Battlefield Rhythm

"Wait—something's off?"

The Hedgehog-Haired Jonin halted the retreat of the Sand ninja, his eyes glinting with cold light.

His gaze seemed to sharpen into a Byakugan, piercing through the Iron Prison Gate to see what lay behind it—whether it was truly a bluff with Transformation Jutsu, as the monkey-faced Konoha ninja's leaked intel suggested.

Seeing the Sand ninja ready to investigate behind the Iron Prison Gate, Gekko Yoru's heart raced, but he quickly covered it up, his face betraying nothing as he smiled lightly: "Kagejiro, you've gotten smarter, using fake intel for Tactical Deception. But there's no need—they won't buy it."

When Gekko Yoru said the word "fake," he seemed to pause, whether intentionally or not.

Sarutobi Kagejiro: ???

What fake intel for Tactical Deception? Since when did I do that?

"Right, that's the face. You're acting so well even I almost believed it. But it's useless. Master-level Tool Manipulation, a seal speed of five per second, tactical skill surpassing a jonin—all of it screams the real intel on this Uchiha Jonin."

Gekko Yoru nodded as if praising Sarutobi Kagejiro's flawless performance, then added with a hint of regret: "With intel this obvious, tell me—how could they possibly fall for your Tactical Deception?"

Behind the Iron Prison Gate, Umino Sasuke rubbed his chin, a bit awkward: "Heh, that actually sounds pretty convincing. Even I'm starting to buy it."

This Gekko Yoru had impressive battlefield adaptability. Still, even with a quick save like that, it might not do much good. A Sand Hidden Jonin's insight wasn't something ordinary ninja could match.

"Captain!"

Tejudo gave a thumbs-up, a gesture of praise like Might Guy's Youth.

Clearly, hearing all those compliments from Gekko Yoru, Tejudo felt a shared pride.

The Sand ninja, swayed by Gekko Yoru's analysis, found their retreating resolve creeping back.

Now they were stuck between advancing and retreating.

"This—"

The Bald Chunin's mind churned into a mess, and he could only look to his Jonin Captain for tactical guidance.

"Rock Wolf, don't be fooled again. This is definitely a bluff with Transformation Jutsu. Hiding like that isn't the Uchiha way."

The Hedgehog-Haired Jonin, seasoned in battle, had already sensed something off. He just hadn't caught on earlier because the battlefield rhythm had been controlled the whole time.

Now that he thought about it, with that ninja's seal speed of five per second, he should've made hundreds of seals by now. But the jutsu they'd been expecting still hadn't been released.

What jutsu could take hundreds of seals? It had to be fake. All of it.

"We've been tricked again."

The Sand ninja nearly spat blood. After all that fighting, they'd been duped again—and they still didn't even know who the ninja opposite them was.

Looking back, the moment they stepped onto this battlefield, they'd probably fallen into a massive trap.

From the start, that ninja had controlled the entire flow of battle, leading them by the nose until they ended up in this mess.

If the person opposite them was really just a bluff with Transformation Jutsu, not an Uchiha Jonin, then their earlier guess was right: they were facing a Konoha Jonin skilled in Tool Manipulation.

And odds were, he wasn't great at elemental jutsu, maybe even weak in close combat, relying on Tactical Deception and sneak attacks with tools. He also had top-notch Transformation Jutsu and Sensory Ability.

But by now, that Tool Manipulation expert had burned through a lot of Explosive Tags and weapons. His combat power must be way down. Maybe they still had a chance to snatch back the intel mission.

As expected of a Sand Hidden Jonin—rich battlefield experience, sharp analysis. Aside from misjudging Umino Sasuke's rank, everything else was spot on.

"What do we do?"

Tejudo gestured frantically at Umino Sasuke, asking if they could retreat now.

Their three-pronged tactic was spent. Explosive Tags, weapons—all nearly gone. Their squad's combat power had hit rock bottom.

Umino Sasuke shook his head, signaling to wait and see. That Sarutobi Kagejiro was an idiot, unreliable, but his teammate Gekko Yoru looked solid, with good tactical adaptability—pretty dependable.

"Let's see who you really are."

The Special Jonin Puppet Master's hands flew through seals, unleashing an attack Wind Release.

"Wind Release: Sand Dust Swirl!"

In an instant.

Two spiraling vacuum wind vortices, carrying clouds of sand and debris, swept like twin storm dragons from left and right, curling toward the area behind the Iron Prison Gate.

Under the Sonic Radar Technique's perception, every move the Sand ninja made was laid bare. Umino Sasuke still held the battlefield rhythm.

"Go!"

Umino Sasuke grabbed Tejudo, channeled Chakra to his feet, and scaled the Iron Prison Gate to its top in a flash.

With a thunderous crash.

The two sand wind dragons collided behind the Iron Prison Gate, exploding into countless fine grains of sand.

Umino Sasuke and Tejudo vaulted off the gate, landing on the Giant Rock Sphere ahead, just dodging the spray of debris.

"A Konoha Patrol Chunin? How can he be a chunin?"

The Sand ninja exchanged bewildered glances, finally getting a clear look at the ninja's face and build. But that outfit—they knew it too well. They'd just wiped out an entire Konoha patrol squad. How could they not recognize it? And because they recognized it so well, their confusion only deepened.

"Another Transformation Jutsu."

The Hedgehog-Haired Jonin refused to believe a mere patrol chunin had been blocking them. This had to be another disguise.

"Konoha Jonin—when it comes to Transformation Jutsu, I crown you the best!"

The Hedgehog-Haired Jonin looked again and again, yet couldn't spot a single flaw in the opposing ninja's Transformation Jutsu.

It was utterly seamless, as real as the real thing.

"Everyone, don't let your guard down—this is surely another instance of Tactical Deception!"

The Hedgehog-Haired Jonin issued a tactical reminder to his subordinates, then explained, "This ninja earlier transformed into an Uchiha Jonin for Tactical Deception, trying to make us overestimate him and drain our Chakra and weapon supplies.

Now he's using the Transformation Jutsu again, turning into an ordinary Chunin. This is a reverse Tactical Deception—he wants us to underestimate his strength, let our guard down, and expose an opening. Don't fall for it."

"Got it, Captain. We won't be careless again."

The Sand Ninja all nodded in agreement, praising their Captain's sharp eyes and well-reasoned analysis. Truly worthy of a Jonin—his battlefield experience was rich indeed.

This ninja before them was despicable and shameless, surely trying to pull another Tactical Deception to make them underestimate his strength and catch them off guard.