Ambush

After Namikaze Minato accepted the mission to support the Land of Wind, he led his team out of Konoha that very day.

The support force consisted of a hundred ninja: thirty Jonin and seventy Chunin. Although their numbers were not large, their arrival on the battlefield would put immense pressure on Kumogakure, forcing the village to stay on guard against attacks from Konoha at all times.

Time was short, and Sunagakure was in danger of being overrun at any moment, so Namikaze Minato advanced at a rapid pace. In just two days, they had left the Land of Fire and reached the vicinity of Forest Fortress.

"Everyone, rest here and recover your strength. Forest Fortress is just ahead. Once we cross it, we'll be in the Land of Wind, where a battle could break out at any moment," Namikaze Minato ordered loudly.

After their rapid march, the Konoha Ninja were all exhausted. Namikaze Minato had planned to let everyone rest for a few hours before entering the Land of Wind.

The teams stopped as soon as they received the order. The ninja dispersed in an orderly fashion into groups of three or four to rest, while the patrol teams began surveying the surroundings to prevent the force from being ambushed.

Namikaze Minato then gathered several of the force's key Jonin to discuss their next move.

As he studied the topographical map of Forest Fortress, Namikaze Minato's expression grew grave. Forest Fortress was actually a huge valley, an ideal place for an ambush.

Before the Land of Fire and the Land of Wind had formed an alliance, Sunagakure had often used the terrain here to ambush Konoha. Although Sunagakure's ninja couldn't possibly be lying in wait for them now, Namikaze Minato still didn't dare let his guard down.

After discussing the matter with the force's core members, Namikaze Minato decided to personally lead half the ninja through the entrance to the valley first. The other half would stay on guard outside and follow the first group when they received his signal.

After crossing the valley at Forest Fortress, they would circle around to the rear of the Kumogakure force and harass it, preventing it from defending both its front and rear and disrupting its efforts to attack Sunagakure.

However, neither Namikaze Minato nor any of the other ninja in the support force could have imagined that their enemy wouldn't be ninja from Kumogakure at all, but ninja from Kirigakure, a village isolated across the sea!

Once the plan was settled, Namikaze Minato dismissed the others. Just then, a boy with a white, broom-like mop of hair walked over to him.

"Minato-sensei, once this mission is over, I want to take the Jonin exam."

The boy was Hatake Kakashi, Namikaze Minato's student. Though still young, Kakashi already had the strength of a Jonin and was one of the most outstanding members of Konoha's younger generation.

By comparison, Might Guy, who saw him as a rival, was still an unpopular Genin, training in Taijutsu under his father, Might Duy, who was also still a Genin.

Namikaze Minato looked at the prodigy he had such high hopes for, his heart filled with emotion. Ever since Kakashi's father, White Fang of the Leaf, had taken his own life, Kakashi seemed to have become a different person, growing indifferent to everything around him.

The youthful sharpness that had once been hidden deep behind those dead-fish eyes was gone. Now, all Namikaze Minato saw in them was emptiness.

Being a ninja was not a profession that brought much happiness. Most of what a ninja encountered throughout life was dark, filled with killing and schemes.

That was precisely why ninja needed to master their own hearts, so they wouldn't sink completely into darkness.

But Kakashi's state of mind was already deeply troubled. Namikaze Minato had tried every way he could think of to guide him, but with little effect.

Ruffling the boy's broom-like hair, Namikaze Minato smiled and said, "Kakashi, you're already exceptional. Becoming a Jonin is just a title. After the mission, I'll take all of you out to unwind. I've wanted to try the hot springs in the Land of Hot Water for ages."

The "all of you" Namikaze Minato referred to also included Obito and Rin, who were training in Konoha. Kakashi was on the same team as the two of them, but his own strength far surpassed theirs, so he often went on missions alone with his teacher, Namikaze Minato.

Kakashi's expression remained unchanged. In a calm voice, he declined, "Sorry, Sensei, but I'm still determined to take the Jonin exam."

Namikaze Minato shook his head helplessly. "If that's what you want, I won't stop you. Just make sure you think carefully about what kind of ninja you want to become."

Having received his teacher's approval, Kakashi nodded and turned to leave, intending to rest alone in a corner. Just then, Namikaze Minato's voice sounded behind him again.

"Kakashi, there's something I've always wanted to tell you. The choice Sakumo made on that mission would have been my choice too!"

At his teacher's final words, a flicker of emotion finally appeared in Kakashi's eyes, but it quickly vanished.

After resting for two hours, the Konoha force had recovered to a good condition. Namikaze Minato wasted no more time. Following the plan they had made, he led half the ninja into the entrance to the Forest Fortress valley.

At Namikaze Minato's side, a member of the Hyuga Clan's branch family had activated his Byakugan and was constantly watching the surroundings to guard against an ambush.

Everything around them seemed perfectly calm. As the team advanced, they noticed nothing unusual. They couldn't even hear the chirping of birds.

Unnatural calm often concealed a brewing storm, and Namikaze Minato couldn't help feeling a flicker of unease.

The canyon at Forest Fortress was long and narrow. As they pressed deeper inside, they soon left the force waiting behind for their signal far behind.

"Something's wrong! There's an ambush!"

The Hyuga ninja had spotted a sudden surge of chakra ahead. It was clear that a large number of ninja were lying in wait, and judging by the amount of chakra, even the weakest among them were at least Chunin!

The Konoha ninja immediately stopped in alarm. A line of ninja wearing Kirigakure flak jackets and Forehead Protectors suddenly appeared above them on the sides of the valley. Standing in the center, her long crimson hair billowing, Terumi Mei was especially conspicuous.

Terumi Mei had anticipated the possibility that the Konoha support force would include a Byakugan user. That was why all the Kirigakure ninja had hidden deep inside the canyon. Even a ninja with the Byakugan could only spot them after entering the middle of the canyon.

But by then, it would already be too late. The Konoha ninja who had entered the canyon would be trapped like turtles in a jar!

"Attack!"

At Terumi Mei's command, the Kirigakure ninja on both sides began forming Hand Seals in unison, launching a Water Release Ninjutsu powerful enough to reshape the terrain.

"Water Release: Great Waterfall Technique!"