Chapter 133: Coincidence
There were five people acting alongside Uchiha Kei, and among them, only one had white hair—naturally, that was Kakashi.
It wasn't hard to guess why Kakashi had gone off in pursuit. Kei didn't need to think twice—it had to be that Rin Nohara had been captured by those Hidden Mist ANBU during the battle!
The moment that thought struck him, Kei could barely contain the surge of emotion. He wanted nothing more than to wrap things up here and rush after them.
But he forced himself to take a deep breath and calm down—he was still in the middle of a negotiation.
Unfortunately, Ao wasn't a fool. Even if Kei's expression shifted only slightly, Ao caught on immediately.
With a cold glint in his eye, Ao suddenly tightened his grip around Hyūga Ayaka's throat.
"Looks like you've got another urgent mission, huh… little Uchiha?"
"Whether I do it or not is none of your business."
Kei cursed inwardly but kept his expression composed as he met Ao's gaze.
"Besides, even if I do have something important to deal with, my teammate's already gone after them, hasn't he?"
"Is that so?" Ao's face twisted with a grim sneer.
"So you've decided to abandon this little girl? Very decisive. Quite the leader. But have you considered the consequences?"
"If it comes to it, we'll fight to the death," Kei said coldly, staring Ao down.
His voice was tough, but his mind was already racing through the risks.
Kei didn't know how long it had been since Rin was taken. If too much time had passed, he might not be able to catch up or even locate the ANBU group.
To be safe, he needed to move—fast.
Sure, chasing after them might get him noticed by Black Zetsu or White Zetsu, but at this point, he'd rather risk exposure than walk away with nothing.
Besides, he was pretty sure that just by entering the Land of Grass with Kakashi, he'd already been detected.
Still…
Kei looked at Hyūga Ayaka, and deep down, he really didn't want to miss this golden opportunity—to use someone else's hands to quietly eliminate her.
It would be simple: one extra push with the blade, and Terumi Mei would be dead. That would mean Ayaka wouldn't survive either.
Losing Ayaka might be regrettable, but dragging the future Fifth Mizukage down with her? That wasn't a bad trade at all.
But once blood was drawn, Ao would never let it go.
Unless Kei directly activated his Mangekyō Sharingan and used a powerful eye technique, there was no telling how long the fight might drag on.
Worse still, who knew whether Uchiha Madara's spies—those rat-like Zetsu lurking underground—were watching this unfold?
If Obito were to awaken the Mangekyō first, Madara might lose interest in Kei altogether.
After all, Madara had already invested a lot into Obito, and Kei—ruthless as he was—wouldn't exactly win the old man's favor.
"No matter how I play it… I lose."
Kei gritted his teeth in frustration.
"Fight, and I waste chakra, risk exposure, and possibly derail future plans.
Don't fight, and I miss a perfect chance to eliminate a major threat.
What a pain in the ass."
Despite the turmoil churning inside him, Kei kept his expression unreadable, staring calmly at Ao.
Ao, for his part, was equally composed.
He clearly didn't know exactly what Kei was planning, but he could sense that the boy was caught in a dilemma—and so, he said nothing.
Instead, he mimicked Kei, pressing his kunai even harder against Hyūga Ayaka's throat, silently declaring:
"If you're going to abandon your mission, then I'm going all the way with you."
After a long silence, Kei finally sighed in frustration.
"Forget it. Let her go."
"I don't have time to waste on you. Consider yourself lucky."
"Likewise," Ao snorted coldly.
As Kei lowered the blade from Terumi Mei's neck, Ao also withdrew his kunai from Ayaka's.
Terumi Mei, still paralyzed, stumbled unsteadily as she tried to walk—though she had recovered slightly.
Hyūga Ayaka, on the other hand, had been struck at several key chakra points thanks to Ao's Byakugan, leaving her chakra flow unstable.
Physically, they were in roughly the same condition—but emotionally, they couldn't be more different.
For Terumi Mei, it was pure humiliation.
She had been hailed as a prodigy since childhood—and to end up like this?
It was a disgrace.
Despite her young age, Terumi Mei had already awakened two kekkei genkai—a feat that marked her as a shinobi of boundless potential.
And yet today, she had been defeated by a ninja whose name she still didn't even know.
Yes—she didn't even know what to call him.
All she knew was that he was an Uchiha. Beyond that, everything else about him remained shrouded in mystery.
Clenching her teeth, she stumbled forward, swearing to herself:
"One day, I'll find out who he is. And when I do, I'll deal with him myself."
Meanwhile, on the other side, Hyūga Ayaka was still reeling from a mix of disbelief and the sense of surviving a close brush with death.
She never expected Uchiha Kei to not seize such a perfect opportunity—an opportunity to let his enemies eliminate her for him, cleanly and without consequence.
After all, she was someone who had no freedom, someone who knew too much about his secrets.
And yet, he had chosen to save her.
Ayaka walked in silence, her mind churning.
"Something's off… Kei couldn't possibly be that kind-hearted. There has to be something else going on here."
The two women—Ayaka and Mei—were about twenty meters apart, neither daring to look back. Their eyes locked on each other instead.
Their steps matched in pace—slow, steady—as they moved toward one another. Within moments, they were walking side by side.
And then, as if by some shared instinct, both paused for a brief moment.
They drew in a deep breath... and took a step forward—passing by each other, their shoulders brushing as they moved on.
Just then, Ayaka caught sight of Uchiha Kei—his hands were already forming hand seals at lightning speed. The final seal was unmistakably a Fire Release.
At the same moment, Mei saw Ao completing a string of seals as well—ending with a Water Release.
"He's going to ambush that Hyūga woman?"
"Is Kei trying to kill me?"
Both women had the exact same thought.
But what neither of them expected was this: a fire dragon and a water dragon shot into the air simultaneously, and collided mid-flight—at precisely the same point.
A violent burst of steam erupted into the sky, blanketing the entire area in thick mist.
Uchiha Kei stared blankly at the scene before him.
And so did Ayaka.
But she recovered faster. Seeing Mei stumble backward in confusion, she immediately turned and sprinted toward Ao.
Ayaka didn't hesitate either—she dashed full speed toward Kei.
From behind the mist, Ao's voice rang out cold and clear:
"Hmph… Uchiha brat, I'll remember you! We will meet again!"
"Tch." Kei snorted, his eyes narrowing as he looked into the thick wall of steam. He was at a loss for words.
Just moments ago, Kei had formed seals with the intention of striking Ayaka directly. His Fire Dragon Jutsu had been crafted to cover a wide area—engulfing Terumi Mei in the process to create the illusion that she was the real target.
His goal was simple: kill the dual bloodline user (Mei), while "accidentally" taking out a Hyūga Branch member in the crossfire. That way, Ao would be too busy dealing with Mei's injuries to go after him.
But what he didn't expect was that Ao, infuriated by Kei's threats earlier, had chosen to secretly ambush Ayaka as well.
Typical Mist-nin behavior—they never let a grudge go unpunished.
And so, by pure coincidence, the two jutsu collided perfectly in mid-air.
Instead of injuring anyone, the clash created a thick wall of steam that forced both sides apart—buying everyone the time they needed to retreat safely.
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