Karot VS A

The smoke cleared, and Karot maintained his hands clasped pose.

"Attacking as soon as we meet, that's a bit rude, isn't it? A."

Karot spoke slowly. As expected, A's reputation was well-deserved; his strength had reached the Kage level.

A was shocked that a ten-year-old Leaf Village ninja had blocked his attack! Since when could any random ninja contend with me?

"Brat, state your name. I don't kill nameless people."

A said arrogantly, as if Karot had no chance of escaping alive.

"Hatake Karot, remember that name."

"I know. I'll bury you myself."

With that, A flashed forward, charging at Karot with thunderous momentum. Karot advanced instead of retreating, meeting the attack with his fists. The energy released from their clashing fists scattered, felling trees and causing the ground to sink around them.

Fist met fist, the deafening sound of flesh colliding was exhilarating.

A threw an uppercut towards Karot's head. Karot reacted immediately, bracing himself with his hands on the ground and extending his legs at a 45-degree angle, kicking towards A's chest. A dodged back, but Karot pressed his advantage, throwing punches at A relentlessly. A defended with all his might, his guard as impenetrable as a wall. He absorbed all of Karot's attacks.

"Brat, you had your fun. Now it's my turn."

A's body began to glow with denser lightning, as if he were enveloped in it. His speed and power increased. In the blink of an eye, the tables turned.

His punches were incredibly fast. This time, Karot could see them but couldn't defend against them. One punch landed squarely in Karot's abdomen, sending him flying backward. He crashed through three trees before finally coming to a stop.

Karot clutched his stomach, coughed a few times, and stood up. His offense and defense are both so high. No Kage-level ninja is simple.

"System, remove the weight restriction on my body."

"Understood, Host."

A cold voice echoed in Karot's mind.

Karot felt a sudden lightness throughout his body. He bent over, clenched his fists, and shouted.

"Aaaah~~."

Karot's aura grew stronger and stronger, pebbles on the ground began to jump, and he continued until his entire body emanated a yellow light.

Karot stared directly at A and beckoned him forward with his right hand, signaling him to attack.

A had never been provoked like this before. He immediately launched a furious assault on Karot, attacking from the front, right, left, and above. Each strike aimed for Karot's vital points, yet, as expected, Karot dodged every single one.

"My turn."

A didn't hear Karot's words, but he could tell from his mouth movements that they weren't pleasant.

Karot grabbed A's fist with one hand, lifted him up, and threw him flying. He then took a step forward, catching up to the airborne A, and punched him away. He repeated this, treating A like a sandbag, hitting him back and forth.

Using ninjutsu to stimulate his body for greater speed, A finally broke free from Karot's playful assault.

They stood facing each other, one crackling with lightning, the other glowing with yellow light, a perfect match.

A was greatly surprised. The opponent's power wasn't chakra; it was a completely new kind of energy. Could it be a Kekkei Genkai? But using a Kekkei Genkai consumes chakra, yet he couldn't sense even a trace of chakra on him. A was certain of this. At the same time, he made a decision: he had to capture Karot and not let him leave alive. Such a genius would be too dangerous if allowed to grow. He had to eliminate him before his wings were fully formed.

"Hey, A, it's getting late. Let's call it a draw for today."

Karot's mission was only to delay the enemy. Once the mission was complete, he could retreat. Besides, he wasn't confident he could kill the man in front of him. If they both ended up severely injured, he had no backup.

"Stay where you are."

Before A could finish speaking, Karot vanished. Just as Karot had thought, A also wasn't confident he could kill Karot. He just wanted to stall Karot until reinforcements arrived to eliminate him.

Not long after Karot disappeared, the Cloud Ninja reinforcements arrived.

"Lord A, was the enemy eliminated?"

The arriving Cloud Ninja asked, their eyes scanning for the enemy's corpse.

"No, they escaped."

"Hiss, to escape from Lord A's hands, the enemy must be extraordinary."

As the successor to the Cloud Ninja, A's strength was evident. The fact that the enemy could retreat calmly meant their strength was not to be underestimated.

"Issue a bounty at the Bounty Exchange. Thirty million for anyone who kills Hatake Karot."

"Ah~."

His subordinate was greatly shocked. Thirty million was no small sum; it was the reward for three S-rank missions. However, he was quick-witted and immediately agreed. The leader only had to speak; the subordinate just needed to execute. Especially since their superior was currently angry, defying him would mean being sent to the front lines in an instant, with no chance to cry.

"Finally escaped this ordeal."

Everyone at the assembly point breathed a sigh of relief when Karot returned safely.

"Captain, your strength is truly amazing. To escape from that monster, just looking at him made my legs tremble."

Akimichi, with his plumpest physique, spoke timidly, filled with admiration for Karot's strength.

"Captain Karot, can we report the mission details to Lord Orochimaru now?"

Nara asked.

"Yes."

Nara summoned a white snake, which swallowed the mission report in one gulp and disappeared in a puff of white smoke. After the white snake vanished, Karot spoke.

"Now we need to consider how to retreat. Nara, do you have any strategies?"

When it came to thinking, they naturally turned to the most flexible minds. In Leaf Village, no ninja clan had sharper minds than the Nara.

"We destroyed the Thunder Moon Bridge, so the enemy will definitely be hunting us frantically. Our only option now is to outrun our opponents. They outnumber us, and we'll only be safe if we break out of their encirclement."

Nara's analysis was sound. Ultimately, Karot agreed with Nara's decision and they rapidly headed towards the Land of Fire.

Meanwhile, A was furious. His record had been tarnished.

"Pass down the order: begin a carpet search. Pay special attention to a white-haired little boy. Once found, do not act rashly. Send me a message immediately, understand?"

"Yes."

The Cloud Ninja, kneeling on one knee, flickered and vanished.

A rested his chin on his hand, contemplating how to deal with Karot. A's image was one of action over words, because acting was simple and quick. When something could be solved with action, no one wanted to bother thinking.

Karot and the others passed through the enemy blockade and, dusty and travel-worn, returned to the Leaf Village camp in the Land of Soup.

"Karot, you did well. I saw your deeds in the report: holding off enemy soldiers alone, covering for your teammates, and still managing to retreat unharmed. Your strength exceeds my imagination."

Orochimaru praised Karot without reservation. The mission's success was proof of his own discerning eye, and it would also boost morale on the front lines.