Under the cover of night, the Daimyo's camp was a sea of over a hundred tents, flanked by samurais patrolling with flickering torches.
Yagami turned to the three Uzumaki. "In the battle to come, there will be many eyes. It's inevitable that some of our traits—our numbers, our statures—will be exposed. The road to revenge is never smooth; we must all be prepared to pay a price."
"Fox," Yuka said, her eyes fixed on the distant lights, "you are the one infiltrating the Daimyo's side to carry out the assassination. You are in the most danger. We are merely the diversions on the perimeter. Be careful."
"Don't worry," Yagami replied calmly. "I have plenty of confidence in taking down twelve Guardian Shinobi, especially when four of them are Shimuras and three of those are 'watered-down' junk. Only the captain, Shimura Kobira, poses any real threat."
The team finalized their tactics and dispersed into the shadows.
In the heavy silence of the plains, a sudden commotion erupted from the southeast. The sharp crack of exploding tags tore through the air. The Guardian Shinobi instantly snapped into high alert.
The Guardian, Hyuga Shin, performed a hand seal. "Byakugan!"
Veins bulged around his eyes as his vision expanded. "I see three masked figures at the edge of the camp, engaging the samurai! Those masks... there are sealing formulas on them! I can't see the faces behind them!"
Shin's mind flashed back to a moment with Advisor Danzo. He remembered once accidentally sweeping his Byakugan over Danzo's bandaged right eye, only to find his vision blocked by a similar barrier. It was a high-level concealment seal—at least, his Byakugan wasn't strong enough to pierce it.
"Three of you, go!" Shimura Kobira barked orders. "Find out who dares to raid this camp! Three more, follow me into the Daimyo's pavilion. The rest of you, stay outside and maintain a perimeter!"
While the Hyuga's attention was locked onto the southeast, Yagami was already moving underground. He navigated through the earth, timing his approach to stay perfectly within Hyuga Shin's blind spot.
With his own Byakugan active, Yagami monitored the surface from below. Seeing Kobira move toward the pavilion, Yagami burst from the ground directly behind Hyuga Shin.
He tossed a smoke bomb. Before the gray clouds could even fully expand, Yagami landed a heavy blow to the back of Shin's head, knocking the scout unconscious. He had to neutralize the Hyuga first; otherwise, the Byakugan would make combat and escape a nightmare.
Within the thick smoke, everyone else was blind. But Yagami, his Byakugan piercing the haze, found his first target: the "water-Jonin," Shimura Ryo.
Ryo's first instinct wasn't to engage. Panicked, he channeled chakra into his legs and leaped backward, trying to clear the smoke screen.
He collided with a figure in mid-air.
Ryo stared into the "White Ghost" mask. He tried to swing his kunai, but his body refused to move. He was too close to the mask—close enough to look directly into a pair of Sharingan eyes.
'An Uchiha? Is an Uchiha killing us?' Ryo's mind raced. 'The one who burned the other clansmen with Fire Style... it was the Uchiha all along! No wonder the Clan Head hates them!'
Genjutsu: Temporary Paralysis!
Body locked and mind reeling, Ryo was helpless. A kunai was driven deep into his temple, the diamond-shaped blade sinking almost entirely into his skull until only the hilt remained.
A body tumbled out of the smoke, hitting the grass with a dull thud. The surrounding samurai rushed over, only to find the cooling corpse of a Shimura Jonin.
Muffled groans echoed from within the smoke. When the haze finally cleared, the samurai saw the rest of the outer Guardians sprawled on the ground. Some were unconscious, others severely wounded—but the two Shimura Special Jonin were dead, kunai buried in their skulls.
"The Daimyo!" the samurai shouted. "Check the pavilion!"
...
Yagami moved through the earth and emerged inside the Daimyo's tent.
"Someone's below us!" a Guardian specializing in Earth Style shouted.
Before Yagami even fully surfaced, another smoke bomb detonated. The enclosed space filled with thick yellow fog. Shimura Kobira acted instantly, performing seals for a Wind Style jutsu to blow the smoke away.
As a gap opened in the fog, Kobira saw a figure in a black hooded cloak, kunai in hand, lunging toward the Daimyo of the Land of Grass. The Daimyo was coughing violently from the smoke, oblivious to the blade closing in.
Kobira used the Body Flicker technique, chasing after the assassin.
Under his mask, Yagami was genuinely impressed.
'Kobira's Body Flicker is high-tier!' It was silent, lacked any displacement of air, and landed him right at Yagami's side in an instant.
Nono's intel had been accurate: Kobira specialized in the Silent Body Flicker, a Wind Style secret technique. He was a vital asset to the Shimura clan, which was why Danzo had entrusted him with the Daimyo's safety.
'A Body Flicker like that would be a fine addition to my collection,' Yagami thought, his excitement rising. 'Your jutsu belongs to me now!'
But before he "died," Yagami had one more objective. He had previously gathered intel that the Land of Grass Daimyo had captured an Uzumaki—Uzumaki Kanon, a girl with potent medical ninjutsu. This was the perfect time to find her.
Kobira's kunai whistled toward Yagami's throat.
Yagami triggered the Temporary Paralysis Jutsu again. Kobira froze, his mind ensnared by the Sharingan's instantaneous, seal-less illusion. Against the Uchiha's eyes, an ordinary ninja was practically defenseless.
"Uchiha! You're an Uchiha!" Kobira managed to hiss through gritted teeth.
Yagami ignored him and grabbed the Daimyo by the throat, hoisting him up until the man's face turned purple. "Where is the Uzumaki you captured?"
Seeing his elite Guardian paralyzed, the Daimyo choked out, "I'll talk... I'll talk! Let go!"
Yagami dropped the bearded man.
"Under the Evergreen Sacred Mountain... our family's ritual grounds," the Daimyo gasped. "There is a secret base there. She is being held inside. Please, don't kill me!"
Satisfied, Yagami turned his back. Saving Kanon would be a massive boon for the surviving Uzumaki clan.
Behind him, Kobira "finally" broke free of the paralysis. Seizing the moment the Uchiha seemed distracted, he pulled a fresh kunai and drove it into the back of Yagami's head.
[System Notification: Host death detected. Arc of Moon System initiating...]
...
The world blurred and refocused. Yagami found himself back at the previous full moon night.
He was still in the Hidden Leaf Village.
In this new loop, he was surprised by his own diligence. There were no women in front of him; instead, he was standing alone, meticulously practicing the Temporary Paralysis Jutsu.
He wasn't investigating with Qiaoyi, nor was he "digging" with Purple Cat.
'I really am a man of integrity,' Yagami mused, watching his past self work. 'A man of integrity and hard work.'