Konoha Style Swordsmanship

Facing an Elite Jonin, Yichen dared not be careless in the slightest. During his journey, he even cast a Hardening Jutsu on his body as a precaution.

As soon as Yichen and his group made a move, the insects monitoring the area immediately noticed and relayed the information to the distance.

About 4 kilometers ahead of Yichen and his group, six ninjas wearing Konoha forehead protector were gathered together discussing something.

The leader, with a fair complexion and slender build, carrying a long sword, was currently summarizing the intelligence gathered over the past few days. "There are approximately a thousand ninjas in this Iwa ninja camp. Among these thousand ninjas, the strongest should be a Yichen, namely Jonin, the one who opened up the trade route between the Amegakure and Tubi kingdoms."

"Although this person's talent for cultivation is not as good as Ikura's, he is very intelligent. According to information sent back by spies, his status in Iwagakure is not much lower than Ikura's; they are practically two junior geniuses on par with Ikura."

"Furthermore, according to information from the Root, Advisor Danzō, also suffered losses at his hands."

"Besides Yichen, who we need to be wary of, there are about ten Anbu Squad in this camp, one or two of whom are quite well-known in the Ninja World. We need to be careful."

"The remaining ninjas should all be former outpost troops from the Land of Earth stationed on the border."

"Yichen deliberately built his camp in this location, clearly intending to target our Konoha. He has a strong sense of the big picture and is a formidable enemy with deep cunning."

"Our mission is almost complete; we're ready to head back to the village."

At this moment, another young Jonin expression said, "Senior Gekko Seikuu, there's something I still don't understand. After Yichen summoned over a thousand ninjas to the camp, there hasn't been a single movement. Only a few dozen people patrol outside each day. We have no idea what they're doing inside the camp. Isn't it inappropriate to just go back and hand over the mission like this?"

Beside the Jonin spoke, a thinner Jonin also frowned and chimed in, "Sarutobi Akira is right. Something's fishy going on. This Yichen must be plotting something. Shouldn't we investigate?"

Seeing that his suggestion was rejected by his two subordinates, Gekko Seikuu wasn't angry. Instead, he patiently explained, "Sarutobi Akira, Muraki, although we have Aburame An'on's insects, we can't guarantee that we can keep it a secret from the Iwa ninja forever. After all, they outnumber us. If they suddenly attack us, we'll be in a very passive position."

A woman completely covered up spoke up, "That's right. Our Aburame Clan's insects aren't entirely without the possibility of being discovered. Moreover, to investigate the movements of their Anbu, my insects have been keeping a close watch on us these past few days. Perhaps they've already discovered us, but aren't confident they can devour us, which is why they haven't made a move yet."

Upon hearing Aburame An'on's words, Sarutobi Akira Muraki stopped insisting.

Seeing that his subordinates had no objections, Gekko Seikuu said, "Alright, clean up the mess, let's go back to the village."

But just then, Aburame An'on suddenly changed, and she said anxiously, "Captain Starry Sky, something bad has happened! The people from the outpost have been mobilized and are heading straight this way."

The Gekko Seikuu seemed somewhat solemn as he asked, "Can you confirm how many people there are?"

The Aburame An'on, "This will take some time; the Kikaichū don't transmit messages that quickly."

After speaking in Aburame An'on paused, as if sensing something.

After a while, Aburame An'on, having finished communicating with the Kikaichū, said in an even more urgent tone, "The enemy has more than 30 people, all with considerable Chakra, Jonin. They are currently 2 kilometers away from us."

Upon hearing this, Gekko Seikuu were startled. After a moment's thought, they asked, "Are there enemies behind us?"

The Aburame An'on for a moment, then said, "The insects aren't reacting, not yet."

Without further hesitation, Gekko Seikuu said, "Sarutobi Akira, Muraki, Aburame An'on, the three of you retreat immediately and relay the information about the Iwa ninja camp back to the village."

"Aburame An'on, keep an eye out for ambushes along the retreat route. Ietsugu and Maeno, hold off the enemy with me."

Sarutobi Akira was taken aback. The young man didn't want to slink back like this and was about to voice his objections when Gekko Seikuu shouted, "There's no time! This is an order! Move out of here!"

This time, Sarutobi Akira, Muraki, and Aburame An'on did not hesitate any longer. They immediately used the Body Flicker Technique to leave their original spot and ran towards the Land of Fire.

Because of the delay caused by the others, Yichen and his group were now only about 1 kilometer away. Yichen used the Light-Weight Rock Technique to make himself fly.

As soon as he took flight, Yichen saw Sarutobi Akira and his two companions heading into the distance, along with the Gekko Seikuu that had stayed behind to cover their retreat.

"Matsuki Sadahisa, you take seven men and flank from the left. Three of the enemy are retreating towards the 10 o'clock direction: one is from the Aburame Clan, one is a fire and wind dual-attribute ninja, and one is Taijutsu Ninja." Yichen gave the order to the commander of a sentry post.

Upon hearing Yichen's order, Matsuki Sadahisa did not delay. He immediately appointed seven outpost commanders, slightly altered his course, and accelerated towards the left front.

After Matsuki Sadahisa left, Yichen shouted, "500 meters to go. Proceed with Plan A!"

Upon hearing Yichen's words, five of the remaining twenty-odd people immediately stepped forward and unleashed Fire Style Ninjutsu together, including three C-rank Fire Style Jutsu and two B-rank Fire Style Jutsu. In addition, Yichen in the sky also unleashed a Great Fireball Jutsu.

Slightly after Yichen and his group of six, seven more people stepped forward and used Wind Release Ninjutsu. This time, six were C-rank Wind Release and one was B-rank Wind Release.

Then a huge sea of fire rushed forward.

Seeing this, Gekko Seikuu's expression turned grave. Yichen and his group had immediately launched Combination Ninjutsu, and the entire process was extremely smooth. This indicated that the enemy had come prepared, meaning that the retreating three subordinates might not necessarily escape unscathed.

However, he had no time to worry about the safety of his three subordinates now.

As Elite Jonin of the Yumitsu Clan, Gekko Seikuu excelled in Konoha Style Swordsmanship, not Ninjutsu. Faced with this wide-range Combination Ninjutsu, he had no good way to deal with it and could only call for his two subordinates to retreat.

However, with the aid of Wind Release, the sea of fire moved extremely fast. Gekko Seikuu was able to dodge it with the speed of Taijutsu -type Elite Jonin, but it would be difficult for his two subordinates.

Left with no other choice, Youguang Xingkong could only forcefully pull back his two subordinates and then use his Body Flicker Technique to retreat.

However, the result was that none of the three people could escape the inferno.

However, as expected of a veteran Elite Jonin, Gekko Seikuu quickly drew his longsword from his back just as the sea of fire was about to spread to the edge. In an instant, he slashed more than a dozen times in front of him, and then used his Sword Qi to carve out a small vacuum area in front of the three of them.

The Sword Qi blocked most of the flames, with only a few small sparks managing to burn the three. Fortunately, the fire was now spreading to its end, so although they were injured, they managed to hold on.

Yichen witnessed this scene and felt a pang of regret. If the other three Jonin hadn't retreated, they could have taken at least two of them with them.

"The other party is very decisive." Although he was impressed, Yichen didn't waste a single moment while in the air.

Having just finished using Fire Release, Yichen began Hand Seals to prepare for using Water Cutting Technique. It was his first time Water Cutting against an enemy, and Yichen was filled with anticipation.

At this moment, Yichen was still about 50 meters away from his opponent. A 50-meter-long water line shot towards the Gekko Seikuu. After being dodged by the opponent's Body Flicker Technique, Yichen immediately controlled the water line to slightly deflect to one side.

This slight deviation caused the waterline to shift more than a meter horizontally at a distance of 50 meters, nearly cleaving the Gekko Seikuu in two.

Although Gekko Seikuu managed to dodge, a gash was still left on his thigh. Meanwhile, the subordinate on the same side as Gekko Seikuu was cut in half by Yichen's water line before he could even react.

"Phew~~" Yichen let out a long breath. Although this move seemed simple, it was quite taxing for Yichen. Controlling a 50-meter-long waterline to cut was something Yichen couldn't do before his Wind Release: Breakthrough.

Moreover, this attack consumed a significant amount of Chakra. Normally, if this technique were used at close range, around ten meters away, it would consume about 7A of chakra. However, using it at such a long distance directly consumed about 15A of Yichen's Chakra.

However, it was all worthwhile. Consuming 15A Chakra to Elite Jonin Taijutsu, rendering him immobile, was a worthwhile investment for Yichen. At least this attack had cut off the opponent's escape route. Without wasting any time, Yichen once again commanded his subordinates to launch a wide-ranging attack using ranged Ninjutsu.

With his thigh injured and still in shock, Gekko Seikuu had no time to grieve for his companion's death before he saw the group of enemies a few dozen meters away forming Hand Seals again.

He gritted his teeth and said to his last subordinate, "Scatter and take cover."

Clearly, with his thigh injury, Gekkō's Body Flicker Technique was affected, and he was no longer able to escape with his subordinates.

"Target the injured Elite Jonin, ignore the other one," Yichen shouted the order from the air.

At the same time, Yichen Hand Seals again, this time using the Water Style: Water Pressure Line Jutsu.

Yichen's speed in performing Ninjutsu was faster than others, so while others were still Hand Seals, Yichen had already finished performing the technique.

Another stream of water shot towards the opponent.

Because Gekko Seikuu was dodging the sea of fire when Yichen used the Water Cutting Technique, she didn't see the Hand Seals. Now, seeing Yichen release an identical line of water again, Gekko Seikuu subconsciously assumed that this was the Water Cutting Technique.

Having witnessed the terrifying Water Cutting Technique, Gekko Seikuu was unaware of its Water Cutting Technique limits and felt that with his injured leg, he might not be able to dodge it.

Considering that he had almost severed his thigh just now, Gekko Seikuu did not dodge this time. Instead, holding his longsword, he slashed out at the very moment the Water Pressure Line was about to hit him. As a result, the powerful Water Pressure Line that Yichen was attacking was shattered by Gekko Seikuu.

"Hiss~~" This was the first time Yichen had encountered a ninja who could cut through his Water Style: Water Pressure Line Jutsu, and he was so shocked by the opponent's move that he gasped.

Because of the interference from the sea of fire, Yichen hadn't been able to see clearly. Now, he truly witnessed the terror of a master swordsman.

Originally, when formulating the plan, considering the possibility that the opponent might discover something was wrong beforehand, causing Yichen and his team's Combination Ninjutsu to fail, Yichen's second plan was to engage the Elite Jonin in close combat himself, and then have his subordinates finish off the enemy before returning to support him.

Yichen has now completely abandoned that idea. Yichen feels that once his opponent gets close, with such unbelievable swordsmanship, he shouldn't last more than three moves.

"I have underestimated the heroes of the world." Yichen, who was beginning to reflect on his actions, did not delay. Instead of approaching his opponent, he used another Water Style: Water Pressure Line Jutsu.

At this point, Yichen's subordinates began to unleash various Ninjutsu, but this time it was no longer Combination Ninjutsu. Combination Ninjutsu was too slow to execute, making it easy for the opponent to dodge in advance, or even give the opponent an opportunity to get close.

Next, Gekko Seikuu demonstrated what a swordsmanship-skilled Elite Jonin is all about. Facing the incoming C-rank and B-rank Ninjutsu, the opponent relied solely on his long sword to shatter all the Ninjutsu, strike by strike.

Although he was forced to retreat repeatedly by the impact, ordinary B-rank and C-rank Ninjutsu obviously couldn't do anything to him.

However, among all these attacks, Gekko Seikuu was most concerned about the water line that Yichen had created. In order to deal with Yichen's Water Pressure Line, he needed to charge up for a short time. So in the end, he couldn't dodge in time and was hit by a C-rank Water Style: Water Wave, which made him lose his balance.

Having witnessed the power of their opponent's swordsmanship, none of them wanted to test the sharpness of their blades. Without Yichen's prompting, they all attacked from a distance, using Kunai, Shuriken, and Ninjutsu.

Finally, unable to dodge in time, Gekko Seikuu was completely wrecked by the group's attacks.

But everyone was still worried, until a Jonin used a Wind Release to sever the sword-wielding hand of Gekko Seikuu, and only then did they stop attacking.

Yichen waved his hand, signaling some of the group to pursue the fleeing enemy, and then personally stepped forward to seal away Gekko Seikuu's corpse. He also sealed away the longsword in Gekko Seikuu's hand.

This sword is clearly a good one; it's obvious it's made of a metal that can conduct Chakra.