Breaking Away

The turn of the tide caught everyone off guard. The Iwagakure Jonin who had the upper hand suddenly collapsed to the ground, causing the Explosion Release ninja fighting Torifu Akimichi to falter for a moment.

Then, Torifu Akimichi seized the opportunity and knocked him away with a single blow.

The Explosion Release ninja took a hit, the Earth Release ninja Doto collapsed unable to get up, and the invisible ninja over there was also dealt with by Hazuki Uchiha...

The Leaf ninja squad gained the upper hand for a time, but Torifu Akimichi had no intention of pressing his advantage and annihilating the enemy.

"Retreat, don't fight to the death, don't get entangled with them, leave immediately."

This was a very correct judgment. Due to their location, Iwagakure ninja could arrive to support at any moment. If they didn't seize the opportunity to disengage now, the Leaf ninja squad could be surrounded at any time.

After Torifu Akimichi gave the order to retreat, he immediately used the Expansion Jutsu to forcibly reshape the surrounding terrain, and simultaneously used smoke bombs to obscure the battlefield's visibility for a short period.

The four regrouped, and then, counterintuitively, the squad did not choose to retreat eastward but continued to move westward.

The rain began to fall harder, easily washing away the squad's tracks.

Gari, the Explosion Release ninja, was temporarily unable to pursue after being disrupted. He went to Doto to check his injuries... The bloody hole in front of Doto surprised him.

"What kind of wound is this?"

This method of attacking, which shredded internal organs, appeared on the battlefield for the first time.

After disengaging, the Leaf reconnaissance squad ran for several hours. Once they were out of the enemy's pursuit range, they hid again.

They had fought a battle and then fled, so the squad's consumption was significant; they needed to rest.

Others were fine, only expending chakra, but Yuzuru, while rushing towards the enemy, couldn't dodge in time and was hit by a lot of broken stones. Although they were only superficial wounds, his body was still torn and bleeding.

The squad re-entered a cave to hide. Only then did Yuzuru have time to treat his wounds. With the help of his teammates, he was quickly bandaged up like a mummy.

"Yuzuru, how are you?" Torifu Akimichi asked.

He hadn't expected that the Genin in the squad would be the first to break through in the recent battle.

"It's nothing serious, but... I probably won't be able to fight at full strength for a while."

One was severe blood loss, and the other was that Yuzuru felt he had several bone fractures. Moving even slightly caused unbearable pain. It was already difficult to keep up with the squad during the escape, and it would be asking too much for him to fight continuously.

"You already did very well earlier."

Torifu Akimichi finally understood. Yuzuru's combat strength was far beyond that of a Genin. As for why he hid his strength... he figured there were all sorts of reasons.

This captain would never have imagined that Yuzuru's strength had actually increased in a short period.

"It can now be confirmed that the ones who blocked Leaf's reconnaissance channels, and even destroyed Leaf's frontline reconnaissance outposts, should be Iwagakure's demolition troops... This unit consists of twelve people, all elite Jonin."

"There are only eleven left now. The one who was invisible was too weak; they shouldn't be a member." Hazuki Uchiha said.

"..."

Alright, there were indeed only eleven left, because one of them was dealt with by Yuzuru using some kind of special ninjutsu.

Torifu Akimichi nodded, then took an Exploding Tag from his tool pouch and showed it to everyone.

"Explosion Release is a relatively well-researched Kekkei Genkai. Its abilities are simple but effective. Iwagakure's demolition troops are worth taking seriously."

Yuzuru's heart skipped a beat. The captain was talking, so why did he pull out an Exploding Tag? Was the Exploding Tag an extension of Explosion Release?

"Captain, we understand. We shouldn't confront them head-on in this location." Kairi Omori supported the captain's judgment and decision.

Torifu Akimichi nodded, then fell silent, clearly contemplating how to proceed with the mission.

Although Yuzuru had defeated a powerful enemy, he was now severely injured and no longer suitable for operating on the enemy's front lines...

Honestly, it was only because the squad captain was someone like Torifu Akimichi. Otherwise, considering the conditions of "deep behind enemy lines, difficult to retreat, and a Genin injured," this Genin might well have been abandoned by the squad.

But Torifu Akimichi wouldn't do that. Although Yuzuru himself wasn't sure, Torifu Akimichi had never considered abandoning a teammate.

Among the squad, only Kairi Omori had personally witnessed Yuzuru's Rasengan. Although it was a fleeting glance, she could sense that it was an extremely difficult ninjutsu that required exceptional chakra control abilities, and by no means something a Genin should master.

Based on this ninjutsu alone, she was certain the squad needed Yuzuru's combat ability.

Although Body Flicker plus Rasengan was completely different from Flying Thunder God plus Rasengan, due to the speed of hand-signless ninjutsu, Yuzuru's performance on the battlefield just now could barely be considered a low-tier version of the Fourth Hokage.

Thanks to the Fourth Hokage, Yuzuru might have died just now if not for him.

Overall, at least within this squad, no one would easily make the decision to abandon a teammate.

"Since Yuzuru is inconvenient to move now, given his physical condition, operating under the enemy's nose is too dangerous. Therefore, I've decided to go alone to confirm the situation at the remaining two frontline outposts... I'll be more flexible acting alone."

After a moment of silence, Torifu Akimichi made his decision.

No, the latter part of his sentence was clearly meant to comfort his teammates. Although Torifu Akimichi's combat power was strong, his specialty was certainly not infiltration, penetration, or reconnaissance.

He was suited for frontal combat, preferably head-on clashes with the enemy.

Yuzuru believed the most correct decision at this point was to abandon the mission and return. There was no need to guess that the remaining two outposts had also been destroyed, but ninjas prioritize missions. Sometimes they were quite rigid in their execution... Well, besides, Yuzuru had no say in the squad.

"Captain, let me go with you. I can at least support your actions." Kairi Omori said.

With a Jonin and a Special Jonin acting together, Kairi Omori's abilities would indeed be very helpful for the upcoming reconnaissance.

Torifu Akimichi thought for a moment longer, then nodded, "Alright, then we'll split into two groups. Hazuki, you stay here to protect Yuzuru."

Hazuki Uchiha opened her mouth. She also wanted to participate in the upcoming action, but as the words reached her lips, she realized... If three people went out and left only an injured person behind, how would that injured person feel?

That could be considered abandonment in a practical sense.

So Hazuki Uchiha had no choice but to stay behind, both to protect her teammates and to put their minds at ease.

"Captain, I understand. I'll stay here and stand guard."

Just a few hours later, Torifu Akimichi and Kairi Omori set out again. After confirming there were no signs of pursuers outside, their figures blended into the rain.

Of the two left in the underground cave, Hazuki Uchiha was responsible for vigilance, while Yuzuru closed his eyes to rest.

Currently, he was adapting well to combat between ninja, but the problem was his strength still had issues.

While Body Flicker could be used for both offense and defense, Yuzuru's attack methods were very limited: either stabbing with a kunai or using Rasengan... the former's attack power was too low, and the latter's was too high and consumed too much energy. His chakra reserves couldn't support him using Rasengan multiple times in sustained combat.

He lacked a combat method with moderate attack power.

As for ninjutsu, his original body knew a little Fire Release, but its power was limited, and using it was almost a waste of chakra. In contrast, thanks to the Fourth Hokage's gift, he had mastered Wind Release nature transformation quite well, so he needed a way to learn Wind Release techniques next.

After much thought, it seemed he would have to rely on "dungeons"... The next time he entered a dungeon, Yuzuru would have to find a way to get some Wind Release ninjutsu.