"Cough, cough, cough… are you alright, Dousuke?" Hyuga Ritsu spat out the dirt that had filled her mouth.
In the moment of the explosion, she had grabbed Nakajima Sodai and Aburame Takuto, struggling to pull them to the edge of the blast radius. Although they were affected, their injuries were not critical.
"Cough, cough, cough… I'm okay. You're not going to die, Sister Ritsu," Okamoto Dousuke said, pushing himself up from the ground. His once-intact clothes were now riddled with holes from the dozens of detonating tags that had exploded.
Especially on his upper body, a large section of his clothing was gone, revealing severe burns on his abdomen.
Okamoto Dousuke assessed his injuries, thinking, Water Style's defensive power, the water film… it's still not sufficient. And my chakra reserves couldn't sustain a defense against such a violent attack.
Although his entire body had been briefly covered by the uncontrolled surge of chakra, it had significantly decreased his defense.
Chakra is truly a pressing issue I need to resolve.
"Dousuke, how are you holding up? We need to evacuate immediately. The explosion from Kugutsu Kyōjin's final attack was immense. Nearby Sand Shinobi will arrive soon," Hyuga Ritsu said, her gaze filled with concern as she looked at Okamoto Dousuke's injured abdomen.
"Hmm." Feeling the limited chakra remaining in his lower body, Okamoto Dousuke took out a bandage from his ninja tool bag and quickly wrapped it around his torso.
"Sister Ritsu, I'll go secure that Sand Village brat. You get the Captain and Aburame Takuto out of here," Okamoto Dousuke said while tending to his wound.
Hyuga Ritsu had Nakajima Sodai slung over her back and was dragging the unconscious Aburame Takuto, whose legs were injured.
In the recent explosion, Aburame Takuto had been directly hit and was now in a coma.
"Dousuke, come here quickly and take a look!" Hyuga Ritsu shouted, her voice strained.
Hearing Hyuga Ritsu's urgent cry, Okamoto Dousuke gathered his dwindling chakra and rushed towards her.
"This…"
Okamoto Dousuke, having just reached Hyuga Ritsu's side, couldn't help but gasp in shock.
The force of Kugutsu Kyōjin's final explosion had been so devastating that a massive boulder had been shattered into pieces.
Okamoto Dousuke had used his chakra scalpel to sever the tendons in Chin Youje's limbs earlier. Unable to move, Chin Youje had been directly struck by the flying debris from the exploding boulder.
The heavy boulder had dragged Chin Youjie's body across the ground for over ten meters, leaving a gruesome trail of blood in its wake.
Okamoto Dousuke knelt down and examined Chin Youje. "He's been crushed from the waist down. There's no way to save him. Even if we tried to move him, the chances of him making it back to Konoha alive are slim to none."
"What are we going to do? Gurenji Tatsuya and Kugutsu Kyōjin are both dead, and Kota's body was also destroyed in the explosion. What about the information we gathered?" Hyuga Ritsu said, her voice heavy with disappointment.
For the sake of this intelligence, they had fought a desperate battle, only for it to seemingly end in vain. Not a single enemy was left alive to provide answers.
"There's nothing else we can do. This is the only way," Okamoto Dousuke said, looking at Chin Youje. He reached into his ninja tool bag, took out a stimulant, injected it into Chin Youje's neck, and pushed the plunger. "Do you have any last words?"
"The fate of a ninja is… death. Unfortunately… I still… didn't… make it back," Chin Youje said haltingly.
"Chin Youje, what actions have the Sunagakure forces taken recently? What is the true objective of your mission? Why would a low-level team like yours have a special Jonin like Kugutsu Kyōjin assigned to it?" Okamoto Dousuke asked intently, staring at Chin Youje.
"If you can provide valuable information, we will do our best to honor any reasonable requests," Hyuga Ritsu added, moving closer to Chin Youje.
"Ms. Midori…" Chin Youje's eyes flickered with a brief spark of recognition as Hyuga Ritsu approached, but the light quickly faded.
"I'm just a Sunagakure Genin. It's impossible for me to know the specific movements of the Sunagakure troops," Chin Youje replied, his speech becoming clearer under the stimulant's influence.
"The mission this time was an escort mission, to deliver a batch of boxes. I once secretly opened one and took a peek. They were scrolls. I don't know what kind of scrolls." Chin Youje said to Hyuga Ritsu.
"As for Kugutsu Kyōjin, I'm not sure. Our team has always been the three of us – Gurenji-sensei, Kota, and me – carrying out missions. Kugutsu Kyōjin only joined our team for this specific mission."
"It's a pity I won't make it back. The reward for this mission hasn't been sent home yet. My sister is still waiting for me. Ms. Midori, in the pocket of my shirt…" Chin Youje said to Hyuga Ritsu.
Hyuga Ritsu remained silent. Okamoto Dousuke reached into the chest pocket of Chin Youje's uniform and pulled out a small box of skin cream – the very box Hinata Ritsu had given him earlier that afternoon.
Looking at the box of skin cream, Chin Youje remembered his father's advice before his departure: "Little boy, be careful out there and always remember to respect your sensei."
He also pictured his five-year-old sister leaning against the doorframe, her small voice filled with longing: "Brother, can you come back soon? I miss you so much."
Chin Youje had gently patted his sister's head. "Silly girl, I'm going to earn money. When I earn a lot of money, I'll make sure you and Dad can eat meat every single day. Just stay home and take good care of Dad for me."
"Okay, I understand, Brother. I promise I'll take very good care of Dad. Don't worry, I'll be waiting for you to come back so we can eat meat together. Hehe." His sister's face had lit up with a joyful smile at the thought of sharing a meal with her brother.
"Don't worry, I'll be back as soon as the mission is over," he had thought, looking at his sister's worn clothes, her face weathered by the sun, and her small hands calloused. "Sister, I will make sure you have nice clothes and become just like the other children."
"Please… if you have a chance, I hope you can take care of my sister. My father is injured and at home, with no income. And now I'm going to die here. If you ever see her, please give her this and tell her to use it regularly; it's good for her skin. Her name is Youka…"
Before he could finish speaking, Chin Youje's mouth fell silent. His eyes, which had held a fleeting spark of life, gradually dimmed.
Thinking of my sister leaning against the door, waiting for me… I'm sorry, little sister, I won't be coming back to eat meat with you and Dad this time…
"He's completely gone," Okamoto Dousuke said, looking at the box of skin cream stained with blood in his hand. He slowly placed it into his ninja tool bag.
This is the cruel reality of the ninja world: kill or be killed.
But why didn't I feel fear? Instead, there was this unsettling excitement… Okamoto Dousuke looked down at the lifeless form of Chin Youje and thought, I will help you fulfill your mission.
He took a kunai from his pouch—whoosh.
Okamoto Dousuke swiftly decapitated Chin Youjie.
"Dousuke, you…" Hyuga Ritsu stared at Okamoto Dousuke, her expression a mixture of shock and disbelief.