Mountain Bandits (4th Watch)

Therefore, for Uchiha Matsuri, facing over a hundred bandits was a matter of complete indifference.

Sure enough, ten minutes later, over a hundred figures suddenly leaped out from the tall grass on both sides of the road.

"Only four of them?" the bandit leader thought, ecstatic.

According to reports from an informant, a lucrative merchant caravan was expected to pass through this route within these two days, so the hundred-plus bandits had been lying in ambush here since early on.

Because the sky was growing dark, the bandits failed to clearly see the ninja headbands worn by Jiraiya and his group, and thus had no way of knowing their identities.

"You four, hand over the goods if you know what's good for you. Otherwise, don't even think about leaving here alive," the bandit leader shouted loudly.

"Bah! A bunch of mere bandits, daring to be so arrogant. Do you even know whose caravan this is?" Before Jiraiya could speak, Koji Moriya stepped out from the carriage, cursing, "You four, teach these bandits a lesson!"

"Brothers, attack!" The bandit leader, provoked, waved his hand to give the order. Hearing the command, the hundred-plus bandits immediately raised their blades and charged forward.

Seeing the bandits were serious, Koji Moriya lost all his previous bravado and hurriedly retreated into the carriage: "Jiraiya, protect the goods!"

Don't let Koji Moriya's earlier display fool you; he was only acting tough because he relied on the protection of Jiraiya and the others. If it weren't for them, he likely would have abandoned the cargo and fled long ago.

"Minato, protect Mr. Moriya. Matsuri, Kiba, leave these bandits to you two." Jiraiya signaled to Uchiha Matsuri and Kiba Inuzuka.

"Yes," the three of them nodded in unison.

From this deployment, one could clearly see some of Jiraiya's intentions. Since the two of you refuse to yield to one another, why not take this opportunity to compete?

Jiraiya naturally held a sliver of expectation regarding the outcome of this contest.

As for Kiba Inuzuka, Jiraiya knew him inside and out. After more than a year of tempering and training, Kiba had already neared the level of a Chunin.

Regarding his new subordinate, Uchiha Matsuri, Jiraiya knew very little. Although they lived under the same roof, Jiraiya had never witnessed Matsuri's true strength.

Especially after Minato Namikaze mastered the Flying Thunder God Technique, Jiraiya felt even more strongly that Matsuri had fallen far behind Minato. (Jiraiya did not know that Matsuri had awakened the two-tomoe Sharingan, nor was he aware that Matsuri had mastered the Yin Seal.)

Although Matsuri had always worn the halo of a genius and an "Uchiha," Jiraiya had equal confidence in his own disciple, Kiba.

Upon hearing Jiraiya's orders, Kiba was ecstatic; how could he pass up such a perfect opportunity to show off?

Kiba glanced at Ono in his arms, and Ono responded with two "woofs."

"Passing Fang!"

Kiba unleashed the strongest technique he could currently master.

After performing the Beast Human Clone, Kiba and Ono spun rapidly, forming two "tornadoes" as they charged toward the bandits.

"Oh no, it's Konoha ninjas!" someone among the bandits cried out in panic.

"So what if they're ninjas?! Don't forget we have over a hundred people, and they only have four," the bandit leader roared at the sign of cowardice.

In truth, the leader was more panicked than anyone else upon seeing the enemy use ninjutsu. However, as the leader, he suppressed his inner dread and feigned composure while directing his men.

Yet, the leader had not anticipated that with a single "Passing Fang," over twenty of his men would be killed instantly.

Having wiped out twenty-some enemies in an instant, Kiba looked at Jiraiya with a smug expression, and Jiraiya responded with a look of approval.

However, when Kiba turned his gaze toward Matsuri's direction, he was instantly dumbfounded.

On the other side, Uchiha Matsuri performed a series of hand seals at lightning speed.

"Lightning Release—Thunderstorm Birth!"

Thunder rumbled across the sky. Suddenly, several bolts of lightning struck down from above, killing all hundred-plus bandits, including their leader, in an instant.

"Damn, that's way too strong!" Witnessing the entire process of Matsuri slaughtering the bandits, Kiba was left speechless.

After Matsuri unleashed "Thunderstorm Birth," both Jiraiya and Minato Namikaze, who were watching from the side of the caravan, could not help but be immensely shocked.

"Such powerful chakra," Minato muttered, unable to remain calm.

"I didn't expect this little guy's strength to have reached this level," Jiraiya remarked, staring intently at Matsuri.

"Teacher, what level has Matsuri reached now?" Minato asked nervously. He still harbored a strong sense of rivalry toward Matsuri.

As the two most brilliant geniuses among the new generation of ninjas, both civilians and many ninjas in the village loved to compare their strength.

After initially mastering the Flying Thunder God Technique, Minato had believed he had left Matsuri behind. But he hadn't expected that while he was growing, his rival, Matsuri, was also advancing at a rapid pace. This would only drive Minato to practice ninjutsu even harder, so as not to fall behind in their rivalry.

"Matsuri has already reached a level surpassing that of a Chunin," Jiraiya said, looking at Matsuri with emotion. He hadn't expected the little boy from back then to have grown to this extent. "Even a Jonin could not easily defeat him!"

"I see," Minato nodded upon hearing this, secretly setting a small goal for himself.

Matsuri, dozens of meters away, was naturally unaware of their conversation. Seeing the large patch of charred corpses on the ground, he turned and returned to the caravan.

"Well done, Matsuri," Jiraiya gave him a thumbs-up.

"Thank you for the praise, Teacher," Matsuri replied indifferently.

He had never felt particularly close to Jiraiya. Likewise, this congratulation was merely Jiraiya's "compensation" for having underestimated him.

Compared to the composed Matsuri, Kiba could not hide his inner frustration.

The battle just now should have been his chance to shine, yet all the limelight had been stolen by Matsuri. What was even more infuriating was that he had used his ultimate move to kill only twenty people and was left exhausted, while Matsuri had wiped out over a hundred in one strike and acted as if nothing had happened.

Glaring at Matsuri, Kiba fell silent.

"Jiraiya, since those obstacles are cleared, stop wasting time," Koji Moriya urged impatiently from inside the carriage.

"Right, since the bandits are dealt with, let's get moving," Jiraiya instructed the three of them.

"Yes."