The Cloud Ninja Attack

Swish, swish, swish!

Four figures darted continuously through the forest, with Uchiha Hikari moving the fastest, leaving the others far behind.

Tsunade and Shizune followed next; although they did not travel like this often, their fundamental ninja training was solid enough that they could naturally keep up.

Tokiju, on the other hand, had it rough. He was never accustomed to leaping between tree branches, and now that the pace had accelerated, he was left trailing far in the rear.

Watching the backs of the others grow smaller in the distance, Tokiju cursed inwardly, Damn it, these wretched branches are the bane of my existence.

Noticing that her younger brother was struggling to keep up, Tsunade took the initiative to slow down.

Once she was level with Tokiju, she grabbed him by the waist and tucked him under her arm like a sack of grain.

Seeing this, Tokiju immediately turned beet red from embarrassment and began to squirm and twist.

Seeing that Tokiju wouldn't sit still, Tsunade rewarded him with a sharp flick to the forehead and scolded, "You brat, stop wiggling! Your speed is far too slow right now."

After taking the hit, Tokiju immediately quieted down, though he still pouted and sulked to himself.

He decided that once things settled down, the first thing he would do was develop the ability to fly.

Seeing that Tokiju had calmed down, Tsunade pushed off the ground and quickly caught up with Shizune and Uchiha Hikari.

Shizune didn't say anything about Tokiju's slow speed.

She knew that Tokiju had never undergone systematic ninja training, so his lack of speed was only natural.

Solving a situation like this was simple: sending him to the Ninja Academy for a year or two would easily fix it.

Besides, Tokiju currently possessed the body of a six-year-old, so enrolling him in the Ninja Academy would be perfectly appropriate and entirely logical.

And just like that, without his knowledge, Tokiju had been thoroughly planned out by his own sister.

After traveling for the better part of the day, the sky had already been painted with a rosy glow.

Seeing that it was getting late, the group stopped their journey, intending to rest there for the night.

After finding a suitable clearing, Tsunade set Tokiju down from her waist and said to him, "Let's rest here for the night."

Upon hearing this, Tokiju rubbed his aching waist from the bumpy ride and complained, "Ouch, that nearly shook the life out of me."

Tsunade patted Tokiju on the shoulder and laughed heartily, "You brat, even though your chakra reserves have reached the Jonin level, your basic skills as a ninja are still far too poor. You'll have to learn properly once we return to Konoha."

Tokiju could only nod helplessly, as he was well aware of this issue himself.

He currently fell into the category of someone who possessed many high-end abilities but was completely clueless when it came to the basics.

"I know, I'll definitely study hard when I get back," Tokiju replied earnestly.

While Tsunade and Tokiju were chatting, Uchiha Hikari and Shizune had already begun setting up the tents and the campfire.

Finding himself with nothing to do, Tokiju took the initiative to fetch water and catch fish from the river.

Although he had plenty of snacks in his System Space, their origins were difficult to explain, so he didn't take them out.

Fortunately, their chosen resting spot was well-situated, and Tokiju quickly found a small stream nearby.

Just as Tokiju was focused on catching fish, he suddenly sensed several chakra sources moving not far away.

The largest of those chakra signatures was quite substantial, totaling nearly two-thirds of Tokiju's own.

Furthermore, their objective was clear; they were heading directly toward his position.

This sudden sensation startled Tokiju, but he quickly realized that he must have awakened the Mind's Eye of the Kagura.

Before he could even feel happy about it, Tokiju heard the sound of something cutting through the air.

The moment he heard the noise, Tokiju didn't have time to think; he simply abandoned his dinner and leaped backward to dodge.

Whoosh!

A kunai struck precisely where Tokiju had been standing a moment before; had he not reacted instantly, he might already be bleeding.

Tokiju scanned his surroundings and spotted three figures darting rapidly through the nearby woods.

Although they moved quickly, Tokiju still managed to catch a glimpse of their attire.

Judging by the white cloth accents on their clothing, they were undoubtedly Cloud Ninja from the Land of Lightning.

As they drew closer, Tokiju could clearly see their faces—all three of the newcomers were dark-skinned and sturdily built.

Confirmed, they were Cloud Ninja.

But this should be the territory of the Land of Fire.

How did these Cloud Ninja manage to infiltrate this far? And what were the border guards doing?

"Hey! You're Cloud Ninja, right? Why are you attacking me?"

Standing on the opposite bank of the stream, Tokiju shouted at them, hoping to fish for some information.

Upon hearing this, the three Cloud Ninja exchanged glances, then immediately spread out and launched an attack on Tokiju without a word.

The three of them fanned out in a triangular formation, each drawing shuriken and hurling them directly at Tokiju.

The trajectory of these nine shuriken was perfect, effectively sealing off every possible path for Tokiju to dodge.

Seeing this, Tokiju smiled slightly; his dynamic vision had long since been honed to a high level through his daily sparring sessions with Uchiha Hikari.

Such a simple shuriken throw was something he could defend against with ease.

Tokiju gripped his right hand, and a cyan-blue short blade suddenly appeared.

Clang! Clang! Clang!

Tokiju swung the short blade, precisely parrying the shuriken thrown at him.

After blocking the shuriken, Tokiju immediately launched a counterattack.

He spun the short blade in his hand and threw it directly at one of the Cloud Ninja.

Squelch!

The cyan-blue short blade turned into a streak of light, plunging straight into the Cloud Ninja's left shoulder as blood splattered everywhere.

Seeing this, Tokiju spat, "Damn it, missed!"

He had originally aimed for the man's neck, but because he had barely practiced his aim, he had only hit the shoulder.

A shoulder wound meant nothing to a ninja, and the injured Cloud Ninja immediately reached out to pull the blade free.

At that very moment, the corners of Tokiju's mouth curled upward; he snapped his fingers at the Cloud Ninja and shouted, "Explode!"

As Tokiju's voice fell, a faint orange-yellow glow emerged from the center of the cyan-blue short blade.

BOOM!

With a deafening blast, the Cloud Ninja's entire left shoulder and arm vanished, reduced to a mess of flesh and blood on the ground.

The Cloud Ninja himself had already collapsed, lying on the ground in a dying state.

The other two Cloud Ninja were stunned for a moment before erupting into boundless rage.

One of the Cloud Ninja drew the long blade from his back and charged straight at Tokiju, splashing through the stream.