Clash

It really is that Explosion Release ninja. It seems Iwagakure's artistic style is passed down through generations.

However, for Hane, now is not the time to focus on the Explosion Release ninja.

There's a subjective and objective contradiction on the ninja battlefield, known as "a Genin's life matters too" versus "no one expects anything from a Genin's performance."

Are Iwagakure Jonin really that easy to deal with? In terms of raw power, Hane has a significant gap with the opponent; this could even be called a gap in their "status panels."

"Good speed."

The enemy is quite calm. Facing Hane charging at him, he even offered such praise.

Hane glanced at Torifu Akimichi out of the corner of his eye, then immediately focused his attention entirely on the enemy before him... He had absolutely no time to spare for his captain's battle.

"What should I call you?" he asked casually.

"Iwagakure Jonin, Doto."

Doto answered the question, but this didn't mean he was actually prepared to make small talk with the enemy. While speaking, he had already completed hand seals.

Earth Style: Earth Spear.

In the blink of an eye, the ground beneath Hane's feet suddenly erupted. The bedrock hidden beneath the soft, moist earth suddenly came alive. Then, the hard rock rapidly deformed, instantly turning into jagged spikes, like a sharp sword mountain, stabbing towards Hane from all directions.

No, looking at the range of this jutsu, Hane was about to fall into it. Once hit, he would surely be dead or severely injured.

Fortunately, Hane immediately spotted a safe spot, which was where Doto was standing. With a burst of chakra underfoot, he used Body Flicker to appear behind the enemy.

However, with the rich experience and accurate combat intuition of a Jonin, the moment Hane appeared in that position, Doto immediately swept his right arm backward horizontally. His thick arm stirred up the surrounding wind pressure!

As Hane felt the strong wind brush against his face, his body instinctively leaned back, narrowly dodging the opponent's attack.

Looking at the enemy's thick arm and feeling the force behind his attack, Hane immediately understood that let alone a direct hit, even a graze from the opponent could potentially leave him critically wounded... This enemy was a ninja who excelled in physical strength.

However, Doto's attack did not stop. That arm precisely stopped above Hane's torso, then slammed down fiercely.

"I..."

Hane didn't even have time to curse. His waist bent back again, an extreme backbend, his upper and lower body almost folding in half, and only then did he dodge the enemy's attack again.

BOOM!

Doto's arm slammed into the ground almost brushing Hane's nose. Mud and flying stones immediately plastered Hane's face.

The enemy still hadn't hit Hane, but in Hane's current posture, it would be difficult to dodge again.

So why only dodge? Because the opponent was a Jonin and he was a Genin?

Hane gritted his teeth. He placed his hands on the ground, chakra erupted from his feet, and then, in an almost inverted posture, he kicked the opponent's chest...

Ugh, he did kick him, but the enemy's body didn't budge.

The difference in physique and strength between them was evident. Hane's kick didn't harm the opponent at all; he even reached out to grab his ankle.

My taijutsu is too weak, Hane couldn't help but sigh inwardly.

A Doton ninja of Doto's caliber, whose techniques seemed simple but were actually integrated offense and defense in combat, was enough to leave a ninja like Hane helpless.

But fortunately, Hane was not fighting alone at this moment. Just as Doto was about to make another move, a white beast covered in some kind of patterned script instantly charged over, directly knocking Doto away.

Kairi Omori's support had arrived.

Hane immediately seized the opportunity to create distance from the enemy. Then he saw Kairi Omori take out a square, patterned piece of paper from her ninja tool pouch. She then performed hand seals while folding the paper. After completing the seals, a paper bird appeared in her palm.

"Go!"

A bird's cry was heard. The paper bird instantly came to life. After flying a distance in mid-air, it pounced towards the enemy who had been knocked away.

BOOM!

Another explosion sounded. It turned out Kairi Omori had also hidden a paper explosive within the paper bird.

"The weather is too bad; my jutsu won't last long," Kairi explained to Hane.

Hane looked at the beast that had initially knocked the enemy away. It was starting to dissolve in the heavy rain... Well, paper fears water, which is reasonable.

Looking back at the enemy's side, by the time the dust and smoke cleared, Doto's figure reappeared. It seemed the paper explosive had not been effective.

The enemy's right arm was covered in a layer of rock. This rock had blocked the explosion attack of the paper explosive... This was "Fist Rock Technique," a very common Doton ninjutsu of Iwagakure.

Although most ninjas have high offense and low defense, with Hane's attack power, he couldn't even break through such low defense... It seemed he could only resort to a certain number.

"Senior Kairi, can you use the Binding Technique you used earlier to restrain this enemy, even for a moment?" Hane asked.

"The enemy's chakra is very strong, but... if it's only for a moment, I can try."

"Okay, I have a ninjutsu I want to try too."

Kairi Omori glanced at Hane without saying much. At this point, regardless of whether a Genin could actually pull off a killing move, teammates could only trust each other.

Kairi Omori began to continuously fold paper birds. She maintained a distance, engaging in a back-and-forth battle with the enemy, while Hane occasionally used Body Flicker to change positions, waiting for an opportunity.

The enemy lacks flexibility, which seems to be a weakness. It's as if a "kiting tactic" could slowly wear him down, but this possibility only existed in theory. Because if the battle dragged on, Kairi Omori would be the first to run out of chakra.

Her paper birds couldn't cause much damage, but their attack routes and the positions where they were shot down were carefully designed. Those paper birds soon surrounded Doto... She was subtly setting up Binding spell formations in this way.

Then, she gave Hane a meaningful glance.

Good! Hane instantly understood.

Kairi Omori formed hand seals, and a jutsu formation instantly lit up on the ground. The Binding Technique was completed, and Doto's movements immediately stopped.

At the same time, chakra erupted beneath Hane's feet. His body flickered, and he closed in on the enemy at an uncanny high speed.

In that moment, Hane could only hear the sound of the wind. During his continuous high-speed movement, he even felt space stretching. The stagnant space tethered his movement, but every time chakra erupted from his body, he instantly cast aside that feeling of obstruction.

He didn't know how fast he was at that moment, but he felt he could be faster. In the rain, his afterimages were everywhere.

However, the binding effect of a Binding Technique set up from a distance was inherently limited, and Doto's chakra was stronger than Kairi Omori's. So, when he realized he was bound, he immediately channeled all his chakra without hesitation.

In the blink of an eye, the invisible restraints on him were broken.

With a loud BOOM, Doto punched the ground beneath him. The earth cracked layer by layer, and Kairi Omori's Binding Technique was completely destroyed along with the damaged terrain.

This strike was Doto's strongest burst attack. He had mastered most of Iwagakure's practical Earth Style ninjutsu, but the reason he had become an elite Jonin was his ability to use a highly destructive Earth Style ninjutsu...

Heavy Rock Technique.

Now, he decided to attack without holding back.

The gap in combat power between them was once again highlighted. However, real combat between ninjas wasn't about raw power.

It was precisely because it was full of possibilities that the outcome of battles between ninjas was so suspenseful.

Amidst the rumbling sound of the earth cracking, Doto's ears precisely caught a peculiar abnormal sound, like something rapidly grinding.

Grinding? Spinning?

The gravel scattered before him, and Hane's figure appeared. He rushed to the enemy's side, then relaxed his right hand forward. The sphere of azure chakra in his palm illuminated the enemy's expressionless face.

The rain continuously refracted the light emitted by the chakra sphere, creating soft, scattered points of light in the dim environment.

Then, to Doto's utter disbelief, the chakra sphere easily penetrated his chest.

Hane gasped heavily, covered in blood. Clearly, the shockwave from the enemy's indiscriminate attack had hit him, but... trading injury for a life, it was all worth it.

Fearing a dying counterattack from the enemy, Hane immediately used Body Flicker to retreat after landing the hit.

Doto then straightened up. He looked at Hane, who had retreated, and then at his own chest.

Blood poured out of him uncontrollably, and his surging vitality drained from him uncontrollably...

Then, his body swayed, and he collapsed to the ground.