Turn Into My Shiny Silver (Seeking Monthly Tickets and Follow-up Reads)

"Yes, there are, quite a few."

Kiyohara spoke up.

Iwagakure ninjas could be called the ultimate school of mass-producing soldiers.

They didn't need any fancy maneuvers; they just relied on sheer numbers.

The most classic example was the battle where they dispatched ten thousand ninjas to take down the Third Raikage.

Kiyohara couldn't even imagine what that scene looked like.

A valley packed with a sea of people, nothing but ninjas, all running together through the rugged mountains to chase the Third Raikage—would they even fit?

"There are enemies here."

Kakashi nodded, confirming Kiyohara's words.

As they spoke, they deliberately lowered their voices, keeping their backs to the Iwagakure ninjas to avoid being overheard or having their lips read for information.

"It seems only Kiyohara and Kakashi were the fastest to notice this time; the others are a bit slower."

Namikaze Minato nodded.

It worked out well; with Kakashi's squad and Kiyohara's squad, both sides had scouts.

"My path ahead won't align with yours for much longer, so from now on, handle your own troubles."

Namikaze Minato intended to train these two squads.

With him here now, even if a mistake occurred, he could intervene immediately using the Flying Thunder God.

"Understood."

Kakashi replied in a low voice.

He tried to approach the area nonchalantly, but just as he made a move, shuriken came whistling out of the bushes in the distance.

Clang, clang, clang!

Kakashi quickly drew his short blade and deflected the three shuriken.

"The enemy has discovered us!"

Kakashi felt a pang of regret for missing the chance; it seemed they would have to go in head-on.

"Hehe, it's my turn!"

Obito quickly formed hand seals with both hands and shouted:

"Fire Style: Fireball Jutsu!"

Boom...

A tiny fireball was spat out by Obito.

"Cough, cough..."

In his nervousness, he had messed up the execution of the jutsu.

"The Konoha ninjas have discovered us; we have no choice but to fight to the death!"

The middle-aged Iwagakure ninja frowned.

He had recognized that Namikaze Minato was leading the team and had intended to stay hidden, waiting for Namikaze Minato to leave so he could see if he could ambush any stragglers.

However, seeing them whispering secretly, his thirty-plus years of experience told him instantly that they had been spotted.

Thus, the middle-aged Iwagakure ninja prepared to catch the enemy off guard, never expecting that he wouldn't manage to ambush a single person.

"Captain!"

Another younger Iwagakure ninja threw two more shuriken.

Just as Kakashi was about to use his short blade to deflect these shuriken as he had done before, Kiyohara moved.

Kiyohara quickly formed three hand seals—Dog, Horse, Rooster—taking him about one and a half seconds in total.

Then, Kiyohara swiftly pulled two metallic-sheened shuriken from his ninja pouch, infusing them with Wind Style chakra.

Whoosh! Whoosh!

Carrying a current of wind, the shuriken were faster and significantly sharper than ordinary ones.

By incorporating a portion of the Renegade Kiyohara's talent, Kiyohara's mastery of Wind Style chakra had greatly improved.

For instance, this was a maneuver he could never have pulled off in the past!

Bang! Bang!

Kiyohara threw the wind-infused shuriken, easily knocking aside the young Iwagakure ninja's projectiles.

Immediately following, two bursts of flame erupted with a loud boom, the resulting shockwave causing the leaves to swirl and the grass to sway violently.

At such close range, the young Iwagakure ninja was left bloodied and mangled, emitting the smell of smoke.

"What's going on?"

Genma Shiranui could not see what had happened clearly.

Kakashi was also somewhat confused, but he reacted the very next moment.

It was an explosive tag!

The enemy had stuck an explosive tag onto the hilt; if he had used his short blade to knock it away, it would have detonated right in front of him!

Thinking of this, Kakashi could not help but glance at Kiyohara.

If not for Kiyohara, he would have definitely suffered a major loss just now.

Thank you, future me.

Kiyohara said to himself.

In truth, he hadn't noticed it either.

But he couldn't help that a Renegade Kiyohara, visible only to him, was floating by his side.

Renegade Kiyohara had told Kiyohara about this detail, which was how Kiyohara was able to act.

"Nice."

Namikaze Minato nodded slightly.

He had almost stepped in, but fortunately, Kiyohara's reaction speed was faster.

The ninja world was a world that relied on hand speed.

The faster the hand speed, the faster one could release ninjutsu.

"Daiguang!"

The middle-aged Iwagakure ninja shouted the name of the young Iwagakure ninja who had just been blown to death, but unfortunately, the ninja named Daiguang had his brains blown out and was dead beyond any doubt.

Following this, Kiyohara gripped his kunai, preparing to enter the fray and reap the rewards.

The previous explosive tag had not only killed one, but the remaining three Iwagakure ninjas had also been affected to varying degrees.

Fighting an injured chunin—wasn't that as easy as pie?

More importantly, whoever defeated an enemy generally had the right to dispose of the enemy's belongings.

Thinking of all the loans he still had, Kiyohara couldn't help but slash out with his kunai.

Sorry, my enemies.

Turn into my shiny silver!

Bang!

The middle-aged Iwagakure ninja drew his katana and parried Kiyohara's kunai, a string of brilliant sparks flying between the weapons.

He was experienced and had intended to use technique to flick away Kiyohara's kunai, but his arm had been caught in the blast, making it difficult to execute.

Kiyohara kept pressing the attack on this middle-aged Iwagakure ninja.

Seeing this, Kakashi did not stop either and went straight to challenge another enemy to a duel.

"Ninpō: Senbon Rain!"

Genma Shiranui puffed out his cheeks and spat out the senbon from his mouth.

He then formed hand seals, and the senbon instantly transformed into dense phantom images, all piercing toward the last Iwagakure ninja.

Nohara Rin, like Kurenai Yuhi, observed the situation at all times, ready to provide support.

Obito clutched his mouth; releasing "Fire Style: Fireball Jutsu" required gathering fire-style chakra in the throat, and he had made a mistake just now, leaving his throat burning.

He had the illusion that he had developed a mouth ulcer in his throat.

"Damn it, the power of two explosive tags is too great."

The middle-aged Iwagakure ninja felt stifled in his heart.

"I have practiced swordsmanship for twenty years, how could I possibly lose to you!"

He roared, intending to make one final desperate struggle.

Squelch.

Kiyohara stabbed a kunai into the middle-aged Iwagakure ninja's abdomen and twisted it to the right, instantly shredding the internal organs inside his body.

Thud.

The middle-aged Iwagakure ninja fell down with a look of unwillingness on his face.

"Did you think 'don't bully the middle-aged poor' applied here?"

Kiyohara shook his head.

Aside from the first Iwagakure ninja who was blown to death, the one he had just fought had the most severe injuries.

Sometimes, being enraged really just means being angry for a moment.

Just like a math problem; even in a fit of rage, you can still only stare at it helplessly.

It was at this moment that Kakashi also defeated the remaining enemy, leaving one alive with the intention of interrogating him for intelligence.

"Well done."

Namikaze Minato praised the group.

Aside from Obito being overly nervous, everyone performed quite well.

"Kiyohara, there is no need to search so frantically."

Watching Kiyohara impatiently loot the corpse of the middle-aged Iwagakure ninja, Namikaze Minato couldn't help but offer a wry smile.

"Understood."

Kiyohara slowed down his looting speed.

The loot, however, still had to be taken.

After all, a ninja's equipment had to be paid for out of their own pocket!