Battle

Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh...

Sharp, urgent whistles tore through the air.

The moment Genichi finished speaking, the several ninjas surrounding them in a swastika formation flicked their wrists, sending black-glinting shuriken slicing through the air toward Samu Kokaze.

At the same time.

Genichi stared solemnly at Guy across from him. His hands at his waist began forming seals at high speed, preventing Guy from going to the rescue.

"You're courting death!"

With a furious shout, murderous intent surfaced in Guy's eyes when he saw them attacking without regard for him. Immense power surged from beneath his feet, instantly shattering the ground within several yards.

Boom...

A violent sonic blast erupted through the air. Guy, who had just been standing there, vanished in an instant. The next moment, he appeared before Genichi, his clenched fist carrying a fierce gale as it mercilessly smashed toward Genichi's head.

"So fast!"

Feeling the wind pressure beside his ears, Genichi's pupils contracted slightly, and his hand seals changed instantly.

Boom...

The earth exploded, scattering dirt that punched tiny pits across the ground. Guy looked at the crumbled lump of mud in his hand, his expression tightening slightly.

"Earth Substitution?"

At the same time.

Standing beside Tanaka Keishi with a bundle on his back, Samu Kokaze calmly watched the incoming attack. His sleeve trembled slightly, and a black kunai appeared in his hand.

A faint silver glimmer flashed in his eyes. Facing the shuriken drawing ever closer, Samu Kokaze remained utterly calm, without the slightest ripple of emotion.

In Samu Kokaze's eyes at that moment, everything in the world could be replaced by data. Wind speed, weight, velocity, direction—every piece of data he could understand appeared simultaneously on the incoming shuriken.

"Let's see how far I can go without activating the Combat Assistance System."

His quiet murmur was so soft that even Tanaka Keishi beside him could not hear it clearly.

Whoosh...

His arm moved with the kunai in hand. Three crisp clangs rang out, and the black kunai, tracing a perfect arc through the air, effortlessly knocked the incoming shuriken to the ground.

Feeling the vibrations from deflecting the shuriken, Samu Kokaze looked at the attackers. A mocking curve touched his lips, while a faint killing intent rose in his eyes.

"Kokaze! Can you handle them?"

Guy, who was confronting Genichi, glanced over and called out.

Guy understood Samu Kokaze's strength better than anyone. During this year of tracking him, he had clearly watched him grow every day.

Even though his injuries from two days ago prevented him from refining chakra, relying on taijutsu alone, he might not be able to kill these ninjas whose strength was no more than that of ordinary Konoha Genin—but holding out against them would be no problem at all.

"They're just trash. Nothing to worry about."

Hearing the question, Samu Kokaze answered coldly from where he stood.

"Trash?"

Before Guy could respond, the veins on the foreheads of the three ninjas surrounding Samu Kokaze bulged, and murderous fury appeared in their eyes.

As ninjas, even if they were only Genin, their status within the Sato Clan was certainly not low.

In the anime from his previous life, the protagonist seemed to encounter countless ninjas of every rank wherever he went. But that depended on where he was—either one of the major ninja villages or the lair of some powerful boss.

In this real world, ninjas who wielded power stood at the absolute top of society.

Compared to the world's population, those possessing extraordinary power could be described as one in a thousand.

After all, a qualified Genin could slaughter an ordinary village without any difficulty. In times of war, aside from a rare few with relatively kind hearts, such as Jiraiya and Tsunade, most ninjas did not even regard civilians as people.

The ninja who had attempted to assassinate Samu Kokaze two days ago had already been the strongest fighter the Tanaka Clan possessed aside from those guarding the ancestral estate.

As a ninja employed by the Tanaka Clan for many years, although he was not a core member of the clan, his status within it was even somewhat higher than Tanaka Keishi's, despite Tanaka Keishi having devoted his entire life to the family.

That alone showed the status ninjas held in this world.

Tap, tap, tap, tap...

Dense footsteps rang across the empty wilderness. The three ninjas charged toward Samu Kokaze in the center in a triangular formation. As they watched the small figure draw closer, a bloodthirsty glint flashed in the eyes of all three as they gripped their kunai.

"Heh."

With a cold laugh, Samu Kokaze threw the bundle from his back onto the ground. He glanced at the three incoming enemies, then tightened his grip on the kunai and charged straight at the ninja before him.

"Haha! You're dead!"

Seeing the small figure running toward him, the ninja's eyes flashed with wild delight. Although Samu Kokaze had knocked aside the shuriken just now, how strong could he possibly be at his age, even if he had trained since the womb?

He was merely a sheltered ninja who had never seen the world. As far as they were concerned, Kakashi becoming a Chunin at six was nothing but Konoha's bragging.

The thought of personally killing the mission target, of the various rewards the higher-ups would grant him afterward—perhaps even high-level ninjutsu—made his breathing quicken.

Thinking of that, his steps sped up slightly. Bloodlust, excitement, and twisted delight blended completely across his face.

The other two ninjas attacking from the flanks looked at Samu Kokaze as he charged the ninja ahead. Deep envy appeared in their eyes. At that moment, they even hoped he could hold on for a few seconds so they could deliver the final blow themselves.

"Are they treating me like livestock waiting for slaughter?!"

His extraordinary senses caught the expressions of the approaching men. Samu Kokaze's lips twitched slightly, and his face turned cold. "You really are irritating."

Watching the figure draw nearer, he tightened his grip on the kunai and said icily, "Time Domain... double speed."

Whoosh...

Samu Kokaze suddenly doubled his speed and crossed paths with the charging ninja. Lowering his head to look at the droplets of blood falling from the kunai's blade, he smiled softly.

Thud...

A heavy body collapsed behind him. The ninja who had just worn a twisted, excited expression lay on the ground with terror still frozen on his face. A bloody line had appeared across his neck, crimson blood spraying from it and staining the frozen earth below.

Smelling the faint scent of blood in the air and seeing the corpse on the ground, the two ninjas attacking from the other sides froze. The arms holding their kunai trembled slightly.

Gulp...

"H-how... how is that possible?!"

A hoarse, disbelieving voice rang out. Their shocked faces looked as though the chick they were about to slaughter had transformed into a primordial beast in the blink of an eye.

"No wonder the last operation failed. Is this why you were confident you didn't need to help?"

Genichi tilted his head and calmly watched the battle that had just unfolded. He asked evenly.

"I believe in Kokaze's strength!"

Guy, likewise watching the battle ahead, replied in a deep voice. Then he turned toward bald-headed Genichi. "If he's truly in danger, you won't be able to stop me."

His voice was steady and certain, as if he were stating an undeniable truth.

"What arrogance!"

Genichi's eye twitched. Killing intent surfaced as he looked at Guy. "Let me see what gives you, Green Beast, such confidence!"