Special Defensive Method

Hagane Maomori and the others, whom Kubi Ichiro referred to as "rebels," were all imprisoned in a secret camp outside the village.

"Lord Takikage, this is the place." Kubi Ichiro pointed to a courtyard that had been sealed off tightly.

Ruri activated his sensory perception to investigate; there were only a few weak chakra signatures inside, indeed similar to those of the Hagane Clan.

"I heard this used to be the residence of the Kubisaki Clan. I must ask Elder Kubi to lead the way." Ruri was no fool. The one who initiated the coup was Kubi Ichiro, and his current goal was surely to make a move against him. If he had recklessly filled the house with explosive tags, Ruri would be left dead or crippled even if he managed to walk out.

"You lot stay outside and keep watch. I will go in with Lord Takikage to interrogate the rebels." Kubi Ichiro ordered his clansmen to guard the gate before walking inside with Ruri.

After circling around several times and turning through who knows how many corners, Ruri finally arrived in the courtyard. He saw the frail Hagane Maomori and his clansmen, along with some non-clan ninjas, all tied up like rice dumplings.

Hagane Maomori had dried blood at the corner of his mouth; it seemed he had been beaten not long ago. When he saw Ruri appear, he seemed to want to say something and tried to stand up.

"Swish!" Kubi Ichiro decisively threw a kunai, pinning it into Hagane Maomori's thigh. In normal times, an attack of this level would have been deflected upon contact, but besides being beaten by the Kubisaki clansmen every few hours, he hadn't even had a drop of water, let alone food. He had no strength left, and even with chakra, he had no combat power.

"Lord Takikage, this guy wanted to ambush you. Should we kill him first to serve as a warning to others?" Kubi Ichiro walked up to Hagane Maomori and stabbed him a few more times with the kunai.

Ruri ordered Kubi Ichiro to back off. Even if the other party were rebels, one still had to have some humanitarian spirit!

"Then Lord Takikage, please interrogate them first. My clan has lost many people, and I must handle the arrangements properly." Kubi Ichiro said no more, glared fiercely at Hagane Maomori, and left.

Once Ruri sensed that Kubi Ichiro's chakra had completely departed, he took out some medicinal salves and handed them to Hagane Maomori and the other more severely injured ninjas.

Hagane Maomori was too weak to speak. He glanced at the burly man beside him, and that man spoke up: "Lord Takikage..."

Ruri signaled for him not to speak. "I generally know what happened. The ones who started the rebellion are the Kubisaki Clan and the Tsuchigumo Clan. Your injuries are not light, so save your strength. Tell me about the situation in the village first."

"After you left, the Kubisaki Clan joined forces with the Fuma Clan and the Tsuchigumo Clan. The three clans launched a rebellion and took out many people in the first wave. We fought back as hard as we could under the clan leader's lead, but we were still no match..."

Ruri frowned. Did the Fuma Clan really participate as well? He had thought only the Kubisaki and Tsuchigumo clans were involved. He truly hadn't expected Kubi Ichiro to be able to persuade two major clans to stage a coup in such a short time. It was a waste of talent for such a person not to go into diplomacy.

"Who led the Tsuchigumo Clan? Did they use any large-scale ninjutsu?"

"It was led by the clan leader, Tsuchigumo Rihei, but they only provided support from the sidelines and didn't really make a move."

Support from the sidelines? Since it was led by the Tsuchigumo clan leader, there was certainly no issue with failing to meet the conditions for using Dofuten. If they hadn't used it, they must be waiting for an opportunity...

Ruri cursed inwardly. Weren't all the people in this courtyard the very ninjas who opposed Kubi Ichiro's coup?! If they used Dofuten at this moment, they could wipe everyone out in one fell swoop!

"Everyone, those who have recovered a bit of strength, use your defensive ninjutsu to create cover! Hagane Clan ninjas, create steel walls—make as many as you can! Otherwise, we won't survive!" After giving the order, Ruri hurriedly jumped onto the roof at the back of the courtyard to investigate.

As soon as he poked his head out, he was driven back by a barrage of ninjutsu. It seemed it was exactly as he had guessed.

"Lord Takikage—no, I should call you a turtle in a jar. I wonder if you've figured it out? Forget it, the dead don't need to know too clearly. How long can that ninjutsu you're so proud of hold up?" Outside the courtyard, Kubi Ichiro stood atop his giant lizard, looking at Ruri with smug satisfaction. In the sunlight, the metal support on his right leg looked somewhat dazzling.

Kubi Ichiro noticed Ruri's gaze. The loss of this leg was the shame of his life. Even if this coup succeeded and he took over Takikage, it wouldn't wash away. He wished he could whip Ruri's corpse a hundred times after he died to vent his hatred!

"Damn guy, don't stop the ninjutsu! Do you think this is the only ninjutsu attack? That old geezer Rihei is still waiting for you!"

However, under that technique, it should be quite difficult to leave a whole corpse, right? Kubi Ichiro looked at Tsuchigumo Rihei in the distance, who was gathering energy, and revealed a smile.

Under the barrage of various ninjutsu, Ruri had to retreat back into the courtyard. The large-scale, indiscriminate ninjutsu coverage made it impossible for him to break through for the moment. Although he could charge out by relying on the Seven-Tails' chakra and the Truth-Seeking Orb, he couldn't just abandon these people.

These people were the ones who hadn't participated in the coup and had protected the village. They were loyal to him, or loyal to the Land of Waterfalls. In terms of both emotion and reason, he couldn't just give up on them like this.

"Earth Style: Earth Style Wall!" Ruri's affinities were Wind and Lightning; he wasn't skilled in defense, and he had only learned Earth Style Wall to save his own life.

Although Earth Style Wall wasn't a particularly powerful ninjutsu, it was effective due to sheer quantity. Ruri unleashed dozens of Earth Style Walls in one breath, shocking the people nearby.

Hagane Masamasa, the burly man beside Hagane Maomori, seemed to understand that the enemy wanted to wipe them all out. He said to Ruri, "Lord Takikage, these medicinal salves are enough for us to recover some strength. We have the ability to protect ourselves. Please save some chakra and take the clan leader and those without combat power to retreat!"

Ruri's actions had earned the recognition of these ninjas who had previously held grievances against him. The chakra consumed by dozens of Earth Style Walls would certainly have been enough for him to escape alone, yet he hadn't done so.

Ruri shook his head. The salves could at most recover some superficial wounds; this wasn't some legendary divine stamina potion. They could at most move, but they couldn't recover combat power. If he left, these people would all die.

Moreover, these people didn't seem to understand the forbidden techniques of the Tsuchigumo Clan. A forbidden technique of the level of Dofuten was not something a random ninja could withstand.

Ruri still had plenty of chakra. Dozens of Earth Style Walls were just a drop in the bucket for the Seven-Tails. Relying on his massive chakra reserves, if he knew some high-level defensive ninjutsu, he might be able to block Dofuten easily.

After thinking for a moment, Ruri had a flash of inspiration and began to weave hand seals.

"Wood Style: Four-Pillar House Technique!" A wooden house rose from the ground, and everyone couldn't help but be stunned. Since when did Lord Takikage learn Wood Style?

Looking at the wooden house that had suddenly appeared in the courtyard, Kubi Ichiro, atop his lizard, was also bewildered. Was this really Wood Style?

Every second counted. One wooden house after another appeared in succession. Although the Four-Pillar House Technique wasn't a defensive ninjutsu, the sturdiness of the houses was far superior to Earth Style Walls. The only drawback was the high chakra consumption, but Ruri now had the Seven-Tails sealed within him; he didn't lack chakra at all. With the wooden houses providing cover, the ninjutsu of the Kubisaki ninjas was no longer a threat.