First Battle

Three days later.

The encampment on the east side of Kikyo Mountain.

Inside the tent of Team 9, four cots were lined up neatly, the blankets folded into perfect tofu-block squares.

But no one was lying down.

Guy was squatting on the ground, polishing his blade; Ebisu was adjusting the angle of his forehead protector in the mirror; Genma was leaning against the corner, a fresh toothpick dangling from his mouth.

What had they been doing these past three days?

The first day was for familiarizing themselves with the terrain.

Choza had taken them around a three-mile radius of the encampment, scouting every potential hiding spot and every location prone to ambush.

The second day was for familiarizing themselves with the protocols.

When supplies would arrive, where they were delivered, who to contact for the handover, what to do in case of an attack, and how to send emergency signals—they had memorized it all.

The third day was for familiarizing themselves with the wounded.

They had seen everyone lying in the medical tent: those missing arms, those with broken legs, those with holes in their stomachs, and those with faces wrapped in thick bandages.

When Ebisu first saw the wounded man with the hole in his stomach, his sunglasses nearly fell off.

The man lay there with a gaping wound in his abdomen, wrapped in thick bandages, with blood still seeping through.

Ebisu vomited on the spot.

After he finished, he wiped his mouth and whispered, "I'm fine."

Then, he followed along again the next day.

By the time he went again on the third day, he was already able to help pass bandages without changing his expression.

Guy watched him putting on a brave face and said nothing.

He simply patted him on the shoulder.

At that moment, footsteps suddenly sounded outside the tent.

The curtain was lifted.

Choza's round face poked in, his expression serious.

"Assemble."

The three of them paused, then immediately stood up.

Choza had already turned and walked away.

The three of them hurried to follow.

Choza stood outside the tent, holding a map in his hand.

"The supply line has been ambushed four times in the last three days."

He pointed to a red line on the map.

"This is our supply route. From here to here, it's eighteen miles in total."

His finger moved across the map.

"This section is surrounded by dense forest on both sides; it's the easiest place to be ambushed."

"This section is open ground, vulnerable to long-range attacks."

"This section is the only way through; there's no way around it."

He looked up at the three of them.

"Your mission is to follow me and walk the supply line once."

"This time, I will lead you."

"Next time—"

He paused, giving the three of them a deep look.

"You will have to go yourselves."

Guy nodded.

Ebisu swallowed hard.

Genma took the toothpick out of his mouth and stuck it back in.

"We leave now." Choza put away the map. "Grab your gear and travel light."

"Yes!"

The three of them turned and headed back to the tent.

Thirty seconds later, the four of them had left the encampment, carrying supplies, and were heading east along the foot of the mountain.

The road was not particularly difficult to travel.

Dense forests flanked both sides of the path.

The trees were tall and the canopy thick, severely obstructing their line of sight.

Occasionally, the chirping of birds drifted from the distance, accompanied by the low growls of unknown beasts.

Choza led the way.

Behind him were Ebisu and Genma.

Guy brought up the rear.

After walking for about an hour, Choza suddenly raised his hand.

Everyone stopped instantly.

Guy's hand was already pressed against the hilt of his blade.

Choza pricked up his ears, listening for a few seconds.

Then, he shook his head.

"It's nothing. Let's keep moving."

The team continued forward.

Another hour passed.

Choza raised his hand again.

This time, he did not shake his head.

He stared into the woods on the left, his eyes narrowing.

"There's something out there."

No sooner had the words left his lips than—

"Whoosh!"

A Kunai shot out from the forest, heading straight for Ebisu.

Ebisu didn't even have time to react.

But a flash of steel cut through the air.

"Clang!"

The Kunai was knocked aside.

Guy was already standing in front of him.

"Enemy attack!"

Before the words had faded, ten figures lunged out from the woods.

They wore the headbands of Iwagakure.

Clad in grey combat uniforms.

They held Kunai and short blades, with two wielding Ninjato.

The leader, a man in his thirties with a scar across his face, had a sinister glint in his eyes.

The moment he saw Choza, his mouth curled into a grin.

"From the Akimichi Clan? How lucky."

He waved his hand.

"Attack!"

All ten rushed forward at once.

Choza's gaze tightened.

But a second later, he relaxed.

He swept his eyes over the ten opponents.

One Chunin.

The rest were all Genin.

The strongest among them was that Chunin, Scarface.

"That's a relief."

"It's a good thing I came along this time."

Choza let out a breath.

But soon, a thought flashed through his mind.

"What if I hadn't come along this time?"

He glanced out of the corner of his eye at the nervous Ebisu and Genma, and at Guy, who already had his hand on his blade.

These three children, facing ten enemies.

One Chunin, nine Genin.

What would be the outcome?

He dared not think.

After these three days together, he had a rough idea of these three children's abilities.

Guy had good strength, heavy legs, quick reactions, and was brave.

But his speed was too slow.

Ebisu had solid theoretical knowledge.

But almost zero practical combat experience.

Genma's shuriken were accurate, and he was calm.

But his chakra reserves were limited.

Could they defeat that Chunin?

Probably not.

At least not yet.

But--

Choza glanced at the nine Genin.

They couldn't beat all of them.

Then what about beating three?

He took a deep breath.

He charged out directly.

His body rapidly expanded in mid-air.

"Expansion Jutsu!"

Two enormous palms slammed down, like two door panels.

"Bang! Bang!"

Two Iwa Ninja Genin were directly smashed away, hitting trees and sliding down, unmoving.

Choza's charge did not slow.

He scattered the other five Iwa Ninja, including the Chunin, to the other side.

Only three Genin remained, who hadn't reacted yet.

"They're yours!"

Choza's voice came from the melee.

The three were stunned for a moment.

But the next second, they understood.

This was an opportunity!

An opportunity for Choza to give them practice!

The battlefield was not a training ground.

To survive, they had to fight.

To become stronger, they had to draw blood.

There was nothing more suitable for their "practice" than these three Iwa Ninja Genin.

Guy took a deep breath.

"One each."

Ebisu swallowed, but nodded.

Genma took the toothpick from his mouth and clenched it in his palm.

The three Iwa Ninja Genin opposite finally reacted.

They looked at Choza's side.

That burly man from the Akimichi Clan had already scattered five of their comrades.

Then they looked at the three brats in front of them.

Eight years old? Nine years old?

The tallest one was quite tall, but had a childish face.

At most... ten years old?

The leader of the Iwa Ninja, in his twenties, had a brutish face.

He smiled.

He smiled hideously.

"Let us be practice dummies for a bunch of brats? What a joke!"

He waved his hand.

"Kill them!"

The three of them charged forward simultaneously.

Guy took the lead.

He sprinted at the very front, his pace quickening with every step.

Ebisu and Genma followed closely behind him.

The distance closed.

Ten meters.

Five meters.

Three meters.

Guy suddenly bent his waist and lowered his body, sweeping his right leg horizontally.

Whoosh—

The wind whistled.

The three Iwa Ninja instinctively retreated, forced to scatter.

But Guy's goal was never to land a kick.

It was simply to force them apart.

"Konoha! Great Whirlwind!"

That's right, what he used was no ordinary sweep.

It was a combo!

The upgraded taijutsu of the Leaf Hurricane.

Konoha Great Whirlwind!

This was a three-stage area-of-effect kick.

The first stage, low kick!

A sweep to the enemy's base, causing them to trip or retreat.

That objective had now been achieved.

The second stage, mid kick!

Guy leaped up violently, his right foot lashing out with great force.

"Bang!"

This kick slammed hard into the abdomen of the genin in the middle.

The man's eyes bulged, his body folding like a shrimp.

But it wasn't over yet.

The third stage, high kick!

Using the recoil from that kick, Guy vaulted into the air again.

His body spun a full circle in mid-air.

And then—

"Bang!"

From top to bottom, he kicked the man in the back.

The man spat out a mouthful of blood, flew three meters away, slammed into the ground, and rolled twice.

He lay motionless.

Less than three seconds had passed.

Of the three Iwa Ninja, one was down.

Life or death unknown.

Guy landed and steadied himself.

He caught his breath and turned to look at Ebisu and Genma.

The two of them were already engaged with the remaining two genin.

On Genma's side, three Shuriken had already been thrown, forcing that Iwa Ninja to retreat repeatedly.

His movements were fast, but he was clearly conserving chakra, avoiding ninjutsu and relying solely on Shuriken to maneuver.

On Ebisu's side, things were looking a bit messy.

The Iwa Ninja opposite him was two heads taller, clutching a Kunai and stabbing repeatedly.

Ebisu dodged and weaved, nearly getting hit several times, but he gritted his teeth and held his ground.

Guy stood where he was.

He did not move.

He glanced over at Choza's side.

Choza was currently trading blows with that Chunin, while several Genin nearby had already been knocked unconscious on the ground.

The Chunin was clearly no match, being suppressed by Choza, but he couldn't be taken down in an instant.

The battle was one-sided.

He didn't need to help.

Guy withdrew his gaze and continued to watch Ebisu and Genma.

He knew that stepping in to help now would be the same as harming them.

This was their battle.

It was their first time truly facing an enemy in combat.

Ebisu needed an opportunity to turn those theoretical concepts into muscle memory.

Genma needed an opportunity to learn how to control the rhythm in a real life-or-death struggle.

He could not interrupt this opportunity.

Unless—

They were truly about to die!

Only then would Guy step in to help.

He stood there, focused intently on both battlefields.

Genma's side began to counterattack.

He seized an opening in the Iwa Ninja's defense, sealing off his retreat with three Shuriken while simultaneously closing the distance, plunging a Kunai into the man's thigh.

The man let out a miserable shriek and staggered backward.

Genma did not pursue; instead, he retreated two steps to maintain distance, continuing to apply pressure with Shuriken.

He was too calm for an eight-year-old.

On Ebisu's side, he was still holding on.

But he was holding firm.

The Iwa Ninja tried to break through his defense several times, only to be narrowly dodged each time.

Ebisu's face was covered in sweat, his sunglasses had slid halfway down, but his hands didn't tremble, and his footing remained steady.

He dodged a thrust and countered with a Kunai.

He missed.

But the Iwa Ninja was forced back a step.

Ebisu's eyes lit up.

"This Great One can do it!"

He charged forward again.

Guy watched this scene, the corners of his mouth slowly curling upward.

Almost there.

Almost there.

Just a little longer.

"Bang!"

It was over on Genma's side.

He kicked the Iwa Ninja in the back of the knee, sending the man crashing to the ground.

Genma moved in and drove a Kunai into the back of his neck.

The man twitched twice and went still.

Genma stood up, gasping for air, and turned to look at Guy.

Guy nodded at him.

Then he continued to watch Ebisu.

Ebisu's side was almost finished too.

For some reason, he suddenly had a breakthrough.

After dodging a strike, he rolled along the ground, picked up a rock, and smashed it into the Iwa Ninja's face.

The man was stunned by the impact.

In that split second of hesitation, Ebisu had already scrambled to his feet, a Kunai gripped in his hand.

"Fire Style—"

He wove the hand signs.

"Great Fireball Technique!"

A sphere of fire erupted from his mouth, slamming directly into the man's face.

The man shrieked and stumbled backward, clutching his face with both hands.

Ebisu didn't give him a chance.

He lunged forward.

One strike with the Kunai.

The man collapsed.

Ebisu stood where he was, gasping for air.

He looked down at the fallen figure, his hands trembling.

Then he looked up at Guy.

"I... I won."

Guy grinned.

"I saw it."

Ebisu froze for a moment.

Then he laughed.

He laughed until tears streamed down his face.

"This Great One won... This Great One actually won..."

He wiped away his tears and straightened his sunglasses.

"Hmph, an elite ninja should be just like this!"

Over there, Choza had finished as well.

He knocked the Chunin unconscious with a single punch, dusted off his hands, and walked over.

He looked at the three Iwa Ninja lying on the ground, then looked at the three children.

Guy was standing there, his blade still sheathed.

Genma was panting, a Kunai still gripped in his hand.

Ebisu, his face covered in sweat and tears, stood ramrod straight.

"To think they were even faster than me..."

Choza's eyes held an unreadable expression.

"Not bad."

Choza spoke calmly, but his tone had shifted.

He turned and began to walk forward.

"Keep up."

The three of them exchanged glances.

Then they hurried to follow.

The fourth day at Kikyo Mountain.

Team 9, first battle.

Enemies: three Iwa Ninja Genin.

Outcome: Victory.