After entering his office, Hitoshi laid down a map on a table. All 5 ninjas stood around it. Odaka asked, "Eagle, what do you recommend?"
Eagle took a marker and circled Sabakuetsu and a nearby town and said, "He first burned a Provision Depot in Sabakuetsu and then killed a Noble in this town. The nearest town from there is Korinshi. But that town doesn't have any Noble. So according to my estimations, his target could either be the City of Shunkuto or the town of Kiganjima. But, it is difficult to say which one."
Manabu and Odaka began analyzing. After a couple of minutes, Manabu sighed and said, "It's impossible to say which one he will target. We will split up and guard both cities. Yura and I will go to Shunkuto while Odaka and Eagle will go to Kiganjima. Hitoshi, you stay in this city and ensure that the last Provision Depot stays safe. We will leave 20 additional ninjas with you. The remaining will be divided equally among us."
Odama, Hitoshi and Eagle nodded. They agreed with Manabu's plan. They quickly began discussing which ninja squads would join their groups. Suddenly, Manabu noticed something amiss and looked at Yura. Yura was still staring at the map and didn't say a word.
Manabu asked, "Is something the matter, Yura?"
Yura snapped out of his thoughts. He said, "I have a different take on this, Elder Manabu."
Manabu said, "Explain."
Yura said, "If we split up, our chances of killing him will decrease. And, if we move to those cities, then he might notice our movements and avoid hitting them altogether. In that case, our deployment will be a waste and he might annoy us further by randomly targeting other nobles forcing us to split into smaller groups. In addition, he should already have a good lead on us. If he kills that Noble before we even reach, then we won't be able to do anything and might get exposed for nothing."
His words made others frown. They had considered these points but not in this detail as they didn't see any other option. Manabu asked, "What do you suggest?"
Yura said, "Let's abandon these two Nobles."
The eyes of the four ninjas widened at how casually Yura asked to sacrifice the two Nobles.
Yura pointed at a city on the map and said, "After he kills the Nobles in Shunkuto and Kiganjima, he will target the Noble living in Mizunashi city. While he is busy killing those two Nobles, we can move around this territory and set up a giant trap in Mizunashi before he reaches there. We will hide inside and around the city using Fuinjutsu. When he attacks, we can all surround and kill him."
Yura's plan surprised them. They thought about his words and agreed more and more with him. Though two Nobles would die, the sacrifice would be worth it if they killed him. It was an exchange they were more than willing to make.
Odaka looked at Yura in a new light. He thought, 'I was just teasing him earlier for pointing out the obvious. But, he is indeed good. This level of talent should be in the Council.'
Manabu said, "That is a good plan. Much better than mine for sure."
Hitoshi added, "Good plan, but there is one flaw. The ninjas deployed at the city gates didn't notice any anomalies or anything strange. So I speculate that he entered the city without alerting the Seals inscribed here."
Yura replied, "I considered that. But this city is very big and was guarded by just 4 ninjas at the entrances. So he would have had opportunities to study the seals. But in Mizunashi, he will be able to sense us only if he is a sensor and activates his chakra field. However, doing so while attempting assassination will be very stupid. So he won't do it."
Yura's explanation made sense. Everyone agreed. He added, "In addition, the time would allow for the backup sent by Kazekage sama to arrive. So we can even set up a perimeter in the desert to stop him in case he somehow manages to escape. Either way, the battlefield will unfold as we want."
Manabu said, "Yes. Hunting him will begin easier if backup arrives before we set a trap for him. I'll communicate with them. You guys finalize the plans."
Manabu quickly left. The rest quickly finalized the details of their trap. In the end, they decided to leave 30 ninjas in the city. They will not only aid in the defense of the Provision Depot but would also be responsible for ensuring that the fact that so many ninjas arrived in Sabakuetsu doesn't get leaked outside the city.
Within an hour, 118 ninjas led by Manabu and Odaka left the city of Sabakuetsu. They moved around the town of Kiganjima and moved towards the city of Mizunashi.
As Yura calculated, Fujin had made his move. Just after they left Sabakuetsu, Fujin killed the Noble in Kiganjima and quickly began moving towards Shunkuto.
As he moved, Fujin analyzed, 'As expected, The Nobles are being heavily protected. But, there wasn't any Jounin-level ninja protecting him. I guess Rasa wasn't able to send reinforcements so quickly. Or perhaps, the other Anbu who are supposed to be on a promotion mission are also making a mess and forcing Rasa to deploy his ninjas everywhere. I can't be sure which one is the case, but it is better to assume the first one. My next target will probably be the last one without any significant protection.'
Within a few hours, he arrived outside Shunkuto. His eyes glowed as he observed the walls of the city. He muttered, "This one has no seals to protect it either. I am disappointed at how lazy Sunagakure has been. Granted these cities are far in the West, but is it really so much work to just ask a Fuinjutsu GrandMaster to visit all these cities and bless the city by carving a few seals?'
With no seals to block his path, Fujin just entered the city normally while maintaining a disguise. He casually walked into the city while moving towards Noble's mansion. After a few minutes, he arrived outside the mansion. He hid in a corner where no one would see him and muttered, "All these Nobles live right at the center of the city. I don't even have to make any effort to find them."
Fujin sighed. His mission had been progressing too smoothly. He was itching for a good fight. Of course, he wouldn't seek it if his enemies didn't act smart enough and allowed him to do his job without any resistance.
His eyes glowed as he observed the mansion. He analyzed, '8 ninjas. 2 at Chunin level and 6 at Genin. Rasa is awfully slow. Are they planning to lower my guard by giving me easy kills?'
He made a hand sign.
'Earth Release: Earth Military Movement jutsu.'
Fujin disappeared into the ground and entered the mansion. None of the 8 ninjas were sensors and Fujin was suppressing and hiding his chakra. So no one detected him. Fujin moved directly towards the central room where Fujin had detected 3 people. Two of them were ninjas while the third one was a civilian.
This was the room where the Noble was hiding. He was sitting in a chair while the two ninjas stood next to him. He nervously asked the ninjas standing next to him, "Lord Kazuo, how long do we have to keep hiding here?"
Kazuo was the Chunin in charge of the defense of this remote city. He replied respectfully, "Don't worry, Lord Toshio. Reinforcements from our village will arrive soon."
Toshio was still very worried. Kazuo assured him, "We are here with you as well, Lord Toshio. Live or Die, we will join you. So don't worry."
The Noble nodded. For some reason, he looked to be very fearful of Kazuo. Suddenly, all three of them looked ahead. A head popped out of the ground. In the blink of an eye, an entire person appeared.
Toshio was horrified. Kazuo and the other ninja also had solemn expressions. However, both had determined expressions. They seem to have accepted their fate. They quickly grabbed their kunai and took a fighting stance.
Kazuo asked, "Who are you?"
Fujin didn't bother replying and shot an Air Bullet at Toshio. The Suna ninjas couldn't even react when the bullet hit Toshio's chest.
Toshio's eyes widened. Time slowed down as he felt the pain in his chest. He knew that the Suna ninjas wouldn't be a match for the intruder, but he didn't expect to be killed so quickly.
However, instead of sorrow or horror, a gentle smile appeared on his face as he looked at Fujin. His smile surprised Fujin. It was the first time he had seen a Noble accept death with a smile on his face.
Toshio thought, 'My time has come. But my family will live a life of comfort and luxury.'
He closed his eyes and accepted his death with a gentle smile on his face.
