Is This... a Puppet?

"Wind Style: Pressure Damage!" A massive compressed sphere of wind, condensed to a terrifying degree, blasted toward Yueguang Han at the speed of a howling typhoon. The immense wind pressure within could absolutely tear everything apart. If such an attack caught someone off guard, even a Jonin would find it difficult to evade, and the exploding wind sphere had an enormous area of effect.

Can't dodge!

Watching the massive wind sphere howl toward him, Yueguang Han immediately made his judgment. His body, now weighing more than half a ton, could never evade such a fast, wide-range attack.

He raised both arms, covered his head and shielded his eyes, bent his legs halfway, and took a stance that would better withstand the enormous wind sphere.

"Boom...!"

A sound like an explosion rang out as the hurricane howled. Countless tiny wind blades continuously sliced Yueguang Han's body, shaving away his flesh. The violent gale made it difficult for him to keep his footing. Smoke and dust filled the air, while the earth was carved with deep marks and stripped away layer by layer. Even large trees were uprooted and torn apart by the hurricane.

"Did we kill him?"

"He should be dead... right? That was the captain's A-rank ninjutsu, Wind Style: Pressure Damage, after all."

Ohno and the remaining four Sand Shinobi stared intently into the smoke and dust, their voices uncertain. Though he had confidence in the power of Pressure Damage, the enemy's bizarre strength kept him from lowering his guard in the slightest. Especially since, at the very end, they had all seen the enemy raise his arms in a defensive posture. Earlier, they had clearly wounded him all over, yet he had not died—instead, he had slaughtered more than half their group.

Thermal Imaging! After the power of the Wind Style attack had passed, Yueguang Han looked at the smoke obscuring his vision and closed his eyes. When he opened them again, they had turned crimson, like the eyes of a demon ready to devour its prey. At that moment, the ordinary scenery vanished from his vision, replaced only by blue, black, yellow, and red. The hidden Sand Shinobi stood out with startling clarity.

His hands transformed into M249 LMGs once more and rose.

"Rat-tat-tat-tat...!" The machine guns roared from within the smoke. Bullet after bullet churned through the swirling dust as they flew out. At a distance of fifty meters, in less than 0.1 seconds, the Sand Shinobi had not even heard the sound. Their nerves had only just registered danger when the bullets burst through the smoke, pierced their chests in succession, and riddled two of them with holes. They did not even have time to scream.

The torrent of bullets swiftly swept toward the Sand Shinobi beside them.

"Take cover!" Ohno shouted, darting behind a tree first. At the same time, his hands rapidly formed seals.

"Earth Style: Earth Wall." A two-meter-high, two-meter-wide wall of earth rose before the tree, shielding both it and Ohno. The other four remaining Sand Shinobi likewise rushed behind nearby trees, one of them also using Earth Wall.

This kind of attack is too fast. We can't fight him head-on at all. Hidden behind the tree, Ohno listened carefully to the sounds and warily watched the smoke as he rapidly considered a solution. The attack was incredibly fast, and its speed gave it tremendous penetration and power. Fortunately, it could not directly punch through trees or thick Earth Walls.

"Hide all you want. It won't help."

A cold voice rang out. As the smoke dispersed, the Sand Shinobi, who had been tensely watching it, finally saw Yueguang Han clearly. Most of the flesh on his body had been stripped away by Pressure Damage, exposing the appearance of a metallic robot beneath. Like a vicious ghost returned from hell, he walked toward them one step at a time. Numerous objects floated around him, while the flesh that had been blown away slowly regenerated.

"Is this... a puppet?" The Sand Shinobi widened their eyes, unable to imagine that such a metal puppet existed in the world.

No, this isn't a puppet. No one is controlling him. It's an unknown Bloodline Limit. Watching Yueguang Han approach step by step entirely on his own, Ohno, the Sand Shinobi squad captain, swiftly rejected the puppet theory.

As an Elite Jonin of the Sand Shinobi, he understood puppets extremely well. This could not be a puppet. No puppeteer could control such a clumsy, heavy steel puppet, and this enemy had no controller. The rapidly regenerating flesh was also complete proof that this was some unknown and bizarre Bloodline Limit.

The enemy's abilities were too strange. Even Wind Style: Pressure Damage could not kill his steel-like body, while his attacks were difficult to evade. Killing this enemy would be far too hard. On the contrary, their entire group was likely to be wiped out.

"Retreat!" Having made his decision, Ohno shouted to his four remaining companions. He raised his hand and fired several Kunai tied with Explosive Tags at Yueguang Han, who was steadily approaching, then swiftly retreated into the forest behind him.

Seeing this, the other four Sand Shinobi also fired several Kunai tied with Explosive Tags at Yueguang Han before fleeing backward. At the same time, they did their best to keep themselves concealed behind the surrounding trees. They did not dare flee by jumping through the treetops; they were unsure whether branches could block the attacks, and branches could not fully conceal their bodies.

"Boom, boom, boom..." The Explosive Tags detonated around Yueguang Han. Unfortunately, aside from the blast waves causing him some resistance, they were simply charging him up.

"As long as you expose yourselves—even a little—you won't be able to escape!" Yueguang Han said coldly as he withstood the explosions and watched the five fleeing Sand Shinobi. He lifted his foot and began sprinting after them, while his hands transformed into Light Machine Guns and started taking aim.

Although these Sand Shinobi were doing their best to flee while keeping themselves hidden behind the surrounding trees, they still continually exposed themselves as they ran. With his Electronic Eyes activated in Thermal Imaging mode, he could perfectly predict the moments they would be exposed. Even if only part of their bodies showed, he could seize the opportunity.

"Rat-tat-tat!... Rat-tat-tat...!" Gunfire cracked through the forest like firecrackers, crimson bullets streaking through the trees like fleeting beams of light.

"Pfft, pfft, pfft...!" One Sand Shinobi had just run from behind one tree toward another when crimson bullets suddenly struck. In the blink of an eye, several bloody holes opened across his body. The running Sand Shinobi fell to the ground and rolled away.

"Pfft, pfft, pfft...!" Several more bullets came flying in, punching more bloody holes through the Sand Shinobi's body.

"Kūno-kun!" Another Sand Shinobi nearby watched his dead companion, his eyes splitting with rage.

"Pfft, pfft, pfft...!" More than ten bullets suddenly struck the edges of the tree trunks in front of and behind him, making him freeze instantly. He pressed himself against the trunk behind him and gasped for breath. Cold sweat soaked his back, but it also forced him to calm down quickly. He had almost been hit—just barely. He did not want to die. He knew that the next time he exposed himself would be his death sentence.

In Thermal Imaging mode, I can't distinguish objects perfectly! Thirty meters away, Yueguang Han frowned. Though there were only four heat sources, the heat they radiated interfered with his judgment. His shots at the edge of the tree trunk just now had been a miscalculation.

His speed was enough to chase ordinary Genin, but pursuing these elite Sand Shinobi was proving somewhat beyond him. The time available for his hunt was limited—very limited. Although the M249 LMG had a range of one thousand meters, the farther away the target was, the more the bullets were affected by wind, the harder they were to aim, and the lower their hit rate became. Even as a robot, he could not avoid that. The enemy had also repeatedly used Earth Walls behind trees at critical moments, buying themselves many chances to flee.

As he continued running, the Light Machine Gun formed from one hand aimed at the tree behind which the halted Sand Shinobi was hiding, while the Light Machine Gun formed from his other hand continued firing at the other fleeing Sand Shinobi.

He covered the thirty-meter distance in two or three seconds.

"No!"

When Wang Han ran past the tree where the halted Sand Shinobi was hiding from five meters away, he could make out the terror on the Sand Shinobi's face.

"Rat-tat-tat-tat-tat-tat...!" The Light Machine Gun that had been aimed at him all along opened fire, and more than ten bullets pierced through him within a second.

Damn it! Even this won't work? Hearing his companion's desperate cry and the sudden fierce gunfire behind him, Ohno and the other two Sand Shinobi looked even worse.

"Pfft, pfft, pfft..." As they mourned, more than ten bullets grazed past one of them and struck the trees before and behind him, spraying several streams of blood.

Blood flowed from his chest and abdomen. The Shinobi had already taken several bullets in the chest and stomach, and the intense pain nearly made him pass out. Fortunately, the wounds had not killed him immediately, but even so, he knew he would not survive. He could not hold on long enough to escape and find a medical Shinobi.

"Captain, with wounds like these, I can't escape anymore. Carry me on your back," the injured Sand Shinobi said, understanding his situation. He suddenly leaped onto Ohno's back. "You saved my life once. This time, I finally have the chance to repay your kindness. The enemy isn't fast. I believe you'll be able to escape soon, Captain."

"Sugiki, you..." Ohno looked at his companion and understood what he meant. Sugiki intended to use his own body to shield him from the attacks.

"Captain, run! I can't escape either. You have to deliver the intelligence back, or who knows how many of our comrades will die at this bastard's hands?" The other Sand Shinobi said with a resolute expression. He stopped behind a tree and rapidly formed seals with his hands.

"Earth Style: Earth Wall." With all his strength, a wall of earth three meters high, three feet thick, and five meters wide rose from the ground, concealing the two Sand Shinobi who continued fleeing.

Behind the tree trunk beyond the Earth Wall, the Sand Shinobi who remained to cover their retreat took out all the Explosive Tags on his body and gripped them tightly in his hand. Even if he was staying behind, he would struggle. He did not seek to live—only to kill the enemy.

"Take care!" Ohno said sorrowfully, carrying his companion as he continued fleeing for his life.

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