Ranwu was using the Delicate Illness Extraction Technique to draw the poison out of Kazami, the Jonin.
Rustle, rustle.
The wind near the treatment site rustled the surrounding trees. Everything else was eerily quiet...
"Ah!"
Kazami suddenly stirred, crying out in pain and nearly sitting up.
Tachibana and Inagaki tensed at the sight.
Ranwu gave a slight nod. "Don't worry. It means the poison levels in his body are dropping, and the paralysis is wearing off... The Delicate Illness Extraction Technique hurts to begin with."
Only after hearing Ranwu's explanation did Tachibana and Inagaki breathe a sigh of relief.
Then Ranwu suddenly froze...
"What's wrong?" Tachibana asked at once.
"No, it's noth..." Ranwu's expression turned strange. Instead of resuming treatment, she looked around warily. "Who's there? Show yourself!"
Rustle, rustle.
The instant Ranwu issued her warning, a large patch of stone spikes rose beneath "Mokume's" feet—the Stone Spikes Technique. It was weaker than Earth Style: Earth Spear, but its difficulty and chakra consumption were also a rank lower. It was only C-rank.
This time, the Stone Spikes Technique covered an unusually large area...
Clearly, it had been used for coverage rather than power!
Poof!
Mokume's figure burst apart!
Apparently, the enemy had known from the start that this Mokume was a shadow clone. Even a slight attack would make him disappear, so they had prioritized coverage over offensive power.
Then, under Tachibana's and Inagaki's startled gazes, illusory Rain Ninja appeared one after another...
"Not good... It's those Rain Ninja!" Tachibana immediately drew a kunai with one hand.
Inagaki took another pill from his ninja tool pouch as he said, "Chunin Ranwu, Chunin Akaseki, take Kazami and get out of here!"
"No, there's no need for all that trouble," Akaseki said cryptically.
"Ah!"
A scream suddenly came from underground, and a