Ambush

An eagle's cry pierced the sky. Beneath it stretched an endless expanse of Gobi desert.

Burying yourself beneath the gravel was a true test of willpower. The heat was bad enough, and you also had to stay alert for the bites of all kinds of insects.

A ninja had to endure what ordinary people could not, so Mo Jingxian cloaked himself in a layer of elemental armor.

If you had a way around it and didn't use it, you'd have to be an idiot.

The eagle soared high above for more than ten minutes before gradually flying away.

The hidden ambush squad beneath the gravel quietly breathed a sigh of relief.

It was no secret that the Sand Ninja used eagles to patrol. Clearly, it worked quite well.

To avoid being exposed, they could only travel by night and lie low by day. They estimated they would reach the ambush site after one more night.

During their time behind enemy lines, Mo Jingxian spent every spare moment training in the Breathing Method he had just acquired.

Unfortunately, after testing it out, he discovered that he could practice for no more than an hour each day.

Beyond that, his body would start sending out warning signals.

Mo Jingxian wasn't reckless enough to keep going and risk his body breaking down.

Perhaps it was still too soon for any real changes. His body seemed no different, though his mind felt a little clearer.

He wasn't sure if it was just his imagination.

Still, the Breathing Method had its benefits. Since he began practicing it, he had found it a little easier to control the elements.

That wasn't his imagination. The improvement was slight, but he had noticed it.

In the Gobi's vast expanse, water elements were weak, while wind elements were abundant.

It was the perfect chance to study them closely.

He already had experience training in water elements. He could avoid the wrong turns he had made before and steer clear of some of the pitfalls.

As a result, Mo Jingxian's understanding of wind elements progressed by leaps and bounds.

By his calculations, if everything went smoothly, he would reach intermediate Wind Element Mastery in about ten days.

That would raise the power of his Ice Release by another level.

Faint wind elements mingled with the air, drifting around him.

When Mo Jingxian actively sensed them, the wind elements would convey information to him.

There wasn't much to explain. He had once used this property to develop Mist of Vitality.

Compared with each other, the two elements worked more or less the same way. It was one of their most basic applications.

Mo Jingxian continued exploring the different ways wind elements could change.

Gentle wind, biting wind, violent wind, corrosive wind...

He sensed the disturbance between himself and the air currents.

It was faint, so subtle that the slightest lapse in concentration made the sensation slip away.

It was an interaction. Everyone was constantly interacting with the space around them.

He tried using wind elements to guide this interaction, slowly changing the air currents around his body, bit by bit.

He practiced for four hours. At last, Mo Jingxian could change the direction of the air currents around him.

Good. He had developed another little trick.

For now, he only knew one Wind Release Ninjutsu: Wind Release: Vacuum Blade. He didn't plan to learn any new Wind Release techniques in the near future.

He still hadn't fully mastered the S-rank Water Release: Water Severing Wave, so he couldn't spare any more energy to study Wind Release Ninjutsu.

He had his plans laid out in detail. Once he learned Water Severing Wave, he could study the Rasengan.

He already knew the process for training in that technique. He wasn't trying to make a ball; he wanted to experience the ultimate transformation in the nature of wind elements.

There was no technique better suited for that.

And that wasn't all. He still needed to spend a great deal of time exploring the Principles of Sealing Jutsu.

His strength had been built on two cornerstones: elemental mastery and the Principles of Sealing Jutsu.

So he couldn't lose sight of the foundation. He had to stay clear about where his strengths lay.

Even now, he had only just begun to uncover the first corner of the Principles of Sealing Jutsu. An endless sea of knowledge awaited him.

Thinking about it, Mo Jingxian felt that this might be a project for his entire life.

By human standards, completing such an ideal... would be tough.

Maybe he should stop being human?

The thought lingered in his mind for only a moment before Mo Jingxian ruthlessly stamped it out.

At last, the scorching sun sank below the horizon, and the oppressive heat began to fade.

The moon hung high overhead, and the stars glittered like a river.

Across the vast Gobi, the occasional chirp of an insect was the only music in the silent night.

A faint rustling of gravel interrupted the insects' song.

The six-man team behind enemy lines climbed out and gathered together to eat some dry rations and take a short break.

Five of the six had faces red as Guan Yu's, their flushed skin still visible in the dark.

Hayama Shirakumo had it worst. A large bump had risen on his forehead, left by a scorpion's sting.

Yet he had stubbornly endured it without making a sound. It must have hurt.

When he saw all five staring at him, Mo Jingxian shrugged. "What are you looking at me for? Hurry up and eat."

He swallowed the last bite of his flatbread, then finally couldn't hold back any longer. His shoulders began to shake.

As everyone's expressions grew more and more wicked, their squad leader, Nara Shikuta, stepped in to stop a disaster from unfolding.

"All right. Get some rest. We have to reach the ambush site tonight."

They hurried through the night.

They were in luck. The squad stayed far from any settlements, crossed the desert, and finally reached Sandstone Millet before dawn.

Five hundred meters from the exit of an unnamed canyon, the six hid themselves.

The moon set and the sun rose. Night gave way to day.

They waited like that for five days.

Behind enemy lines, with nothing nearby to use as cover, they could only bury themselves in the sand and leave a bamboo tube sticking out of the ground to let air circulate.

It was a double torment for body and mind, a tremendous test of the ambushers' willpower.

Mo Jingxian, of course, didn't waste a moment. Since he couldn't move his body, he devoted all his energy to the Breathing Method and to understanding wind elements.

His Wind Element Mastery had made significant progress over the past five days. Perhaps all he needed was a single breakthrough to reach the intermediate level.

"They're here!"

Ayako Hyuuga's hushed voice carried a hint of tension.

At last, the squad's target had arrived.

"Nine escorting ninja: one High Ninja, three Chunin, and five Genin."

Ayako's report reached everyone clearly. Judging by the enemy's strength, the cargo being transported was likely quite valuable.

Within her Byakugan's field of vision, none of the enemy's movements could escape notice.

Just as Mo Jingxian had expected, the Sand Ninja split off six men to search very carefully along both sides of the canyon. They searched for half a day, inspecting nearly every inch.

When Tekuno heard the report, he was immensely relieved. If they had gone with his idea, he would have gotten everyone killed.

There were sensor ninja among the Sand Ninja, too. They weren't as formidable as the Byakugan, but they couldn't be underestimated.

Once the enemy entered the canyon, Ayako Hyuuga deactivated her Byakugan.

The six-man squad in hiding reduced their Chakra flow to a minimum and slowed their breathing as well.

Gradually, they blended into their surroundings.

The howling wind swept across the gravel, lifting dust into the air until the world turned gray and hazy.

A three-man Sand Ninja squad appeared at the mouth of the canyon and followed the route ahead to scout.

If anyone had been watching closely, they would have seen the squad leader visibly relax as he emerged from the canyon.

"Phew—the most dangerous stretch is finally behind us."

"Come on! Follow me and scout ahead."

All three looked relaxed.

At its closest, the Sand Ninja scouting squad passed less than ten meters from Mo Jingxian.

That was within the range of a Body Flicker Technique.

He instinctively held his breath.

Fortunately, the wind elements cloaking his body kept the enemy from noticing the ambusher just a stone's throw away.

Watching the Sand Ninja leave, Mo Jingxian slowly let out the breath he had been holding. His tense muscles gradually relaxed.

The blazing sun hung directly overhead. A gust of wind swept through, and the sand blew like waves.

"Creak... creak..."

Wheels crunched over stones as the Sand Ninja supply convoy appeared at the canyon entrance.

Aside from the three scouts, six more Sand Ninja guarded the convoy.

Mo Jingxian opened his eyes and fixed his gaze on the convoy through a gap in the gravel.

Squad leader Nara Shikuta had assigned him to hold off the enemy's only High Ninja.

The convoy moved slowly, and it was still some distance from his hiding place.

Mo Jingxian set aside all unnecessary emotions. Like a cold machine, he kept calculating the distance between them.

Two hundred meters.

His heart began to pound, sending blood surging out of it.

One hundred meters.

His muscles moved in unison, drawing taut as one. Like a leopard lurking in the dark, he waited for the perfect distance to strike with a fatal blow.

Fifty meters... forty meters... thirty meters...

When the convoy had passed the ambush site by more than halfway, less than twenty meters remained between them.

Bang!

A figure shot out of the exploding gravel and lunged toward the convoy.

Five more burst from cover behind him. Before the Sand Ninja could react, more than a dozen concealed weapons were already upon them.

The Sand Ninja were still staring in shock when the Explosive Tags detonated.

Mo Jingxian moved at incredible speed, streaking forward like a band of light. Only a blurred shadow remained in his wake.

The wind elements pushed his speed higher and higher. The free wind was unrestrained and impossible to resist.

The air flowed over his body. Instead of slowing him, it formed a vortex behind him and gave him another push.

Compared with before, Mo Jingxian was a full fifty percent faster.

In the enemy's eyes, he was a shadow that appeared before them in the blink of an eye, impossible to keep in focus.

One palm strike.

Mo Jingxian abandoned his weapon, extending his fingers together like a blade. Wind flowed and flickered along the edge of his hand.

Yamazaki Ji had the Sand Ninja's distinctive pride. Ever since the war began, he had wanted to fight Konoha's ninja and test the mettle of those from the village hailed as the strongest.

Today, his wish had come true.

The attack came without warning. There was no time to form Hand Seals and release a jutsu.

He drew his short sword and swung upward.

His swordsmanship had been honed through countless trials. It was a technique he had perfected in the howling wind, through countless days and nights of training.

He trusted his blade, just as he trusted that his village would ultimately win.

The instant the blade struck the enemy's forearm, Yamazaki Ji could already picture his opponent's pained cries.

His lips curled into a wide grin, and he tightened his grip on the hilt.

Suddenly!

His sword felt as if it had struck slippery rubber. It failed to cut through the enemy's arm as he had intended.

It slid. It veered aside.

His strength went nowhere, and his balance was thrown off.

In that instant, as he stumbled, a palm blade clad in Water Scale Armor thrust straight at his throat.

Perhaps his eyes were playing tricks on him, but the scales seemed to be flowing, and wind appeared to surge through the gaps between them.

From the corner of his eye, he saw his teammate rushing to help. The shock on the man's face had not yet faded.

Farther away, five enemy ninja were charging toward the convoy.

Kunai flew through the air, each with an Explosive Tag tied to it. Their fuses had already burned out...