaming with his eyes open?

Hyuga Arin stopped at a relatively safe distance.

The area around Hanzo was filled with poisonous mist. One careless step and he'd be poisoned.

He watched as Zhengzang's men were rapidly being whittled down.

His hands flew through seals.

"Fire Release · Great Fire Dragon Technique!"

A blazing fire dragon erupted from his mouth.

As it cut through the falling rain, massive clouds of steam billowed outward, surging toward the battlefield.

Hanzo frowned and glanced in Hyuga Arin's direction.

This Technique wasn't one recorded in the Rain Hidden Village.

The roaring fire dragon slammed into one of Zhengzang's men.

Boom!

Already poisoned and fully focused on Hanzo, the ninja didn't even have time to react before being swallowed by flames.

[Experience +5431]

"So they really are special jōnin," Hyuga Arin muttered, sensing the state of his chakra.

He still had enough chakra left to cast it once more.

But now that they'd noticed him, pulling off another sneak attack like that would be impossible.

He immediately retreated back into the forest, activating Zetsu to erase his presence and rapidly widen the distance, vanishing from their sight.

Their momentary distraction gave Hanzo another opening. In just that short span, two more fell to his blade.

With no other choice, the remaining ninjas clenched their teeth and all charged at Hanzo, desperate to bring him down as quickly as possible.

But Hanzo's overwhelming skill, combined with his ghostlike Water Body Flicker, meant they were fighting him with their lives.

And the giant salamander beneath his feet hadn't even made a move yet.

Hanzo alone was suppressing all of them.

Only one thought came to mind—

As expected of Hanzo.

Just as the battle reached a critical moment—

"Fire Release · Great Fire Dragon Technique!"

Another fire dragon burst forth, claiming yet another Rain ninja.

[Experience +5432]

This second ambush pushed them all to the brink of collapse.

"Kill him!!"

Someone pointed furiously toward Hyuga Arin's direction and roared.

They couldn't defeat Hanzo—but they could kill Hyuga Arin.

Fear and rage boiled over as several of them charged toward the forest.

But—

They couldn't find him.

After casting the Technique, Hyuga Arin had already slipped deep into the woods, his presence completely erased.

It was as if he had vanished into thin air.

Using a concealment cloth to hide beside a tree, combined with Zetsu to sever his aura completely, Hyuga Arin remained perfectly still.

A textbook stealth technique taught at the Ninja Academy.

Theoretical perfect invisibility.

The Rain ninjas searched like headless flies, even splitting their forces to hunt for Hyuga Arin.

This only gave Hanzo more room to reap lives.

By the time they realized what was happening, bodies already littered the ground.

Hanzo stood atop the salamander, gazing down at the forest from above.

The remaining Rain ninjas searching for Hyuga Arin collapsed to their knees in despair.

They couldn't win.

Not even close.

"Why does the Rain Hidden Village have such a terrifying monster…"

Their ambush—something that would've doomed any ordinary jōnin—had failed utterly.

They were Zhengzang's assassination unit.

And for the first time in their lives, they understood what true despair was.

One kneeling Rain ninja had completely broken down, not even noticing Hyuga Arin silently approaching from behind.

A blade pierced straight through his back, ending his life.

[Experience +5430]

Hyuga Arin stepped out of concealment.

Which also meant—everyone saw him.

"At least kill you!!"

The Rain ninjas, already on the verge of collapse, seemed to find a new target for their hatred. Eyes bloodshot, they charged at Hyuga Arin.

Wait—

What did this have to do with him?

He'd just fired a few sneak attacks. How did he become the main target?

Just as they rushed toward him, intent on tearing him apart—

Hyuga Arin's figure vanished once more.

All that remained were several ignited explosive tags on the ground.

By the time they noticed, it was already too late.

Their minds had long since lost all calm, consumed by fury after being slaughtered by Hanzo.

In that mental state—

Even if they were Kage-level, it wouldn't matter.

BOOM!!

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