The Father-Son Match

At that moment, everyone clearly sensed Shiba Seika's resolve!

Although they didn't understand why their captain hated Konoha so much, their longstanding trust and obedience led them to follow his orders.

Kenjiro volunteered to go down the mountain and set up a firebreak, as well as evacuate the villagers.

Ajisai continued monitoring the situation in the mountains.

Masuda Ikki and Karasuba followed Shiba Seika to a higher slope to start the fire.

The moonlight was cool, and deep beneath the forest, in a temporary base, Yūno Ryōma remained unaware of the fire about to break out.

He was poring over reports by lamplight, compiling the intelligence they had gathered during the day.

(From left to right: Orochimaru, Danzo, Yūno Ryōma)

When he had first arrived in the Land of Rain, his attention had still been fixed on the battlefield between Konoha and Sunagakure.

But over the past few days, as their local intelligence operation had gradually expanded, he had gone from resenting Danzo's assignment to taking a genuine interest in it.

"This Akatsuki Organization really does pose a threat! Especially that boy who's suspected of being a member of the Shimura clan. His methods are ruthless, and he's incredibly clever. It's hard to believe he's only a teenager."

Yūno Ryōma muttered as he read the reports.

Beside him, the Root shinobi codenamed Wu chuckled. "Could the boy really be one of Lord Danzo's relatives? Does he want to become the Rain's Shinobi of Darkness?"

Danzo had a title of his own: Shinobi of Darkness. It was probably self-appointed, but the title was still quite well-regarded within Root.

Yūno Ryōma smiled awkwardly and said nothing.

As the organization's highest-ranking commander, he interacted with Danzo far more often than the Root shinobi under his command, so he wasn't as inclined to idolize him.

If you asked him, compared to this boy at the same age, Lord Danzo would probably be crushed...

What had Danzo been doing at fifteen or sixteen?

He'd been accompanying the Second on a diplomatic mission to Kumogakure. Then, at the crucial moment, he'd lost his nerve and made a choice he still regretted to this day.

As a longtime Root operative, Yūno Ryōma didn't want to give his superior an honest appraisal, so he simply kept quiet.

Unfortunately, Wu completely missed the awkward atmosphere and kept chattering.

"If you ask me, if that boy really is a Shimura who got lost outside the clan, Lord Danzo should come here himself and take him in as his adopted son.

That boy seems born for Root. He might even become your successor someday, Lord Ryōma."

Yūno Ryōma's mouth twitched, his smile strained.

But just then, Yūno Ryōma abruptly shot up from his desk, moving so suddenly that he knocked a pile of scrolls to the floor and startled Wu.

"What's wrong?" Wu asked.

Yūno Ryōma's expression changed drastically. "Wake everyone up! My bugs have detected a fire outside!"

Wu's expression changed too. He immediately used Body Flicker Technique to hurry off and wake the sleeping squad members one by one.

By the time they were awake, had put on their gear and masks, and reached the base entrance, all they could see was a blazing sea of fire!

The "Fire Release: Great Fireball Technique" might be mocked in the original story as a merciful technique that never killed anyone across the entire manga, but it was still the Uchiha Clan's signature jutsu—and it was certainly effective at setting mountains ablaze.

In no time, the entire slope was engulfed in flames and thick smoke.

Yūno Ryōma's expression was grim.

His Insect Jutsu was severely suppressed in this environment!

Bugs were naturally averse to fire and refused to work under these conditions. If he forced them, they might even turn on him.

"Get out of here now! Fall back beyond the ring of fire! Be careful, everyone. My bugs can't scout for us under these conditions!" Yūno Ryōma ordered in a rush.

He was the squad's sensor-type ninja, but under the circumstances, his sensing range was now inferior to that of an ordinary shinobi.

The hidden enemy immediately exploited this weakness!

A Root shinobi leaped high, trying to escape the inferno. The instant his feet landed on the unburned treetop above, a massive explosion swallowed him.

"Boom!"

"AAAAAH!"

The explosion and scream came crashing down from above, dragging the spirits of the Root shinobi with them into the abyss.

"Careful! There are traps all around us! The trees are covered in Exploding Tags!"

Sweat trickled down Yūno Ryōma's temple.

The wildfire had restricted his bugs and diminished his sensing range. Now hidden traps were appearing all around them!

The enemy had clearly planned this carefully, with one killing move following another!

Had their underground base been exposed all along? How had he failed to notice for days?

That explosion seemed to light a fuse. More and more blasts rang out around them!

The fire grew fiercer, and everywhere beneath the moon, smoke billowed and flames raged!

"Damn it! Where did these enemies come from?! Who's targeting us? Why are there so many Exploding Tags?"

Wu's eyes were bloodshot with fury, but there was nothing he could do.

He was a ninja skilled in Fire Release, but in this environment, he couldn't put his abilities to use. Any jutsu he tried would only make things worse.

But his offhand remark suddenly made Yūno Ryōma realize something.

"Exploding Tags? Right, Exploding Tags! The intelligence said there's a girl in that Akatsuki Organization who's good at making them!"

Wu froze in shock.

"How is that possible? Ryōma, are you saying the Akatsuki Organization from the Land of Rain is behind this fire?!"

Just a few seconds ago, he'd been thinking about asking Lord Danzo to come and adopt the boy.

He hadn't expected the situation to change so quickly!

The boy had refused his adoption offer—and followed up by challenging him to a Father-Son Match.

The two Root shinobi codenamed Po and Luo were just as incredulous.

"How is that possible?! How could a few Rain shinobi pull off something like this?"

Yūno Ryōma had been handling the intelligence reports all this time. The two of them had mostly been waiting at the base, so their understanding of Akatsuki was still based on what they'd heard before setting out.

They'd thought it was just a ragtag group from the Land of Rain that Danzo had taken offense at because of the Uchiha's false accusations.

Yūno Ryōma's face was grave. At that moment, he was the only one who took seriously the ruthless, cunning boy described in the reports.

"Now's not the time to talk about that. Take the scrolls. Abandon all unnecessary supplies and break out immediately!"

Luo was still sneering. "Hmph! Once we reach somewhere the fire's not as bad, I'll rip those people's heads off with my own hands!"

But as time passed...

One minute, two minutes, five minutes, ten minutes...

Luo's smile gradually stiffened. Beneath his mask, his face was drenched in sweat, and the beads of perspiration had nearly formed a stream at the bottom of it.

"Why can't we get out?"

For a full ten minutes, they had tried to break through in every direction.

Left or right, forward or back, uphill or downhill—the unchanging sea of fire and its endless Exploding Tag traps surrounded them everywhere!

Only then did Yūno Ryōma finally realize just how badly he'd underestimated the madness and ruthlessness of the boy in the reports.

"That guy set the whole mountain on fire? How dare he? Is he crazy?!"

As if in answer to Yūno Ryōma's murmur, screams suddenly rang out behind him, further straining the Root shinobi's already fraying nerves!

At the perfect moment, with the Root shinobi exhausted and on the verge of collapse, Shiba Seika and his companions finally emerged from hiding and launched their attack!