Rasa vs. Nightshade: Ankoku

Soon, the group arrived at the location of the wooden crate.

After dispelling the sealing technique and making a simple comparison, they were pleasantly surprised to find that these two children were indeed the mission targets.

Although all four felt something was off about this, no matter what scheme the enemy had in mind, they couldn't abandon the children.

Just then, they suddenly felt a faint tremor coming from the ground.

And as time passed, this shaking sensation grew more and more pronounced.

After a moment of silence, Ankoku suddenly spoke to Kyosuke: "Snake, you and Lin take the children back to the village. Nightshade and I will stay behind to hold them off."

Hearing Ankoku say this, Lin opened her mouth to refuse, but when she saw the scene behind her, the words died in her throat.

A "sand wave" dozens of meters high, composed entirely of gold sand, was bearing down on them like a tidal wave.

Wherever this sand wave passed, countless trees and boulders were swept up and swallowed, vanishing without a trace.

The ground tremors they'd felt earlier came from this.

Seeing this, Kyosuke understood that an opponent of this caliber was far beyond what he could handle at his current level.

So, like the silent Lin, he could only nod to Ankoku and Nightshade before turning and quickly retreating.

Ankoku withdrew his gaze from their retreating figures, turned to Nightshade, and smiled: "They should make it back to Konoha safely, right?"

Nightshade watched the oncoming "giant wave," his right hand resting on his sword hilt, and replied with a grin: "Not necessarily."

"So."

"We need to finish off the enemy quickly, then go protect them!"

"Damn it, Black Zetsu, what other schemes do you have?" Kyosuke suppressed the unease in his heart as he and Lin sprinted toward the Land of Rain.

Because Kyosuke felt Black Zetsu wouldn't let them go so easily—he must have other plans.

Moreover, this place was far too distant from Konoha, with too many opportunities for accidents along the way. So after a brief discussion with Lin, they decided to head for the Land of Rain.

There, a contingent of Konoha ninjas led by Orochimaru was stationed.

Only by reaching that point would they be truly safe.

Even so, Kyosuke felt this wasn't enough insurance.

Because if Black Zetsu truly intended to hunt them down, no amount of hiding would let them escape his pursuit.

So he used the Summoning Technique again, briefly described his current situation, then dismissed it, sending the small snake back to Ryūchi Cave.

This way, Orochimaru would learn of his predicament immediately and rush to support him.

This method was usually used for discussing experiment issues between them; Kyosuke never thought it might become his lifeline.

But even if Orochimaru came at full speed, it would take at least half a day to rendezvous with them.

And within that half-day, they would be at their most dangerous.

An attack could come at any moment.

"Water Release: Water Bullet!"

With Ankoku's roar, the countless water droplets floating in the air suddenly shot toward Rasa like bullets.

This water release technique was the Second Hokage's signature move, and Danzo had rewarded it to Ankoku after he completed an S-rank mission.

Facing Ankoku's overwhelming assault, Rasa merely smiled and wrapped himself and his allies in layers of gold sand.

Though the defensive gold sand cracked and shattered in places, it ultimately withstood the technique.

To be fair, in terms of defensive power, gold sand was far superior to Gaara's sand.

If Gaara were here, a single layer of sand wouldn't have been enough to fully block this attack.

However, while gold sand's defense far exceeded ordinary sand, it lagged behind in flexibility and agility of control.

Especially against speed-oriented ninjas, its weakness became glaring.

Like now, with Nightshade already in front of Rasa.

"Konoha-Style Swordsmanship: Willow!!!"

As Nightshade's blade swayed, countless sword shadows filled the air, looking at first glance like countless willow branches drifting in the wind.

At the same time, his figure flickered slightly and vanished completely.

Rasa and his companions stared at the swaying willow branches overhead, their minds briefly wavering before snapping back to alertness.

But that single moment of distraction was enough to make them victims of Nightshade's blade.

Except for Rasa, who barely survived thanks to his Sand Armor.

"You're quite good." Rasa said coldly, then directed his gold sand to surge and envelop Nightshade.

Normally, with Nightshade's speed, such an attack was beneath his notice.

Even if he couldn't close in on Rasa through speed alone, escaping would still be easy.

But he had already used this energy-draining Phantom Body Technique twice today, and now, due to exhaustion, he was a beat slow in dodging, allowing Rasa's attack to land unexpectedly.

Seeing this, Rasa wasted no time in unleashing his jutsu.

"Magnet Release: Crystal Crush."

The Gold Sand encasing Nightshade suddenly contracted with violent force, crushing inward against his body.

"AHHH!!!" Nightshade's screams echoed endlessly through the forest, and Ankoku, who was preparing a ninjutsu, gritted his teeth hard.

Unfortunately, Ankoku's technique still needed some time to complete, so he could only steel himself and ignore his companion's cries.

After all, this ninjutsu was still quite taxing for Ankoku to use at his current level.

Finally, after a little more time, his technique was ready.

As Ankoku released his ninjutsu, a rising column of water suddenly shot up from beneath Rasa, launching him high into the air.

At the same time, a massive Water Vortex began to slowly form below Rasa.

"Wait." Lin, who had been running, suddenly stopped in her tracks.

She raised a hand to halt Kyosuke as well, then shoved the Wooden Crate she was carrying into his arms, leaving him looking confused.

Seeing her action, Kyosuke's heart sank.

Just as he was about to ask what was going on, the figure that appeared ahead shoved all the words he wanted to say back down his throat.

"Scorch Release: Pakura." Kyosuke muttered quietly, pushing the crate behind him as he prepared to face the powerful enemy alongside Lin.

"You go first. If you stay here, she'll kill you." Lin stared at the enemy, speaking without turning her head.

"Heh, if I just ran off like that, you'd be the one dying, you know." Kyosuke chuckled, then looked at the silent enemy before them and added, "Besides, she's no Rasa. She doesn't have the strength to make me run."

"...Tsk. If your actual skill were even half as sharp as your mouth, we wouldn't be running today." She paused for a moment after hearing Kyosuke's words, then finally spoke slowly, stabbing him with another jab.

"..." Kyosuke stared seriously at Pakura, acting as if he hadn't heard Lin at all.