Moonlight Han Must Die

"Rasa really is here!" Seeing the Sand Shinobi hidden behind Rasa's Gold Dust Wave, Yueguang Han stopped sniping, returned his hand to normal, and went back to stand beside Orochimaru.

"Lord Orochimaru, the Sand Shinobi have suffered a crushing defeat. This is the perfect opportunity for us to pursue them and press our advantage!" Seeing the Sand Shinobi retreat while Orochimaru gave no order to pursue and expand their gains, a Konoha Jonin could not help but offer his suggestion. The battle had gone so smoothly, and the Sand Shinobi had been soundly defeated. This was the perfect time to press the attack. Even if they could not defeat the Sand Shinobi completely, they could still secure an even greater advantage.

"Do I need you to command the battle for me?" Orochimaru looked coldly at the ninja who had offered the suggestion.

"Lord Orochimaru, I overstepped my bounds!" The Konoha Ninja hurriedly admitted his mistake, trembling inwardly.

"Lord Han, pursuing them now would mean giving up our greatest advantage. This is not the most suitable opportunity. I'm sure you can create a better chance to attack, can't you?" Seeing the Jonin admit his mistake, Orochimaru ignored him and spoke to Yueguang Han with a smile.

The Sand Shinobi had indeed retreated, but this was not a rout. Although some Sand Shinobi had been killed, it was only around three hundred—a minor victory. With both sides fielding more than four thousand ninja, Konoha was still at a numerical disadvantage. Moreover, the Sand Shinobi had withdrawn into the forest, and Yueguang Han's Bloodline Limit happened to be countered by Rasa's Magnet Style. Expanding their gains would not be easy. They could instead easily be ambushed by the Sand Shinobi in the forest.

"Give me some time. I think I should be able to do it," Yueguang Han said.

"Of course. If you need anything, you can tell me, and I'll do my best to satisfy you. But don't make me wait too long." Orochimaru smiled at Yueguang Han, then ordered, "Everyone, return to camp and rest."

"Elder Chiyo, the Konoha Ninja aren't pursuing us." In the forest, the ninja responsible for observation reported to Elder Chiyo.

"Orochimaru isn't stupid. He won't do something like abandoning the greater goal for a minor gain." Chiyo snorted coldly, her tone filled with anger. This battle had truly been frustrating. Although their losses were not particularly great, those three hundred ninja had practically died for nothing. That was three hundred ninja! The entire Sand Village currently had only eight or nine thousand ninja left, and that included more than three thousand Genin. Still, Orochimaru's decision not to pursue them was within her expectations. If Orochimaru had really chased them into the forest, she would have avenged those ninja who had died for nothing. Unfortunately, Orochimaru was not that foolish.

"That man must be killed first, and this should take priority over every other military objective. As long as he remains on the battlefield, it will be difficult for us to gain the upper hand, and we'll suffer heavy casualties. By the time we win the war, we may be unable to enjoy the fruits of victory because of our enormous losses. We might even become prey for the other ninja villages." Rasa was referring to Yueguang Han. Yueguang Han's Kekkei Genkai was too well suited for war and slaughter. It was practically a Bloodline Limit born specifically for war and killing. One person had already influenced the outcome of this battle. If Yueguang Han did not die, situations like this would likely occur again and again.

"It will probably be very difficult to find such an opportunity. That man's abilities are so important to the war that as long as he remains alive and belongs to Konoha, the balance of the war will favor Konoha. The people of Konoha cannot fail to understand his importance, and they will not easily give us a chance to kill him. Konoha will not let him leave its camp easily. Even if he does leave, there will definitely be a large number of ninja and experts protecting him. Besides, even if we find an opportunity, both you and I have fought him. You should know that killing him won't be easy," Yakura said.

How could killing Yueguang Han be easy? Not only was he heavily protected by Konoha, but based on the information they had gathered so far, Yueguang Han was immune to Fire Style and Lightning Style, and his ability to withstand physical attacks was also extremely powerful. He could block sensory detection, possessed wide-area sensory abilities, and had even mastered flight. If he escaped into the sky, there would be almost no chance of killing him. Instead, they would be more likely to be killed by him. Killing that Konoha youth would probably be no less difficult than assassinating the Third Hokage. At present, the only thing known to counter Yueguang Han's Kekkei Genkai was Rasa's Magnet Style gold dust. Earth Style could only protect its user and could not be considered a counter.

"If there's no opportunity, then we'll create one!" Rasa said, his determination to kill Yueguang Han extremely strong.

In fact, Rasa had left something unsaid. With that youth around, the possibility of the heavily battered Sand Village losing would become even greater—perhaps even certain. There were many minor ninja villages in the shinobi world that wanted to become one of the Five Great Ninja Villages, with the Rain, Long, and Grass Villages being the most prominent. The strength of these three villages was not weak either, as each had more than five thousand ninja. If the war ended in defeat and the Sand Village suffered excessively heavy casualties, it might fall out of the ranks of the Five Great Ninja Villages, perhaps never having a chance to recover. In Rasa's view, the war could be lost. They could recover their strength in ten or several dozen years. But Yueguang Han had to die, because he was a sharp sword capable of threatening the survival of the Sand Village.

"Rasa, how do you plan to create an opportunity?" Chiyo asked.

"This... I can't think of a good way for the moment," Rasa said regretfully.

"Return to Mount Kikyo first!" Chiyo shook her head and ordered them to head back.

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(PS2: Because of the advantages of education, Konoha has the most ninja, including the most geniuses. However, it has to guard against attacks from the other ninja villages and is fighting on multiple fronts, so its forces here are still smaller than those of the Sand Village.)

(PS3: Please vote and help with the rankings.)