Root

The border region between the Land of Earth and the Land of Grass transitions from dense forests into desolate, rocky mountains.

This area is rarely visited, featuring only weathered rocks and dried-up riverbeds, with the occasional cluster of stubborn thorns.

Jingxin and his two companions have been lurking in the shadows of a rocky peak for two hours.

Their mission is to intercept a group suspected of disguising themselves as rogue ninjas; according to intelligence, there are eight of them entering the Land of Earth from the direction of the Land of Grass.

Yeying's sensory perception is the first to detect an anomaly: "They're here. Southeast direction, eight people. Their chakra fluctuations are deliberately suppressed, but they are well-trained—not ordinary rogue ninjas."

Shifeng nods, his eyes sharp as a hawk beneath his Wolf Mask: "Stay hidden. Wait until they enter the ambush zone."

Jingxin activates his Sharingan, his scarlet pupils piercing through the rock layers and distance to clearly see the chakra flow of those eight individuals.

It is orderly, efficient, and carries a certain cold, disciplined nature.

Their equipment is also uniform; although their outer appearance is tattered, the standard design of their weapons and armor is faintly visible.

Konoha style.

Root, or some other branch of the Konoha Anbu?

Regardless of who they are, nothing good ever comes from sneaking into the Land of Earth.

The eight-man squad enters the valley.

They move with extreme caution, two scouts in the lead, four in the center, and two bringing up the rear.

Every step lands on the safest possible footing, their gazes constantly scanning the surroundings.

They are excessively professional.

"Move," Shifeng whispers.

Yeying's figure vanishes from the shadows, appearing the next second behind the two rearguard ninjas.

His eyes beneath the Owl Mask are icy, both hands thrusting out with kunai simultaneously.

But the opponents react with lightning speed.

One of them instantly sidesteps, the kunai grazing his ribs and drawing a spray of blood.

The other draws a ninja blade in a backhand grip, parrying Yeying's second strike.

Two metallic clangs ring out, sounding exceptionally harsh in the silent valley.

"Enemy attack!" the lead ninja shouts, his voice steady and devoid of any panic.

The eight men immediately form a defensive formation, back-to-back.

Their movements are perfectly synchronized, clearly the result of long-term team training.

Shifeng leaps down from the rocky peak, forming hand seals while still in mid-air.

"Earth Style: Rock Pillar Technique!"

Three massive stone pillars erupt from the ground with a roar, splitting the eight men apart.

The lead ninja forms hand seals: "Wind Release: Great Breakthrough!"

A violent gust of air slams into the stone pillars, sending rock fragments flying.

He leaps backward, taking advantage of the momentum, and shouts: "Three-man groups, break out in different directions!"

Well-trained and tactically clear.

Jingxin reveals himself from the other side, his Sharingan locking onto the nearest group of enemies.

Three men, all at the level of Chunin, with chakra affinities for fire, wind, and earth respectively. Seeing Jingxin, they immediately change direction and charge toward him, clearly intending to eliminate the one who appears to be the weakest first.

Jingxin creates two Shadow Clones, his Sharingan spinning rapidly within his eye sockets.

The original and the clones form hand seals simultaneously.

Having mastered the chakra form and nature transformations of fire, earth, and wind, he unleashes a bloodline-like ninjutsu for the first time.

A Great Fireball erupts from the original's mouth, three meters in diameter, carrying rolling waves of heat.

The Shadow Clone's Earth Style: Earth Wall appears directly in the path of the Great Fireball.

However, the structure of this Earth Wall is not a solid defense, but rather loose, porous rock.

Boom!

The moment the fireball strikes the earthen wall, dense tongues of flame drill into those pores.

The fire burns and expands inside the rock, causing the temperature to rise sharply.

The minerals within the rock are heated to their limit.

The final Shadow Clone uses Wind Release: Great Breakthrough, blowing the scorching, loose earthen wall apart while applying terrifying kinetic energy.

And then.

Bang! Bang-bang-bang!

The earthen wall explodes.

Countless burning fragments of rock shot out in every direction, each carrying intense heat and immense kinetic energy.

The three ninjas had originally intended to attack Jingxin, but upon seeing him unleash such a strange combination of ninjutsu, they had already moved to evade.

Scatter, find cover.

However, the coverage area of this scorching rain of stone was vast, and the Wind Style pushed the flames on the rocks to extend several meters further.

The combination of these three ninjutsu was like an airtight fishing net.

The threads of the net were composed of tongues of flame, the knots were made of jagged rock, and the speed was so incredible that it could even reach behind cover.

Short, shrill screams rang out.

When the dust and smoke cleared, only three charred corpses remained on the ground, riddled with burning stone fragments.

"Well done," Shifeng's voice came from nearby.

He had already finished off the leader of the ninjas, his ninja blade piercing through the man's chest.

Yeying had also ended her fight.

She had a few shallow wounds on her body, but all of her opponents had already fallen.

The valley returned to silence, save for the crackling of flames consuming rock and the mournful whistling of the wind through the crevices.

"Check the bodies," Shifeng said, his voice low. "Confirm their identities."

The three of them began their inspection.

Jingxin walked over to one of the corpses and flipped open its ninja tool pouch.

Inside, aside from the standard kunai, shuriken, and explosive tags, there were a few peculiar items.

A container of ninja tool maintenance oil engraved with the Konoha emblem.

A mission briefing written in Konoha cipher; although the content was encrypted, the format was the standard style used by the Konoha Anbu.

Finally, there was a specially crafted kunai.

There was a subtle groove on the handle, a design unique to standard-issue Konoha kunai, used for installing explosive tag trigger devices.

"Standard-issue weapons from Konoha." Yeying walked over, holding an identical kunai in her hand. "These people... they are Root."

Jingxin's eyes narrowed slightly.

Root, the direct subordinates of Danzo.

What was their purpose in infiltrating the Land of Earth?

Were they coming for him, or did they have another mission?

"Dispose of the bodies and bring back all evidence," Shifeng ordered. "This mission report needs to be detailed for the Tsuchikage."

Yeying nodded and began using a sealing scroll to process the corpses.

Jingxin looked at the Konoha kunai in his hand.

Sunlight spilled down between the rocky peaks, hitting the kunai and reflecting a cold, metallic sheen.

Konoha had not given up yet.

Or rather, Danzo had not given up.

He tucked the kunai into his pouch and turned to join the cleanup.

The wind continued to blow, whipping up dust from the ground to cover the bloodstains and the traces of the battle.

The atmosphere in the Tsuchikage Office was more formal than usual.

Ōnoki sat with his hands crossed on the desk, his expression grave.

Shifeng, Yeying, and Jingxin stood before the desk, having completed their detailed mission report.

Ōnoki listened carefully to the account of Root members disguising themselves as rogue ninjas to infiltrate the Land of Earth, but he did not show any particular surprise.

"I understand," Ōnoki said slowly after hearing the report. "That old man Danzo, he truly refuses to give up."

"However, he has lost eight Root members this time; he should restrain himself for a while."

He paused, his gaze sweeping over the three Anbu members before finally resting on Jingxin. "Blood Gold, your performance during your time in the Anbu has been outstanding. Your rate of growth has exceeded my expectations."

Jingxin bowed his head slightly. "It is thanks to the guidance of the captain and vice-captain."

Shifeng shook his head. "It is your own hard work. In all my years in the Anbu, this is the first time I have seen someone so young perform like this."

Although Yeying did not speak, she nodded slightly in agreement.

Ōnoki smiled, then turned serious. "Therefore, I have decided: the Anbu squad is officially disbanded as of today."