Art is Explosion! (Seeking Follow-up Reads!)

As the sun rose, the villagers of Kumogakure shook off their dreams and began their daily lives.

A squad of ninjas sprinted through the village, carrying two severely wounded comrades, drawing the sidelong glances of the villagers.

This squad was the regular patrol unit stationed near the village, and the two heavily injured ninjas they carried were the survivors Sarutobi Shinnosuke had intentionally left behind.

Having just finished breakfast and begun his morning training, the Third Raikage received the report from his subordinates immediately.

Upon learning that the border had been attacked and several outposts had lost contact, the Third Raikage's first reaction was that another nation had ignited a war and launched a surprise raid on the Land of Lightning.

But as more detailed intelligence arrived, the Third Raikage was nearly driven to fury.

Two suspected Bounty Ninjas had attacked multiple outposts; their identities were unknown, and their strength was estimated to be at the Jonin level or higher.

Bang!

Under a heavy blow, the table in front of the Third Raikage snapped in two.

"Impossible, absolutely impossible!" The Third Raikage could not accept the information provided by his subordinates.

Setting aside how two Bounty Ninjas could possibly destroy multiple outposts deployed by Kumogakure at the border, the mere suggestion that the enemies were Bounty Ninjas was something the Third Raikage could not believe.

Who in the Shinobi World didn't know that his Land of Lightning's Kumogakure was the most brutal and domineering force? Mere Bounty Ninjas daring to provoke Kumogakure? They must be tired of living!

Those two enemies were definitely ninjas from the other four Great Hidden Villages; the Bounty Ninja identity was merely their disguise.

"Dodai, do you think the enemies' identities are truly Bounty Ninjas?" The Third Raikage did not offer an evaluation directly, instead asking the representative of the village's younger generation, the Lava Release Kekkei Genkai ninja, Dodai, who stood beside him.

"The enemies must be from another hidden village!" Dodai stated directly.

The Third Raikage nodded, very satisfied with Dodai's answer, feeling in his heart that this young man had not failed his trust and cultivation.

"It seems a dozen years of peace have made some villages underestimate us!" Feeling offended, combined with the death of his subordinates, the Third Raikage—whose personality already leaned toward impulsiveness—was filled with rage.

"I will never let those who harm the village go!" Speaking with firm, angry resolve, the Third Raikage made his decision.

"Assemble the elite forces! I will capture the enemies myself!"

"Lord Raikage, please calm down! I suspect this is an enemy ploy. They are deliberately provoking you to lure you out of the village to harm you, or perhaps to launch an attack on the village itself!" Dodai urged him quickly.

Dodai's analysis was very logical, but the Third Raikage, having already made up his mind, did not agree.

However, having taken some of Dodai's words to heart, the Third Raikage made his deployments.

"For this search, I will lead a small number of ninjas to the border, while the main force remains in the village to prevent enemy attacks." The Third Raikage said, feeling he had arranged things properly.

The Third Raikage's arrangement was, in fact, quite comprehensive.

By leading a highly mobile elite squad to the border to hunt the enemies while leaving the bulk of the main force to garrison the village, any attack the enemy launched would be met with a difficult situation.

Unfortunately, the Third Raikage miscalculated one point: his enemies possessed not only abnormal strength beyond the norm but also the greatest mobility in the Shinobi World.

Lacking sufficient intelligence, the Third Raikage took action immediately after making his decision.

After urgently assembling ten elite ninjas and arranging for Dodai and the village elders to hold the rear, the Third Raikage set off with his elite squad.

About a kilometer outside Kumogakure, the invisible Kizaru stood atop a protruding mountain peak, watching the Third Raikage leave the village with his ninja squad.

"How impulsive! The people of Kumogakure!" Kizaru muttered with a soft chuckle, smiling as he watched the Third Raikage gradually move into the distance.

Kizaru was extremely patient at this moment. After watching the Third Raikage's figure disappear from sight, he did not act immediately; instead, he sat down.

According to Sarutobi Shinnosuke's plan, once the Third Raikage's departure from the village was confirmed, Kizaru had to wait one hour before commencing his operation.

The reason for this was simple: to prevent the Third Raikage from receiving news and quickly returning to reinforce the village.

When executing missions, Kizaru was quite reliable; he did not act on his own but waited quietly for an hour.

An hour passed, and Kizaru stood up, transforming into a beam of golden light as he left the peak.

Landing on the ground, Kizaru used his Invisibility Technique to hide his form and walked swaggeringly into Kumogakure.

To prevent any sensory-type ninjas from discovering him, Kizaru did not use Observation Haki to scan the entire village, but instead walked unhurriedly into the secluded alleys of Kumogakure.

Using Observation Haki to stay alert to his surroundings, Kizaru raised his right hand, and a glowing, circular sphere of chakra appeared in his palm.

Flash Bomb!

This was a powerful ninjutsu Kizaru had developed by combining the Sealing Technique and Rasengan principles he learned from Granny Mito with the core power of the Glint-Glint Fruit.

Drawing inspiration from the principles of grenades and landmines from his past life, the Flash Bomb in Kizaru's hand could exist stably for half an hour thanks to the Sealing Technique.

During this half-hour, Kizaru could throw the Flash Bomb to inflict damage like a combination of a grenade and a flashbang, or he could set it to detonate remotely or on a timer like a landmine or a time bomb.

Burying the first Flash Bomb in the corner of a house, Kizaru left the alley and continued to weave through Kumogakure, selecting suitable locations for the explosions.

Hospitals, office buildings, warehouses—the invisible Kizaru, relying on the text on buildings and the conversations of passersby, easily planted Flash Bombs at key locations throughout Kumogakure.

After twenty minutes and setting 18 explosion points across the entire village, Kizaru walked to the center of the village.

No longer hiding, he revealed his form. Looking around at the shocked and wary gazes, he smiled and said, "Have you ever been kicked at the speed of light?"

Kizaru's question left everyone around him stunned.

But a seasoned ninja was the first to react.

"Enemy attack!"

With a loud shout, the ninja flung two Shuriken at Kizaru.

The Shuriken passed straight through Kizaru's body, striking the ninja standing behind him to the side.

"How truly terrifying!" Kizaru said with a smile as he watched the surrounding ninjas launch their attacks.

Ignoring the incoming onslaught, he formed hand seals and declared, "Art is an explosion!"

Before his words had even faded, massive explosions erupted all across Kumogakure.

The blasts echoing from every direction plunged the entire village into a brief state of chaos.

After detonating the bombs, Kizaru faced the ninjas rushing toward him, raised his right leg, and unleashed a series of kicks that sent out several slashes, leaving behind a mist of blood.

Having cleared the enemies around him, Kizaru smiled and scanned his surroundings, sighing, "So many people, how truly terrifying!"

With that, Kizaru utilized Geppo to tread through the air. Looking down from above, he raised both hands and unleashed the signature technique of Admiral Kizaru: Yasakani no Magatama.

Countless beams of light shot from his hands, mercilessly obliterating everything below!