Chapter 56: Instant Kill

Chapter 56: Instant KillSince the founding of the Five Great Ninja Villages, the nature of warfare between nations had gradually changed.

Ninjas became increasingly pivotal in wars, and with the outbreak of the First Shinobi World War, battles between nations had essentially turned into battles between their ninja villages.

In the war between the Moon Nation and the Tree Nation, the conflict between the Hidden Moon Village and Hidden Tree Village had become especially critical.

While the civil war in the Moon Nation drained the strength of its regular military forces, the Hidden Moon Village remained largely unscathed.

It was only after the Hidden Moon Village joined the fray that the Moon Nation was able to temporarily halt its decline and gain a glimmer of hope.

Mochizuki Hui and his team’s task was to shatter that hope and assist the Tree Nation in swiftly destroying the Moon Nation. Their objective was clear: eliminate the key figures of the Moon Nation.

These key figures included not only the Daimyo and the general but also the ninjas from the Hidden Moon Village, especially the two elite jonin.

Mochizuki Hui’s squad, Fourth Squad, was specifically assigned to eliminate the Hidden Moon Village’s leader, the sole elite jonin—Hayakawa Bo.

As the leader of the Hidden Moon Village, Hayakawa Bo resided in the most secure location within the village: the main ninja base.

In the ongoing war between small villages like the Hidden Moon and Hidden Tree, tactics and strategy were practically non-existent.

The entire force of both sides simply gathered and clashed in open battle—after all, their combined forces barely amounted to a couple hundred ninjas, so dividing them for strategic maneuvers would only lead to their downfall.

Killing Hayakawa Bo within the Hidden Moon Village’s base was an exceedingly difficult task, unless all of Konoha's ANBU moved together. But such a large-scale operation would undoubtedly alert the Hidden Tree Village.

If the Hidden Tree Village discovered a mysterious and powerful force at play, they would likely realize that everything was a setup, throwing Mochizuki Hui’s plan into chaos.

Thus, under the leadership of the First Division’s ANBU, both the Daimyo and the general of the Moon Nation issued a secret order to Hayakawa Bo, instructing him to meet with ninjas from Konoha and coordinate an effort to eliminate the Hidden Tree Village.

Receiving this order, Hayakawa Bo suspected nothing. He discreetly set off with three chunin, aiming to meet the supposed Konoha ninjas.

What Hayakawa Bo didn’t know was that, at the very spot where he was to meet the Konoha ninjas, Mochizuki Hui and the Fourth Squad lay in wait.

It was a bright day, with blue skies and scattered white clouds—a pleasant weather that seemed to uplift the spirit.

As Hayakawa Bo leaped through the forest with his three chunin, eager to reach the rendezvous point, he couldn’t help but feel excited.

The prospect of working with Konoha to crush the Hidden Tree Village filled him with anticipation.

However, a sudden sense of unease stopped him in his tracks.

“Who’s there?!”

Standing on a large tree branch, Hayakawa Bo adopted a defensive stance and called out, his voice sharp. His three chunin, sensing the same danger, spread out around him in a defensive formation, scanning their surroundings.

Then, from the shadows of the forest, four masked figures emerged.

“ANBU? Which village are you from?”

Hayakawa Bo’s wariness deepened as he eyed the masked ninjas whose attire revealed nothing of their origin.

These four were, of course, Mochizuki Hui and his team. One of the mission’s key requirements was to ensure that no evidence could link the attack back to Konoha or the Fire Nation, so they wore non-standard gear.

“Attack,” Mochizuki Hui ordered, without bothering to respond to Hayakawa Bo’s question.

The moment he spoke, Lightning, Kakashi’s father Sakumo, and Hunter—formerly known as Takahara—rushed toward the three chunin, leaving Hayakawa Bo to Mochizuki Hui.

Mochizuki Hui himself didn’t move. He simply gazed at the Hidden Moon Village leader, who remained perched on his tree branch above.

“Could this be a trap set by the Hidden Tree Village? Perhaps they have reinforcements we didn’t anticipate,” Hayakawa Bo muttered, watching the youth below him closely. From the boy’s stance, it was clear that he was the leader of the group.

Yet, despite his youth, this boy commanded such authority—either his background was exceptionally high, or his strength was far beyond ordinary.

As Hayakawa Bo analyzed the situation, he stole a glance at the battle unfolding between his men and the intruders. Within seconds, his breath hitched.

One of his chunin had already been taken down, and the other two were barely holding on.

It made sense. After all, they were up against two elite jonin and one special jonin—there was simply too much of a gap in strength.

Still unaware of the extent of the enemy’s capabilities, Hayakawa Bo was only able to conclude that these four were incredibly skilled.

“We’ve already requested reinforcements from Konoha! The Konoha ninjas are just up ahead. If you dare continue attacking us, be prepare for their retaliation!” Hayakawa Bo bluffed, hoping to intimidate the attackers as he prepared to flee.

These enemies were clearly formidable, and with his three chunin about to fall, even as an elite jonin, he didn’t like his odds in a four-on-one fight. The best course of action was to escape.

He turned toward the direction of the supposed rendezvous point with Konoha’s forces.

But before he could make his move, the boy below him acted first.

In one fluid motion, the youth leaped into the air, his hand resting on the hilt of his sword. He charged forward like a samurai poised to deliver a fatal strike.

Seeing this, Hayakawa Bo’s eyes lit up, and he quickly leaped backward to create distance. As he did so, he kept his eyes trained on the boy while rapidly forming hand seals. S~eaʀᴄh the nôvelFire.net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.

"Silver Moon!" Hui called out, seeing the hand signs, a faint smile forming beneath his mask. “How foolish.”

In an instant, his sword flashed out of its sheath, unleashing a brilliant arc of silver light.

A massive, crescent-shaped blade of energy shot forth, resembling the pale glow of a rising moon.

“Fire Release: Great Fireball Technique!”

Hayakawa Bo had finished his seals just in time, spitting out an enormous fireball, three to four meters in diameter, intending to engulf Mochizuki Hui mid-air.

This technique had always worked well against close-combat fighters like swordsmen. If the boy couldn’t get close, he’d be helpless.

But Hayakawa Bo had underestimated his opponent.

Though Mochizuki Hui’s energy reserves were limited, against a single opponent, conserving energy wasn’t necessary. This attack was infused with 80% of his total light energy.

The silver crescent effortlessly cleaved the fireball in two, its sheer power stunning Hayakawa Bo.

Before he could even react, the crescent blade of light passed through him, bisecting him in an instant.

As Hayakawa Bo’s severed body fell, his wide, disbelieving eyes locked onto the youth who had just killed him.

Mochizuki Hui calmly sheathed his sword as he descended through the remnants of the fireball, landing gracefully on a nearby branch.

Hayakawa Bo, leader of the Hidden Moon Village, elite jonin was slain in a single strike.