Naruto Card King

In the dense, foggy night, Agakura moved swiftly through the mist, the sound of pursuit growing louder behind him. He suddenly veered around a grassy slope, continuing his desperate run.

The Hyuga clan was not without ranged combat techniques, but such skills were rare and not widely mastered. As a result, Hyuga ninjas rarely launched long-range attacks while pursuing an enemy. At most, they would throw kunai or shuriken, but given the obscured visibility, accurately striking a moving target based on sound alone was nearly impossible. Coordinated tactical strikes were even more difficult.

However, Hyuga Kyokyoku was simply too powerful. As a taijutsu specialist, his speed already surpassed that of non-taijutsu ninjas of the same rank. Catching Agakura was not going to be a problem for him.

Even though Agakura utilized Wind Release enhancement techniques to boost his speed, it was futile!

"Wind Release: Rending Fang Technique!"

Sensing that he was about to be caught, Agakura quickly formed hand seals while running and unleashed a spiraling gale behind him.

Hyuga Kyokyoku instinctively sensed the incoming attack and leapt away, momentarily creating distance between himself and Agakura.

Seizing the opportunity, Agakura stopped his jutsu and continued his frantic escape!

This tactic bought him some time. Against the Hyuga clan, who relied more on defense than direct ninjutsu clashes, such maneuvers could force them to either evade or block, momentarily widening the gap.

But Agakura couldn't keep this up for long.

His chakra reserves were finite. He couldn't afford to keep using high-powered jutsu. His chakra consumption was several times higher than Kyokyoku's, making long-term escape impossible.

From a safe distance, Haruto Saito followed closely, watching everything unfold with a mix of anticipation and anxiety. Agakura had to hold out—just long enough for Haruto's plan to come to fruition!

Meanwhile, Haruto's shadow clone raced northward, completely disregarding chakra depletion, pushing its speed to the absolute limit.

In the darkness, shrouded by mist, Uchiha Tohoko was engaged in a desperate battle, single-handedly fending off two Sand Jonin and two Sand Elite Chunin. As a top-tier Jonin, he could easily defeat any of them in a one-on-one fight.

However, he was being overwhelmed.

Four against one!

Uchiha Tohoko was at a severe disadvantage. He was already covered in blood, his injuries severe. If not for his superior eyesight and speed, he would have been dead already.

Suddenly, the sound of someone approaching at high speed echoed through the mist.

All the fighters heard it. Someone else was coming—but was it friend or foe?

Breaking through the encirclement, Uchiha Tohoko formed hand seals and vanished, reappearing dozens of meters away, crouched and hidden in the shadows. The approaching ninja adjusted their course to head directly toward him.

"Damn it!" Uchiha Tohoko cursed, turning to face the incoming threat.

The two figures in the mist closed the gap quickly.

A blade flashed, cutting through the fog in a deadly arc—only to suddenly halt mid-swing as the attacker recognized the target.

Haruto Saito!

"Tohoko-sama, go that way!" the shadow clone of Haruto Saito called out, pointing in a specific direction.

Haruto's real body was tracking the movements of both Hyuga Kyokyoku and Agakura. Thanks to that knowledge, the shadow clone was able to provide precise guidance.

Uchiha Tohoko hesitated. Haruto's sudden appearance was shocking—wasn't this brat supposed to have fled? And what was the meaning of this guidance?

"There's no time! Tohoko-sama, go! I'll cover you!" Haruto's shadow clone declared before sprinting past Uchiha Tohoko without hesitation.

The two Sand Jonin were closing in fast.

"Wind Release: Great Breakthrough!"

The shadow clone swiftly completed a series of hand seals.

The quadrupled-power Great Breakthrough unleashed a devastating gust, tearing through the trees ahead, sending debris and dust flying everywhere.

The powerful area-of-effect attack was incredibly effective at slowing pursuers. The four Sand ninjas were momentarily forced to halt their chase.

"You..." Uchiha Tohoko turned back, unable to believe what he was witnessing. What was Haruto doing? This was the same deceitful, shameless kid who had run away earlier, wasn't it?

Was this... an act of self-sacrifice?

"Cough, cough...!" Uchiha Tohoko doubled over, coughing up blood. There was no time to ponder. He turned and vanished into the mist again. His injuries were severe. He couldn't afford to stay.

He wanted to say something—perhaps commend Haruto, acknowledge his bravery, or admit that he had misjudged him before. But there was no time. Instead, he thought to himself, Kid, I won't forget this. Your sacrifice won't be in vain.

Uchiha Tohoko disappeared into the night, the sounds of battle fading behind him.

Meanwhile, Haruto's shadow clone continued unleashing large-scale jutsu, indiscriminately bombarding the area!

After all, it was just a clone. If it was destroyed, there would be no real consequences. However, Haruto deliberately refrained from lethal attacks. If he wanted to kill, he could have easily used Rasengan to ambush and eliminate an Elite Chunin.

But that wasn't the plan.

The Sand ninja needed to survive!

The clone was merely buying time for Uchiha Tohoko's escape while ensuring the Sand forces remained intact—so they could clash with the Hyuga!

After another high-powered Wind Release jutsu, the clone's chakra was depleted. Without hesitation, it turned and sprinted in the direction Uchiha Tohoko had fled.

A Sand Jonin moved like a ghost, appearing behind the clone and driving a blade through its heart.

Poof!

The clone exploded into white smoke.

"Damn it!" The Sand Jonin cursed, his face darkening. "A shadow clone!"

"There! Chase them!"

Using the direction the clone had last moved, the Sand ninja deduced Uchiha Tohoko's escape route and pursued at full speed!

Uchiha Tohoko moved with blinding speed. For a ninja of his caliber, a kilometer was nothing. Soon, he heard the sounds of an intense battle ahead. His bloodshot eyes narrowed in determination as he pushed himself even faster.

He had assumed the fight involved Uchiha Iwa and Uchiha Mikoto being attacked by Sand ninjas.

But when he emerged from the mist, what he saw stunned him.

The Hyuga clan?!!

Through the thinning mist, he saw the Hyuga clan locked in battle—with Sand ninja!

"Hyuga Kyokyoku... he's really here!" Uchiha Tohoko's mind raced.

He had suspected that Kyokyoku had taken an unauthorized leave from the intelligence division to hunt down Haruto Saito. Now, with Kyokyoku present, everything made sense.

But something was off. Why was the Hyuga clan attacking Sand ninja?

The Uchiha and Hyuga clans were sworn rivals. Given the circumstances, Kyokyoku's best move would have been to eliminate any Uchiha witnesses. Instead, they were fighting the Sand?

Had they been drawn into the battle by accident?!

Suddenly, the sound of fast-approaching pursuers reached his ears.

Uchiha Tohoko swiftly leapt off the tree and rolled into a small ditch, camouflaging himself.

The four Sand ninjas who had chased him also arrived at the battlefield.

"Hyuga clan?! What the hell is going on?!" one of the Sand Jonin shouted.

They hesitated only briefly before charging into the fray, joining the fight!

It was utter chaos.

From the shadows, Haruto Saito watched, waiting for the perfect moment.

Now... it was time to strike!