Tracking

Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom!

After a series of rapid and continuous explosions, only smoke and dust remained in the air.

After a while, when the dust settled, the field was full of potholes, and Yi Yichen was nowhere to be seen. Even the Earth Style: Earth Flow Wall that Yichen had created had lost its original shape and was now just a pile of rubble.

Looking at the empty explosion site, Munashi Jinpachi let out a soft "Huh?": "Where are they? Were they blown to bits?"

"Idiot, he's definitely escaped." Raiga Kurosuki cursed. "This guy knows Earth Release, he probably escaped underground, but Earth Style: Earth Submergence Ninjutsu isn't very fast. Let's split up and search."

While Munashi Jinpachi were waiting for the smoke to dissipate, Yichen had already sneaked into the nearby woods. He then used the Light-Weight Rock Technique to quickly teleport away.

Munashi Jinpachi nor Raiga Kurosuki were ninjas skilled in sensory perception. After searching the surrounding area without finding any trace, the two could only curse Yichen a few times in annoyance before leaving the place together.

The battle just now was too loud and might attract a large force from Konoha. The two of them didn't want to cause any unnecessary trouble at the moment.

After disengaging from the battle, Yichen did not go too far. After flying close to the ground for about 2 kilometers, he used his long-unused Sensory Ninjutsu.

While keeping an eye on the whereabouts of Munashi Jinpachi and Raiga Kurosuki, Yichen reflected on the mistakes he had made in this First Shinobi War.

Thanks to his Intelligence Advantage, Yichen handled the situation well upon encountering the enemy. Not wanting to get bogged down in prolonged battles, Yichen's methods were all aimed at disengaging as quickly as possible. This is perfectly understandable.

Overall, Yichen performed well, but there was one fatal flaw.

That is because Yichen had no idea that Raiga Kurosuki would suddenly appear, even though the intelligence had mentioned that the Seven Ninja Swordsmen of the Mist had been acting in groups of two or three during this period.

Yichen should have considered that Munashi Jinpachi might have helpers.

Judging from Raiga Kurosuki's position just now, he probably didn't lie in ambush there beforehand, but just arrived.

If Raiga Kurosuki was lying in ambush, it wouldn't be easy for Yichen to dodge that attack. And if the ambush was carried out by Kushimaru Kuriarare, the most skilled ambush fighter among the Seven Ninja Swordsmen of the Mist, Yichen estimated that he wouldn't be able to leave today without leaving something behind.

Yichen's carelessness stemmed entirely from his overly blind trust in the S-rank Ninjutsu, Mind's Eye. Despite not having fully mastered Ninjutsu, he subconsciously placed too much hope in it during the battle.

Yichen, who originally possessed a sixth sense and Mind's Eye, should have been immune to being ambushed, but in reality, he almost fell victim to it.

"It seems I still need to work on developing my Mind's Eye's ability. Until I can use it effectively, I should just pretend this Ninjutsu doesn't exist," Yichen secretly admonished himself.

"Huh? They're gone?" At this moment, in Yichen's perception, the Chakra sources belonging to Munashi Jinpachi and Raiga Kurosuki left the area where the battle had just taken place.

"I wonder if they've caused trouble for the Hyuga Main Family." Yichen didn't rush to follow, wanting to silently track the two Elite Jonin. Yichen knew he couldn't be hasty.

Yichen's current maximum perception range is very long, so even if he's far away, he's not afraid of losing them. Therefore, Yichen only started to follow them from another direction after they had gone quite a distance.

With the Light-Weight Rock Technique for flying close to the ground, and the Camouflage Jutsu to interfere with visibility, Yichen was not worried about arousing the suspicion of Munashi Jinpachi and the others.

After Yichen and his two companions left, squads of Konoha ninja arrived nearby. Looking at the scene filled with explosion marks, an Elite Jonin from the Hyuga Clan said, "An explosion of this magnitude is undoubtedly from Exploding Blade Shibuki. I just wonder who Munashi Jinpachi was fighting."

After thinking for a moment, the elite Elite Jonin asked a patrolling ninja beside him, "Jiao Rong, is this area your Patrol Unit's patrol area?"

"Yusuke Hyuga, this area is quite far from the camp and is not within the patrol range of our Conventional Patrol Unit." The Conventional Patrol Unit refers to Patrol Unit composed of non- Hyuga clan members. Their patrol routes are handled by another Elite Jonin from the Hyuga Branch Family. This matter is not under Yusuke Hyuga's jurisdiction, hence the question.

Yusuke Hyuga nodded, but he was even more puzzled. It wasn't Conventional Patrol Unit. Could it be that the person fighting Munashi Jinpachi was Jonin or Elite Jonin from the Hyuga Clan? But he hadn't heard of anyone being active in this area today.

However, asking the lower and middle ranks around him about these matters was useless; he could only report the situation to the Main Family and let Main Family make a judgment. After all, the Main Family had detailed mission assignments for all the ninjas in the camp, and they could find out who would be here today simply by looking through the records.

Yusuke Hyuga searched the area carefully, but still couldn't find many traces of battle involving Munashi Jinpachi's opponent. There was only a broken Earth Style: Earth Flow Wall, but he did find two marks made by Lightning Blade Fang.

"Could it be that the person fighting Munashi Jinpachi was Raiga Kurosuki? Is there infighting among the Seven Ninja Swordsmen of the Mist?" Yusuke Hyuga shook his head, thinking it unlikely.

With a hint of doubt, Yusuke Hyuga to the camp. Unfortunately, he was a little late. The Hyuga Main Family he was supposed to see, the current head of the Hyuga Clan, Hiashi Hyuga, had left the camp half an hour earlier.

Hiashi Hyuga's departure from the camp was not for leisurely strolls. On the contrary, Hiashi Hyuga's trip was for the Land of Fire, for Konoha, and most importantly, for his Hyuga Clan and for himself.

When Hiruzen Sarutobi proposed that the future Fourth Hokage be determined by military achievements in order to persuade the Uchiha and Hyuga to send troops, Hiashi Hyuga was already thinking about how to obtain enough military achievements for the Hyuga Clan.

The Hyuga Clan's individual combat strength is outstanding, and winning battle merits on the battlefield is indeed a good method, but Hiashi Hyuga felt it wasn't enough. Because in this aspect, the Uchiha Clan was no weaker than the Hyuga Clan, and might even be stronger.

Although Hiashi Hyuga was unconvinced, he was also aware of his own limitations. If judged solely on battle achievements, he estimated he would lose to the Uchiha Clan. Therefore, Hiashi Hyuga devised an underhanded strategy: leveraging the extensive network of connections accumulated by the Hyuga Clan throughout its long history.

During their time in the Land of Whirlpools, the Hyuga Clan made contact with the current rulers of the Land of Whirlpools. Furthermore, thanks to the destruction caused by the Mist ninja invasion, the Hyuga Clan's activities have made significant progress. The current leadership of the Land of Whirlpools has agreed to annex the Land of Fire after the war.

Hiashi Hyuga personally met with the high-ranking officials of the Land of Whirlpools today. In Hiashi Hyuga's view, this was to show his sincerity and at the same time to clearly claim the credit for himself.

Having made contributions to expanding the Land of Fire, Hiashi Hyuga felt that his chances of becoming Hokage would greatly increase.

Because the Hyuga Clan's camp was separate from the Uchiha Clan's, the Uchiha Clan 'Hiashi Hyuga actions.

That's normal; no one in the Ninja World can monitor the Hyuga.

Because he had confidence in the Byakugan, Hiashi Hyuga always believed that his whereabouts were very secretive.

Unfortunately, Hiashi Hyuga didn't know was that his whereabouts had been leaked by a Hyuga Branch Family Jonin who had recently died in battle.

The Hyuga Clan's strict hierarchical system meant that the Main Family never considered the possibility of betrayal from the branch family.

In fact, that branch family Jonin had no basis for betrayal, because the Caged Bird is Cursed Seal that can kill from a distance. If that branch family Jonin the Betrayal of the Village and the Hyuga Clan, Hiashi Hyuga could have easily eliminated him.

The problem is that the branch family Jonin was ambushed by Kushimaru Kuriarare and seriously injured, leaving him in a life-threatening situation. Therefore, the threat posed by Hiashi Hyuga to him was no longer a threat.

So, with a try-it-and-see attitude, Kushimaru Kuriarare, who came from the Anbu, interrogated him briefly, and he readily revealed Hiashi Hyuga's whereabouts.

Kushimaru's first reaction was disbelief. How could a Jonin from the Hyuga Branch Family Kushimaru Kuriarare family, knowing he was doomed, be so spineless?

However, after investigating the intelligence they obtained, Kushimaru Kuriarare discovered that the information was surprisingly accurate. As a result, the Seven Ninja Swordsmen of the Mist of the Mist adjusted their strategic deployment and devised a special plan targeting Hiashi Hyuga.

Yusuke Hyuga was unaware that he had missed his last Hiashi Hyuga. Given Hiashi Hyuga's cautious nature, he might have changed his plans once he realized there were uncontrollable factors around the campsite.

Of course, if Yusuke Hyuga really knew that this news might save Hiashi Hyuga's life, it's uncertain whether he would immediately remind Hiashi Hyuga. Perhaps, if that happened, he would ultimately choose to let Hiashi Hyuga die, just like the deceased branch family Jonin.

Munashi Jinpachi and Raiga Kurosuki were unaware that their plans had almost been ruined by the fight just now, and they were currently on their way to the original meeting point.

Yichen was unaware that he had almost made a mess of things, and was now leisurely hanging behind Munashi Jinpachi and the others.

After following them for a while, Yichen realized that he hadn't missed the First Shinobi War the Seven Ninja Swordsmen of the Mist of the Hyuga Main Family. This was because the route taken by Munashi Jinpachi and the other two was strange; they had long since deviated from the Mist Ninja Camp, but they weren't heading towards the Hyuga or Uchiha.

Yichen carefully examined the map of the Land of Whirlpools and finally made a guess. "Falling Star Valley."

At first Munashi Jinpachi made their way forward in a winding, circuitous manner, but after confirming that they were not being followed, they proceeded in a fixed direction.

Following their current direction of travel, Yichen discovered the Falling Star Valley. The valley itself wasn't particularly special, but Yichen discovered its purpose: it could be used to evade the Byakugan and launch ambushes.

Falling Star Valley is actually a fault line in a Kajiyamari. Although this Kajiyamari is not large and cannot stop ninjas, with Falling Star Valley as an option, ninjas would not be foolish enough to climb the mountain. That would not only be time-consuming and laborious, but would also leave them in a sorry state.

However, if Hiashi Hyuga group were to pass through Falling Star Valley, the Byakugan's X-ray vision would not be sufficient to penetrate the thick mountains and see the ninjas lying in ambush within.

With this deduction, Yichen became even less anxious and decisively increased the tracking distance. Originally, Yichen's tracking distance was exactly the limit of his Sensory Ninjutsu.

Now, Yichen simply kept a considerable distance between them, only needing to check every so often to see if the tracks left by Munashi Jinpachi and Raiga Kurosuki were still there.