Konoha’s Black Plague

Firefight

> "Judging by the last engagement, things are generally under control. A few tactical errors, but if this next clash isn't handled precisely, someone could get seriously hurt."

Deep within the re-sealed stone chamber, a lone figure lingered in the shadows.

Hizashi Hyūga, cloaked in silence, held a small vial filled with a murky liquid. He dipped a finger into it, touched it to his tongue—and immediately grimaced.

"Pfft. Fishy as hell. Zero stars."

He gagged, stuck out his tongue, and flailed his arms briefly—an undignified sight for a Hyūga, but thankfully, no one was around to witness it.

"Disgusting taste aside, the stuff packs a punch," he muttered, examining the bottle. "Just a drop forces a surge of chakra out of the body. Violent, unstable. Reminds me of the Eight Gates—but sloppier."

He frowned.

"No limiters. This thing pulls out your life force like a greedy thief. Way more damaging than opening the Gates. Overuse... guarantees death."

Despite the grim analysis, Hizashi looked oddly casual, like a tourist observing from above, while Bai Ye and his teammates had already reached the entrance to the underground room below—tense, focused.

> "Bai Ye," Yuyan whispered, voice heavy with fatigue, "Five of them. Seated at a round table. They're talking about us. What's the plan?"

Her Byakugan had been active since they'd left the village elder's estate. She was breathing heavily, cheeks flushed—she had pushed her dōjutsu far past comfort.

"I'll take point," Bai Ye said firmly. "Once you break the door, I rush in. My goal is to take out as many as possible before they can ingest their enhancers."

No more holding back. This wasn't training—people would die if they failed.

Yuyan nodded and took position about a meter from the door, her palms glowing faintly as she channeled chakra.

> "Hakke Kūshō!" (Eight Trigrams Vacuum Palm)

With a sharp cry, she released a compressed wave of chakra. The wooden door exploded with a thunderous crack.

> "Konoha Reppū!" (Leaf Whirlwind!)

Bai Ye surged through the debris like lightning, diving behind the closest target. One hand hit the ground as he twisted mid-air and drove a whirlwind kick into the man's spine.

The target crashed backward into a companion, toppling both into a distant cabinet with a cascade of splintering wood and falling dust. Silence followed.

> "Get the drug—now!"

Gu Bin, seated at the head, shouted in alarm. He'd already pulled a vial from his sleeve and downed it in one swift motion.

Before the others could react, two of them were already down—motionless. Panic rippled through the remaining three.

As the potion took effect, a grotesque transformation began. Gu Bin's body surged with blood-red chakra. His muscles expanded rapidly, tearing through his clothes.

With a thunderous bang, Gu Bin vanished from his chair.

Then—

Crack!

A solid kick slammed into Yue's jaw as he entered the room behind Bai Ye.

Yue had intended to launch a strike at the remaining two enemies near the entrance, but Gu Bin's sudden acceleration caught him mid-movement. Though Yue's Sharingan had tracked the motion, his body failed to respond in time.

He was lifted into the air, spinning uncontrollably.

As he collided with the ceiling, Yue managed to gather chakra to anchor himself and land crouched on the ceiling. Blood trickled from his lip. He wiped it away, steadying his breath.

Meanwhile, the other two enemies also downed their vials, and within seconds, they were enveloped in the same red aura.

Bai Ye attempted to intercept them—but Gu Bin was already lunging after Yue. Bai Ye had no choice but to block.

> "So it was you bastards who killed our men outside!"

Roaring with rage, Gu Bin lunged. His enhanced strength and speed were overwhelming.

> "He's too fast!" Bai Ye thought, alarmed.

He barely managed to cross his arms in front of him before Gu Bin's fist smashed into his guard, sending him flying backward—straight into Yuyan, who had just entered.

She caught him instinctively, but the force pushed her back five meters, gouging deep drag marks into the floor.

From above, Yue stabilized, blood dripping from his mouth. He narrowed his eyes as he assessed the battlefield.

Gu Bin and his comrades stood transformed, cloaked in a chakra aura not unlike that of an imperfect Jinchūriki or the side effects of chakra pills used during the Second and Third Shinobi Wars.

> "Their chakra has tripled," Yuyan whispered, wide-eyed. "That drug… it's like a primitive version of Soldier Pills—only far more dangerous."

> "Yu Da. Yu Er," Gu Bin growled. "We kill these three now. Then we march on Konoha and make those Leaf bastards pay."

The room thickened with killing intent.

Bai Ye clenched his fists. Blood dripped from his knuckles.

> "Tch."

He knew what they were facing now—drug-enhanced berserkers with no self-preservation left. There was no point in negotiation.

Still, a faint smile touched his lips. He could feel Hizashi watching from above. That was their final fallback—if things spiraled too far.

They stood motionless for five seconds. Then all six moved at once.

Yue unleashed ninjutsu from the ceiling, bombarding the enemy with fire and lightning. Bai Ye and Yuyan engaged in close-quarters combat, their taijutsu fluid but pressed.

Though outmatched in strength, Bai Ye had his Zanpakutō, a blade forged from his inner world—sharp enough to pierce their reinforced skin. Yuyan wielded twin kunai with Hyūga precision, targeting chakra points when she could.

Their weapons gave them the edge needed to avoid critical injuries, but they remained on the defensive.

They couldn't hold this out forever.

> "If we drag this out," Bai Ye realized grimly, "we die."

But the enemy had a time limit too.

Gu Bin and the others, despite their enhanced power, were burning through their own life force. The drug had no regulator—no safe mode. If they failed to finish the fight before the backlash set in, they would collapse under their own weight.

This was no longer a skirmish. It was a race to survive.