Boom! Boom! Boom!

The ninja sandals crunched over the scattered grass, the sound like a grasshopper bouncing on everyone's frayed nerves.

Pashira slowly raised his hand.

At this distance, he wasn't confident he could kill the newcomer without alerting the enemy Jonin. Rather than risk revealing their position and putting the other side on guard, it was better to strike first.

He was greedy, sure. But when even the most basic gains were at risk of slipping away, he'd rather play it safe.

As the Sunagakure Shinobi drew closer, the Cloud Ninja behind the tree gripped his Kunai in a reverse hold, every muscle taut as he waited for his prey to enter killing range.

10 meters

5 meters

3 meters

"Where's Chuan Gui?"

A somewhat lazy voice made the approaching Sunagakure Shinobi stop and turn toward Hoshino Maki, who was yawning and looking around.

The Cloud Ninja behind the tree glanced at Pashira. His hand was still suspended in the air.

A tree apart, two different scenes.

One side was completely unaware. The other was rife with murderous intent.

"Why did you run over there?"

"My lord, this tree is big. One of these is worth two or three of the others, so it'll make a much sturdier bridge."

"Idiot! Who do you expect to carry a tree that heavy?!"

Chuan Gui hadn't expected Lord Hoshino Maki, usually so easygoing, to suddenly blow up at him. He jumped in fright, then hurriedly bowed and apologized. "I'm sorry, my lord. I didn't think it through."

He'd originally planned to chop it down and carry it over with the others. But though he wasn't the most tactful, he knew that offering this excuse now would only make things worse, so he promptly admitted his mistake.

The anger on Hoshino Maki's face eased a little. He gestured toward the others. "Hurry up and help them carry the trees. Just cut a few small ones to satisfy Lord Kojima's order. You're all ninja—why make such a fuss about crossing a river?"

Hoshino Maki muttered a few more words, then turned around. His rear slid down to the ground, and he used a tree stump to hide himself, as if he didn't want Lord Kojima to catch him slacking off. Then he closed his eyes and went back to sleep.

The movement left his entire front exposed to the Cloud Ninja, without the slightest defense.

Pashira stared hard at the face across from him.

Too coincidental.

Far too coincidental.

And yet he couldn't say what was wrong.

A ninja's instincts were important, but as the captain of this elite force of over two hundred, he had to be cautious.

Kumogakure had expanded its ninja ranks considerably in recent years, but it still had no more top combatants than the other villages.

So, for this war, Kumogakure had taken a highly risky approach:

Aside from a handful of Jonin left behind to guard the village, the rest had split into two groups. Half the Jonin had been sent to ambush the enemy on this side and destroy its reinforcements, while the other half would pin down Pakura's forces.

The Ninja World might not have a saying for "besiege a point to draw in reinforcements," but similar tactics still existed.

If only Pakura knew how Kumogakure had deployed its forces, the front line would have suffered a devastating blow!

That was why this ambush had to succeed—and succeed brilliantly. Then they would attack from both sides and wipe out Pakura's forces in one fell swoop!

Pashira fell into a long silence as he watched the Sunagakure Shinobi about to leave. He remained that way until Samui leaped to his side.

"My lord!"

Samui, usually so composed and calm, spoke to Pashira in a low, anxious voice. "My lord, look over there!"

Pashira followed Samui's gaze. A Female Ninja was carrying on with her work while repeatedly glancing toward the woods. Each time she looked, she immediately lowered her head again, her face taut with nerves.

"Damn it!"

His unease instantly intensified. Pashira realized he'd been played for a fool the whole time. He hurled his Kunai, which pierced Hoshino Maki's chest.

Bang—!

Hoshino Maki, who had been sleeping just a moment ago, turned into a wooden post. The Kunai struck a Smoke Bomb tied to it.

A chain of explosions followed. The post fell to the ground, and the other Smoke Bombs attached to it went off from the impact, filling the area with smoke and enveloping the Cloud Ninja forces.

"Damn it! Wind Release!"

As Pashira shouted, the well-trained Wind Release users from Kumogakure had already finished their Hand Seals and were about to use their Ninjutsu. A volley of Kunai, carried by the gale, shot into their ranks.

The Sunagakure Shinobi had struck first, catching them unprepared!

The sky and the ground—everywhere, the wide eyes of countless Cloud Ninja were filled with Explosive Tags, their fuses still burning.

Rumble—!!

Severed limbs and mangled remains.

Blood and entrails covered the ground.

In anime, people came through smoke unscathed, and Explosive Tags never killed anyone. Here, the exact opposite was true.

Ninja were people too. Ordinary Chunin had no way to fight back against the chain explosions of hundreds of Explosive Tags. The speed they prided themselves on was helpless against an attack that covered the entire area with firepower. Countless Cloud Ninja had been blown to pieces before they could even draw their weapons. If many of them hadn't trained in Nintaijutsu, this explosion would already have wiped them all out.

Pashira's body was sheathed in blue Lightning Release Chakra, his muscles knotted and bulging.

He wasn't injured, but his nearly two-meter-tall frame trembled nonstop, his face stricken with despair.

It was over.

It was all over.

His greed had not only doomed the entire force, it had also ruined Kumogakure's grand ambitions, plotted for years. He was a sinner in the eyes of the Cloud Ninja!

A companion beside him, still barely breathing, twitched without feeling a thing. He was one of the lucky ones.

The most miserable were those who had lost their arms and legs and could no longer move, yet remained conscious and could only scream in agony.

Kill him!

He had to kill him!!

Thanks to the Explosive Tags, the thick smoke had been blown away. Pashira's bloodshot eyes immediately locked onto the young man standing not far away.

Hoshino Maki had shed his earlier nonchalance and was carefully taking in the situation.

Fewer than a hundred enemies remained. Every one of them was wounded, but the Jonin had retained most of their fighting strength.

What Jonin didn't have a few tricks to save their lives? Against Jonin, Explosive Tags weren't nearly as effective.

Unless they used something like the Mutual Explosion Talismans for sustained, precise blasts—or the rich-girl-exclusive Money Release that Konan wielded—Explosive Tags could only be used as ordinary weapons.

Suddenly, Hoshino Maki rolled to the side. Where he had been standing, Pashira's heavy punch had blasted a crater about three meters wide into the ground. Beside it lay the corpse of a Sunagakure Jonin—the one who had been protecting Hoshino Maki.

So fast!

He'd killed a Jonin in an instant!

This was Hoshino Maki's first time fighting the Cloud Ninja. His previous self had fought them at the front, but he'd been knocked unconscious in a single exchange and sent back to Sunagakure, so that experience was useless as a point of reference. This was his first real fight with them.

His first opponent was this strong?

Hoshino Maki had dared to stand on the front line because he had something to rely on.

He hadn't had much time, but he'd still laid two Chakra nets around the area. He hadn't expected them to be more fragile than paper against this Elite Jonin from Kumogakure—utterly useless at stopping him.

Fortunately, Hoshino Maki had been alert enough to dodge the instant the net broke.

Whoosh—!

Two enormous Wind Release blades crossed as they shot toward Pashira.

"Lord Hoshino!"

Four Jonin landed in front of Hoshino Maki. They raised their Kunai, shielding him from view as they faced the enemy in grim readiness.

Pashira rose to his feet and threw a straight punch. The powerful force of his fist shattered both Wind Release blades.

"You deserve to die!"

A low growl forced its way from his throat. The bloodthirsty beast's gaze passed over the four Jonin and locked onto Hoshino Maki.