Surprise Attack on the Snow Ninja
The bright moonlight blanketed the snow-covered ground in a layer of silver gauze.
The bright sunlight poured down from above, casting dappled shadows among the trees.
The moon was bright and the wind was gentle; the tranquil night enveloped the boundless earth, but the silence was suddenly broken by the commotion of three ninjas moving swiftly.
The leading ninja was agile and nimble, leaping through the forest as he spoke.
"By the way, I already severely injured one of the three ninjas when he was at the White Palace. Although I don't think they're strong, you still can't underestimate them in battle."
The one speaking was Sakura Konoha Ninja from Sakura Haruno.
She continued her analysis, "The Ice Release used by these Snow Ninja is completely different from the Ice Release Kekkei Genkai that Haku and I possess, which combines Wind Release and Water Release attributes. Their Ice Release is perhaps more accurately described as 'Ice Block Release,' as it's far inferior to Ice Release Kekkei Genkai and is more like a regular elemental Release Techniques."
"However, this is the Land of Snow, covered in ice and snow, the home ground of Ice Release. I think you all know how much of an advantage you have from your sparring these past few days! Here, even a weak ninja can unleash a powerful Ice Release technique, so be careful!"
Of course, what impressed the girl most was the armor worn by the ponytail ninja.
"Their Ice Release might cause you some trouble, but don't worry too much about them. However, the armor worn by those three ninjas seems to be immune to most Taijutsu and Ninjutsu attacks, so don't let your guard down during the battle, and don't hold back with your Ninjutsu!"
All three of them were quite fast.
As Sakura led the two forward, the castle of the Snow Ninja Base soon stood before them.
In the darkness of the night, two Snow Ninja were patrolling the castle, one in front of the other, carrying lanterns.
"The atmosphere tonight is a bit strange," muttered Snow Ninja, who was leading the way.
"Yes, I heard that one of those three went out on a mission this morning and came back covered in blood, barely able to walk. He had to be carried back," the white-haired ninja following behind whispered. He dared not speak loudly, because one of the three had overheard his brother talking about this and had been hung up and severely beaten; he still vividly remembered the horrific scene.
"Yes, I know. One of the two who went out with that adult today is my brother," Snow Ninja Ren, with her ponytail, whispered, turning around. She wore glasses and kept her voice very low. "He only had one opponent, a pink-haired girl."
"Girl?"
"That's right, around thirteen or fourteen years old. He severely injured that adult in just two moves, and I heard he even held back."
"Hey~~" The white-haired ninja shivered as if blown by a cold wind, his voice trembling, "Your girl, is she... is she green-eyed?"
"Huh, how... did you know?"
The ponytail-wearing ninja was startled and turned around, following the latter's trembling, raised arm—
"Yo~ Good evening!" A pretty girl with pink hair and green eyes stood in front of them and greeted them with a smile.
Thud, thud! Before the Snow Ninja could react, Naruto and Sasuke, who had appeared behind the two, each delivered a chop to the Snow Ninja, knocking them unconscious.
Caught the collapsed Snow Ninja and tossing them into a dark corner, Sasuke rolled his eyes at the girl. "Tsk, your perverse sense of humor... is really something! This will easily give us away!"
"We're already this far, it's impossible not to be exposed. The previous infiltration was just to conserve energy," Sakura said with a smile, shaking her head. Looking around, they had already penetrated deep into the castle, and they had already cleared out many patrols. The enemy was probably already on guard. "No need to waste time from here on out, let's launch a direct assault!"
"Good, it should have been done a long time ago!" "Hmph, just what I wanted!"
Just as Sakura had predicted, shortly after defeating the two Snow Ninja, alarms sounded in the castle, and squads of Snow Ninja began to gather and charge at the invaders. Then these weaklings were in deep trouble, getting beaten to a pulp by Fire Style Wind Release.
Previously, when Sakura and her friends were still playing the infiltration game, they could still show mercy when they encountered Snow Ninja, only knocking them unconscious and not killing them. Now that the two sides are clashing, Sasuke and Naruto can no longer hold back, especially Naruto, who, with his abundant Chakra, is at the forefront, throwing Wind Release one after another. Often, before the Snow Ninja can even react, he has already defeated them, leaving them in a rout and in disarray. The Snow Ninja are quickly left dead and wounded everywhere.
After defeating two more teams of Snow Ninja who came to meet them, the Snow Ninja base, which already had few people, was now almost empty. Some Snow Ninja had even begun to flee in panic. They didn't have time to stop them and headed straight for the core of the castle, advancing with unstoppable momentum.
Then, finally, they encountered an obstacle in an empty courtyard.
Ice Release: Swallow Snow Storm!
The Ninjutsu unleashed over a dozen massive ice darts, their ferocious force causing Team 7 to halt their advance for the first time since entering the castle.
Clang! Clang! After a few crisp sounds, Naruto and Sasuke, holding their Kunai, calmly deflected the incoming shuriken one by one.
Naruto and Sasuke, having long been accustomed to training and fighting, were no longer concerned about surprise attacks of this magnitude. However, the opposing ninja probably hadn't used their full strength either; this Ninjutsu was more like a dangerous warning.
"Yo~ the aura of this Ninjutsu... looks like we've finally met some opponents who aren't so weak!" Sakura, walking at the back of the group, looked at the three ninjas standing in front of them and said with a light laugh.
Standing in the courtyard before her were two men and a woman, all wearing the same armor as the Snow Ninja, Haku. Clearly, this was the person Team 7 was looking for. The tall ninja standing at the back was Kazahana Dōtō, and the man and woman guarding him in front were Fubuki Kakuyoku and Fuyukuma Mizore, two elite Snow Ninja.
"Pink hair, light green eyes... So you're the Konoha Ninja who severely injured Nadare Rōga?" The burly ninja standing at the back said with a gloomy expression.
His armor looked more complex and exquisite, and he exuded the aura of a superior who had long held a position of honor. His every move carried an annoying domineering air, and Sakura quickly realized that this was Kazahana Dōtō.
Kazahana Dōtō stared intently at Sakura, clearly wary of her Ninjutsu, especially the Water Release Ninjutsu that pierced through Nadare Rōga Avalanche's armor. However, judging from his choice to step forward and fight, he probably believed his armor was even more resilient; this ambitious fellow was clearly more confident in his own strength.
"Then, I presume you're that scumbag Kazahana Dōtō," Sakura sneered.
"You rude bastard!" The female ninja standing in front, Fubuki Kakuyoku, had the most impatient temper. Hearing Sakura's rude words, she shouted angrily. Her face, which was originally quite pretty, twisted into a furious grimace. Without hesitation, she Hand Seals and began to perform Ninjutsu.
Ice Release: Dragon-Shattering Fierce Tiger!
A large amount of Chakra rapidly condensed the ice and snow on the open ground into a giant tiger as tall as two people, which roared and charged towards the three members of Team 7.
This Ninjutsu forced Sakura Haruno Kazahana Dōtō to swallow back the words they were about to say, which they could have continued their verbal sparring, and incidentally kicked off the battle.
(This is the first update today. Future updates will tentatively be one in the morning and one in the evening.)
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