"Understood!"
Asuma and Might Guy answered in low voices at the same time.
Kakashi looked at Kawaki Aoba again, his tone grave. "Aoba, we'll do as you said. Precisely lock onto the locations of every puppet beneath the bridge. You'll strike first and clear them out. The rest of us will move in accordance with your rhythm."
"Received."
Kawaki Aoba gave a slight nod and slowly shifted half a step forward. Chakra quietly circulated around him as he suppressed his presence to the utmost limit. His voice was extremely low as he accurately reported each location. "Beneath the bridge, first gap, fifteen meters directly ahead. One small puppet, locked on.
Second gap, twelve meters to the front left. Second one, locked on.
Third gap... All eight puppet locations have been one hundred percent locked on. No omissions, no deviations."
Rin held her breath and asked softly, "Do you need my assistance? Aoba, I can cooperate with remote restraint or precise targeting."
"No."
Kawaki Aoba gently shook his head, his tone certain. "The distance is sufficient. I can clear them all out at once. I don't need assistance. You only need to keep a close eye on the twelve puppets in the woods and prevent them from making any moves ahead of time."
Might Guy's muscles tensed slightly as he stared fixedly at the woods on the right. "The puppets on the right are normal. There's no movement at all. They're still lying dormant. I'll keep watch the entire time. The moment they show even the slightest sign of movement, I'll move in and stop them!"
"The same goes for the left."
Asuma formed a preparatory hand seal, his eyes vigilant. "The six puppets on the left haven't reacted at all. They're hidden extremely well. It looks like they were specifically