It had to be said that before a ninja reached a certain level of strength, the gap between them was not actually that great. This was especially true at the Middle Ninja level. Since one only needed to complete a sufficient number of missions to apply for promotion—and promotions came even faster in these war-torn times—many ninjas were not as formidable as people imagined. The ninja Nan and the others had encountered seemed to be one such case. That was Nan's conclusion after fighting him for a while.
Still, he was an adult. In every respect, he was at the peak of his life, so naturally he was stronger than Nan and the others.
"Nan, he's so strong!" Hongye's hand holding the kunai was trembling slightly.
"Of course. His age is right there."
"But I didn't expect this ninja to be so weak! He actually fought us three rookie ninjas to a standstill."
A standstill. Though that result seemed worthy of pride, Nan's expression grew increasingly grave. She remembered that this man had originally been part of a team. If he had teammates, there was a very high chance they were nearby. The longer they fought, the more likely his teammates were to appear.
But Nan did not dare tell the others. She was afraid that once her teammates knew, they would become impatient in their attacks—and impatience made it easier to expose openings.
We can't drag this out any longer!
"I'll attack his upper body. You two attack his legs."
"Okay!" the two girls answered in unison. Clearly, Nan, despite being the youngest, had become the leader of the team.
"Damn it, do you really think I'm made of mud? You're discussing tactics right in front of me." The ninja was clearly furious. He shouted, "My strength may indeed