Chapter 10: Crimson Rose

Asuma was accompanied by Kurenai Yuhi, along with a Hyuga branch family member, a jonin from the Akimichi clan, and another from the Inuzuka clan.

Also following them was a nervous-looking white ninken.

Being the son of the Hokage, Asuma's status gave these jonin the courage to approach the forest at such a tense time.

The woods were cold.

Littered with corpses.

The air was heavy with death and foreboding.

Kurenai's striking red pupils trembled slightly. Her delicate hands clenched tightly, betraying her anxiety.

To distract herself from her rising tension, she shot a glare at Asuma and said in a low voice, "Stomp it out."

Kurenai didn't like Asuma's smoking.

But because Asuma's father—the Third Hokage—was just as addicted to cigarettes, she couldn't reprimand him too harshly.

Asuma chuckled, revealing a few yellowed teeth under the moonlight, and tried to sling an arm around Kurenai.

"Don't worry, it'll go out on its own."

Smack—

Kurenai slapped his hand away and said coldly, "Let's focus on the mission."

"Haha, alright, alright… but falling in love kinda feels like my main mission."

Hands in his pockets, Asuma flirted with an easy grin.

Kurenai sighed, choosing to ignore his shamelessness. Still, she followed quietly behind the others.

She hadn't accepted this guy… not yet.

"Alright, people—time to work. Finish this mission, and we'll be credited big time!"

Asuma snapped his fingers dramatically. The Akimichi clan's burly jonin guarded his side, while the Hyuga and Inuzuka clan jonin began their reconnaissance.

The Hyuga activated his Byakugan to scan the battlefield.

The Inuzuka released his ninken—but instead of searching, the dog immediately bolted in the opposite direction, trembling.

The Inuzuka jonin looked baffled and quickly gave chase.

Watching this, Asuma's eye twitched.

"There's a lightly injured Root operative over there!"

The Hyuga jonin had spotted someone. Without waiting, he hurried into the depths of the forest.

Asuma turned and led the others after him.

Once they reached the scene, the Hyuga completed a quick interrogation.

The Root captain on the ground was in horrible shape—missing fingers, a thigh pinned to the dirt with a ninja blade. He groaned in agony:

"It… it was Uchiha Yu…

He killed Lord Danzo!

Then… escaped the village with nine Uchiha rogue ninja!"

"Uchiha Yu?" Asuma's brow furrowed. He slowly turned to glance at Kurenai—who looked as if the blood had drained from her face.

Kurenai avoided his gaze, eyes fixed on the ground.

She dared not meet his look of suspicion.

Moonlight bathed her pale, beautiful face, casting soft shadows beneath her curled bangs—revealing the nervous tremble she tried to hide.

She wore a crimson undershirt beneath a bandage-style dress.

Through the mesh armor beneath, her curves stood out clearly—elegant, soft, pale.

Her skirt revealed tightly wrapped white bandages beneath, and her long legs were smooth, graceful, and strong.

Asuma, not wanting to press her, looked away, though a flash of irritation passed through his eyes.

"There's only one Uchiha named Yu. Has to be that guy from our academy days."

Kurenai bit her lip and insisted quietly:

"He's not that kind of person!"

Asuma narrowed his eyes.

"Besides… there's no way Yu could stand up to Danzo, right?"

Kurenai Yuhi was like a crimson rose in full bloom.

Now a grown woman, she had learned the art of makeup and self-presentation. With her mature beauty and refined features, everything about her exuded the aura of an elegant, commanding woman.

"You're right, Kurenai. I don't believe he could have killed Shimura Danzo either."

Asuma's expression grew darker.

Back in their days at the Konoha Ninja Academy, Uchiha Yu had been their classmate. He was gentle and kind, and especially good at taking care of girls.

At the time, the girls in their class were split down the middle—half liked the aloof Kakashi, and the other half adored the warm and radiant Yu.

That Uchiha was just as dazzling as Kakashi.

It wasn't just Kurenai—even Shizune, and even young Anko, who hadn't yet learned the ways of love, all harbored strong feelings for Yu back then.

Fortunately, Yu was a top student like Kakashi, graduating early and joining the Third Great Ninja War near its end.

That gave Asuma a chance to grow closer to Kurenai.

But that was all in the past.

He had no intention of bringing it up again or reopening old wounds.

Asuma took a deep breath, pushing aside his dark thoughts, and looked toward the wounded Root ninja.

"Tell us every jutsu the Uchiha used—especially the ones that gave them away."

The Root captain writhed in pain, teeth clenched, and forced out his words:

"Control… it was a powerful genjutsu-type ocular ability… impossible to resist. The leader—Uchiha Yu—had awakened the Mangekyō Sharingan!"

All five of them froze, shocked. They exchanged uneasy glances. The Inuzuka jonin began to hesitate.

None of them had ever faced a Mangekyō Sharingan wielder in battle, but they had all heard the terrifying stories—how a user of those eyes could devastate battlefields.

They were known as the eyes of death and curses.

Each Mangekyō carried a godlike ability of its own.

"Please… take me… to the Konoha… hospital…" the Root captain begged, groaning in agony.

Asuma gave him a sidelong glance and said indifferently, "Hold out five more minutes. Someone will come take care of you."

With that, he motioned for the others to follow and continued deeper into the woods.

"Asuma… maybe we should just give up on this mission," the Inuzuka jonin said nervously.

He was struggling to keep his ninken under control. As a trained animal handler, he could feel his partner's intense refusal to go further—its fear clearly visible in its eyes.

Asuma shook his head. "Let's push a little further. Gather more intel first. Then we decide."

But the group didn't get far.

They stopped in their tracks, stunned, as they came upon a clearing in the forest—dominated by a towering, pale tree.

A sword was embedded in the trunk.

Above, in the tree's dark hollow, hung a lifeless, sunken face. The old man's body was completely entangled within the bark.

"Shimura Danzo?!"

Asuma stepped closer, squinting in the moonlight. He recognized the face—and cried out in shock.

Kurenai and the others also saw that face—normally aloof and authoritative—and their pupils constricted as their breath grew heavy with tension.

But that once-proud face now hung lifelessly, drooping inside the hollow of the tree.

"Did… Uchiha Yu really do this?" the Hyūga jonin said in a low voice.

That was the Shadow of the Shinobi World.

Shimura Danzo!!

And he'd actually been tortured to this extent by an Uchiha. Judging by the state of his body, he was most likely dead—and horribly so.

"Did Yu… really do this?" Kurenai's cheeks flushed, her heart stirring wildly.

The boy she once admired—had he really grown to such heights?

"How is this even possible!" Asuma's face turned pale. He pulled a cigarette from his pocket, stuck it in his mouth, and fumbled for his lighter with trembling hands.

Uchiha Yu really killed Shimura Danzo.

Click—click—click—

Sparks flew.

Asuma's eyes were blank as he flicked the lighter again and again until it finally lit. He took a deep drag, trying to calm the storm raging in his chest.

"What should we do now?" asked the heavyset jonin from the Akimichi clan. The Akimichi were used to simply following orders during missions.

Asuma raised a hand and rubbed his temples. Regaining composure, he glanced around at the corpses of Root and ANBU strewn all over the forest, then turned his gaze back to Danzo's lifeless body.

His thoughts gradually came into focus.

Uchiha Yu really must've awakened the Mangekyō Sharingan, or he wouldn't have dared to assassinate Danzo.

Even so…

To take down this many Root members, ANBU, and Danzo himself—Yu had to be nearing his limits.

A smile crept across Asuma's face. His cigarette had already burned to the end. He flicked the ashes and dropped the butt to the ground, crushing it beneath his heel.

"Uchiha Yu has assassinated a Kage's advisor and slaughtered scores of Root and ANBU operatives.

There's no way he's not exhausted.

He's reached the end of the line.

His bounty, and his status as a missing-nin—

After tonight, I'm afraid it'll rival that of one of the Legendary Sannin, Orochimaru, when he defected from the Leaf.

If we seize this chance—

Capture him alive.

Or bring back his body—

All of you…

With a merit like that, you'll become core members of your clans, guaranteed.

So I propose this:

We hunt down this band of Uchiha rogues!"

°°°

A/N: Pour stones and we do another double chapter tomorrow

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