Revolution in the Ninja World

Habara hadn't previously considered that there might be Hyuga ninjas in ANBU, but thinking about it, it made sense.

Although the Hyuga clan also considered themselves superior, and some of their internal practices were even more conservative and extreme than those of the Uchiha clan, as long-time allies of the "Senju of the Forest," obeying higher-level commands and upholding the greater good was something ingrained in their bones.

Habara had almost forgotten that the Gentle Fist's pressure point strikes had a "silencing" effect. But it wasn't really his fault, since the Hyuga barely had any screen time... Getting beaten by Naruto, dying for Naruto, and having children for Naruto.

Looking at it this way, the Hyuga were truly a "good Konoha ninja clan."

So, was ANBU's mission successful? It could only be said that it was successful, but not entirely. As for judging Sunagakure's true intentions afterward, that wasn't something for the operational level, like Habara, to worry about.

After returning from this mission, Habara went on several other missions, clashing with Kumogakure ninjas a few times, but these were only brief encounters, nothing worth writing home about... And so, two months passed quietly, unnoticed.

There was originally a Chunin-to-Jonin promotion exam at the end of this year. Habara had originally wanted to become a Jonin as quickly as possible, as with Jonin status, he could seek a higher position. However, now wasn't the time to consider those things.

With the Nine-Tails potentially popping out at any moment, Habara had to consider how to protect himself. However, it was impossible to significantly increase his strength again in a short period of time, so after thinking about it, he decided to address his weaknesses.

Taijutsu?

No, taijutsu relied heavily on experience and was the most difficult to improve in a short time.

Habara wanted to improve his ability to counter genjutsu, hoping that if he accidentally fell under a genjutsu, he could break free as quickly as possible.

Genjutsu, simply put, was disrupting a person's chakra, implanting the caster's mental imprint, and then taking control. The method to break free from genjutsu was also clear: restore the disrupted chakra to its normal flow... Or, even simpler: first, cut off the flow, then restart it.

After understanding this principle, what to do next was relatively clear. In terms of "energy," Habara had more than one type of energy within him.

He began to try to improve the seal on his body, aiming for the effect that once he was in a mentally uncontrolled state, the Six Rens Seal would completely unravel... The chakra network was like a canal; genjutsu would cause turbulence in the canal. The Six Rens Seal was like a dam, accumulating natural energy like a flood peak. Once Habara fell under a genjutsu, he would directly open the floodgates and dredge the channels.

The higher-density natural energy would instantly restore Habara's chakra network to its normal flow, and the genjutsu would naturally be dispelled.

Whether this operation could break genjutsu specific to the Sharingan, like Tsukuyomi or Kotoamatsukami, Habara didn't know. The probability was likely low, but it should be able to dispel most general genjutsu.

And after undergoing body modification with Hashirama cells, Uchiha Obito's ocular power was very strong, strong enough to control the Nine-Tails, but his Sharingan wasn't the genjutsu type; he couldn't release those unique genjutsu.

So, there was a possibility of breaking Obito's genjutsu. The Nine-Tails couldn't do it because the Nine-Tails was a primary school dropout, an uneducated, illiterate fox with only a massive amount of chakra but no way to restore it to its original state. But Habara was an educated ninja.

In short, this was a precaution. If the worst happened, Habara hoped this operation would be effective.

It took him a few days to finally modify the seal on his body. During this process, he had the constant illusion that he was working on a water conservancy project on his own body.

The specific method was simple; it was just adjusting the sensitivity of the Six Rens Seal's opening. After the modification, the seal on Habara's body became more sensitive.

Under normal circumstances, Habara would consciously control the size of the seal's opening, keeping it very narrow, so that only a small amount of natural energy would flow into his chakra network. But if he fell into a genjutsu, this opening would instantly expand to its maximum, achieving a "dam burst" effect.

This method of avoiding genjutsu was only suitable for someone like Habara, who normally carried a large amount of natural energy within him. After adjusting the seal on his body, Habara felt that the only drawback was that he couldn't be startled. If someone suddenly scared him, and he lost control of the seal in a moment of fluster, then the people around him would immediately witness the spectacle of his "chakra intensity" instantly increasing by several orders of magnitude.

...

Time unknowingly reached October. Entering the new month, Habara soon received a clear signal that the Nine-Tails incident was imminent.

One day, his ANBU squad received a long-term alert mission. Alert missions were common, frequently received assignments. The problem was the location of the mission... This mission's location was in a dense forest outside of Konoha.

The ANBU were guarding a circular area. Habara's squad was located on the periphery. Their task was not to concern themselves with the interior of the area, but if anyone approached the area from the outside, they were to immediately control them, or even eliminate them.

What exactly this mission was protecting was not specifically explained, but as ANBU ninjas who had close contact with the Hokage, they could vaguely guess what kind of mission they were carrying out.

Clearly, the Fourth Hokage's wife, the Nine-Tails Jinchuriki, Uzumaki Kushina, was about to give birth. And because of the risk of the Tailed Beast's power overflowing when a Jinchuriki gave birth, she couldn't give birth inside Konoha.

However, although she was transferred outside of Konoha, this didn't necessarily mean Uzumaki Kushina was in more danger. On the contrary, after being moved outside the village, with no other ninjas or civilians around, ANBU ninjas could provide her with more concentrated and focused protection.

The defensive net spread by ANBU was very large. Even Habara, who was currently carrying out this mission, could only be sure that Uzumaki Kushina was within the circle he was protecting. As for her more specific location? That was unknown.

Perhaps only the core security personnel knew her exact location.

And as this mission continued, the ANBU ninjas became increasingly tense, because this meant that Uzumaki Kushina's due date was getting closer and closer.

"I hope there won't be any problems with this mission."

"What problems could there be? This is the most core area of Konoha."

"That's right, and the Hokage-sama will also be personally guarding... ANBU on the outside, the Hokage on the inside, it's foolproof."

In the almost suffocating silence, a few ANBU ninjas couldn't help but exchange a few quiet words. Such insignificant communication was, in theory, prohibited during missions, but requiring ninjas to remain silent for several days, standing still like wooden posts, and even maintaining a high level of concentration, was a bit too inhumane.

Of course, the ninjas also knew their limits. After a brief exchange, they quickly fell silent again.

However...

What use was falling silent? The words that should and shouldn't have been said had already been spoken.

Habara was full of frustration and couldn't help but complain inwardly...

"Come on, repeat after me, F-L-A-G, FLAG."