No one spoke. They kept scanning their surroundings. As the door closed, the aura within the room grew increasingly chaotic, as though something had awakened.
"Shikamaru..." Li frowned. "It feels like something's about to come out..."
Shikamaru nodded lightly. Before the two could finish speaking, they heard an inexplicable roar. It did not sound like anything else—it was somewhat like a cat's cry. A raccoon dog? Yes, the cry of a raccoon dog.
"It's a sand raccoon!" Shikamaru's expression turned grim. "Sand raccoons are an extremely ferocious kind of beast around Sunagakure. Everyone, be careful."
Seeing Shikamaru's expression, Li had initially been somewhat dismissive. Would a ninja be afraid of a wild beast? But then he remembered that Shikamaru was not the sort to be timid, much less make a fuss over nothing. It seemed this opponent really was troublesome.
As the sand raccoon's cry echoed out, the scent of wind and sand gradually seemed to fill the entire space. It could alter the environment? A flicker of surprise crossed Li's face.
"Temari told me about them. The reason the Land of Wind is the way it is is because of sand raccoons. These animals can easily turn their habitats into deserts, and they are incredibly powerful in battle. Every single one is equivalent to a ninja squad. They usually live in family groups of four or five or more, and if too many ninja are deployed, they'll flee. That makes them extremely difficult to deal with," Shikamaru explained.
Timaria snorted. "What's there to be afraid of? Can't you people handle them?"
"We can deal with them, but don't forget those statues we saw earlier..." As Shikamaru's words fell, several cracking sounds rang out as stone shattered.
Li swallowed gloomily. Right—the ten statues they had just seen. Aside from the