At the End of the Road
On the border between the Land of Rivers and the Land of Wind, beneath a cliff, Yohei listened to the intelligence Scout by his team members.
Little did they know, their whereabouts had been exposed.
Two kilometers away from them, the four-person team from Sunagakure was also discussing them.
"Xun, how's it going? Have you been able to Scout clearly? Is this our target?"
The Captain, his face grave, asked his comrade who had just finished Scout. They were a decoy squad, and the presence of Sensor Ninja was merely to better accomplish their mission.
Recently, several elite Konoha squads have been lurking in the border area behind Sunagakure, causing trouble. This has been a major headache for Sunagakure's frontline command. The fact that there are two ninjas in the country who can use the Flying Thunder God has already made them lose face.
There are even ninja squads lurking behind them now? Do they really think the Sunagakure Ninja are pushovers?
More importantly, these squads not only gather intelligence on their ninja movements, but also frequently use their superior strength to ambush and kill their logistics and patrolling ninjas.
This emboldened the frontline command. "If I can't handle someone who can use the Flying Thunder God, do you think I can't handle ordinary ninjas like you?"
And so, a fishing expedition began.
"I'm not sure either, but they're definitely here to gather intelligence. However, whether they're the elite teams we're looking for is unclear; they didn't mention any of that."
"Then let's ignore them and report their location to the ninjas in charge of the pursuit. We'll continue with our own mission." The middle-aged Captain was also a cautious man. Although they were bait, there was no need to put them on the line in this situation.
Yes! *3
As the news was relayed up the chain of command, an elite squad led by a Sunagakure Jonin changed course and headed towards the front of Yohei's group.
One side was completely unaware, while the other intentionally intercepted them; the two sides soon met on the way.
Wind Style: Great Kamaitachi.
A raging hurricane, carrying dozens of enormous Wind Blade, swept towards Yohei and his companions as they traveled. Following the storm, several kunai (traditional Japanese swords) strapped with Explosive Tag followed Kunai behind.
The attack came too suddenly. Yohei, who was running in the lead, reacted in time, but he lacked defensive measures and could only stare helplessly.
Just as he Susanoo, Kakashi, who was a step behind him, suddenly stepped forward, slapped the ground with both hands, and a thick Earth Wall carved with a dog's head rose from the ground.
Immediately afterwards, the sound of Wind Blade slicing through the air was heard, followed by the booming sound of Explosive Tag exploding.
However, thanks to Kakashi's Earth Style Wall, the team members were able to react.
Saori immediately retreated to a safe distance, and then a string of Lightning Ball hurled towards the direction from which the Wind Blade were coming.
Kakashi and Obito from the left, while Yohei from the right, both sides moving out in perfect unison.
On the Sunagakure side, although the mission he received was to intercept and kill a team of Konoha Ninja, he naturally didn't take this temporary mission seriously since he was originally there to surround and block an elite Konoha squad.
Furthermore, seeing from afar that it was just a small team of teenagers only intensified their contempt.
Therefore, the Sunagakure Ninja squad was naturally a little slow to react to Yohei and his group's counterattack.
When Yohei and his group emerged from both sides of the Earth Style Wall, the Sunagakure Ninja squad realized that these Konoha ninjas were not so easy to deal with.
On Yohei's side, he rushed out and immediately used all his strength. He activated his Mangekyō Sharingan, and the ring pattern in his right eye spun rapidly. With the blessing of Susanoo-no-Mikoto, even the Kunai in his hand seemed to lighten a bit.
In just one clash, the opposing Jonin withstand the force and was Yohei back by Yanghei's strike.
Now, Yohei wasn't going to hold back. He unleashed a barrage of Kunai, fists, and kicks—everything he could muster—and soon the Jonin to fight back.
Kakashi was in front, Obito was behind, together facing a Sunagakure ninja, but this was only a Chunin.
To be honest, Yohei's team was overstaffed. Not only did they have five members, but their skill level also exceeded what they showed for their supposed ninja rank.
Taiichi and Minato were aware of this, but the others in the Camp, or rather Jiraiya and Shikaku, might not have been so clear about it.
Therefore, this leads to both allies and enemies severely underestimating their strength.
Like now, Kakashi himself possesses the strength of Special Jonin, and he also has Obito, who has the strength of a Chunin, following behind him.
In just one exchange, the Sunagakure Ninja who was coming at him was first blocked by Kakashi's Short Sword and his body was deflected. Kunai Obito swept past the Sunagakure Ninja, easily slicing open the Sunagakure Ninja's neck with the Kunai.
The two worked together seamlessly and with practiced skill, clearly indicating this wasn't their first time doing something like this.
At that moment, the Lightning Ball that Saori had released passed over the heads of the two and headed towards the two Sunagakure Ninja behind them.
Just as the Lightning Ball was about to hit the ground, it suddenly exploded, turning into a sky full of Lightning Net that caught the two people off guard, instantly paralyzing them on the spot.
With this pause, Kakashi and Obito rushed in, one wielding Short Sword and the other Kunai. Each chose a target and easily dispatched the remaining two Sunagakure Ninja.
The whole process took only a few seconds. Only then did the Jonin who had been suppressed by Yohei finally realize that he was not facing the inexperienced team he had initially thought, but rather a cunning and shrewd hunter who was pretending to be weak.
Seeing that his three subordinates were dead, the Jonin knew that this was one of the elite Konoha squads they were trying to capture. Now, however, he had gone from hunter to prey.
Suppressing his frustration, the Sunagakure Jonin risked serious injury and used the force of the Yohei slash to retreat a considerable distance. He immediately took out Signal Flare from his Ninja Tool Pouch and detonated it.
A crimson ball of light rose into the sky with a sharp whistle.
As the Signal Flare ascended into the sky, Yohei's right eye began to twitch uncontrollably, and a sense of impending doom swept through his mind.
"Kakashi, quick! Let's take him down together! I have a very bad feeling!" Yohei roared, grabbing Kunai and charging forward.
Upon hearing this, Kakashi was somewhat bewildered, but he trusted Yohei's intuition. He Hand Seals, and dazzling lightning erupted from his right hand. Then, he quickly rushed towards the two locked in combat.
Hearing the chorus of Chidori behind him, Yohei knew what technique Kakashi was using. He immediately increased his attack frequency to ensure that the Sunagakure Ninja in front of him could not escape his grasp.
When he sensed the sharp cry was right behind him, he suddenly exerted his strength, breaking the Sunagakure Ninja's balance once again, and slid to the side of the Sunagakure Ninja.
At that moment, Kakashi rushed out from the position that Yohei had given up, and his palm, crackling with lightning, pierced straight into the chest of the Sunagakure Ninja. The violent lightning instantly paralyzed the Sunagakure Ninja's entire body, leaving him unable to even make a single movement to resist.
Although he had instantly killed the enemy, Yohei felt no joy whatsoever. Instead of disappearing, his sense of urgency intensified.
"Go! Forget about the enemy corpses, get out of here!"
As expected of a team that had been cooperating for many days, although no one understood why Yohei was in such a hurry, they carried out his orders without the slightest hesitation.
The team of five regrouped, identified their direction, and quickly evacuated the scene.
Less than a minute after they left, two small teams suddenly appeared in the same spot. Judging from their attire, they were both elite teams led by Jonin.
The two squads quickly determined the direction the enemy had fled after a brief inspection of the scene.
"There were five enemies. Sharui and his team underestimated them, otherwise they wouldn't have been killed so quickly."
"A piece of trash is a piece of trash. I warned him long ago that anything can happen on the battlefield, but he's incorrigible."
"Alright, let's hurry and chase after them!"
Ahead, Yohei group, who had only taken a slight lead, quickly noticed the pursuers behind them, and judging from the movements, the pursuers clearly outnumbered them.
Judging from this trend, it's only a matter of time before we are caught up.
Yohei and Kakashi, who were running at the front, exchanged a glance and simultaneously Hand Seals in perfect unison. With two loud "bangs," two Shadow Clone appeared beside them.
Clearly, they shared the same idea—to leave Shadow Clone to block the pursuers behind them, buying time for their own escape.
Then, the two Yohei leaped into the air and hid behind the trees on either side, while the two Kakashi concealed themselves in the bushes nearby.
Just as they had hidden themselves, the sound of rustling branches came from the distant woods, indicating that the pursuers from Sunagakure had revealed themselves.
Yohei on both sides took the lead, mobilizing their Chakra without reservation Mangekyō Sharingan in their eyes spun rapidly, and the hand seals were so fast that it was dazzling.
Fire Style: Majestic Destroyer Flame.
The two pillars of fire crossed each other and rushed towards the Sunagakure Ninja in the field. Halfway there, they suddenly expanded and transformed into two huge fire fans, engulfing everything in sight.
Amidst the raging inferno, the crackling sounds of trees breaking under the weight could be heard intermittently. Two Yohei stood atop large trees on either side, carefully observing everything in the scene.
He couldn't believe that the Sunagakure's pursuers could be wiped out with just two Majestic Destroyer Flame; that would be a gross underestimation of the Sand Village Ninja.
Sure enough, as the fire subsided, a huge mound in the fire scene became exceptionally conspicuous; the originally yellowish-brown mound had now been scorched red by the fire.
Yohei even suspected that the people hiding inside might have already become roast ducks.
However, it was clear that the people of Sunagakure were still very tenacious. Before Yohei could even step forward, a vortex rose around the mound, and although it was not large, it was more than enough to extinguish the remaining flames.
The sounds of "sizzling" and "sizzling" continued to emanate as the reddish-brown mound cracked open immediately upon being splashed by the water.
With a loud "boom," the mound exploded from the inside, sending clods of earth flying everywhere. At the same time, seven figures appeared Body Flicker.
Yohei's Ninjutsu was effective; at least one Sunagakure Ninja hadn't had time to hide in the mound Majestic Destroyer Flame.
On both sides, Yohei, who had been waiting for a long time, immediately rushed forward with Kunai.
His two Shadow Clones had almost no Chakra left after the enhanced version of Majestic Destroyer Flame, and now they could only engage the Sand Village Ninja in brief skirmishes.
But even this brief entanglement is enough.
Kakashi's clone, already prepared, flashed with lightning once more, charging towards the two Sunagakure Ninja who were being entangled by Yohei.
"You bastard, you won't get away with this!"
The Sunagakure isn't blind, especially since Kakashi's Chidori was quite a commotion.
The other Sunagakure Ninja used either Ninjutsu or Kunai to attack the two Kakashi.
However, Kakashi, in his Chidori state, had his body highly activated by the stimulation of Lightning Style Chakra, making him exceptionally fast. Coupled with his deliberate dodging, he managed to break through the barrage of attacks.
Two Kakashi mercilessly pierced through Yohei's Shadow Clone, using the Shadow Clone as cover to forcefully insert Chidori into the Yohei Sunagakure Ninja's body.
"You bastards, you scum of Konoha, you deserve to die!"
The Sunagakure Captain roared in fury, unleashing countless Wind Blades that enveloped the entire area. Kakashi's Shadow Clone, having already secured the kill, ceased its evasion; its Chakra was already low, so it preferred to dissipate on its own rather than experience the pain of being killed.
Thus, the Shadow Clone of Yohei and Kakashi vanished, resulting in the deaths of three Sunagakure Chunin and nearly 10...
A few minutes' delay. This was largely thanks to Yohei's two wide-range Fire Style; otherwise, their main bodies wouldn't have had that much time to escape.
The remaining five members of Sunagakure gathered, looking at the ravages of fire and wind at the scene. They felt terrible; it was such a disgrace. They had just been mocking the previous team's defeat, but they never expected to be proven wrong so quickly.
It was an utter disgrace that their two teams had been so badly wrecked by the Shadow Clone of the Konoha Ninja.
"Captain, what should we do?" a team member asked cautiously, afraid of offending the Captain's sensitive nerves.
"Send a signal: this Konoha squad is extremely elite; we can't handle the rest of us."
"A fall into a pit, a gain in your wit." Although they didn't think their two Jonin couldn't handle the five Konoha Ninja, they had just suffered a loss, so even to minimize their losses, they still had to call for backup.
Over there, as the Shadow Clone gradually dissipated, Yohei and Kakashi naturally realized the effectiveness of the Shadow Clone in blocking the enemy. Overall, it was satisfactory, except that the Chakra consumption was quite enormous.
They are not Taiichi; firstly, they do not have such a large Chakra Quantity, and secondly, they do not have such superb Chakra Control that they can freely allocate Chakra.
Waste is unavoidable, but it's the only way to buy time for escape.
Fortunately, they still had some Taiichi- specific Military Ration Pill on them.
As a pill the size of a longan was swallowed, a strong bitter taste spread through his mouth, while at the same time, a warm sensation slowly filled his entire body. His depleted stamina and Chakra were also rapidly recovering.
What followed was a race against time. To evade the pursuit of Sunagakure, the team had to take detours and detours. What should have been a day's journey turned into two days of escape.
In the past two days, although they spent most of their time on the run, they still clashed with the Sunagakure Ninja to some extent. In order to get rid of these Sunagakure Ninja as soon as possible, they frequently used some moves that would kill a thousand enemies but also injure eight hundred of their own.
This has left them all covered in wounds. Fortunately, the team has Rin, a half-baked Medical Ninja. Although she can't do anything about serious injuries, she's more than capable of handling basic medical care.
The squad has been on the run ever since, and whether it's feigning an attack or setting traps, they've tried everything they learned at the Ninja Academy and after graduation.
However, Sunagakure was no pushover either; their pursuit of them not only didn't decrease, but actually intensified.
At this point, Yohei and Kakashi were completely trapped, with no way out. All they could do was see how long they could hold out.