Puppet Substitution

Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh...

Very soon, the hurried rustling of branches and leaves suddenly rang out from the treetops.

Three figures leaped and darted through the branches.

Tejudo's eyes suddenly lit up, and a smile curved his lips. He was about to form the Tiger Hand Seal and detonate the Heavenly Net trap.

But Umino Sasuke grabbed his wrist and pointed. "Look at their forehead protectors!"

The ninjas caught in the trap were not Sand Ninja, but members of Konoha's Intelligence Team.

"They're our people?!"

Tejudo's hands, still holding the Tiger Hand Seal, trembled slightly. When he clearly saw the three ninjas wearing Animal Masks and Dark Green Tactical Vests, the shock of delight nearly made his chakra lose control.

If forming hand seals had not required channeling chakra, that sudden surprise might have caused him to trigger the Heavenly Net trap prematurely.

Wiping the cold sweat from his brow, Tejudo felt a chill run down the back of his neck. He was terrified in hindsight. Good thing the captain had stopped him in time, or he would have definitely injured their allies by mistake.

Judging by the three men's attire, they did not look like Anbu Ninja, nor did they belong to the Defense Patrol Team. Could they be—

Tejudo's eyes shone brightly, his gaze darting about as he clearly realized their identities. They were members of Konoha's Intelligence Team.

The sand ninja pursuers had already crossed into the Konoha Defense Zone and were still chasing them relentlessly. It was obvious that the intelligence the team had brought back this time was highly valuable.

In that case, this ambush would not only be less risky; if they could help bring back the intelligence, they might even complete an A-Rank Mission. If it was Top Secret Intelligence, it could even be an S-Rank Mission.

Thinking of that, Tejudo could not help growing excited. He had already begun imagining himself becoming a Chunin after completing a high-ranking mission.

Once he became a Chunin, the forces coveting the Tejiku Family's blade business should restrain themselves somewhat, right?

"Wait!" Tejudo finally came to his senses and realized something was wrong. How had the captain known in advance that they were from the Intelligence Team?

Could he have received word beforehand?

Thinking back, the captain had indeed seemed somewhat unusual before they came to provide support. And just now, he had specifically ordered them to leave a Konoha Emergency Evasion Mark within the trap.

But before Tejudo could think any further, the three Konoha Ninja fleeing for their lives had crossed the trap's core area. They had also discovered the three kunai embedded in the bark in a triangular pattern—the Konoha Emergency Evasion Mark.

The two Konoha Ninja at the rear, wearing Hawk and Cat Masks, flashed wary looks through their mask eyeholes. Yet they remained calm and gave nothing away, as if nothing had happened, continuing to flee forward.

The Monkey Face Mask ninja, however, was running at the front. He had entered the trap first, but was the last of the three to spot the signal. His delight disrupted his breathing rhythm, and even his running stride changed.

"Damn it! Isn't Konoha's Intelligence Team supposed to be the elite of the elite?"

Seeing that damned scene, Umino Sasuke nearly went mad. Any battle-hardened veteran would possess this level of battlefield adaptability, yet this idiot had exposed such an enormous flaw?

He really wanted to pin this Mediocre Chunin to the ground and beat him senseless, then demand to know whether the fool was a spy sent by Iwagakure.

Among the Five Great Nations, aside from Iwagakure's Intelligence Team producing such Mediocre Chunin, the intelligence ninjas of the other Four Great Ninja Villages were all elite among elites. Low-Level Mistakes like this were basically impossible.

With the caliber of the Mediocre Chunin before him, if this Heavenly Net trap had been trigger-based, that idiot would probably have set it off completely long ago.

The part least likely to go wrong had actually gone wrong. The battlefield changed in an instant; no accident was too strange.

Konoha had produced a Mediocre Chunin, but the Sand Ninja showed all their seasoned cunning. Each was an elite, incredibly sharp, and they immediately noticed something unusual about that idiot.

The three Konoha Ninja had just passed through the trap when the sand ninja pursuers crossed the outskirts and were about to enter the core area. At that critical moment, they spotted such an obvious flaw.

The ambush nearly came to nothing.

Especially the Sand Hidden Jonin Captain. He was extremely experienced and immediately sensed that something was wrong with this area, decisively signaling with his hand.

The six sand ninja instantly stopped and assumed defensive positions, then retreated.

Clearly, these sand ninja pursuers coordinated extremely well and were all highly skilled.

Better late than never.

Since the ambush had failed, they would immediately execute Plan B.

Umino Sasuke raised two fingers and issued a tactical command.

"Detonate!"

Tejudo immediately activated his chakra, his hands snapping together in the Tiger Hand Seal as he triggered the trap.

In an instant.

Rumble...

Flames soared into the sky as Seventy-two Explosive Tags erupted in unison.

Tongues of fire danced wildly like Red Pythons, bursting from underground. The Scorching Heatwave twisted the air within a hundred-meter radius into rippling shockwaves.

The fibers of the trees burned under the intense heat, almost instantly carbonizing.

Though the Sand Ninja on the outskirts of the trap had avoided the heart of the explosion and escaped the Explosive Tags' direct damage, they could not escape the waves of Scorching Heatwave.

The heat seared toward them, burning away their beard and hair.

Their skin felt as though it had been scorched by a Great Fireball. Had they not activated chakra defenses beforehand, their Skin would have been Torn Open long ago.

"Too terrifying. We almost got wiped out."

"They actually set up so many Explosive Tags. In the entire ninja world, only Konoha Ninja could be this extravagant!"

The Sand Ninja felt chills run down their spines, still shaken by the close call. If they had not discovered the flaw beforehand and entered the trap's core area, then with the terrifying power of those Explosive Tags, even if they were not all wiped out, few would have survived unscathed.

Umino Sasuke used the Sonic Radar Technique to sense the entire battlefield and nodded in satisfaction.

Although this trap ambush had not dealt a fatal blow to the Sand Ninja, its tactical objective had been achieved.

The Sand Ninja formation scattered on the spot like scattered ants.

For a time, they could not form an effective defense.

Seizing the opportunity.

Umino Sasuke removed a Sealing Scroll from Tejudo's waist, while Tejudo tacitly grabbed the other end of the Sealing Scroll at the same time.

The two pulled in opposite directions, releasing the seal.

With a bang.

Two enormous Fuma Shuriken made of Specially Made Patterned Steel appeared in their hands.

By visual estimate, the two Giant Fuma Shuriken exceeded their height, reaching two meters and weighing at least a hundred jin.

The two Giant Fuma Shuriken crashed down onto their shoulders and arms. Chakra surged beneath their feet, making the branches as thick as buckets beneath them creak.

At that moment, while the trap's aftershocks had yet to fade.

The Sand Ninja were in complete disarray and unable to form an effective defensive formation.

"Hah!"

The two spun and hurled their weapons in unison. Driven by powerful centrifugal force, the Giant Fuma Shuriken spun rapidly through the air.

Their shrill whistle tore through the air, even overpowering the fading explosions of the battlefield.

The weapons, over two meters in diameter, transformed into Sharp Blade Pinwheels.

They sliced through four or five burning Birch Trees along the way, spiraling in an arc toward the remaining sand ninja formation.

Even with Tejudo's massive build and immense strength, wielding such a huge Fuma Shuriken was somewhat strenuous. The veins in his neck were still throbbing.

Umino Sasuke, however, remained utterly at ease, as if he had not even used his full strength.

The benefits of strong Chakra Control were immediately apparent. With his current Chakra Control, he could not become a monstrous powerhouse like Tsunade, but controlling this Fuma Shuriken was indeed effortless.

If not for the need to conserve chakra and coordinate with the tactics to come, he could even use the principles of the A-Rank Ninjutsu Rasengan, infusing chakra to spin the Fuma Shuriken and unleash an imitation version of the True Spiral Fuma Shuriken Technique.

The battlefield was a sea of fire, filled with smoke, and visibility was nearly nonexistent. Yet under the Sonic Radar Technique's perception.

Everything was clear.

The two Giant Blade Pinwheels cut through the burning Birch Trees in their path and spun with extreme precision toward the two Sand Ninja Captains.

The Fuma Shuriken Tejudo had thrown was aimed at the Puppeteer Captain.

Though this Puppeteer Captain was only a Special Jonin, Puppet Masters were exceptionally powerful by nature and were no weaker than ordinary Jonin.

Just as the Fuma Shuriken was about to slash into him.

The Special Jonin Puppet Master completed his hand seals: Ram—Snake—Tiger.

"Puppet Substitution Technique!"

Crack!

The Fuma Shuriken slashed through, and the substitute puppet exploded into fragments that scattered in all directions.

His real body had already leaped five meters away.

As expected of a Special Jonin-level Puppet Master. At the crucial moment, he had actually used the Puppet Substitution Technique.

He used a puppet to block the fatal attack for himself.

However, for a Puppet Master, losing a puppet was like losing an arm. His combat strength would surely be greatly reduced.