Ambush
On the Land of Fire Border, in the central plains bordering the Land of Rivers, lies a large desert region.
In the desert, sparse, low grasses can be seen occasionally on both sides of the wide road, and bare rocks dozens of meters high stretch endlessly all around, with almost no sign of human habitation.
A gentle breeze blew by, stirring up a small amount of dust.
A figure burst forth, cutting through the sandstorm, his movements rapid, his legs swinging at a high frequency as he ran, as if something dangerous was chasing him.
Swish swish...
Not long after he passed by, two black dots indeed appeared from a distance. A magpie was basking in the sun on a rock and looked in the direction of the sound.
In the field of vision, two small dots kept getting bigger.
As they drew closer, it became clear that they were a group of young ninjas, wearing green vests and Konoha Forehead Protector.
As it flashed past it, it created a whooshing sound, its black hair fluttering in the wind.
If someone were to look at them from the front, they would surely be amazed by their exquisite appearance. If all ninjas looked like this, actors would probably all be out of a job!
Especially the slightly shorter boy with shoulder-length hair... his gentle and beautiful smile could make any yaoi fan swoon, and even turn a straight man gay...
"Brother Itachi, I'm sorry, I went too soft again." His white cheeks flushed slightly as he turned his head to look at her, saying, "If I had been more careful, that person probably wouldn't have escaped."
Itachi's expression remained unchanged as he calmly analyzed, "No, that guy is hiding his strength. Judging from his speed, he doesn't seem like an ordinary Chunin. I don't know why he's mixed in with a group of missing-nin."
"I see." Bai breathed a sigh of relief, then his eyes slowly narrowed. "Then we need to be careful. His escape route seems to have a clear direction, and there might be accomplices lying in ambush."
"Hmm, let's hurry up!" Itachi's chakra exploded beneath his feet. "If we go another 3 kilometers or so, the terrain will become more complicated. Let's try to stop him before then."
"Okay!" Bai quickly followed, smiling as he said, "After completing this task, we can go back to the village. A new honey dumpling shop recently opened. I remember you love sweets, Brother Itachi, so I'll treat you then..."
The afterimages of the two figures gradually lengthened as they continued to chase after the fleeing people ahead.
A moment later, the sky suddenly darkened.
They ran into a magnificent-looking Gobi valley. Looking ahead, the vast road stretched for an unknown length, and dozens of meters above them were hollowed-out stone crevices of varying sizes.
The sunlight slanted down, casting countless patches of light and shadow on the ground. The crisp sound of ninjas running echoed in the huge passage, but they remained unmoved by such a beautiful sight.
Itachi frowned slightly, his Three-Tomoe Sharingan straining forward. Although he found nothing unusual, he silently pulled out a Kunai and threw it at a spot on the rock wall to his side and behind him.
Sizzle!
The Kunai's tip was firmly embedded in the rock, and its appearance was unremarkable, except that the handle was wrapped with a talisman engraved with Gunbai pattern—exactly the same as the Uchiha Clan crest.
Bai saw his actions but said nothing. His Senior Brother was meticulous; such a pursuit deep into dangerous territory would surely leave behind the Flying Thunder God Mark beforehand to ensure an easy retreat in case of an accident.
"It seems the enemy is just ahead..."
Haku should keep his eyes fixed on the target and immediately focus his attention. Itachi's Flying Thunder God Technique doesn't cover a very long distance, so the timing of its deployment needs to be carefully chosen.
Even if they could launch a backup plan, they didn't want the mission to fail. So, his actions at this moment indicated that the estimated battle location was approaching...
Half a minute ago, the figure sprinted along the valley passage, turning a corner and temporarily disappearing from the sight of the two Konoha members.
"They followed us, and although they seem quite strong, their actions were reckless."
The fugitive Chizo, leaped in front of the group, a slight smile playing on his lips. "Lord Scorpion, you're overestimating them. They're just two immature brats."
In the arena, four people dressed in different ways stood in front of a fat, black-robed monster, their Forehead Protector that they were all regular ninjas from Sunagakure!
Hearing his words, Razo, a middle-aged man with colorful tattoos on his face, sneered, "A guy from a small ninja village, so ignorant. That Uchiha Itachi is a disciple of the Fifth Hokage; don't let him hold us back in the battle."
"What? You..." Chizo's expression changed, and he wanted to retort, but was immediately interrupted by a hoarse, deep voice.
"Shut up, all of you! If you utter another word, I'll turn you into puppets forever!"
Scorpion sneered, then glanced at Razo with his eyes. "Are you saying this to demoralize people? It seems you're quite dissatisfied with me."
"You... you're joking." Razo's forehead was covered in cold sweat. "With Lord Sasori personally taking action, even Hokage's disciple should be a piece of cake. As long as we kill them, Konoha won't be able to trace it back to us."
"Hmph, good to know. But anyone who tries to run away should know the consequences."
After speaking, Scorpion's figure slowly retreated into the darkness.
Seeing this, Razo felt as if he had swallowed a fly, and inwardly he sneered:
"The rumors on the black market are definitely true. Sasori of the Red Sands was once beaten and forced to flee in a sorry state by the Purple Aurora. Now he doesn't dare to cause trouble for the Hokage, but instead seeks revenge on his disciple. The so-called genius Puppeteer of Sunagakure is nothing but a coward."
Despite their thoughts, they were all controlled by Scorpion's Fuinjutsu and poison. Resisting would surely mean certain death, so they were forced to act as cannon fodder to draw enemy fire.
"Even if Uchiha Itachi is a disciple of the Hokage, a prodigy, his current strength shouldn't be too great..." Razo secretly analyzed, "After all, there's only one Purple Aurora..."
Swoosh, swoosh.
Before their thoughts could settle, two figures suddenly appeared before them—the two Konoha members they were targeting.
The two sides faced off in silence for a brief moment. Chizo, as if burying his head in the sand, stood at the back of the group, while Razo wore an extremely friendly expression.
"Gentlemen from Konoha, what brings you here? This area falls within the Land of Land of Rivers, and according to the treaty between our two countries..."
Whoosh!
Before he could finish speaking, Itachi attacked without hesitation.
Several Shuriken flew out at the same time, and the body followed, the Hand Seals were so fast that they were almost invisible, Shuriken Shadow Clone Technique!
"Do it!"
Razo's expression remained unchanged. After giving the order, he immediately moved his fingers, and a hideous puppet, half the height of a person, jumped out from his back, its various mechanical parts clicking and clacking.
The puppet's jaw suddenly slammed open, unleashing a barrage of fine, needle-like hairs at Itachi and Haku.
Knowing his opponent was Hokage disciple, Chizo quickly put aside his displeasure and stepped forward. They were all just pitiful pawns of Sasori; only by defeating their opponent could they have a chance to survive.
Earth Release · Earth Style: Earth Flow Wall!
Sizzle sizzle--
The earthen wall was densely covered with Shuriken, and the few people under protection weren't idle either, throwing Kunai with Explosive Tag hanging from them diagonally upwards.
Hiss... Rumble rumble...
The hollowed-out, century-old wind-blown rock shattered and, under the influence of Gravity, continued to fall, crashing down on the heads of the two Konoha members.
Faced with the enemy's multi-faceted counterattack, Itachi gave a wink to the side, and Haku, who was perfectly in sync with him, instantly understood. The two of them simultaneously used Body Flicker Technique to jump to the side, easily dodging the onslaught of Hidden Weapons and falling rocks.
Click!
As soon as he landed, Bai was ready. He puffed out his cheeks, turned his head, and spat out Wind Blade several meters long: Wind Release: Vacuum Wave!
"Watch out, get down!" Razo shouted.
Whoosh... Tear! The Wind Blade smoothly sliced through the Earth Style: Earth Flow Wall, the terrifying destructive power sending chills down Razo and the others' spines.
Only one guy reacted a little slower, and in his shock, he immediately lost his entire lower body. His screams echoed throughout the valley, and he fell silent shortly afterward.
"Damn it, Uchiha Itachi's comrades are so strong." Razo's expression was grim.
He bent down and waved his hands, causing the second puppet, hidden on the other side and preparing to launch a sneak attack, to reveal four long swords and rush past him towards the two Konoha members.
"My ambush failed. They attacked without hesitation and then retreated to safety. It's possible their Sharingan spotted my Chakra Threads. This is really troublesome..."
Click click click--
As the ferocious puppet hurtled towards him from mid-air, Itachi lowered his center of gravity and gripped the hilt of his sword with his left hand.
His eyes, each containing Three-Tomoe stare, darted past the puppet, fixing on Razo hand behind the Chakra Threads. "Puppeteer? This one's a close-combat type, so..."
Swish!
Seizing the moment when the opponent's fingers moved, Itachi charged towards the puppet with lightning speed, his Wind Release Katana, being drawn at breakneck speed.
With a snap, as if a silver light had slashed through the air, the puppet didn't even have time to attack before being sliced in two by the incredibly sharp strike.
The remaining parts were still in the inertial gliding phase, and the moving joints were pierced by numerous Senbon, rendering them completely unusable.
"How is that possible?" Razo's expression suddenly changed.
The two from Konoha reacted too quickly, and their chakra techniques were equally exquisite. It would be extremely difficult to deal with even one of these masters, let alone two with perfect teamwork.
"Is this the strength of Hokage's disciple? If Sasori doesn't make a move, we won't be able to hold out for much longer..."
"Hah!" Two teammates shouted, drawing their swords to meet the oncoming Uchiha Itachi. Protecting the Puppeteer from close combat was indeed the right thing to do, but only if they could withstand the attack.
Ding ding ding--
Itachi wielded his swords with incredible speed and skill, holding his own against two Chunin renowned for their swordsmanship.
The clash of blades lasted less than a breath. Razo had barely begun controlling the remaining puppets when the scene before the two Chunin shifted. The world seemed to consist only of those blood-red eyes. "Genjutsu..."
Tear!
Itachi's two precise slashes struck, and both men collapsed, blood gushing from their wounds.
He remained calm as he observed the ranged puppet, ready to dodge at any moment.
If the opponent misses again with this attack, the Puppeteer who gets close will be a lamb to the slaughter.
Seeing that the situation was not good, Chizo formed Hand Seals on the ground, Earth Release: Rock Pillar Spear!
Several ground spikes arched up in succession, and together with Razo's puppet, a volley of flying knives was launched, finally forcing Itachi to retreat in Body Flicker Technique.
As Chizo was performing his Ninjutsu, a thick, Ice Crystal Whip suddenly appeared on his side, its tip resembling a snake's head spitting out a cone, twisting nimbly as it tracked and stabbed.
Ice Release: Poison Dragon Drill!
Pfft!
"Ice... ice..." Chizo stared wide-eyed at the hole piercing his chest, unable to utter another word, before collapsing backward with a thud.
Seeing that Haku's Ninjutsu had succeeded, Itachi no longer hesitated.
With his exceptional Dynamic Vision, he easily dodged several poison needles, circled around to reach Razo, and unleashed a lightning-fast strike.
Wind Release chakra landed on his shoulder, slicing him diagonally downwards like cutting tofu, tearing Razo in half on the spot.
But at that moment, a wooden, arm-shaped machine gun suddenly flew from a dark corner to Bai's side and exploded with a bang.
The machine gun fired a large number of cylinders, each of which exploded into multiple poison needles, filling the surrounding space completely, like a flower blooming around Bai, but even a tiny bit of it would be fatal!
"White!" Itachi realized something was wrong. He hadn't expected someone to be lying in ambush, waiting until all the Sunagakure Ninja were dead before making their move.
He quickly turned around, threw a Kunai to the side, and rushed back like lightning.
Bai remained vigilant throughout, and the moment he saw the machine gun, he immediately leaped backward.
At the same time, he kept spitting out ice blocks, and his hands burst out with a large amount of chakra, which quickly formed a piece of armor covering his entire body. Countless poison needles hit the ice armor but could not break through this defense and could only slide weakly to the ground.
Call out!
The crisis was not over. A dark shadow seized the opportunity to attack from behind Bai, its long steel scorpion tail like a venomous snake, aiming straight for his heart.
Sizzle!
In a life-or-death moment, Bai instinctively dodged to the side, the scorpion tail chain flying just past his waist. Only his right hand suddenly felt a sharp pain.
His expertise in Medical Ninjutsu told him that his forearm had definitely been severed by the enemy...
Swish!
The next moment, Itachi arrived, grabbed Haku's shoulder, and activated the Flying Thunder God Technique. The two instantly teleported to the other side of the field, causing Sasori's tail swing attack to miss.
"Ugh..." Bai endured the intense pain, feeling a strange numbness at the wound. He immediately pinched the area above his severed arm with his left hand, squeezing all the blood out of his body. Pfft!
Beep beep beep...
As a large amount of blood gushed from the wound, his face turned somewhat pale. Fortunately, the numbness subsided. "Brother Itachi, be careful! The enemy's attack is highly poisonous; it's extremely dangerous."
"I can still hold on..." The Mystical Palm Technique was activated on the wound, and the bleeding quickly stopped. However, losing half an arm would significantly impact his combat ability.
When Itachi saw Haku's expression, his hands clenched so tightly they made a cracking sound.
Hiruko in the distance, noticed that her opponent had mysteriously disappeared. She immediately thought of the signature Ninjutsu of the Second Hokage —Konoha the Flying Thunder God.
Looking around, he saw the two people who had moved to a dark corner, and immediately moved all four limbs, crawling towards them like insects...
"Huh? What is that?"
Sasori sensed a sudden change in Itachi's chakra.
The half-crouching figure turned to look at him; in the shadows, the view was unclear.
It's impossible to discern Itachi's expression from his profile alone; only the crimson light in his pupils is visible, and the dark triangular windmill slowly turns...