Wiped Out?

"Iai Slash!"

Yueshu noticed the commotion around Hui and saw Ono Ishi's movements.

With their mission target about to be kidnapped, Yueshu couldn't just stand by. He immediately unleashed a sword technique.

"Kid, don't look away during a fight!"

The slash from his Iai Slash was blocked.

Yueshu grimaced.

Standing before him was Sashizhen, the Sunagakure rogue ninja with an unexpectedly impressive sword style.

Yueshu understood that it was practically impossible for him to go help the others.

But—

That was only true if Yueshu held back his trump cards.

Chakra surged into his eyes, and in the blink of an eye, they changed.

Three tomoe floated in his blood-red irises, and Yueshu's entire presence turned icy.

"Those eyes..."

Sashizhen's voice grew noticeably colder.

"The Uchiha's eyes!"

Yueshu didn't care about that. He charged forward, Kusanagi Sword in hand.

Sashizhen didn't panic. Instead, his aura grew even stronger.

—I can see!

Yueshu and Sashizhen clashed again. Yueshu clearly saw the brief opening in his opponent's defenses.

It was as if time had slowed. Yueshu could see Sashizhen's movements clearly, down to every detail.

"Rasengan!"

Yueshu hadn't forgotten this little sphere. During a brief moment of deadlock, he used his other hand to serve Sashizhen a taste.

Sashizhen hadn't expected his opponent to use this move just then.

What's more, Rasengan was a ninjutsu that required no hand seals. Its speed caught Sashizhen completely off guard.

He was too late to draw his Ninja Blade and block it. Sashizhen took the Rasengan head-on.

Though it was a chakra-neutral ninjutsu, the force of its rotation made Sashizhen spit out a mouthful of blood and sent him flying several meters back.

Yueshu wasn't about to let this opportunity slip away.

He pulled several kunai from his waist, each tied to an Explosive Tag, and hurled them at Sashizhen.

"Fire Style: Phoenix Sage Fire Technique."

Yueshu completed the Hand Seals in a second, then spat out several small fireballs.

One flew toward Sashizhen, while the others flew toward Kushina and Mikoto.

As soon as he finished the jutsu, Yueshu ran straight toward Hui.

The fireballs exploded, setting off the Explosive Tags as well.

Amid the blasts, Sashizhen was swallowed by the flames. Explosions also rang out near Kushina and Mikoto.

The commotion made Ono Ishi glance over.

Hui had already been knocked unconscious and slung over his shoulder.

As Ono Ishi glanced over, a flash of swordlight swept past the corner of his eye.

He leaned slightly to the side and easily dodged the Kusanagi Sword as it flew past.

The next second, Yueshu followed close behind.

"Hah!"

Yueshu shouted and launched a flying kick.

Ono Ishi was clearly skilled in Taijutsu. With one hand, he blocked Yueshu's kick, then grabbed his foot and flung him away.

Yueshu wasn't so easily beaten. He landed steadily, then tugged with one hand. Chakra Threads glinted in the sunlight as he pulled the Kusanagi Sword back from where it had stuck in the ground nearby.

"Are you a little Uchiha?"

Ono Ishi's voice was calm and steady.

The Three-Tomoe Sharingan on Yueshu's face was impossible to miss.

Against rogue ninja of Jonin-level strength, with countless life-or-death battles behind them and no intention of showing mercy, Yueshu had to give it everything he had.

He couldn't hold back any of his trump cards!

Otherwise, he would regret it terribly.

With that resolve, Yueshu revealed the Sharingan he had been hiding.

"That Needle guy's useless."

Ono Ishi didn't seem particularly concerned about Yueshu. Instead, he glanced at the center of the explosion.

The flames there were still burning fiercely.

"Put her down!"

Yueshu wasn't especially angry; he was just worried about Hui.

"If you want her..."

"Come and take her."

Ono Ishi waved one hand.

"In this world, strength is the greatest foundation for making yourself heard."

Ono Ishi's gaze barely wavered. Like the vast earth, he commanded respect without needing to show anger.

"Fire Style—"

Yueshu had just started forming Hand Seals. For him, it took no more than an instant.

But in that instant, Ono Ishi reacted.

He drew a kunai fitted with an Explosive Tag from his ninja pouch and threw it at Yueshu.

That was how quickly Ono Ishi reacted.

Incredibly fast!

Yueshu had no choice. He stopped forming Hand Seals and swiftly retaliated, using the Kusanagi Sword to knock the incoming kunai aside.

The kunai exploded in midair like a flower in bloom.

A gust of air rushed down over his head, but Yueshu kept his eyes fixed on Ono Ishi.

—He's even stronger than Sashizhen.

Yueshu could feel it clearly.

"Not bad. Konoha has had quite a few geniuses lately."

Ono Ishi praised him.

Yueshu ignored him and looked toward Minato Namikaze, who had already passed out nearby, and Kushina and Mikoto, who were locked in a desperate struggle.

Fortunately, Minato Namikaze had fallen unconscious not far from Yueshu, and the tense standoff here kept the enemy from approaching him. Otherwise, Minato Namikaze would have been in real danger.

—This is bad.

Anyone would have thought the same at that moment. The situation couldn't have been much worse.

As Yueshu's mind raced, he suddenly sensed danger.

It was an instinctive warning. Yueshu immediately leapt to the side.

Sure enough, the spot where he had just been standing was struck.

A blade flashed through the air, its keen edge barely visible.

Sashizhen!

Yueshu's expression grew even more serious.

This wasn't just bad anymore.

It was very bad.

Two Jonin—both seasoned veterans who had fought on countless battlefields. They were easily elite shinobi.

"It's not over yet!"

Sashizhen grinned and slashed at Yueshu.

Yueshu immediately drew his Kusanagi Sword to block.

Blade clashed against sword once more, and Yueshu was forced into a stalemate with Sashizhen.

But—

"Earth Style: Earth Dragon Bullet Technique."

This time, Sashizhen wasn't alone.

With Hui slung over one shoulder, Ono Ishi formed Hand Seals with one hand and unleashed a jutsu.

—One-handed Hand Seals again.

Yueshu broke off his struggle with Sashizhen and used the momentum to retreat several steps.

The Earth Dragon Bullet rushed past just where he had been, and Yueshu dodged the attack.

"Wind Style: Cross Slash."

Yueshu had barely dodged when Sashizhen immediately attacked again.

"Wind Style: Dragon Flame Song Technique."

The Sharingan in Yueshu's eyes spun rapidly. He puffed out his cheeks and unleashed a stream of flames into the air.

Fire and wind collided, as though the two sides were locked in a tug-of-war, each pushing against the other to determine the winner.

Yueshu had just blocked Sashizhen's slash when Ono Ishi attacked from the other side.

This time, Yueshu had no time to block.

With a bang, Yueshu was dragged along the ground for several meters before crashing into a tree and snapping it in half.

Ono Ishi's Taijutsu was also highly advanced. That kick made Yueshu feel as if his insides were about to jump out.

The Kusanagi Sword stuck in the ground as Yueshu struggled to prop himself up.

With Kushina and Mikoto nearly out of chakra on the other side, Jiraiya Squad had now fallen into a completely hopeless situation.

The outcome was already clear. Yueshu could even imagine the four of them dying.

—This is bad!

—Extremely bad!

Yueshu gasped for breath, one side of his face smeared with blood from a cut on his head.

Smoke swirled around him, and his face was caked with dirt. He looked utterly miserable.

The threat of their entire team being wiped out loomed right before them!