Naruto: My Progress in Konoha.

Swish—

In a flicker of movement, a figure suddenly appeared in front of the Mist Jōnin who had almost been slain by Uchiha Haruki.

Clad in deep blue garments, with a single eye and sealing tags hanging from his earlobes—it was none other than Ao, who had previously clashed with Haruki.

However, the shuriken that interrupted Haruki's finishing blow hadn't come from Ao.

Turning his head, Haruki looked to his right—there stood Mei Terumi, her hands just lowered. Clearly, the attack had come from her.

Their sudden arrival here left no room for doubt—they were here to stop him.

And they weren't alone.

Shifting his gaze to the left, Haruki spotted another presence.

Tall and lanky, with spiky yellow hair, this man wore the distinct black-and-white mask of the Mist's Anbu. A dozen tight bandages were wrapped around his neck.

Just seeing his appearance, Haruki immediately recognized who it was:

Kurisami Kushimaru, one of the Seven Ninja Swordsmen of the Mist.

Looking at the man's hands, Haruki noticed he held a long needle-like sword, a steel wire coiled at its end—currently balanced by his left hand.

The uniquely recognizable weapon confirmed it—this was none other than "Long Blade: Stitching Needle," one of the Seven Ninja Swords.

With that, Kurisami Kushimaru's identity was firmly established.

"One of the Seven Swordsmen, a dual Kekkei Genkai user, and a Byakugan killer... heh, they're really going all out just for me,"

Haruki muttered to himself, but showed no reaction outwardly.

Kushimaru eyed him for a moment before speaking first:

"You're the brat who killed Jūzō Biwa and Raiga Kurosuki?"

He gave Haruki a dismissive once-over and sneered,

"You don't look like much."

Haruki didn't bite. He wasn't interested in childish provocation.

Now that the enemies' identities were confirmed, there was no need to waste time.

His hands quickly formed seals as he prepared to unleash—

Fire Style: Great Fireball Jutsu!

But just then, he sensed a subtle chakra fluctuation beneath his feet. A sudden danger flared in his instincts.

"There's someone else?!"

Startled, Haruki immediately canceled his jutsu and leapt into the air, launching himself off the ground.

Shing!

A short blade stabbed up from below, missing him by a hair's breadth.

Kushimaru clicked his tongue in disappointment, but quickly composed himself. He gripped the Stitching Needle tightly and hurled it forward.

Whizz—

The soft sound of it slicing through the air was picked up instantly by Haruki's Sharingan. He swung his blade and effortlessly deflected it.

But Kushimaru wasn't fazed.

With a pull of his left hand, the steel wire went taut, and with a twist of his right wrist, the long needle arced in the air and looped back—this time aiming straight for Haruki's back.

A difficult angle to defend.

But Haruki's senses were razor-sharp. He twisted his waist and bent mid-air at nearly a 90-degree angle, dodging the strike by a sliver.

"Hehehe… Ghost Blade Haruki, not bad."

Kushimaru chuckled with a note of approval.

Meanwhile, the person who had tried to ambush Haruki from underground finally revealed themselves.

Another Mist Special Jōnin, also wearing the signature Anbu mask like Kushimaru—an expert in stealth and assassination.

Clearly, Haruki had miscalculated. The Mist hadn't just sent Mei Terumi, Ao, and Kushimaru—they had also hidden an elite Anbu assassin among them.

And including the wounded Mist Jōnin from earlier, there were five enemies total.

Yet despite the looming 5v1, Haruki wasn't afraid.

"If I can keep these five occupied, that should be enough…"

He knew full well—this wasn't just about removing five key Mist assets from the battle. It also meant freeing up Konoha's equivalent forces to return to their proper roles.

This exchange alone could balance the entire battlefield.

If they couldn't hold the line after that, it wouldn't be Haruki's fault.

As for using his Mangekyō Sharingan to end the fight decisively?

He had never considered it—and now, seeing Kushimaru and the Anbu assassin, he definitely wouldn't.

Why?

Because many Mist Anbu had secretly fallen under Uchiha Madara's control, orchestrated to set the stage for Obito's grand narrative.

In theory, none of these five should be aligned with Madara.

But Haruki couldn't afford to take that chance.

If even one of them was Madara's pawn, and Haruki revealed his Mangekyō powers here, he'd be exposed immediately.

Other people might not notice—but Madara, with his own Mangekyō Sharingan experience, would recognize it instantly.

And that would be a disaster.

Haruki had no interest in becoming entangled with a dying relic of the past just yet.

Especially not with Black Zetsu lurking at Madara's side—he wasn't eager to enter their sights too early.

He still needed time.

Give it two more years—once his Mangekyō evolved into the Eternal Mangekyō, removing the blindness risk—then he could afford to play with fire.

For now…

Let the mind games continue.

As all these thoughts flashed through his mind, Haruki instantly refocused, raising his guard to the maximum.

The five Mist ninja didn't keep him waiting long.

The moment his feet hit the ground, Mei Terumi launched the first attack.

After a rapid seal sequence, a roaring Water Dragon surged forward toward him.

The others followed suit—some casting ninjutsu, some hurling kunai, others laying traps.

In short, all five attacked at once.

However, their coordination was clearly far from perfect.

Especially Kushimaru—a cold-blooded killer who didn't care about collateral damage.

And that… was Haruki's opportunity.

With the Sharingan's powerful insight, he began deliberately stepping into Kushimaru's trap zones, using them for defense and counterattacks—putting the others in awkward positions.

The most frustrating part?

They couldn't even blame him. They just had to deal with it and be more careful.

Minute by minute, the fight escalated.

Eventually, the first casualty appeared.

It wasn't Haruki who delivered the fatal blow, but the already-injured Mist Jōnin, who fell into one of Kushimaru's traps—laid with the Stitching Needle.

Of course, Haruki's Genjutsu influence played a key role.

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