Flying Thunder God Second Step: Explosion
After easing the tension with a few words, Mokui and Kakashi fell silent. Zhu wasn't in good shape, and they couldn't afford to make a mistake and get entangled with the enemy.
What you fear most is what happens. The two teams were initially evenly matched, and the Stone Ninja couldn't catch up for a while, but the situation changed in the blink of an eye.
Kakashi and his two companions caught a glimpse of red in their peripheral vision. Turning their heads, they saw a massive fireball approaching, with a wave of heat hitting them first.
"This is bad, the enemy has reinforcements, or they might be reinforcements coming from nearby!"
In a moment of panic, Mokui pulled Zhu aside, and the three of them dodged to the side. The fireball grazed past them, but their rapid advance was interrupted.
The pursuers behind them were not about to let this opportunity pass, and they instantly accelerated and rushed forward, their formation gradually spreading out to form an encirclement.
"Lava Release: Scorching River Rock Technique!" The one who charged the fastest was a middle-aged man with a red ponytail and wearing a purple breastplate.
Several magma balls were spat out of his mouth, and Zhu's arm accidentally touched them, which shows how destructive they were.
"Water Release: Water Wall!" With Mokui temporarily unable to free his hands, Kakashi took the initiative to defend his teammate. The magma ball crashed into the water, making a hissing sound as it vaporized. When it flew out, it had turned into a large rock, which Kakashi, who had observed its flight trajectory, easily dodged.
However, the situation was very unfavorable for the Konoha Anbu. The Stone Ninja missed their Ninjutsu twice in a row, but they had already surrounded them.
"Looks like I've arrived just in time, Roshi." A muscular middle-aged ninja leaped out from the direction of the giant fireball. Judging from his tone, he had an unexpectedly good relationship with the Jinchuriki, Roshi.
"Kawaishi, why didn't you come sooner? I'm going to kill them all today!" Roshi said angrily. "Kiyochiro was ambushed and killed by them. This revenge cannot go unavenged!"
Kawaishi knew that Kiyochiro was an admirer of Roshi and had even mastered the basics of Lava Release, making him one of Rōshi's most valued juniors. However, Roshi was now killed by Konoha Ninja, which naturally enraged him.
"Then let's go together!"
In the arena, six Stone Ninja launched a continuous offensive. Although it wasn't a positional siege, it still left Kakashi and his two companions in a very difficult situation. They used the complex terrain of the forest to circle around the enemy, but they were often attacked by Ninjutsu and ninja tools from several directions.
With Zhu unable to Hand Seals, he and Mokui had to take turns blocking, which quickly depleted a large amount of chakra.
"This can't go on. I'll hold them off for a bit, and you two can escape while I do!" Zhu swung his sword with one hand, knocking away several ninja tools, but quite a few Kunai still managed to pierce his body. The bleeding further aggravated his physical exhaustion, and he had decided to sacrifice himself to create an opportunity for his teammates to break through.
"Let me try first." Kakashi interrupted him. Although the Sharingan combined with Chidori could instantly drain his energy, there was no other way in this desperate situation. He had no choice but to risk everything.
Mokui remained silent, but his body continued to generate chakra. Even if it meant their own death, the Konoha Anbu would make the enemy pay the price.
He had just jumped down from the tree trunk when he heard a whooshing sound. Facing the enemy's Fire Release attack, he didn't choose to dodge this time. Instead, he quickly Hand Seals and slammed his hands on the ground, shouting, "Earth Release: Earth Pillar!"
The two Iwa Stone Ninja who were in hot pursuit did not expect their opponent to forcibly use Ninjutsu. As they ran, their feet suddenly shook violently, and the ground instantly rose up. They lost their balance as they rushed over there.
"Splat splat..."
Kakashi charged forward like an arrow released from a bow, his right hand crackling with lightning, and in the blink of an eye, he was in front of the two. "Chidori!"
"So fast!" A Stone Ninja looked up and stared wide-eyed in disbelief as his chest was pierced through. Kakashi, having already taken down one person, didn't stop and quickly turned to attack the second person next to him. His chakra was almost depleted.
"You wretched brat, die!" Roshi was about to go berserk.
As Jinchuriki, he was not well-liked in the village, and most people around him looked at him with fear. These team members were his only friends over the years, but now they had been killed by Konoha.
Knowing that Kakashi was agile and that his ranged attacks were hard to hit, Roshi's entire body surged with high-temperature molten lava, and he accelerated towards him.
"Tear!" Kakashi's stamina was slightly exhausted, and the momentum he used to kill the first person was not enough to kill the second person in one strike. He only managed to tear a gash in the abdomen.
Seeing Roshi use Lava Release Chakra Mode to close the distance, he could only try his best to jump backward, but his legs gave way upon landing, and he almost sat down. "Oh no, I'm getting weak..."
"Drink!" Roshi didn't stop. A long trail of charred footprints covered the grass in the arena. He turned around and relentlessly chased after Kakashi, ready to melt him in the next moment.
"Brush!"
At the critical moment, a figure flashed and stood in front of Kakashi, while Roshi couldn't stop at all, and didn't even want to stop, as the Lava Release would devour everything in front of him... Boom!
"Great Ball Rasengan!"
He was greeted by a huge, spinning sphere of light. The other party deliberately avoided his head, but he had no time to think about this strange phenomenon. He was propelled by a tremendous force and spun backward, flying dozens of meters away.
Seeing that many large trees in front of him had been cleared away, Kakashi leaned back and braced himself with his hands on the ground, panting heavily, "You came just in time..."
"Yeah, I'm so sorry to see you looking so tired as soon as I get here." Shuichi calmly clapped his hands. "Every time you finish a battle, you have to lie down for a week. I'd call you 'Week-One Cardiotonic'."
"Mokui..."
"I see it; it's so dark it looks almost like a wild boar."
Several Stone Ninja stopped in shock when they saw Roshi being sent flying by the terrifying attack. They didn't recognize the newcomer, but Kawaishi reacted quickly, realizing that this must be reinforcements from Konoha.
Now is not the time to be timid. He charged towards Mokui, who had been hit by Fire Release, intending to kill one of them as quickly as possible.
"Whoosh!"
Shuichi turned around and threw out a Senbon, with his own magic formula bound to it. This kind of thing could fly faster than Kunai and was also more concealed.
Kawaishi was quite skilled. He caught a glimpse of Senbon's movement out of the corner of his eye, and ducked low to avoid it while running. He also prepared to take care of the Mokui on the ground.
"Brush!"
Almost simultaneously, a figure appeared overhead. Shuichi had already gathered Explosion Release chakra in his hand before activating the Flying Thunder God, then teleported over and threw a punch downwards. "My Explosion Release is simpler and more convenient than the Rasengan. This is the Flying Thunder God Second Step Technique, something you've never seen before!"
"Boom!"
Still enduring the burning pain, Mokui was suddenly hit in the face by smoke and dust, nearly scared to death. "Damn it!"
This guy, Kawaishi, practically ran right up to him and exploded. Next time, could he please not take things so risky?
Shuichi caught the Senbon as it fell from the sky with a thud, looked around, and laughed, "This Fire Release gave you a full-body hair removal treatment, completely free of charge. Wouldn't it be a bit unfair to just blow it to ash?"
Mokui: "..."