Battle at the Supply Station

"Fire Style: Phoenix Sage Fire Technique"

Small flames flew out, not attacking in one direction, but like the fruits of the balsam flower, they flew along different trajectories, landing on wooden boxes and shelves, igniting all the flammable materials in the warehouse. The orange-red flames quickly merged into one, and in just two or three seconds, the warehouse was engulfed by raging flames.

"The destructive power of Fire Style is still so strong!"

A gasp escaped Nawaki's lips, his round face glowing red in the Kakkō, and a longing for the flames could be seen in his eyes.

"Katsuki, do you know? My grandfather once said that Fire Style is the king of destruction among the Five Great Nature Transformations. No other Ninjutsu can destroy matter as thoroughly as Fire Style. Wind Release Technique can't do it, and neither can Lightning Release Technique."

Katsuki was a little confused. Wasn't your grandfather the First Hokage? Why did you suddenly bring such a great figure out of the shrine? What's with this sentimental stuff? I didn't realize this kid had this kind of artsy temperament.

"Hmm... I do think that Senbon can kill, and a tachi can kill. Although the methods are different, as long as the desired result is achieved, there's no need to be fixated on the differences in means."

Katsuki couldn't figure out what Nawaki Shu was up to, so she carefully chose her words and said a few sentences.

"... That makes sense, no... sorry, I was a little distracted."

Nawaki snapped out of her daze, her face turning even redder, like a fiery sunset, so ashamed she wished she could disappear into a crack in the ground.

"Oh, no..."

"Bang! Bang!"

Two explosions followed in quick succession, the resulting shockwaves spreading like a passing tornado. Within Katsuki's sensing range, of the Six Paths Chakra from the two squads that attacked the Sand Village barracks, two were extinguished in an instant, and the remaining four Chakra streams weakened considerably, like candles flickering in the wind, barely clinging to life.

The barracks had been torn up and turned into a white wasteland.

Broken bricks and tiles flew freely in the air, while on the ground, everyone on the Konoha Village side was injured and retreated desperately.

With no time to tease Nawaki, her heart leaped into her throat. Veins bulged on the back of Katsuki's hand like snakes, and silvery-white lightning danced across the blade. Then, she pounced like a wolf.

Something went wrong!

The moment the barracks exploded, those with sharp minds knew something had gone wrong.

Fortunately, they were not unprepared. They had made sufficient mental preparations before taking action. No one was sure if there was a powerful dragon hiding in this small supply station. Things that seemed impossible and people that were impossible to encounter happened unexpectedly.

The probability of this happening is relatively small, but it's not impossible.

Not to mention they're now on Sunagakure territory, so being extra cautious isn't an overreaction.

Therefore, before taking action, they had planned how to deal with the situation if the Sand Village had hidden skilled fighters in the supply depot.

The strategy was simple: charge in together and gang up on them—it was so brutal it was utterly ruthless.

However, there was no other way. Not to mention that they had a mission and could not retreat casually, this was Sand Village territory. Unless they could quickly retreat back to Konoha's occupied territory, retreating would mean facing a relentless pursuit by Sand Village ninja.

To avoid the worst-case scenario, they must kill all the Sand Ninja they encounter in order to conceal their whereabouts as much as possible.

"Katsuki, be careful!"

With a shout, Nawaki rushed after Katsuki.

"Brothers, let's go together and kill that turban guy!"

Hoshio called to his two teammates to move together, their target being the large Sand Ninja who was attacking Kikuchi and Koizumi's teams.

He was estimated to be about 1.9 meters tall, with slightly dark skin, a large white turban wrapped around his head, and a bluish stubble on his face. With his fierce eyes, he looked exactly like a ruthless bandit.

Moreover, the strength displayed by the Sand Ninja did not disappoint their fierce appearance. They single-handedly forced Kikuchi, Kikuchi, and the Koizumi three to retreat step by step. Their two narrow Wakizashi, with pale blue wind auras covering their blades, spun like two large blue wheels. Although it was not enough to kill someone who touched them, the terrifying cutting power of the Wind Release Chakra was enough to make people afraid to confront them head-on.

If Fire Style is the most destructive of the Five Great Nature Transformations, then Wind Release is unparalleled in its cutting power.

The bodies of the two Konoha Ninja lying on the ground were unrecognizable; only a pile of mangled limbs and severed bodies lay in a pool of blood, a scene of extreme gore.

Kikuchi, Koizumi, and the other three were quite strong, but they were still overwhelmed by the opponent alone because they were too close together. The opponent's close-combat Wind Release Technique suppressed them, and those two Wakizashi were too sharp.

"Ugh!! I hate Wind Release the most."

With a vicious click of her tongue, Katsuki jogged past Kikuchi, who was constantly retreating and dodging, and braced her short Wakizashi.

"Snip! Snip!"

The moment the blades clashed, the azure wind instantly obliterated the white lightning. The elemental advantage between them was brought to its extreme in that instant. Fortunately, the short sword was a renowned blade of excellent quality, and it wasn't cut in two.

The standard Kunai used by the Sand Ninja that Katsuki had killed earlier was sliced open by him.

It is evident that a superior ninja tool can significantly enhance one's strength.

"Playing with Lightning Release? Kid, you're out of luck."

The Sand Ninja grinned, seemingly smiling. A single exchange was enough to reveal a lot. The Sand Ninja's initial anger and frustration at being ambushed eased somewhat.

Wind Release Technique is effective against Lightning Release Technique.

However, the vast majority of Sand Ninja never experience the thrill of elemental advantage in their entire lives. Instead, they are often beaten up by Konoha's Fire Style. This is because the Cloud Ninja and Sand Ninja are too far apart; the two ninja villages are completely unrelated.

This is one of the reasons why the Cloud Ninja developed such a high level of aggression. There was no other way; they were surrounded by neighbors, Stone Ninja, needless to say, were strong against Earth. Usually, the Stone Ninja would be beaten up by the enemy. This led to the Stone Ninja later ambushing and killing the Third Raikage at great cost, thus creating a deep-seated grudge between the two sides.

Katsuki isn't Cloud Ninja, but he's also skilled in Lightning Release Technique. Now that he's run into a Sand Ninja who specializes in Wind Release Technique, it can only be described as bad luck.

The Sand Ninja's twin swords attacked fiercely, the wind swirling around the blades whistling, forcing Katsuki to focus solely on defense, leaving her no time to counterattack.

There was nothing he could do; his opponent's Wind Release Technique was extremely advanced, severely suppressing his Lightning Release Technique. He could only rely on his enhanced abilities and the Sand Ninja's entanglement while waiting for his comrades behind him to enter the fray.

As for Fugaku, I'm not holding out much hope for now.

From the fact that he didn't immediately eliminate the Sand Ninja guarding the granary, and from sensing the mixed and tangled Chakra fluctuations inside the granary, he knew he had encountered a tough opponent. Here, they would have to figure out a way on their own.