socalfunplaces Chapter 355 Fleeting Moments
Chapter 355 Fleeting Moments
Chapter 355 Fleeting Moments
Hamura Jaku's lips twitched slightly.
"Almost there, we've found it."
Helian didn't argue with him about his words, and simply placed the black jade box on the table.
"Chi Quan is heading southwest now, and there aren't many people around him. If you go out now, you can intercept him after the second stretch of forest."
""
Instead of asking about the location, Hamura looked at the box first.
"Is it really Yan Shui's brand?"
"Um.
""
"Who nailed it?"
"A collateral branch," Helian said, "is already dead."
When Hamura heard "dead," he didn't even lift his eyelids, as if it wasn't a life, but just a used tool.
"Good," he said. "It was worth dying for."
Helian looked at him and said calmly, "I know you hate him. But tonight isn't for you to vent your anger."
Hamura Jaku only then looked up.
"Are you afraid I'll kill people too quickly?"
"I'm afraid that if you see him, you'll lose your mind," Helian said. "Chi Quan is no ordinary person. If you act out of hatred and your first thought is to slit his throat, he might not be the one who dies."
Hamura Jaku actually smiled.
"Helian, you sometimes remind me of my deceased second uncle," he said. "You always seem to think others might act impulsively."
"Your second uncle died young, which means he didn't remind you enough."
"It could also be because your Konoha lineage killed too quickly." Hamura Jaku's voice was very soft, as if he were talking about the weather.
There was a moment of silence in the tent.
The middle-aged man stood to one side, his hand already on the hilt of the knife.
Helian merely glanced indifferently at Hamura Jaku.
"So you'd better not disappoint me tonight," he said. "Chi Quan is going to die, but he has to die in the place we've planned, where he can't run back in time and Konoha can't catch him. If you're just looking for a quick thrill, I won't have kept you waiting for the first three days."
Hamura looked at him, and after a while, nodded.
"Okay," he said. "I'll listen once."
"It's not just hearing it once," Helian corrected, "it's hearing it until he dies."
Hamura Jaku didn't say anything more.
Helian tossed him another prepared thin map.
"Here." He pointed to a few thin lines on the map. "Chi Quan will most likely be going to check our southern outpost and the supply forest route again. He knows the way well; he'll walk along the edge of the burned forest belt and then cut into the second wet slope. Don't make a move where you first see him. Wait until he's finished checking the outpost and is turning back before you attack."
Hamura glanced at the picture.
"Why not go then?"
"Because he was most focused when he went there," Helian said. "On the way back, especially if everything went smoothly, he'll relax a bit. And one..."
Helian lightly touched a bend in the map with his fingertip.
"This place is perfect for you."
It was a long, narrow strip of valley shadow.
It wasn't a true valley, just a winding path between two slopes. On one side were low shrubs that had grown back after being burned, and on the other side was a half-collapsed rocky slope with puddles below. At night, people would instinctively slow down, afraid of slipping; just before leaving that shadowy area, their vision would suddenly narrow for a moment.
Hamura Jaku watched for a couple of moments, then smiled.
"I understand," he said. "You need to let him in, then close the door."
"Yes," Helian said. "Break the water ruler at the rear, and block the wind at the front. You are in charge of the kill. The rest of you should stay away and only be responsible for pulling away those around Chi Quan. Remember, don't rush in all at once. Let him think there's a way out first."
Hamura Jaku folded the drawing and tucked it into his sleeve.
"I like that line," he said. "It gives him a sense of direction."
Helian ignored his laughter and said only, "There's one more thing."
"What?"
"There's likely more than one smart person around Chi Quan." Helian looked at him. "If Shikamaru is there, stall for time; if Kakashi is there, retreat immediately; if Tenzo is there, don't give him time to unleash a large-scale Wood Release technique."
Hamura Ji said: "What about Shino?"
Helian's eyes flickered.
"You know him?"
"I've heard of it. Lots of bugs, it's annoying."
Helian nodded.
"If he were here, don't let anyone bleed too soon. Insects love the smell of blood."
Hamura Jū hummed in agreement and turned to walk out.
When he reached the entrance of the tent, he suddenly stopped and turned his face slightly to the side.
"Helian."
"explain."
"You just said that killing Ikezumi in this war was the intention of some higher-ups," Hamura Jaku asked softly. "And what about yourself?"
The firelight inside the tent flickered.
Helian stared at his retreating figure for a few moments before finally saying, "Me?"
"Hmm. Do you want him dead?"
Helian remained silent for a very short moment.
"I want to," he said.
"Because of the Hamura family's money and connections?"
"no."
"Why is that?"
Helian raised his eyes and looked out into the deeper night.
"Because he's blocking the way," he said. "He's been blocking the way for too long."
Hamura Jaku smiled.
The laugh was soft, and cold.
"Okay," he said. "Then tonight, let's vent our anger for each other."
After he finished speaking, he lifted the curtain and went out.
The seven men waiting for him outside were already standing in the shadows.
No one was dressed in a flashy way.
No one brought any extra things.
One by one, figures, like those wrung out of the night, stood where the torches couldn't reach. The two in the lead were dressed in different ways. One wore a short, wet gray cloak with narrow cuffs and only a very thin knife hanging at his waist. The other was shorter and carried a rolled-up dark cloth bag on his back. He walked without making a sound. These were the "Water Ruler" and "Wind Breaker" that Helian had specifically named.
Hamura glanced at them.
"Did you hear everything?" he asked.
The water gauge nodded.
"I heard you."
Zhe Feng asked in a low voice, "Where is he?"
Hamura looked up at the sky.
Tonight the sky is overcast, the moon is dim, and the wind blows back from the south, carrying a faint scent of damp slopes and withered grass.
"Southwest," he said. "That mad dog from Konoha came out of the village on his own."
Zhe Feng smiled.
"Then he's really in a hurry to die."
Hamura Jaku, however, did not laugh.
"Don't underestimate him," he said. "Whoever treats him like an ordinary Jonin first will go down and keep Cloud Falcon company."
All seven people fell silent.
Hamura placed his hand on the hilt of the sword, his voice very calm.
"Remember the rules for tonight. First, don't rush in. Second, don't be reckless. Third, when you see Izumi, look at the people around him first. As long as we can separate him from the people from Konoha, we'll have won half the battle tonight."
Shui Chi whispered, "What if he brought more men than expected?"
"Then just bite, don't stop," Hamura Jaku said. "Helian wants a second chance, not to die together tonight."
Zhe Feng glanced at him.
"But haven't you been waiting for this night for a long time?"
Hamura Jaku raised his head, his gaze falling lightly on his face.
"If you have to wait a long time, you can't be impatient," he said.
When he said this, his voice was completely flat.
But the people around him all knew that this person wasn't in no hurry.
Quite the opposite.
He's been anxious about this for many years.
When the old case involving the Hamura family occurred, he was still very young, so young that he could only hide behind the innermost cabinet in the ancestral hall, peeking through the crack to see the firelight outside, hear the shouts of his clansmen, the sound of knives hitting bones, and the cold voice of someone standing at the gate of the courtyard giving orders.
Many years have passed, and he can no longer remember that face completely.
But he remembered the way those blades slashed into the night.
The survivors later told him that the sword-wielding ninjas came from Konoha, and the surname of the leading lineage that survived was the same as that of the current Ikezumi.
So as long as Ichizumi lives, the blood of the Hamura family is still stuck in his throat.
If it succeeds tonight, this blood will flow smoothly.
If it fails—
A thin, cold glint flashed in Hamura Jaku's eyes.
Then let's wait for the next time.
Anyway, Chi Quan already has a mark on him now.
He can't escape.
On Konoha's side, Izumi was unaware that she was being watched by someone on the other side, her every breath a silent test.
He was backing away along the outer edge of the burned forest belt.
There were only three people around me.
Shikamaru, Kiba, and a young Byakugan ninja temporarily transferred from the Hyuga side.
They came out not just for one event, but to observe.
Check if the Allied forces' southern outposts have been repositioned again, check if those who survived the previous two days at Qingniao Ridge have left any trails here, and check if Helian has been nailing new things onto the outer forest road under the cover of night.
The journey wasn't smooth.
The problem isn't that a fight broke out, but rather that it's too quiet.
As Shikamaru walked quietly, his face grew increasingly sour.
"I don't like it," he said in a low voice.
As he stepped over a half-burnt piece of dead wood, Akamaru twitched his nose on his shoulder.
"What don't you like about it?"
"It looks like you're deliberately showing off to us," Shikamaru said.
Chi Quan walked in front without turning around, only asking, "What did you see?"
"Not yet," Shikamaru replied. "I just feel annoyed."
Ya couldn't help but mutter, "When are you ever not annoying?"
"This is particularly troublesome," Shikamaru said. "The southern outpost is too weak. Helian doesn't seem like the type to leave this line so clean."
The young Byakugan ninja, who hadn't spoken until now, whispered, "There's no one at the first two bright spots. The third one only shows old marks, with no new chakra residue."
Chi Quan slowed his pace a little.
"Is the third spot also empty?"
"Hmm," the Byakugan ninja said, "At least it appears empty on the surface."
Shikamaru muttered a curse under his breath.
"Look."
Chi Quan didn't say "I saw it," but simply raised his hand to signal the others to stop.
The second wet slope is ahead.
Below the slope lay the narrow valley, marked on Helian Tu's map, the one Hamura Seki was preparing to exploit. At night, it appeared as a deeper black line stretching between the forest and the slope. The puddles shimmered with a faint, cold light, and the low-lying water swayed gently in the wind; nothing more.
Ya patted Akamaru's head.
"Akamaru."
Akamaru let out a soft "chirp," jumped off his shoulder, touched its nose to the ground, and took two steps forward to sniff. It didn't chirp immediately, but its tail slowly lowered.
Tooth's eyes changed too.
"There's something there," he said in a low voice.
Shikamaru immediately asked, "A person?"
"The smell is very faint." Ya frowned. "It's like someone deliberately washed it and then put medicine on it. But it's not completely gone. There's a layer of—a very faint smell of blood—hidden under the moisture."
Chi Quan's eyes darkened.
"Is it new?"
"It's a mix of old and new, so it's hard to say," Ya said. "But it definitely wasn't originally part of this land."
Shikamaru slowly placed his hand on his ninja tool pouch.
"I knew it."
The Byakugan ninja had also opened his eyes, and a vein bulged on his forehead.
"There are several blind spots in the valley ahead that I can't see through. It's not an illusion; it's just the combination of terrain and moisture."
Chi Quan stared at the black line ahead, and after a couple of breaths, suddenly said, "Don't go in."
Shikamaru paused for a moment, then almost immediately realized what was happening.
"retreat?"
"Hmm," Chi Quan said, "Too straightforward. If Helian really wants us to think everything's fine, this is the place that most likely looks like something's wrong. The more it seems like something's wrong, the less we should follow his lead."
But Ya was a little unwilling.
"You've already touched this far, aren't you going down to take a look?"
Chi Quan turned his head to look at him.
"Do you want to see it, or do you want others to see it?"
He opened his mouth, but in the end, he swallowed it back.
Shikamaru then slowly exhaled.
"It's rare that your brain hasn't been blown away by the wind tonight."
Chi Quan said calmly, "When did I ever lose my mind?"
"Often," Shikamaru said. "You just won't admit it."
Just as the group was about to retreat, a very soft "snap" suddenly came from the shadows of the valley.
Like a drop of water falling into a puddle.
But it won't rain here tonight.
Chi Quan's eyes narrowed, and he drew his sword and turned around almost at the same time the voice rang out.
too fast.
Before Kiba and Shikamaru could even see what was ahead, Izumi's sword had already slashed towards a seemingly empty patch of shadowy trees to their left and rear. A spark exploded in the darkness as an extremely thin sword barely managed to block the attack.
someone.
And they were hiding to the left rear of their retreat route!
"Let's do it!" Shikamaru shouted.
The two sides of the valley reacted almost simultaneously.
It wasn't a sudden rush, but rather like someone closing doors layer by layer in the darkness. Light footsteps and the rise and fall of chakra rose from all directions—before, behind, to the left, on the slope, and behind the low bushes. The scent of blood, previously suppressed by the moisture, suddenly came alive, as if someone had violently stirred it open with their fingers.
Ya cursed.
"It's really buried!"
Akamaru had already pounced out, aiming straight for a figure that had just peeked out from the right side of the shroud. The Byakugan ninja took a step back, trying to report the direction, but the wind from the slope had already thrown out two thin, almost invisible wind blades, slicing straight in front of him.
"Lower your head!" Chi Quan shouted.
The young man narrowly avoided the attack, but a corner of his forehead guard was still sliced off.
Shikamaru's shadow spread out instantly.
"Don't stray too far!"
No sooner had he finished speaking than a person emerged from the shadows of the valley directly in front of him.
He was very thin, covered in dust, and held an extremely thin knife in his hand, yet his posture was more steady than anyone else's. He walked out of the darkness at a leisurely pace, and when his gaze fell on Chi Quan's face, it was almost as if he were looking at an old object that had finally been placed in front of him again after many years.
"You are Ikezumi," Hamura Jaku said softly.
Chi Quan stared at him, the knife still held horizontally in front of him.
"Who are you?"
Hamura Jaku smiled.
"It's normal that you don't remember," he said. "Your lineage killed too many people back then."
Shikamaru's face darkened upon hearing this.
"Old grudges?"
"I'm afraid so." Chi Quan's voice was cold.
Hamura looked at him, and a kind of almost morbid pleasure gradually surfaced in his eyes.
"It's alright," he said. "If you don't remember now, I'll help you remember a little later."
Chi Quan did not reply.
Just as Hamura Saku said those words, he suddenly felt a very slight chill on the back of his neck.
It wasn't the wind.
It wasn't murderous intent.
It's like a drop of ice water sliding down a very deep, very thin line, clinging to the bone.
That feeling was fleeting.
But Chi Quan's expression changed immediately.
Shikamaru noticed his momentary pause almost immediately.