Hanzo Arrives

"Damn it! Damn it! They must have an intelligence ninja on their side!"

"Could there be a traitor among us?"

Several Hidden Rain ninja darted through the forest as though chasing one another, none of them retaining the composure and steadiness they had shown upon arrival.

"Impossible! If there were a traitor, none of us would have gotten away! They must have brought in a powerful intelligence ninja!"

One of the smarter ninja among them analyzed the situation while fleeing for his life, sounding utterly certain.

Before he could finish speaking, his forehead slammed solidly into the back of the person in front of him.

"Damn it! What are you doing? Run! Isn't our territory right up ahead?"

"Boss... look at the top of the wall..."

"Let me see what—"

Clutching his aching forehead, he shoved the person in front of him aside.

When he looked up, he saw two people wearing painted masks standing atop the wall, their hands clasped behind their backs as though they had been waiting for a long time.

"Ghosts broke into our home?"

The ninja immediately fell into disarray and turned to flee.

"Fire Release: Head Mincing!"

"Lightning Release: False Darkness!"

The red painted mask spewed a vast sheet of flames, so fierce that it could evaporate the rainwater around them!

The blue painted mask spat lightning across the sky, its formation so immense that when they looked up, it resembled a net cast over heaven and earth!

"Don't—"

Their miserable cries rang out one after another, followed by no further words.

Beneath his mask, Xuanhui felt a sharp pain in his eyes. After confirming that there was no unfamiliar chakra nearby, he crouched down and leaned over to look into a puddle.

"Two tomoe already?"

The warm, wet sensation on his face made him reach up and touch it.

Sure enough, there was blood on his hand.

"The battlefield really tempers people... At this intensity... there's no peace at all..."

Just as Xuanhui was about to sigh, Orochimaru entered his sensory range.

"Teacher Orochimaru."

Xuanhui used the Mind Transmission Technique to establish a link for the two of them to communicate.

"Xuanhui? How is it? Have you dealt with everyone?"

"I have. I've cleared out the enemy's Outpost Number Eight. We can take this place now."

"Good. Wait there. I'll bring people over right away."

However, clearing out this outpost did not give Konoha much of an advantage.

This outpost had originally been Hidden Rain's smallest camp.

Its purpose was simply to cause trouble and draw fire.

Fortunately, Konoha's counterattack had come in time, preventing excessive losses.

Still, this counteroffensive greatly boosted Konoha's morale.

Xuanhui's entry into the battlefield, as someone with both support capabilities and considerable combat strength, significantly eased the pressure on Konoha's front lines.

Hiruzen Sarutobi smiled in satisfaction when he received this report.

"It seems having those clans invest in Xuanhui back then really was the right move."

He picked up Xuanhui's ninja file, the satisfaction and fondness in his eyes nearly overflowing.

[Given enough time, Xuanhui will certainly grow into a rare all-round talent for Konoha.]

As for Xuanhui, he had not noticed Hiruzen Sarutobi's expectations at all. He was wholly devoted to his own work.

During the day, he conducted research and experiments, then slept.

At night, he would run to the outskirts of enemy camps to keep watch and carry out covert intelligence work.

This routine continued for roughly another month.

Xuanhui could vaguely feel that the final step was right before his eyes.

He had already begun using Yin Release and Yang Release chakra as catalysts to actively alter the properties of Lightning and Fire chakra.

However, he could never quite get the proportions right.

The speed and destructive force of Lightning chakra were easy to diminish, while Fire chakra's burning and volatility always emerged together. He seemed only a step away from grasping the mystery behind it.

Yet that night, as Xuanhui held his forehead and pondered, a powerful chakra entered his sensory range!

It was surrounded by numerous chakra signatures, large and small.

If he had judged the direction correctly, they were headed straight toward his area!

As for who it was... other than Hanzo the Salamander, Hidden Rain did not seem to have any particularly powerful figures.

This place was around ten kilometers from Konoha's encampment, while Hanzo was only a few kilometers away from him.

"Perfect timing! Let's make a mess!"

The moon was always invisible during Hidden Rain's nights. Once the sun set, nothing in the world remained bright except bonfires.

Xuanhui climbed onto the wall. An electrified kunai swept through the air like a bird, piercing a guard's throat with deadly precision.

"Multi-Shadow Clone Technique!"

Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang!

Four shadow clones appeared within the compound. With a wave of Xuanhui's hand, they put on masks and charged into the enemy camp.

"Orochimaru-Style Hiding Technique!"

This was a support technique Orochimaru had taught him for concealing himself. Ordinary jonin would find it difficult to detect his chakra!

In the rainy night, Hidden Rain's ninja awoke from their dreams to find the patrolling ninja already strewn across the ground as corpses.

Fire and lightning flashed everywhere. The culprit, dressed in black, darted back and forth among the many tents.

Then someone realized that there seemed to be more than one intruder!

They wanted to contact the jonin leading the camp, only to find that his throat had already been slit, blood spilling all over the table.

"Enemy attack... Enemy attack!"

"Quick! Lord Hanzo is supposed to come tonight, isn't he? Find someone to contact him!"

Xuanhui crouched atop a tent, listening to their cries as he silently sensed the area around him.

Sure enough, that powerful chakra was moving faster! It had clearly noticed something!

"Time to meet Hanzo!"

Even if he could not beat him, he still had to talk tough.

At the same time, west of the camp, Hanzo the Salamander had indeed sensed an unusual chakra disturbance ahead.

He immediately led his men forward at greater speed to prevent any accidents.

But delays bred trouble! After rushing forward for some time and entering a section where the forest grew denser, he immediately realized something was wrong.

"Go around! We'll go around!"

However, it was already too late.

The Hidden Rain ninja charging at the front could no longer stop themselves. Their rushing bodies brushed against extremely thin chakra wires.

"Rumble!"

Explosions thundered before them! Behind them! To their left and right! From every direction!

Flames scattered as thick smoke billowed!

The explosive tags continued detonating without pause. Hanzo cursed under his breath, unable to tell how much longer the explosions would continue.

But Hidden Rain Village was damp and rainy year-round. Explosive tags could not possibly be used as long-term traps!

For these explosive tags to be so effective now, they must have been planted not long ago... perhaps even just moments earlier!

With a little deduction, it was clear that the other side must have a powerful sensory ninja!

"Since that's the case, don't blame me for being ruthless!"

"Summoning Technique!"

Hanzo formed hand seals with both hands. With a bang, he summoned a gigantic salamander.

"Let's see how long you can hide!"

Hanzo stomped on the salamander. Its enormous mouth opened and closed, spewing out a vast cloud of poisonous mist!