Yakumi’s gaze swept across the laboratory only once before locking onto a temperature controlled container deep inside one of the refrigerated cabinets.
Suspended within the pale green nutrient solution was a cluster of cells overflowing with vitality.
It was the primary objective of this mission.
A living sample of Hashirama Cells.
He carefully removed the container and sealed it inside a specially prepared Sealing Scroll.
Even through the scroll, he could clearly feel the nearly violent life force chakra radiating from within.
With their top priority secured, he immediately nodded to Yakoto.
Yakoto moved so quickly that only afterimages remained.
In the blink of an eye, every document on the laboratory table related to the cultivation of Hashirama Cells and years of experimental data had been packed into another Sealing Scroll.
Just then, hurried footsteps echoed from the end of the corridor, followed by the stern shout of a Root shinobi.
“Where are the guards at the entrance?!
Report immediately!” “Move!” Yashiro made the decision without hesitation.
With a flick of his wrist, he slapped several explosive tags onto the laboratory’s support pillars.
The moment everyone rushed out of the laboratory, the tags detonated.
The pillars collapsed, sending massive chunks of stone crashing down and completely sealing off the passage behind them, cutting off the pursuing Root shinobi’s shouts beneath a mountain of rubble.
No one lingered.
No one grew greedy.
Following the escape route Shinsuke had planned in advance, they entered an abandoned ventilation shaft inside Root Headquarters, slid into the underground drainage system, and used the endless explosions above to mask the sound of their footsteps as they swam through the maze of underground tunnels like fish.
Along the way, they encountered two groups of Root shinobi rushing back to reinforce the base.
Using the darkness and the Sharingan’s genjutsu, they slipped past both groups without leaving behind the slightest trace.
Less than fifteen minutes later, they emerged from the underground tunnels.
Hidden by the raging fires and the panicked crowds, they safely arrived at the designated rendezvous point.
Uchiha Kei, Tōka, and the others had already been waiting.
When they saw everyone return safely with the sealed scrolls intact, the weight hanging over their hearts finally disappeared.
“The mission is complete?” Kei asked quietly.
Yakumi patted the Sealing Scroll tucked inside his robe, a cold smile flashing across his face.
“We got the primary target.
We also brought back every bit of research data.
Clean and simple.” “Good.” Kei nodded before looking toward the Uchiha Clan compound, now completely surrounded by barriers and blockades.
He raised a hand.
“Let’s go.
Time to go home.” More than a dozen figures vanished into the darkness once again, racing toward the clan compound.
Behind them, Konoha remained engulfed in fire and chaos.
No one knew that the treasured Hashirama Cells and the forbidden techniques hidden within the Scroll of Seals had already fallen into the Uchiha Clan’s hands.
Using the thick smoke as cover, Tōka and his team sped through the ruined streets.
The Scroll of Seals was held tightly against his chest as they timed every step with the aftershocks of the explosions, moving so fast that only blurred afterimages remained.
Only two streets remained between them and the Uchiha Clan compound.
Once they turned the next corner, they would meet up with the reception team.
But the instant Tōka led his men into the alley, an icy surge of chakra suddenly locked onto them.
“Stop.” A figure slowly stepped from the shadows.
Hayate Gekkō.
His ANBU cat mask covered most of his face, leaving only his pale eyes exposed.
His katana was already drawn, its tip angled toward the ground.
Four elite ANBU stood behind him, spreading out to seal off the alley.
Every one of them radiated tense chakra, ready to strike.
He had originally been leading his squad to inspect the explosion sites when he unexpectedly sensed the distinctive chakra of the Uchiha, along with the unique sealing fluctuations of the Scroll of Seals.
“Uchiha?” Hayate asked in a low voice before coughing twice.
Even so, his grip on the sword remained perfectly steady.
“Were you the ones who stole the Scroll of Seals from the Hokage Building?” The Three Tomoe Sharingan in Tōka’s eyes spun instantly.
Without wasting a single word, he signaled to the two men beside him.
The next moment, all three attacked at once.
There was no probing.
No conversation.
Their first move was a killing strike.
Tōka’s figure split into three blurs as he launched the Uchiha Style Body Flicker Technique, charging straight toward Hayate.
The Sharingan clearly tracked every movement of Hayate’s blade.
Before Hayate could fully execute Konoha Style: Crescent Moon Dance, Tōka had already predicted where the strike would land.
His kunai shot forward with a sharp whistle, aiming directly for Hayate’s sword wrist.
The narrow alley instantly erupted with the clash of chakra and steel, the ringing of blades mixing with the distant explosions until the battle became impossible to follow with the naked eye.
But before the overwhelming dynamic vision of the Three Tomoe Sharingan, the ANBU’s movements seemed painfully slow.
In less than thirty seconds, four muffled cries rang out one after another.
The four elite ANBU never even managed to complete a single technique before precise strikes pierced their vital points, dropping them into pools of blood.
Hayate’s katana was knocked from his hand.
A deep wound opened across his chest, exposing bone beneath the flesh.
He staggered back half a step and tried to form hand seals to raise the alarm.
Tōka was already in front of him.
His scarlet Sharingan locked onto Hayate’s eyes.
The genjutsu struck instantly.
Hayate’s body froze.
A heartbeat later, a kunai pierced his throat.
Warm blood splattered across the cold wall.
He collapsed with his eyes still open, unable to let out even a single complete warning before death claimed him.
Just as Tōka shook the blood from his kunai and prepared to continue the retreat, a shocked cry suddenly echoed from the entrance of the alley.
“Hayate?!” Kurenai Yūhi stood frozen at the alley entrance.
The sight of Hayate lying in a pool of blood beside the bodies of the ANBU instantly drained the color from her face.
She had been evacuating civilians nearby and rushed over after sensing the violent chakra fluctuations.
She never expected to find this.
Her pupils contracted sharply.
Her hands immediately formed seals as genjutsu chakra surged through her fingertips.
But the three Uchiha elites attacked the instant they saw her.
Three figures lunged forward simultaneously.
Three pairs of scarlet Three Tomoe Sharingan locked onto her.
Genjutsu and physical attacks struck together.
Genjutsu was Kurenai’s greatest specialty.
But before three elite Sharingan users, her illusions vanished like stones sinking into the sea.
In a single exchange, Tōka’s genjutsu forced her back until she slammed into the wall.
A kunai stopped at her throat.
The chill of death instantly enveloped her entire body.
At that critical moment, a black shadow burst in from the side.
Akimichi Chōza activated Partial Multi Size Technique in an instant, his enlarged arm smashing toward Tōka and forcing him to withdraw his kunai and leap away.