Sunagakure Walks into an Ambush

"Teacher Minato, they've already loaded the ninja tools into the Scroll."

"Mm, I've already sensed that my technique formulas have disappeared."

Minato Namikaze spoke with a grave expression, then patted the somewhat nervous Hyuga Kazuya on the shoulder, his tone softening.

"Don't be nervous. I'm here. It'll be fine."

Hyuga Kazuya, his lips pressed tightly together, gave an "Mm" and said nothing more.

It would have been a lie to say he was not nervous at all. This was not like the last time at the bandit camp; the bandits' upper limit of strength had been right there in plain sight.

But if anything unexpected really happened this time, all they could do was place their hopes on Teacher Minato.

He vaguely regretted insisting on stopping in the Land of Artisans. Wouldn't it have been better to just give up and leave?

His explosive power had reached Kage-level, but there had been no shortage of Kage-level fighters who had died after being surrounded by several Jonin.

Not to mention a half-baked Kage-level fighter like him.

But what had happened had already happened. There was no use saying any of this now.

Besides, there might not even be any unexpected developments.

Pah, pah. Everything would be fine.

After silently spitting a few times in his heart, Hyuga Kazuya cursed himself for worrying over nothing and frightening himself.

Sunagakure had no interest in what Hyuga Kazuya was thinking. Time continued to pass normally, and the transaction went on.

After handing the cash-filled box to the factory supervisor before her, Pakura made a gesture to her teammates, signaling them to leave at once and return to the village.

Whether the village's secret plan succeeded or not, as long as they successfully brought the traded supplies back to the village, the mission would not be considered a failure.

The fellow village ninja beside her had clearly seen Pakura's signal.

Without lingering further, the several Sunagakure ninja who had come for the transaction, along with the ninja standing guard in the distance, used the Body Flicker Technique and vanished together.

"They've completed the transaction and are preparing to leave the city, Teacher Minato."

"Good. We should get moving as well."

As he spoke, Minato Namikaze handed Hyuga Kazuya a bottle of Military Rations Pills, signaling for him to keep one in his mouth ahead of time in case his chakra was depleted too quickly and could not be replenished in time.

Hyuga Kazuya took the Military Rations Pills, put one in his mouth, and quietly waited for Sunagakure to leave the city.

Before long, given a ninja's mobility, the team led by Pakura in the open had already left the city.

"The Sunagakure team in the open has left the city. Teacher Minato, should we set off?"

Hyuga Kazuya asked eagerly.

Yet at such a critical moment, Minato Namikaze calmly analyzed the situation and asked, "What about the group in the shadows?"

"They still haven't made any move."

"Wait. Wait for them." Placing a hand on his shoulder to restrain Hyuga Kazuya's eagerness, Minato Namikaze explained, "There's no need to follow the team in the open. If they really are together, following the team in the shadows will be the same."

"Mm, all right." Hyuga Kazuya watched Pakura's team gradually leave his field of vision, then shifted his gaze to the hidden Sunagakure team.

Ninja were incredibly fast. Before long, the hidden team had begun to move.

"Teacher Minato, they've left the city."

Exchanging a glance with Minato Namikaze, the two of them used the Body Flicker Technique at once and disappeared from where they stood.

With the Byakugan's scouting ability, they easily avoided the traps Sunagakure had set one after another during their retreat and kept trailing behind the hidden Sunagakure force.

They did not get too close, remaining around the edge of Hyuga Kazuya's Byakugan vision range.

After moving for roughly ten minutes, Hyuga Kazuya had already eaten several Military Rations Pills. To keep his chakra close to full at all times, he could only keep consuming them.

"Teacher Minato, they seem to have sped up." Still leaping through the trees, Hyuga Kazuya quickly moved closer to Minato Namikaze and reported this latest discovery.

"It seems something has happened." Minato Namikaze said thoughtfully, his brows furrowed. "Stay sharp. Maintain your vigilance."

Though they were talking, neither of them slowed down in the slightest.

Very soon, Hyuga Kazuya saw through the Byakugan's long-range vision why the hidden Sunagakure team had accelerated.

Pakura's team in the open had encountered a battle.

He immediately raised a hand, signaling Minato Namikaze to stop.

"What is it, Kazuya?"

"Teacher, there's a battle ahead." His brows furrowed and his eyes narrowed as he tried to see clearly which village's ninja were fighting Sunagakure.

Pfft, pfft.

Several white Bone Spears instantly pierced the bodies of several Sunagakure ninja.

More than a dozen kunai followed close behind.

Pakura's team were all elite ninja, so the instant they came under attack, they made evasive maneuvers.

They all avoided the subsequent kunai assault.

"Who is it?"

Seeing that her companions had already died, Pakura instinctively demanded furiously.

Several people emerged from the shadows in the distance. They were a group from Kirigakure.

Originally, they had wanted to set a trap, but considering that they had no way of knowing which retreat route Sunagakure would take,

they simply abandoned the idea of setting a trap and settled for a straightforward ambush.

After all, for Kirigakure, no matter how good a trap was, it could not compare to killing with real blades and weapons.

"Kirigakure's people?"

Pakura narrowed her eyes, killing intent filling her chest.

But when she saw the two ninja leading Kirigakure, the blazing killing intent receded somewhat, and calmness reclaimed her mind.

One of them was one of Kirigakure's renowned Seven Ninja Swordsmen, while the other—thinking of the Bone Spears from the initial sneak attack—Pakura immediately thought of the Kaguya Clan's Shikotsumyaku.

One of the Seven Ninja Swordsmen and a Kaguya Clan Jonin. This is troublesome.

Pakura cursed inwardly. Did Kirigakure have too much strength with nowhere to use it? How could they send two Elite Jonin at once?

She had completely forgotten that Sunagakure had also sent two Elite Jonin, and their methods were even dirtier.

"You three, hold one of them back. Leave the other to me."

Pakura made arrangements for the Jonin traveling with her.

As for the Chunin, they were not fools. Naturally, they would not approach the obvious leaders on the other side.

"Teacher, they're from Kirigakure."

"It seems we might be able to reap some benefits." Minato Namikaze looked slightly excited as he instructed, "Check the surroundings again. Make sure there aren't others like us."

After observing the area again, Hyuga Kazuya said, "There are no other ninja, unless they're ahead of them."

"Mm. Can you see how many Kirigakure ninja there are? What are their strengths?"

"I can." He carefully observed the battle, then compared them with Kirigakure's publicly known and named strong fighters.

"There are eight of them. Two Jonin, while the rest are Chunin."

"Wait, only two Jonin?" Minato Namikaze was no longer so calm. Only two Jonin had launched an attack against a force that had four Jonin and nine Chunin in the open alone?

"Teacher Minato, it's fine. One of the two Jonin is from the Kaguya Clan, while the other is one of the Seven Ninja Swordsmen, the wielder of the twin blades Hiramekarei."

Watching the Bone Blades emerge from one Jonin's body and the other ninja wielding an unusual greatsword, Hyuga Kazuya identified the two Kirigakure ninja.

"In that case, we still have a chance."

A Seven Ninja Swordsmen member and a Kaguya Clan Jonin were both exceptionally strong Elite Jonin. Against ordinary Jonin of the same level, even if the enemy's numbers doubled, it would be difficult to end the battle quickly. One lapse in attention, and they might even be killed in return.