III

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Arc III Chapter 2

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Asami sighed. Nothing changed. In the end, she had to do things all by herself if she wanted the job to be done properly.

Konosuke sent Masaaki and Yusuke, but their sacrifice proved to be of little value. They were dispatched easily.

She offered Konosuke to intercept the Kiri-nin, but Konosuke declined. He refused to send her. She was the youngest ANBU in the group. She was Konoha's future, a part of the next generation.

Konosuke didn't want to risk her life, but he didn't know the true extent of her powers. She would have slaughtered the Kri-nin with ease if ordered.

Asami gripped her sword in anger.

Nothing was ever easy with Konosuke. His lack of flexibility annoyed her. Konosuke was one of those according to the plan types and Asami loathed them with passion.

If Konosuke hadn’t implemented one of his over-complicated battle plans, they wouldn’t be in this precarious situation.

Their mission was a simple assassination, their target an influential noble with a respectable number of guards. Kiri-nin protected him.

She advocated a frontal assault. They would compensate for their numerical inferiority by using the element of surprise. Get in, kill everyone, get out. Nobody would expect a frontal attack in broad daylight. The Kiri-nin would get caught completely off guard. They wouldn't even know what hit them before it was over.

Konosuke proposed dispatching a small infiltration party. His plan offered the more elegant solution, but not necessarily the better solution.

Konosuke's plan fell apart like a house of cards. Everything went south. The infiltration party got detected. Two platoons of Kiri ANBU lay in wait for them, and they walked right into their trap. Outnumbered, Konosuke ordered an immediate retreat. They escaped, but the infiltration group got hit hard. They were nearly wiped out.

Asami left the forest behind her. She arrived at a wide clearing. A lonely oak watched over the clearing since ancient times.

Snowfall intensified and the winds grew stronger. The snowstorm turned into a blizzard.

Asami scanned the area. She awaited the arrival of the Kiri-nin.

They didn't disappoint her. Fifteen Kiri ANBU arrived soon afterwards, fifteen unlucky men who had the misfortune to cross paths with her.

Concealed behind her mask, Asami's eyes shimmered vivid red in delight. She smiled and readied her blade.

A man stepped forward flanked by two ANBU. He was the leader of the little group, and he mocked her, “Konoha seems to be really desperate these days.“

“They now send little girls to stop …”

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A pulsating purple blade impaled Yakumo. Her sword skewered Yakumo's heart. His life ended.

Asami giggled with a glint of joy. “My friend, you vastly overestimate your capabilities and underestimate mine, .”

Her sword sliced Yakumo in half and claimed Nobuyori and Tatsukichi next. Asami gripped her sword and spun sidewards.

Their flesh offered no resistance as her blade cut them in half. Yakumo, Nobuyori and Tatsucki died. Their lifeless bodies fell down onto the cold snow.

“One, two, three.“ Asami smirked. “Who comes next?”

The Kiri ANBU didn’t hesitate. They knew what had to be done. They would kill the little bitch even if it cost them their lives.

The Kiri ANBU attacked. Their war cries filled the icy plains. They charged driven by rage.

Asami flashed a smile, amused by their foolishness. She disappeared from their sight.

The snowstorm covered her movements. Asami swept across the battlefield like a ghost, claiming one victim after another, picking them off one by one. Asami hunted her prey without relent, without mercy. She was everywhere, her position fluid like water.

Four, a horizontal slash. Five, decapitated. Six, pierced through the chest.

The Kiri squad disintegrated. Their retreat turned into a complete rout, but fleeing was useless. There was no escape, no mercy.

Seven, she struck from behind. Eight, lost both of his legs. He tried to flee. He didn't get far.

Nine, confronted her boldly. He didn't last long.

Ten, a pair of kunai nailed his corpse to the nearby oak.

Eleven, twelve, they counterattacked. Her purple shield deflected their feeble attacks. They didn't even scratch her chakra. Her lightning electrocuted the stunned duo.

Thirteen, fourteen, they had reached the treeline. They thought they were safe. They thought they had escaped their fate, but they were wrong. Hope was only an illusion.

Asami focused her eyes. A massive purple detonation engulfed their position. Her nightmarish fireball incinerated everything in vicinity. The blast ripped nearby trees apart. Both Kiri-nin were burned alive, reduced to nothingness.

Hisashi's eyes widened in horror. This wasn't possible. They were decimated. They never stood a chance against the personification of death herself.

Hidden behind her porcelain mask, the white demon approached him. Her white fur coat had turned red, stained by the blood of his fallen comrades. Gone was any pretence of childish innocence.

Hisashi trembled. He was now alone, utterly alone. He was the last survivor of this carnage.

“Fifteen” The demon's eyes glowed dark luminous red. Hisashi held his breath. Her eyes weren’t normal, they weren’t human. What was she?

“What's your name?” The girl tilted her head.

Hisashi clenched his fists. He didn’t need her damned fake politeness. The girl was a demon in white, a demon in human skin.

“You fucking bitch, I don’t need to answer you.” Hisashi gripped a kunai. He mustered all of his courage.

He clashed against her shield, but her barrier didn’t budge in the slightest. Her chakra protected its mistress.

The white demon broke his stance with ease. She aimed for his legs and made him trip. Hisashi fell and took a punch to his abdomen.

Her punch was powerful considering her frail stature. The girl hit hard and Hisashi had a hard time breathing.

Asami shook her head in disappointment. “Shinobi these days, always so stubborn. They never know when to give up.“

“You try to be nice and what do they do? They spit in your face.”

“You are right, Fifteen, you don’t have to answer me, but that won’t be necessary.”

“I have a little task for you, Fifteen”, the girl hummed happily. Her mood was good.

Hisashi clenched his fists. “Who do you think you are…“

“Aarghhhhhhhhhhh!” Hisashi cried out in pain.

Her sword impaled his right hand, pinning him to the ground. “You misunderstand your position, Fifteen. I am not renown for my patience. Your lack of cooperation annoys me. ”

“Aarghhhhhhhh!” Immense pain shot through his body. The girl twisted her sword.

“Do you understand, Fifteen?”

“Aarghhhhhhhhh, yeeeesssss”, Hisashi gritted his teeth. He endured the pain.

“Excellent.“ Asami smirked.

“As said, I have a little task for you. Inform the rest of your friends that they should stay out of my way if they want to live. We don’t want them to die, do we?”

“And now run before I decide to change my mind” Her soft voice grew cold.

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