Chapter 28: Kaze

As rain poured down relentlessly, Wind hastily set up a crude trap, then paused, standing alone in the downpour, his sword in hand.

He removed his Anbu mask, revealing his true face. It was the face of a handsome young man, about twenty-five or twenty-six years old, with an expression of utter calm. His real name was Fujita Kazé.

Kazé had been an orphan since he was five, when his parents had died. Wandering aimlessly, he eventually made his way to the Land of Fire, where he met a man who took him in.

Together, they joined the newly founded village of Konoha, and Kazé became a ninja.

That man had been his previous captain. More than just a superior, he had been like a father to Kazé.

"Six years ago, you stayed behind to buy me time to escape," Kazé muttered under his breath, the rain mixing with his voice. "And now, six years later, I've made the same choice."

His eyes hardened, filled with resolve.

The enemy was closing in.

Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh!

Kirigakure's ninjas spotted him standing in the rain, and instinctively halted.

"A Konoha Anbu!" one of them exclaimed, his voice tinged with alarm as lightning briefly illuminated Kazé's silhouette, confirming his identity.

The Konoha Anbu—the elite assassination and tactical squad—was renowned in the ongoing war. These elite soldiers thrived in darkness, striking with lethal precision when enemies least expected it, like venomous serpents or merciless hunters.

Many of Kirigakure's plans had been foiled by them, and many high-ranking officers had fallen victim to their silent strikes.

The Anbu had earned a fearsome reputation, becoming a nightmare for enemy shinobi. Even Kirigakure's war commanders had been so impressed that they spoke of creating their own version of the Anbu after the war ended.

Facing a lone Anbu warrior in the midst of a storm, the Kirigakure ninjas hesitated.

"He's just one Anbu!" the Jōnin leading the group shouted, though his heart sank.

This was no ordinary enemy. For him to stand alone here, blocking their path, surely meant he had some kind of plan or backup.

But then the sensor ninja moved closer to him. "Captain, he's alone. He's just trying to buy time!"

The Jōnin's expression shifted to one of grim realization.

Kazé, hearing this, let out a loud, mocking laugh. "So you've finally figured it out? A pack of cowards, terrified of a single man!"

The Kirigakure ninjas, already on edge, now bristled with rage at his taunts.

"Kill him!"

"Don't let him escape!"

"That bastard!!"

With a united roar, twenty-seven shinobi unleashed a storm of kunai and shuriken, raining down upon Kazé as if the very sky itself were attacking.

Clang, clang, clang!

Kazé swung his sword in rapid arcs, parrying what he could. But with so many projectiles flying toward him, he could only deflect the most deadly strikes.

Despite his efforts, several kunai found their mark, slicing through his skin, staining his clothes with blood.

"Die!!!" one of the enemy ninjas screamed as the hail of projectiles ceased, and they all charged at Kazé in unison.

Kazé's lips curled into a snarl, his voice a beastly roar as he threw himself into the fray. Sword in hand, he rushed forward to meet the twenty-seven ninja head-on.

Boom!

Thunder rumbled overhead, casting jagged flashes of light across the battlefield.

And in the midst of the storm, in the rain-soaked forest, one man charged alone against an overwhelming force, his blade glinting in the brief flashes of lightning.

Shluck!

Kazé's sword pierced the chest of one of the enemy ninjas. But in the same moment, his own body was pierced by countless kunai, and his throat was slashed open by the lead Jōnin's blade.

He paid no mind to his defence as he had thrown everything into his attack, intending to take down as many as he could before his inevitable death.

His body faltered, and Kazé crumpled to the ground.

The Jōnin leader spat on the ground, barking out orders, "Keep moving! Don't let them escape!"

None of the Kirigakure ninjas bothered to finish off Kazé. The wounds he had sustained were clearly fatal, and they knew he would die soon.

They pushed forward, now slightly delayed. The few seconds Kazé had bought had allowed his comrades to widen the gap, but it wouldn't be long before the chase resumed.

However, just as one of the pursuing Chūnin stepped forward, he tripped a wire from Kazé's hastily set trap. Several shuriken shot down from the trees, embedding themselves in his body.

"Arghhhh!" he screamed, collapsing in agony.

The Jōnin leader's face twisted in frustration, but he could only shout, "Damn it! Keep moving!"

They left the injured man behind, continuing their pursuit with grim determination.

Lying on the ground, Kazé saw the trap succeed in slowing the enemy, if only for a moment. His vision grew hazy, but a faint smile tugged at his lips.

His mouth opened as if to speak, but no sound emerged.

Blood pooled around him, seeping into the rainwater and slowly spreading outward, turning the earth beneath him red, like a blooming crimson flower.

As the rain poured down, Kazé's body lay still. His breathing slowed, and the world around him began to fade.

In his mind, flashes of memory passed before him—images of Bear, Lightning, and Hui, and of friends and comrades back in the village.

Finally, he saw the face of his former captain.

Boom!

A crack of thunder echoed through the storm as the lightning illuminated the scene one last time. And there, in a pool of rain and blood, a young Anbu warrior took his final breath.

The wind had come to a halt.

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