Dozens of minutes later.
When the scar-faced captain of the Kirigakure force led the dozen or so elite ninja at his side.
Along with some members of the other two tracking squads that had arrived first, and hurried to the first ambush site in the valley.
All that greeted them were the still-warm bodies of ten subordinates, each killed in a different way, and the heavy stench of blood and scorched flesh in the air.
There were clear signs of fighting and traps at the scene, but the enemy had long since vanished.
"Damn it!" The scar-faced captain clenched his jaw, his fists cracking as he tightened them. Flames of anger and humiliation burned in his one good eye.
An entire squad had been wiped out in a counter-ambush right under his nose, even amid the Hidden Mist Technique they specialized in.
He forced down his rage and was about to order the arriving teams to widen their search and analyze the enemy's possible escape routes.
"Whoosh-pop!"
Another glaring red signal flare burst in the northeastern sky, its light especially conspicuous in the gathering dusk.
"That direction... that's the third squad's assigned search area!" a squad leader exclaimed.
The scar-faced captain's heart sank, and an ominous feeling swept through him.
"Everyone! Head for the signal flare! Now!" He practically forced the order through gritted teeth.
The nearly thirty remaining Kirigakure ninja dared not delay. They all immediately changed direction and raced at full speed toward the flare.
Yet when they charged into that patch of woodland, panting for breath, the sight chilled every one of them to the bone.
Once again, bodies littered the ground.
Ten Kirigakure ninja lay sprawled in pools of blood, almost all killed by metal ninja weapons such as kunai.
Many of the wounds struck at