Difference

The night was as dark as ink, with the world shrouded in darkness. The swirling clouds blocked out any trace of moonlight, and occasionally, the wind howled, lifting the leaves and making a sound like that of a night owl's eerie cry.

Yuji, arriving at the foot of the mountain, looked up at the sky and felt the sharp cold of the wind against his face. He murmured to himself, "It looks like it's going to rain."

The bandits' stronghold was at the mountaintop, with only one path leading up. They fortified their position, making the mountain base hard to infiltrate, but for ninjas, it wasn't difficult to breach such a stronghold.

Orochimaru led the group of three directly up the steep mountain wall, sneaking into the stronghold without a sound.

Hiding behind a simple house, Orochimaru didn't give Yuji and the others time to observe the enemy's positions. He immediately made a gesture for the three to move.

Infiltrating the stronghold was just to reduce the threat. The main goal of this mission was still to spill blood and face the clash of blades and swords directly, so Orochimaru did not allow Yuji and the others to take a stealthy assassination approach to gradually eliminate the bandits.

Kushina and Hokusei hesitated when they saw Orochimaru's signal.

Seeing that the two hadn't moved, Orochimaru furrowed his brow slightly but did not urge them. He knew this was something all ninja academy graduates had to experience. It wasn't about being cold-blooded… but they had to have the ability to disregard bloodshed.

In contrast to Kushina and Hokusei's hesitation, Yuji was remarkably decisive. Not long after Orochimaru made the gesture, he locked onto a man who had come to the corner to relieve himself, holding a kunai and charging at the man.

The sound of Yuji's foot hitting the sand startled the man, who turned around. In the dim light of the fire, he saw a kunai heading straight for his throat.

"Enemy...!"

The man's eyes widened, but before he could finish his exclamation, the sharp kunai effortlessly pierced his throat, and the warm blood sprayed across Yuji's face.

The warmth of the blood on his face and the unbearable stench of iron entered his nostrils, making his stomach churn. Yuji kept his arm outstretched, staring blankly into the man's eyes, which were filled with despair and hatred.

"Gurgle..."

The dying man let out a meaningless sound as the light in his eyes began to fade.

Yuji remained motionless, staring into the man's eyes until the light disappeared. Only then did he slowly withdraw the kunai, wiping the blood off his face. It was his first time killing someone, watching a living being snuffed out by his own hand. He didn't feel much guilt, as though he had just coldly slaughtered a chicken for food.

In fact, Yuji had witnessed many brutal scenes as a child. Some people would cruelly ruin someone for a piece of bread. He had once thought, if the circumstances allowed, perhaps even cannibalism would occur.

Bang

The lifeless body of the man fell softly to the ground with a slight sound. Yuji didn't spare it a second glance and silently moved toward his next target.

Orochimaru, hiding in the shadows, had a satisfied smirk on his face, while Kushina and Hokusei stood frozen, staring at Yuji, who was covered in blood.

Hokusei trembled slightly. This was his first time seeing such a bloody scene. Although he had mentally prepared himself before coming, seeing it in person still left him shaken.

Kushina, looking at the dead body, saw the head tilted toward her. In the firelight, the dull eyes seemed to still carry a trace of resentment.

She gritted her teeth slightly and took a step forward, but stopped in place like a statue.

A few minutes later, Yuji had killed several people, which finally attracted the bandits' attention. With a fierce roar, the bandits stormed out of the stronghold. When they saw the forehead protector on Yuji's head, they were initially stunned, but quickly, the fear faded as they realized it was just a child, and he was alone.

"Just a little brat, what are we afraid of!" shouted a burly man holding a spiked club.

No sooner had he spoken, a kunai flew out and pierced his throat. His eyes widened in disbelief as he looked down at the kunai, and after a moment, he slumped to the ground.

After throwing the kunai and killing the man with the spiked club, Yuji still had plenty of stamina. He took another kunai from his ninja tool pouch and, like a wolf entering a sheep's pen, rushed into the bandits' ranks and began killing.

Yuji slashed one bandit's throat with the kunai, then immediately jumped back, narrowly avoiding an iron rod swung at him.

The number of enemies was too great, and they had considerable strength. If he got hurt, it could lead to a setback.

Yuji, growing more bloodthirsty, kept his composure. After killing about ten bandits, he felt his energy begin to wane. He decisively leaped backward to escape the encirclement, first assessing the remaining nearly one hundred bandits, then glancing at Kushina and Hokusei's hiding spot. He frowned.

On a personal level, Yuji was confident he could defeat anyone in the stronghold, but the number of enemies was overwhelming, and they could overcome quality with quantity. Moreover, this mission wasn't one that he had to complete alone.

It seemed that Kushina and Hokusei had sensed Yuji's gaze. Realizing they were there to carry out a mission, Kushina stepped forward without hesitation. Hokusei hesitated for a moment but then slowly walked out from behind the house.

The ground was littered with corpses, lying in disarray. The bright red blood pooled in small streams that flowed across the sand before slowly soaking into the soil. The air was thick with the stench of blood.

When the bandits first saw Yuji, thinking he was just a child, they didn't feel much fear, but now, seeing two more appear, the mood in their hearts sank.

"Even if we die, we'll take a few down with us!" one bandit yelled, and the others immediately erupted with murderous intent.

Having lost their humanity, they walked a fine line between life and death every day, and each one had blood on their hands. Just as Yuji killed them without a second thought, they did the same when killing their own kind.

Boom!

Suddenly, lightning flashed across the dark sky, briefly illuminating the twisted faces of the bandits.

Yuji, seeing the bandits charging at him, ignored Kushina and Hokusei, who had just appeared. He quickly formed a series of hand seals!

"Fire Style: Fireball Jutsu!"

A scorching fireball shot out of his mouth, flying toward the group.

The bandits' earlier momentum immediately deflated, and their ferocity turned into fear as they saw the blazing fireball coming toward them.

Boom!

The fireball exploded with a blast, accompanied by the shrill screams of the bandits. The high-temperature flames instantly killed several bandits, and the air was filled with the acrid smell of burnt flesh.

Kushina and Hokusei paled when they saw the bandits turn into charcoal in such a short time. The other bandits were even more terrified. The confidence they had was shattered, and they screamed in panic, scattering in all directions.

"What are you waiting for?"

Yuji shouted coldly at the two of them and, wielding his kunai, rushed to kill the fleeing bandits.

Kushina and Hokusei exchanged a glance, forcing themselves to suppress the discomfort in their hearts and joined the slaughter.

If they couldn't even kill, how could they call themselves ninjas?

The sky rumbled with thunder and lightning. After a long while, torrential rain began to fall, putting out the flames that had spread from the fireball.

The mixed stench of burning flesh, blood, and excrement filled the air. Yuji ignored it and tilted his head slightly, closing his eyes expressionlessly as the cold rain poured over his face, washing away the blood. Near his feet, the cold bodies of the dead lay scattered across the ground.

Kushina, looking down at the kunai in her hand, could see blood dripping from the tip whenever lightning flashed. She remembered the first person she killed and how she had felt the churn in her stomach. But now… she felt no discomfort at all.

She glanced at Yuji, whose eyes were closed and expressionless, the same coldness as the rain. A sudden chill ran through her body, and she shivered, though she couldn't tell if it was from the biting cold wind or something else.

"This is what it means to be a ninja."

Hokusei, still trembling slightly, stared at the sea of corpses on the ground.

"The mission is complete."

Orochimaru emerged from the shadows, his hoarse voice announcing the end of the mission.

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