"So it's finally over."
Under the bright moonlight, standing in a secluded forest within Konoha's boundaries, Senju Hikaru stretched lazily.
The mission had taken a full week from start to finish—but in truth, most of that ti had been spent traveling. The actual combat and execution phase had lasted only a few minutes, at most half an hour.
That was the reality of most ninja missions.
Unless it was a full-scale war, battles rarely dragged on for hours, let alone days. Prolonged fighting usually only happened on major fronts, where armies clashed nonstop.
Hikaru had never truly experienced that kind of war.
The brutality he faced in ANBU missions was no less severe, but it was a different kind of cruelty—quiet, surgical, hidden in the dark. There was no endless back-to-back fighting, no battlefield chaos stretching from dawn till dusk.
"And it's a good thing it didn't turn into that," he muttered, shaking his head. "With my chakra reserves…"
He glanced at Kakashi, standing nearby, and smiled faintly.
A few days earlier, at the border of the Land of Grass, they had captured several Sand shinobi—including Yashamaru. The real challenge had been figuring out how to bring them back safely.
After careful consideration, they decided to prioritize the most valuable target.
Yashamaru, without question, was the key figure—far more important than the others.
So Hikaru handed the remaining two Sand ninja over to the border garrison, leaving their transport back to Konoha in the hands of the local commander. anwhile, he and Kakashi escorted Yashamaru personally, without delay.
They moved with extre caution.
They had already exposed themselves to the garrison troops. If even one spy was present, news of Yashamaru's capture could be leaked—bringing Sand's ANBU straight down on them.
Facing an ANBU squad was sothing neither of them wanted.
ANBU didn't fight fairly. They didn't negotiate. They didn't hesitate. Any thod that eliminated the target was the right one.
So they traveled fast—and relentlessly.
Yashamaru suffered for it.
He was never allowed to remain conscious for long. Any sign of waking was imdiately t with a precise knockout from either Hikaru or Kakashi. With Hikaru's sensory abilities, feigning unconsciousness was impossible.
They weren't giving him a single opening to activate a self-destruction technique.
It was exhausting—but safe.
After two or three days, they finally reached Konoha and handed Yashamaru over to the ANBU guarding the village's side gate. Only then did both of them truly relax.
Their results shocked even their own ANBU division commander, who had been waiting after receiving advance notice.
Yashamaru was infamous—an extrely dangerous opponent and a long-standing thorn in Konoha's side. The commander knew that better than anyone.
Yet sohow, these two kids had brought him back alive.
Unbelievable.
"By the way, Kakashi," Hikaru said after loosening up a bit. "We've got two days off. Any plans?"
"Not really," Kakashi replied calmly, shaking his head. "Ti off doesn't an much to ."
Hikaru glanced at him, then decided not to push the issue.
Kakashi didn't like being idle.
When he stopped moving, his thoughts spiraled. Only constant missions kept his mind from wandering into darker places.
Not long ago, during a pursuit, Kakashi had hesitated at the critical mont—his Chidori freezing mid-thrust as he heard Rin's voice echoing in his ears. If Might Guy hadn't arrived in ti, the consequences could have been disastrous.
Thinking of Rin, Hikaru raised an eyebrow.
I know what to do now.
"Ti off is ant for adjustnt," he said gently. "Don't waste it."
He looked up at the moon.
"It's late—but there's still ti."
"We?" Kakashi blinked. "Captain… another mission?"
"No," Hikaru replied, nodding softly. "We're going to the Heroes' morial."
"I haven't seen so old friends—old classmates—in a long ti. No flower shops open at this hour, but… we're ANBU. The night suits us."
"The Heroes' morial…" Kakashi repeated, then nodded.
"The night is ANBU's ti. I understand."
Removing his mask, he was Hatake Kakashi—Leaf shinobi.
Wearing it, he was kakashi of the ANBU.
He didn't like the codena. It was aningless. The mont soone saw his Sharingan, his identity was obvious anyway. There was only one person in the world with a transplanted Sharingan like his.
Before, he had always visited Rin and Obito as a Konoha ninja.
This ti, he would go as ANBU.
The difference seed small—but the mindset was not.
Hikaru's earlier words still echoed in his heart.
With a destination in mind, the two set off—this ti at a normal pace. Inside Konoha, there was no danger, and after days of nonstop movent, both of them were exhausted.
Then—both frowned.
Several chakra signatures were watching them.
They were deep in a remote forest. Hardly anyone ever ca here.
Multiple chakra presences in a place like this was impossible to ignore—especially for two ANBU.
Without a word, both n went on alert, hands drifting toward their weapons.
But unlike Kakashi, who simply raised his guard, Hikaru's expression turned strange.
The mont he activated his sensory perception fully, he realized sothing disturbing.
The area was layered with sealing formations—specifically designed to block sensory detection.
In all of Konoha, only a handful of people were capable of setting up sothing like this.
"Don't tell …" Hikaru thought grimly.
"Did I just run into those people?"
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