Pursuit

Shuichi's expression turned serious. Several thoughts flashed through his mind before he directly reassured Inoue Danza, "Don't worry, Uncle Danza, we'll definitely get your goods back."

After saying that, he flashed back to Orochimaru's side. "Sensei, it seems the enemy's target isn't me, but you. Should I go after them now?"

Orochimaru remained relaxed, and after hearing his words, he chuckled, "Be confident. The enemy's target is you. The chances of anyone else knowing what happened and me leaving are extremely slim. If they're going to chase after you, it'll definitely be you. If you're sure you're okay with it, you can go check it out."

Shuichi thought about it carefully for a while. If the Kage from another village were to come and kill him, it would be a pointless move. In addition, the other party had attacked the caravan first, so there were probably local thugs from the Daimyo's Mansion or black market Bounty Hunter from the Land of Fire among them.

"Then I'll go. Just in case, I'll trouble you to cover me."

Having these people following us along the way isn't a good idea; we might as well take this opportunity to wipe them all out.

After learning that he had a bounty on his head, Shuichi researched what other methods he could use besides Flash in a crisis, and he remembered the Reverse Summoning Technique from the original work.

After questioning Orochimaru, it was discovered that this kind of operation could not be performed in Ryūchi Cave at the moment, because Orochimaru had not yet entered the true Ryūchi Cave White Snake Sage's abode.

Only high-level Summoning Beast or even sages from the Three Great Sage Lands who can independently Hand Seals and release Ninjutsu can use this technique, and transmitting the message is also a troublesome matter.

Therefore, the solution in case of an emergency is for Shuichi or Orochimaru to summon a large snake, then run into the snake's belly and return to Ryūchi Cave together, and then spend a long time returning to Konoha from Ryūchi Cave.

Considering that they could use the Flash in their own system, Shuichi and Orochimaru discussed it and then used a Body Flicker Technique to chase after them.

The enemy who stole the valuable goods made no attempt to conceal their movements, fleeing in the direction from which the arrows and Kunai come from, located to the side of the caravan's route. After passing through a stretch of sparse woods with a wide view, Shuichi returned to the area that had been densely forested earlier.

A little earlier in time, after observing the caravan emerge from the edge of the jungle, Harukura and his men immediately signaled to Nichito and his group, who were not far away, and then made their move at the agreed time.

The pre-determined strategy was executed perfectly; now it's up to the two targets to decide their choices.

The best-case scenario is that they abandon the pursuit of the thieves, Orochimaru comes after them directly, or Takeda Shuichi alone.

"Boss, I have a bad feeling about this! What if Orochimaru catches up with us and we're doomed?" one of Harukura's men asked anxiously.

Before taking action, he specifically inquired about the Konoha Sannin. After seeing their achievements in the Second Great Ninja War, he panicked. He figured that if their team were discovered, they would be doomed, and escape would be a pipe dream.

Harukura also somewhat helpless. "There's nothing we can do. The Wildfire Group has already set its sights on us, so we can only keep a close watch. If Orochimaru comes, it's said that the Wildfire Group's leader will step in to distract him. If not, we'll run away immediately, and we'll have to abandon the Daimyo's Mansion's forces."

"Gu Hui, how is the situation?"

Gu Hui was the retired ninja from Valley Ninja Village who had been mocked by Nichito earlier. He was very skilled in using a monocular telescope for reconnaissance, and at this moment he was keeping a close eye on the direction of the caravan.

"Things are going relatively smoothly. Ryosuke has been rushing this way at full speed, and no one from the other side is chasing us yet. The worst-case scenario hasn't happened."

"Phew... that's good!" Harukura breathed a sigh of relief. He was most afraid that Orochimaru would rush over and kill Ryosuke without saying a word. "This batch of supplies really helped a lot. If Orochimaru had done that, Ryosuke might have been torn to pieces along with these guys. It seems that the other side still wants to complete the mission perfectly."

"Here they come, boss! It's Takeda Shuichi!" Gu Hui had been keeping an eye on the caravan, and when he saw Shuichi rushing towards them, he immediately reported to Harukura.

"Alright!" Harukura immediately tied the blue cloth strip to an arrow and shot it towards the Wildfire Group. "Our mission is complete. Now let's run a little further away."

"Gu Hui, you keep an eye on the caravan. We'll go in another direction. If Orochimaru leaves later, we'll rob the caravan immediately. You all know which items are the most valuable, right? After we rob them, we'll scatter and escape back to the Daimyo's Mansion."

The Wildfire Group members waited quietly and subdued. Upon seeing the blue signal arrow, Nichito spoke up, "It's Takeda Shuichi. We need to move out immediately."

"Raiya, are you really not going to tell everyone whether the leader has arrived or not? What if something unexpected happens?"

Several members of the Wildfire Group looked at a cold-faced man beside them. After all, the man opposite them was Orochimaru, one of the Sannin. Although their leader was stronger than them, they had never fought him before and were all unsure of their strength.

"The leader arrived long ago, you don't need to ask any more questions." Raiya's tone was somewhat sinister. "If Orochimaru catches up, just scatter and escape as agreed."

Hearing this, the group didn't ask any further questions for the time being, but they reminded themselves to be careful and to leave immediately if things looked bad.

Five men with Black Flames tattoos sprang into action, Ryosuke at top speed.

At the edge of the jungle, Ryosuke, carrying a box on his back, was running for his life. Harukura told him that friendly forces would be there to meet him up ahead.

"Closer, closer." Ryosuke stepped into the dense jungle and soon saw several people rushing towards him.

"Great, I've finally waited for you..."

As soon as they got close, two members of the Wildfire Group attacked. One of them used a steel claw to slash at Ryosuke, while the other threw out an iron chain to bind him tightly.

"Damn it, you tricked me Harukura..." The Ryosuke's mind before his skull was pierced by steel claws. "I'll never be a lackey again in my next life..."

"Let's keep the body with us for now, otherwise our mission will be exposed."

The Wildfire Group members, wielding chains, lifted Ryosuke's body, while Nichito transformed into Ryosuke's appearance, carrying the box alone. "Go to the vicinity of the agreed-upon location. You guys, don't expose yourselves. I hope everything goes smoothly."

Nichito controlled his speed and continued running in the direction Ryosuke had originally gone, while the others hurried along the other side at an even faster pace.

When Shuichi caught up, he was unaware that the enemy had changed. After entering the jungle, he saw that the enemy's route of movement had not changed, and he knew that the enemy probably wanted to ambush him in one place.

Although he was confident in his abilities, he wasn't arrogant. "Shadow Clone Jutsu!"

After the Shadow Clone, it understood the original's intention without needing to say anything. It continued to chase after the tracks under its feet, and the original followed after a while.

"Swish, swish..."

In the forests on the border of the Land of Iron, a place usually sparsely populated, a chilling atmosphere pervaded the air, and several figures could be seen moving rapidly from above.