Lying sprawled across Ino Yamanaka's back, Ringo Ameyuri immediately understood everything.
It was... the Yamanaka Clan's Mind Transfer Jutsu.
That woman was probably finished.
"Fall back!!!"
Just then, a shout rang out.
After leaving behind several corpses, the Kirigakure ninja began to sound the retreat.
The Kirigakure ninja of the Bloody Mist, utterly devoid of teamwork, had faced Akira Sarutobi and Ruri Hyuga, who held an absolute advantage in this forest environment. In the end, they had been picked off one by one.
So... a more cautious approach became their new order.
The Kirigakure ninja formation began to contract.
Like sharks, they clung relentlessly to the rear of the group, constantly waiting for an opportunity to land a killing blow.
Thus, both groups slowed their movements, yet neither could widen the distance between them.
After rejoining the group, Akira Sarutobi looked to his side. "Ruri..."
"There are... thirty of them left in total."
The Byakugan girl spoke calmly.
Out of a forty-man team, ten had died, yet the remaining force was still remarkably large.
One had to know that in the original story, when Rin Nohara was kidnapped, sealed with the Three-Tails, and used to lure Obito into darkness, Kirigakure had only dispatched fifty elite ninja.
Clearly, there was another motive behind this.
Ringo Ameyuri's illness had made the Kirigakure higher-ups consider a change in leadership.
They had made plans for Raiga Kurosuki to become the next successor.
And they were looking for an opportunity to kill Ringo Ameyuri.
Some might wonder why the Kirigakure higher-ups did not simply kill Ringo Ameyuri directly and instead went through such trouble.
The answer was actually simple.
As always.
—They wanted to devour people, yet still pretended to be virtuous, too afraid to do it openly.
Five Seal Barrier!
After having Ruri, whose eyesight was the strongest, constantly monitor the enemy's movements.
Akira Sarutobi walked over.
On the grass, Ringo Ameyuri had been laid down, while Nonō was treating her.
As the Yang Release Chakra of Medical Ninjutsu entered her body and fed back its results, the situation proved far worse than Nonō had imagined.
"What is wrong with her?" Akira Sarutobi asked.
"It isn't a terminal illness..."
Nonō shook her head.
"It is simply that she delayed treatment for too long... Kirigakure ninja are like this. They will not reveal weakness before their colleagues..."
Nonō did not even use the word "companions."
Because for Bloody Mist ninja, there were no companions, only colleagues who worked together.
Stabbing each other in the back was commonplace.
Still... even their cannibalism had rules. They had to follow the rules for devouring people established by the Third Mizukage, or it would be considered a crime of defiance.
"Under those circumstances, with people watching her at every moment, that was probably... why she kept delaying treatment until she became critically ill."
If Ringo Ameyuri had formed a faction, or belonged to Kirigakure's upper class, it would have been different.
But according to the intelligence, Ringo Ameyuri had always been alone.
For someone fighting alone, one only needed to look at Hatake Sakumo to know what happened.
"Mm." Akira Sarutobi nodded. "Miss Nonō, if possible, sorry for the trouble, but please cure her."
Nonō was slightly stunned, then seemed to realize something. "Young Master Ryo, are you planning to make use of Kirigakure's internal conflict?"
Ino Yamanaka: "???"
Unlike Ino Yamanaka, who did not know much about Kirigakure, Akira Sarutobi and Nonō both understood what she meant.
One of Kirigakure's rules was this: if a former member of the Seven Ninja Swordsmen was still alive, the next successor had to kill them before truly inheriting the title of the Seven Ninja Swordsmen.
Nonō thought Akira Sarutobi intended to use Ringo Ameyuri as bait to provoke infighting among the enemy.
Once Ringo Ameyuri was cured, she and Raiga Kurosuki would inevitably fight to the death.
Because for Ringo Ameyuri, reclaiming her swords was something she had no choice but to do.
And for Raiga Kurosuki, only by killing Ringo Ameyuri could he take the seat of the next Seven Ninja Swordsmen.
They would tear each other apart while we reaped the benefits.
Akira Sarutobi did not explain Nonō's assumption.
The current situation was not suitable for saying openly that he wanted to change a tragedy and save this woman because he could not stand seeing loyal people persecuted.
The charge of colluding with the enemy was no small matter.
Besides...
Akira Sarutobi glanced at the weakened Ringo Ameyuri.
The system prompt was exceptionally clear.
[Mission Objective: Instill the Will of Fire into Ringo Ameyuri!] [Mission Reward: Possibility of Ice Release!]
"About how long will it take to cure her?" Akira Sarutobi asked directly.
"At least three days."
After hesitating for a moment, Nonō gave an estimated timeframe.
"Though even if she is initially cured by then, her combat ability will probably still be extremely weak..."
As she spoke, she looked again toward the other side of the forest.
The enemy was watching them like tigers eyeing prey and could charge over at any moment.
Once Raiga Kurosuki reacted, they would have to relocate, and the treatment would be delayed as well.
"Their target is Ringo Ameyuri, so have your people leave this place."
Akira Sarutobi casually said this to Nonō.
On the surface, it was to prevent Root's people from dying needlessly and wasting their lives.
In truth, he intended to send Root's people away so he could do certain things more conveniently.
"Retreat separately..." Nonō nodded without objection.
"As for our side, I will use a barrier to enclose this place..."
Akira Sarutobi took out five talismans.
Before Raiga Kurosuki could react, he would be able to set up the barrier.
Then, relying on the barrier's defensive power, they could hold out for a long time.
The moment Nonō saw the five talismans, her eyes lit up. "The Five Seal Barrier?!"
On the other side.
Raiga Kurosuki carried the captive as he slowly regrouped with his subordinates.
After hearing his subordinate's report, Raiga Kurosuki nodded. "In the forest..."
He stared into the distance, his gaze seeming to pierce through everything.
Then, Raiga Kurosuki's body began to tremble.
This strange behavior immediately caused the others to quietly step back.
Because...
"Wuu... wuuuuu..."
Raiga Kurosuki suddenly burst into tears, tears abruptly streaming from his eyes.
"Ringo Ameyuri, don't worry. I will hold a grand funeral for you!"
As he spoke, Raiga Kurosuki suddenly began to shake his shoulders and chuckle.
The crowd watched him cry and laugh, each wearing a different expression.
This was the Bloody Mist. This was the Village of Bloody Mist.
Under the Third Mizukage's oppressive policies, the emergence of lunatics and perverts was never rare.
For example, the Kaguya Clan were all battle-crazed maniacs.
There were also plenty of ninja in conditions similar to Raiga Kurosuki's.
"Lord Raiga, people from Konoha have begun to withdraw!"
At that moment, a subordinate responsible for scouting came to report.
After learning that Ringo Ameyuri had remained where she was, Raiga Kurosuki waved his hand, unconcerned about a few minor pawns fleeing. "Keep an eye on Ringo Ameyuri. Let me interrogate this captive first!"
Several figures sprinted rapidly through the forest.
Among them were Root ninja as well as Akira Sarutobi's Shadow Clones.
The five Shadow Clones each held one talisman as they rushed toward five directions in the forest.
Akira Sarutobi himself sat cross-legged on the ground, sensing the locations of the five talismans.
Once he confirmed that the five Shadow Clones had reached their designated locations, Akira Sarutobi began to perform the technique.
The five Shadow Clones simultaneously sensed a change in the Chakra Flow within the talismans in their hands.
Then, they all extended their hands and placed the talismans in locations they believed were the most concealed and difficult to discover.
"Barrier... activate!"
Bzz!
An invisible wave of Chakra swept over the area.
This scene was immediately noticed by Kirigakure's sensory ninja.
After all, the Chakra fluctuations triggered by activating a barrier were an exceptionally obvious sign.
"The Five Seal Barrier?"
Raiga Kurosuki frowned and looked into the depths of the forest.
White ripples visibly spread outward, ultimately forming a transparent, invisible barrier around the area.
Back when the Land of Whirlpools had been destroyed, a major reason was that the Uzumaki Clan's Fuinjutsu and Barrier Ninjutsu were incredibly troublesome.
Because barriers and seals had special functions and could usually be used by the weak to overcome the strong.
Yet most of the time, there was no good way to deal with them.
One could only wait for the barrier to disappear on its own, or expend tenfold, even dozens of times more power to break it through brute force, which was clearly not worth it.
Taking this into account, Kumogakure and Kirigakure had tacitly cooperated in the last great war to wipe out the Uzumaki Clan.
Before you continue