The spiky-haired man hurriedly leaped aside, but the massive water dragon seemed to have anticipated it. With a soaring, twisting strike, it sent him flying into the air.
"Partial Expansion Jutsu!"
At that moment, a thick, fleshy palm rapidly enlarged. In the span of a breath, it had swelled to the size of a windmill before striking the helpless spiky-haired man suspended in midair.
It seized him in its grasp.
The spiky-haired man's entire body was trapped within the giant palm, leaving him utterly unable to break free. He looked like a sausage clenched in a hand, with only his head sticking out.
Cracking sounds rang out continuously.
Immense force squeezed down from the palm. The spiky-haired man's arm and leg bones snapped on the spot, and he spat out mouthful after mouthful of blood. Clearly, even his internal organs had been crushed and ruptured, leaving him completely unable to move.
It was obvious that Akimichi Toribo, who had come to provide support, had used the Partial Expansion Jutsu and captured the spiky-haired man in a single grip.
On the other side, the remaining sand chunin was no better off. His entire body was covered in black Kikaichū. He had clearly reached his limit from the poison and was easily subdued by the Aburame Clan's insects.
Umino Sasuke stood rooted in place like a statue caught mid-sprint, as though the sudden Water Dragon Bullet Technique had stunned him.
But beneath his blank exterior, Umino Sasuke's heart surged with excitement. The Water Dragon Bullet Technique had just shot out right past him. He was not afraid—he was thrilled.
Only at nearly point-blank range had he truly felt the astonishing power of the Water Dragon Bullet Technique. And this was only B-Rank Water Release. How terrifying would A-Rank or S-Rank Water Release be?
The Shinobi World was brutal, far less beautiful than his previous life, but it had its own wonders.
Weren't these powerful ninjutsu precisely what he had always longed for?
Having come to the Shinobi World, wouldn't it be a wasted trip if he could not cultivate powerful ninjutsu?
Once he received the Mission Merit Points from this mission, he had to exchange them for knowledge related to developing a second chakra nature and solve his severe chakra shortage.
"Great, we're saved!"
Seeing that the danger had finally passed and that he had escaped death, Gekko Yoru was overjoyed.
"Huh? What happened?"
Umino Sasuke pretended as though he had only just come to his senses. Looking bewildered and at a loss, he turned to Gekko Yoru nearby and asked, "Kid Yoru, we're not dreaming, are we?"
"Senior, it's real. We've been saved. The Mobile Patrol Unit's rescue team has arrived."
Gekko Yoru happily hugged Umino Sasuke, unable to contain his joy.
"All right, all right! I get it."
Being hugged by a grown boy made Umino Sasuke rather uncomfortable, and he pulled free from the affectionate embrace.
But at that moment.
Suddenly—
Whoosh!
A senbon needle shot from the mouth of the spiky-haired man, who was on the brink of death.
Its target was Umino Sasuke's head.
As expected of a Sand Hidden Jonin. Even after every bone and chakra pathway in his body had been crushed and he had lost all ability to move, he could still attack with his mouth, spitting out a senbon for one final sneak attack before dying.
No ninja who could become a jonin was a good sort. And jonin raised in the harsh Land of Wind were the finest among them.
With a thunderous crack, the giant palm immediately crushed the spiky-haired man into a puddle of bloody pulp, leaving only his head relatively intact.
"Watch out!"
None of the Konoha Ninja had expected that this Sand ninja, already unable to move, could still unleash such a sudden attack before dying. None of them had reacted in time.
The sneak attack had come too abruptly. They were still some distance away and could no longer help block it.
"Captain, dodge!"
Inuzuka Ryo had fairly sharp senses and eyesight, and he spotted the sneak attack as well.
"Not good!"
Umino Sasuke's expression changed drastically.
Clearly, he had not known about the attack beforehand either. His Sonic Radar Technique came from his Summoning Beast, the Water Bat, and operated on the principles of ultrasound rather than the highly penetrating infrasound. Its penetrating detection ability was far inferior to the Byakugan, so he had not sensed the senbon hidden in the man's mouth beforehand.
Fortunately, the Sonic Radar Technique was still reliable. The instant the senbon was spat out, he detected it and gained time to evade.
Umino Sasuke had intended to tilt his head aside, but then he remembered that Gekko Yoru was behind him, in his blind spot.
The senbon was already right before him, and there was no time to draw his blade and block it.
Umino Sasuke's first thought was naturally that it was better for someone else to die than himself. Staying alive was what mattered, so he prepared to dodge by turning his head aside.
But on second thought, if he dodged and sacrificed Gekko Yoru behind him, wouldn't the Will of Fire he had pretended to uphold for the past half year all go to waste?
If he sacrificed a companion now and disregarded the Will of Fire, then should word reach the Konoha High Command, wouldn't he be classified as one of the expendable ninja?
At this moment of life and death, Umino Sasuke's mind had never been clearer. His thoughts raced at their absolute limit.
Got it!
With a flicker of inspiration, Umino Sasuke finally came up with a brilliant solution.
"Kid Yoru, watch out!"
Umino Sasuke resolutely stepped in front of Gekko Yoru, looking as though he intended to use his own flesh and blood to uphold the Will of Fire and block the senbon.
With a light ding.
The sudden senbon struck Umino Sasuke's forehead protector dead-on.
"No!"
With a heart-wrenching cry of despair, the spiky-haired man died with his eyes wide open, drawing his final breath.
His despairing gaze was filled with endless unwillingness and desolation.
In his eyes, this was the Sage of Six Paths' injustice. What should have been a certain kill had turned out so luckily, with the senbon striking the forehead protector at just the right spot. How could he possibly accept such an accident?
"Great!"
"The Captain is fine! The senbon hit his forehead protector!"
"Good people really do get good karma. The Captain is so lucky!"
Tejudo and the other two immediately cheered and embraced one another.
Meanwhile, Inuzuka Ryo was being hugged by the round little Xiao Xiao. His face was full of delight and embarrassment. Anyone unaware of the situation would have thought he was so excited because he was happy for his captain.
"Senior, sob, sob..."
Gekko Yoru had been saved by Umino Sasuke once again. Having escaped death, he clung to Umino Sasuke in excitement, overwhelmed with gratitude and crying openly.
"Hey, hey, hey! Don't wipe your snot on my vest! This vest is hard to wash!"
Umino Sasuke wanted to push away Gekko Yoru, who clung to him like a stubborn plaster, but the boy was simply too moved to let go.
Then again, he was a thirteen- or fourteen-year-old boy. Though his combat strength was already close to that of a jonin, he was still a minor. After escaping death, it was understandable that he might do something a little excessive in his emotional state.
Fortunately, the Explosive Tags on Umino Sasuke's body were not trigger-activated. Otherwise, he really would have had to worry about an accidental spark setting them off.
Before you continue