Karumo held the map in his hand, pinning it against a flat rock with other smaller stones to pin it down. Outlining a compound just ten minutes to the east of where he was, an entrance into the underground tunnels and to the leader of the group that had been causing so many problems and created so much death. He sighed a bit, he knew almost exactly what he would end up having to do, but part of him didn't want any part of this. It was almost too much, so much death to deal with and he was only moving in to create even more. He did a last check of his anbu armor, tightening each strap to make sure it was clear, and then removing his Oracles cloak and folding it up next to the map. It would be a marker, if he succeeded he could come back and retrieve it, but if he died then they would know where he went by the map and his cloak. Whomever they would be, he would only hope that they would be as skilled or more so than him.

He knew almost exactly what he was walking into, and that didn't matter, a quick grasp, pulling his mask down over his face. One katana strapped to his side and hanging down and the Executioner's blade planted into the ground next to him. Standing up and grabbing the blade, he flickered off into the distance at full speed, his anger was driving him right now. But aside from that, his anger was being fueled by his nervousness, being only moments away from being able to put all of this to an end and yet, he was still mad. Like nothing had come of it, like it wouldn't matter. Everytime one criminal is plucked from the ground, just like weeds, another would grow in its place. And certainly, this group was bad and had caused its trouble, but he thought about next time. The next group to grow in its place. Potentially seeking revenge or the same graces as this man.

Karumo dashed into the tunnels, his sword clipped to his back now and in a position to easily remove it. He made his way through the tunnels with haste, not stopping and waiting, he knew what awaited him in a circular clearing about another quarter mile down. Mifue Haroi and his group of subordinates and lackeys, not worth mention. Karumo was prepared to kill every last one if that's what it took to get to him, and if some of them lived, it wouldn't be without witnessing their leaders death with their own eyes.

Karumo dropped in behind Mifue, he was busy inspecting some crate with a few others and hadn't heard him drop in, it was all a little too perfect. He grabbed the Executioners blade and broke it away then slamming the blade into the ground with a bit of a thud, cracking the dry earth where it implanted itself. His head twitched as he slowly turned around, Karumo smiled under his ANBU mask, "Why Hello there, Mifue Haroi, I presume? It's an honor to make your acquaintance." Karumo tilted his head and curtsied for him, ironically of course. The two lackeys ran to the side and brandished their swords, calling out to alert the rest.

"And who are you?" he grunted with a heavy set breathe and tone. His eyes furrowed as he locked onto Karumo and reached behind him for his own warhammer.

"I am your death."

"My death? Is this some kind of joke?" he began to smile and chuckle, a few of his lackeys did the same.

"No, you see. I'm here to bring justice to the atrocities and the crimes you've committed. But there is not trial. You've been deemed to dangerous to be left alive so now I am here to collect your blood and scatter it across the ground. It has nothing to do with your citizenship of Tsuchi no Kuni or the fact that I could arrest you and take you to trial. No. Here... this is war. Between the village and your organization, and in war, there are no arrests. No mercy. No hostages. Anyone who stays here will die. It's a sad fact of the war you've started, and the one I'm ending." Karumo wouldn't move a muscle during his speech, his mask covering his face, not even so much as his breathing would be seen as he awaited.

Mifue would pick up his hammer in both hands and dash forward with a prepared swing, it seems that there had been enough talking. And both parties knew that one of them would have to die here.

[802 words]
[To be continued]

There is no trial. Mifue charged forward and swung his hammer down towards Karumo. A quick grab of his blade and jumping back, letting his arm lag behind as it ripped his buster sword from the ground with some delay. The hammer crashed against the earth and shattered the very ground, dust and rock flew everywhere. That bit was true, they were all going to die unless they retreated or begged for their lives. Karumo wasn't a sadist, he understood that Mifue had to die and it wasn't like he would ever surrender to be killed. No, his death would be earned in their battle but for his lackeys, those that could repent. Their arrest would be fine for him.

His eyes wandered back to Mifue, some of the others began to draw around at the noise and confusion, drawing forth their knives and swords. Karumo grunted a bit as he counted through their numbers with a glance, the others could pose a problem if they got involved at the wrong time. Karumo spoke up, "Anyone who enters this fight will be subject to death. Otherwise you are only subject to the crimes I can connect you with..." Mifue brought his hammer out of the ground, letting it rest against his shoulder as he laughed. "They won't betray me, especially not against some young punk like you!" he shouted out and prepared his warhammer with both hands again, locking into his back swing and preparing himself.

Karumo set his executioner's blade into the ground and kept his eyes trained, he began to draw his katana from his waist instead, giving himself a lighter weapon that he could use with more finesse. Letting the shine of his blades catch his gaze and casting his Dojutsu Phantom's Blessing of Celerity and the Phantom's Stalwart Blessing. Boosting both his speed and strength, doing his best to give himself a quick advantage. The quick chakra loss was a bit heavy as he took a sigh and could feel his muscles loosen up a bit and his tendons lighten as well, he knew he could push himself a little bit further now. His next target would be Mifue himself, aiming to cast the opposite sister jutsu on him when he found an opening.

Karumo dashed forward, his speed greater than last time and jumping up and over Mifue as he slammed his hammer downwards and broke the ground in front of him with a heavy hit. Definitely need to avoid that... Karumo thought as he was in air and floating briefly over Mifue, landing behind him and planting his feet into the ground. Then with a quick rotation and slash of his blade making two cuts into his back and the back of his right arm as he began to turn around. Mifue grunted as he felt the sting of the steel, yelling out in pain as he wildly swung his hammer to the side and tried to hit Karumo who elegantly ducked underneath the swing.

With a quick thrust while the weight of his hammer caught him off balance, Karumo stabbed his katana through his stomach and used his gaze to force an opportunity on him. Casting the sister jutsu of his kekkai genkai, the Phantom's Curse of Torpidity and the Phantom's Enervating Curse, to bring both his speed and strength down a fair bit. Now he would hold a full rank of difference to both his speed and strength over Mifue, given that they were equals before, there wouldn't be much more that he could do in this moment as Karumo stepped back and brought his sword with him. Jumping back a few meters and calling out, "Not so puny anymore, am I Mifue?" his mask continuing to cover his true voice. A quick glance around to see some of the lackeys getting nervous and in disbelief at their leader about to fall before their very eyes.

"If you care about your men, you will tell them to lay down their arms before I end up killing some of them too." Mifue grunted and exhaled heavily, it was obvious that the cuts were felt and he could feel the restrictions on his own physical prowess. In a defiant yell he grabbed his hammer and held it high as he began to charge forward at Karumo, this would be his last chance to win the battle.

[741 words, 1543 words total]
[To be continued]

Mifue charged forward, doing everything he can to fight against it, it was apparent or at least it should have been, that his slow and heavy hammer wouldn't be enough to beat him while he was facing off here. Especially not with the limits placed upon his person and preventing him from fighting at full strength while Karumo was fighting at beyond his maximum power. Karumo used his own prowess to side step the hammer swing as it cracked the earth, giving his left leg a solid cut just below the hip where there was no armor protecting him. Karumo then continued through and jumped away a few times to clear a solid bit of distance between them as Mifue fell to one knee and used the hammer to hold himself up in the ground.

Karumo stood straight up and looked towards the man as he struggled about himself, yelling out in anger, "Quick, get him! Don't let him leave alive!" Karumo flicked his blade and let the blood splash off onto the ground. Looking around the edges of himself, "I would advise against that, I won't show any mercy..." he said and looked around, three men with swords were locked in and preparing to move. Karumo set his stance widely and marked each of them as they charged in. Kunai flew around and Karumo jumped forward towards the first of his opponents letting the knives fly away and miss. Karumo grabbed his own shuriken and threw it along with weaving a few signs, Ram → Rat → Bird → Boar → Tiger, and a hundred shuriken appeared and shot out in a semi circle to his side, peppering the side and a few random enemies with shuriken. The small blades cutting into them as Karumo re-grabbed his sword and blocked the first hit, rotating through and cutting the second lackey in rotation across the chest.

How many more would he have to kill, dodging and ducking each strike. Moving with finesse through each of them and cutting where he could, it was like child's play with them, but he never could devote his full attention to these small time crooks. If Mifue jumped in, it could bode poorly for almost all of them, maybe perhaps a clone to keep things going more smoothly and take the fight back to Mifue? He had just the jutsu for that and it would be relatively low risk after all. The Dynamic Doppelganger jutsu would be perfect, Karumo would wait for a few kunai to be thrown and jump up into the air and backwards, leaving the knives to implant themselves into another enemy. While in air, weaving a single sign, the unique shadow clone hand seal, and letting a clone of himself come to life in a cloud of smoke just past him, both of them landing on the ground.

Now, the two of them began to work heavily against the lackeys, Karumo's real person clearing out a path to Mifue and finding a way to strike while he was preoccupied with his wounds and gathering his focus back up. Two more lackeys stood at the side of Mifue, helping him up and such, it would be an easy strike as Karumo cut down the last lackey that stood in his way. Then with a large intake of air, Karumo began to compress the chakra and air in his chest and molding it into the Vacuum Sphere jutsu. With a sudden expulsion the large sphere of air burst outward, ripping the ground apart in its path and leaving an empty trail in its wake. In the brief moment of its quick travel he watched as it blast forward and struck Mifue and his two lackeys.

The blast hit them with force, knocking the two almost immediately off their feet as their shreaks gave way to the horror of all the cuts that would begin to maim their bodies. Mifue on the other hand did his best to tank the hit and fight against it, his body being cut apart as the sphere slowed down through his body, heavy grunts and blood beginning to splatter the air. At the end of it, Karumo's clone was taking on the last few bandits stuck around like it was nothing, cutting them down like a hot knife through butter. Karumo took his sword and walked slowly to Mifue's gargling and cringing body, his grip on his hammer was gone as it was thrown a ways away from him.

Standing over his body as he groveled on the floor, almost drowning in his own blood with severe cuts all around him. A heavy explosion went off from behind him, the shock wave pushing his hair and launching bits of dirt and rubble around. It seems that his clone was defeated somehow, but given the blast, hopefully they wouldn't have gotten him in a melee attack otherwise those bandits would be torn from their very limbs and set across the compound. Karumo held his sword over Mifue and let the tip of it rest on the back of his neck, "If you have any last words, I'll hear them now." he spoke in his normal monotone but didn't let the mask hide his voice, giving him a bit of recognition in honor of his death.

Mifue grunted and spit up a portion of blood and then spoke up, "For power and honor. Death is but a price to pay. To those who will remember me, remember the trouble I caused and the power that a single person can have, even against the greatest enemies like those in power of the great nations." he let his head drop and gave a defiant smile as a bit of blood dripped from his lips. Karumo made it quick, his sword piercing through the vertebra just below his neck, it would kill him within seconds by severing the spinal cord. A curious thought crossed his mind wondering if he lowered his head to expose the gap in the spine out of surrender or out of fatigue. Part of him hoped for the former but he expected the latter as he turned back to the chaos and destruction of their small compound.

It was time for cleanup and extract, then a quick trip back to the village to report mission complete and get other agents of the village to handle the clean up and intelligence gathering. His mission was done and he wasn't sticking around any longer than he had to.

[1096 words, 2639 words total]
[Mission Complete]
[Exit Thread]