Clues

A ninja must never expose his back to his opponent, especially in front of a ninja skilled in swordsmanship.

The enemy before them perfectly illustrated this point; despite possessing the highest strength among the three, they failed to offer even the slightest effective resistance due to cowardice.

Taiichi showed no mercy as he slashed across the enemy's chest with the Short Sword, splattering blood across the ground before him.

The crisis at the wounded soldiers' camp had been averted. Taiichi surveyed the fierce battle raging in the outpost. The enemy's shouts were drowned out by the intense noise and did not attract Taiichi's attention at all.

But the palpable killing intent made Taiichi's hair stand on end. Taiichi turned his gaze over and saw a Jonin who was being entangled by Captain Yamaguchi, who was rushing up.

Having identified the target, Taiichi realized that he was beyond his current capabilities and Taiichi shifted his target, charging towards the largest group of Chunin in the arena.

This is like a tiger entering a flock of sheep. With his Jonin -level swordsmanship, dealing with these Chunin- level Bounty Ninja is as easy as cutting melons and vegetables.

Taiichi didn't need to confront the enemy head-on. He moved around the battlefield, often appearing between two evenly matched ninjas, silently reaping the enemy's life by taking advantage of his teammates' entanglement.

Taiichi, dressed in white medical attire, seemed to transform into a white ghost on the field, and wherever he went, enemies fell dead.

With Taiichi's arrival, more and more Konoha Ninja were freed up, and as they rejoined the new battle, the situation on the field increasingly tilted in Konoha's favor.

At this moment, Taiichi approached another pair of ninjas engaged in battle. The Konoha Ninja was clearly at a disadvantage, Kunai multiple times by kunai, which, although not fatal, greatly affected his performance.

Clearly, his dire situation had left this Konoha Ninja oblivious to the changes around him, focusing solely on dealing with the enemy's attack.

But his opponent's heart was slowly filled with fear. He had just watched Taiichi kill several of his companions like chickens, and now, seeing Taiichi walking towards him, he was terrified.

Overwhelming fear eventually overwhelmed his last shred of reason. He was Bounty Ninja after all; there was no need for him to risk his life for an impossible mission.

He kicked away the Konoha Ninja who was entangled with him, and before Taiichi could arrive, the enemy turned and ran without looking back.

His escape triggered a chain reaction, with other enemies who were still holding out either being forced back or fleeing wounded after paying a price.

Taiichi was stunned to see the fleeing enemy, completely unexpected that they would escape so decisively. Clearly, he had overestimated the integrity of these Bounty Ninja.

Looking around at the battle, with the enemy's escape, Konoha had already won this battle.

The two strongest enemy ninjas on the field had already decisively withdrawn from the battlefield when the first Bounty Ninja escaped.

Those still fighting now are just scapegoats who can't see the situation clearly. Can you really expect these Bounty Ninja to organize themselves to hold people off and cover their retreat? When disaster strikes, everyone flees for their lives.

With the situation on the field settled, Taiichi rushed to his Captain's side, awaiting further instructions.

At this moment, Captain Yamaguchi and Chiba Jonin were also gathered together discussing their next move. With Taiichi's arrival, the two seemed to have finished their discussion.

Before Captain Yamaguchi could speak, Chiba Jonin praised, "Taiichi, I never expected that you were not only a first-rate Medical Ninjutsu user, but also such a skilled swordsman."

"Lord Chiba, you flatter me," Taiichi said modestly.

"No, no, you certainly have that ability. I happen to have a mission for you that requires your skills," Chiba Jonin said bluntly.

Upon hearing this, Taiichi looked at his Captain, since he was his direct superior.

Seeing Captain Yamaguchi nod, Taiichi then inquired about the specific mission.

Seeing this, Chiba Jonin wasn't angry. In fact, this was a quality that any qualified ninja should possess, and he even praised it, "Most of the enemy has fled now, but some are still fighting in the field. We'll deliberately let one escape in a bit. Go and track him down, find out the enemy's hideout, and gather their intelligence."

Am I alone?

"Yohei will be with you, so you can look out for each other," Captain Yamaguchi interjected.

"Okay!" Taiichi accepted the task without hesitation.

As the mission unfolded, an enemy ninja seized an opportunity, forced back the Konoha Ninja opposite him, and decisively withdrew from the outpost. Unbeknownst to him, Taiichi and Yohei quietly followed.

The escape of the "living" ninja seemed to be a signal, Konoha Ninja in the arena all exerted their strength, quickly resolving the remaining battle.

Inside the central tent, Chiba and Masasuke Yamaguchi, who had been waiting for a long time, were listening to a report on the battle.

"--In this battle, 15 enemy soldiers were killed and 9 escaped. Our side suffered 2 deaths, 7 minor injuries, and the rest are unharmed. That concludes the Chunin's report."

"Sigh, people are still dying!" Chiba sighed.

"There's nothing we can do. The other side has more people than us. We've already done quite well to achieve this result. The village won't blame you if they find out," Masasuke Yamaguchi comforted Chiba.

"It's not that I'm worried about the village's reprimand, it's just that those two were my men after all, and it's really infuriating that they died in such a senseless sneak attack."

"Then we'll have to see what Taiichi and Yohei's tracking results are. Hopefully, they can bring us some useful information to see who's hiding behind it all."

After leaving the outpost, Taiichi and Yohei kept a distance from the fleeing ninjas, not daring to get too close for fear that the ninjas would notice they were following them.

Fortunately, Yohei had Sharingan. Although it didn't have the same insightful abilities as the Byakugan, it was still much more reliable than ordinary eyes in the pitch black.

Yohei led the way, and thanks to his Sharingan, he repeatedly checked for traces left by the fleeing ninja, which prevented them from losing track of him.

As the two continued their pursuit, they discovered that the enemy was also worried about being followed, and their escape route twisted and turned, changing direction multiple times in an attempt to shake off any potential pursuers.

The two followed him until dawn, when, led by the ninja, they arrived at the outskirts of a cave.

Watching from afar as the ninja entered the cave and never came out, the two huddled together to discuss what to do next.

"Do you have a way to sneak in?" Taiichi asked Yohei.

Yohei stared at Taiichi with innocent Sharingan, his expression clearly saying, "Do I look like someone capable of getting in?"

"How about we wait until one of them is alone, grab one and interrogate him?" Yohei suggested tentatively.

Upon hearing this, Taiichi covered his face speechlessly. "Then why did we leave him there and wait to come back? We should just capture him. These small fry don't have any useful information."

"Oh, that's right!" Yohei nodded in understanding.

"I'll do it!" After saying that Taiichi gaze on the control panel.

[Earth Style Nature Transformation Lv0(52/100)]

I originally wanted to practice on my own, but this is the only way now.