The Terror of Aburame Shibi

Forest of the Land of Fire.

When the Shibi Squad stopped, the caravan members froze for a moment before asking, "What's wrong?"

Hyuga Satoru shrugged. "There's an ambush point a hundred meters ahead. If you don't want the trouble, you can just charge through it."

An ambush?

At those words, panic gradually spread through the caravan. The entire convoy stopped, blocking the middle of the road.

"Um..." The caravan leader swallowed and cautiously looked at Aburame Shibi. "Lord Shibi, should we go around?"

"Either way," Aburame Shibi said expressionlessly.

Either way? The caravan leader was stunned. What did he mean, either way? Were they moving forward or not? They had given him so much precious food to curry favor with him—he couldn't just stand by and do nothing!

Just then, a group of shinobi suddenly burst out from the woods ahead of the caravan. Kunai in hand, their faces were vicious, their exposed skin covered in scars as they grinned ferociously and surrounded them.

"So, we were discovered. Doesn't matter. You still won't escape!"

"A caravan this big? What a fat sheep."

Most of the caravan members were ordinary people. They had never seen such a scene before, and immediately began trembling all over, nearly collapsing on the spot.

"Are they rogue shinobi?"

"Why are there so many rogue shinobi? We're finished."

Hyuga Satoru narrowed his eyes. Rogue shinobi generally referred to shinobi who had defected from their villages, or shinobi with no affiliation. Compared to ordinary shinobi, they were far more vicious from years of wandering. They survived through robbery and murder, making them the people caravans feared most.

In the original story, Zabuza and Haku, whom the prince encountered on his first mission, had been a pair of rogue shinobi.

Judging by the size of this group blocking the road, they were probably the largest band in the area.

Before the Shibi Squad could make a move, the Ryosuke Squad on the other side could no longer hold back. The caravan members' constant attempts to curry favor with the Shibi Squad along the way had nearly maxed out their rage.

"Damn it, they're just rogue shinobi! Fuck them up!"

"A bunch of rogue shinobi dare strut around in front of me?"

Captain Tanai Ryosuke took the lead, gripping a kunai as he charged straight at the rogue shinobi blocking the road, seemingly determined to vent all the anger he had endured along the way.

Seeing their captain charge in, the other members naturally refused to lag behind. With loud shouts, they rushed forward as well.

"I didn't expect Jonin Ryosuke to be so brave!"

"Yeah, with the Ryosuke Squad here, we can rest easy. Looks like these rogue shinobi are nothing to worry about..."

The caravan members immediately sighed in relief. Even as they praised them, they did not forget to glance toward the Shibi Squad, since not a single one of them had made a move yet.

Watching the "exceptionally brave" Ryosuke Squad, Hyuga Satoru clicked his tongue a few times.

Well, it looked like that Tanai Ryosuke was about to have a bad time.

From the Byakugan's perspective, he could clearly see that a Jonin was hidden among the rogue shinobi. Judging by the amount of Chakra, he was certainly no weakling even among Jonin.

Tanai Ryosuke looked down on rogue shinobi because the Ninja World generally recognized that their overall quality was inferior to village shinobi. He had treated this group as punching bags, never expecting a formidable expert to be hidden among them.

After all, their squad had neither his Byakugan nor Aburame Shibi's Parasitic Destruction Bugs for sensory detection.

"Wu, should we help them?" Uchiha Rin looked at him and asked.

"If they want the spotlight, let them have it." Hyuga Satoru shrugged.

Just then, the battle suddenly changed. Tanai Ryosuke, who had been overwhelming the rogue shinobi, suddenly felt a chill from behind. Startled, he immediately shifted aside. A sharp glint flashed past, slicing open his lower abdomen with a bloody gash.

"Damn it!"

Gritting his teeth, Tanai Ryosuke hurriedly retreated several steps.

In that brief exchange, he had already realized that the shinobi who had attacked him was absolutely no weaker than himself.

"Bastard! Is slaughtering my men that enjoyable?"

The attacking shinobi shook the blood from his Ninja Sword. On his fleshy face, a sword scar as hideous as a centipede ran from his forehead to his chin, sending a chill through Tanai Ryosuke as the man stared him down.

"Damn it, I thought they were soft targets. How did I run into such a tough bastard?"

Before he could react, the rogue shinobi attacked again. The massive Ninja Sword came down with tremendous force, repeatedly smashing against the kunai he used to block. The powerful impacts numbed his arms, forcing him to retreat again and again.

After dodging a slash from the Ninja Sword, Tanai Ryosuke struggled to look toward his squad members. Without him holding the enemy back, his teammates, who possessed only Chunin and Genin strength, were being completely suppressed by the rogue shinobi, unable to fight back at all.

Why did I have to show off...

At that moment, he wanted to cry but had no tears. He even felt like dying...

"Um, Wu... we should help them."

On the Shibi Squad's side, Might Duy spoke hesitantly. Although Tanai Ryosuke had humiliated him before, he was kind-hearted and could not bring himself to watch shinobi from the same village die.

The caravan members had already been stunned by the sudden turn of events. Their previous confidence was completely gone, and quite a few were secretly packing their luggage, considering whether to run away early.

Hyuga Satoru looked at Aburame Shibi. The other man merely stared at him expressionlessly. "Don't drag this out too long."

Since Aburame Shibi had spoken, Hyuga Satoru shouted and charged toward the battlefield.

Might Duy and the others rushed over at the same time. Under their fierce suppression, the rogue shinobi who had originally held the advantage began retreating step by step.

Hyuga Satoru took out a scroll. As white smoke dispersed, a long, slender Ninja Sword appeared in his hand.

It was Long Fang, the Ninja Sword he had forged when Electromagnetic Force had upgraded!

He slashed downward. Accompanied by a crisp metallic clang, the kunai in the defending rogue shinobi's hand snapped cleanly in half, while a savage bloody gash spread from his forehead to his chest.

Hyuga Satoru took a breath. Aside from the Jonin being held back by Tanai Ryosuke, these rogue shinobi were not particularly strong. They were perfect for practicing his swordsmanship!

A powerful current of air swirled around Might Duy's body, the veins on his forehead bulging in the shape of a cross. With a single kick, he sent the charging Chunin flying.

"So strong! Is this Dad's strength?"

From behind, Might Guy gazed worshipfully at Duy, who was enveloped in the blast of air.

"Guy, this is only the Fourth Gate!" Might Duy gave Guy a thumbs-up, the teeth revealed by his grin gleaming brightly.

Watching this scene, Tanai Ryosuke was completely dumbfounded. He had never expected that without Aburame Shibi even lifting a finger, a mere group of Genin could completely suppress those rogue shinobi.

In that moment of distraction, the rogue shinobi he was fighting seized the opportunity. Seeing his subordinates being driven back, bloodshot veins appeared in his eyes as he slashed viciously at Tanai Ryosuke.

Caught off guard as he defended, Tanai Ryosuke was sent flying by the enormous force, blood spilling from the corner of his mouth.

The battle's reversal once again sent the caravan members' emotions soaring and plunging like a roller coaster.

"Amazing... I never expected the members of Lord Shibi's squad to be this strong."

"That watermelon-head guy—I underestimated him before. He's actually this powerful?"

"With them fighting, we should be safe now, right?"

Among the caravan, Aburame Shibi watched Hyuga Satoru lazily swing his Ninja Sword, his brow furrowing slightly as he shook his head.

"This Wu... I told him to finish quickly, yet he's practicing with his Ninja Sword. Too slow."

Taking a breath, he slowly raised his palm. A dark swarm of bugs surged madly from his sleeves, like a cloud of black mist.

"What's that sound?"

The caravan members turned around in confusion, only for their scalps to go numb. Countless black insects buzzed through the air, instantly sweeping past them and pouncing toward the rogue shinobi still fighting.

In an instant!

Screams rang out without end.

Nearly all the rogue shinobi were wrapped in the dense black swarm, rolling on the ground in agony as they let out miserable wails.

"Teacher made his move. Now I can't slack off and practice my swordsmanship."

Seeing the enemy before him swallowed by the Parasitic Destruction Bugs, Hyuga Satoru helplessly clicked his tongue and sheathed his Ninja Sword.

Tanai Ryosuke struggled to block the descending Ninja Sword. His body was forced back again and again by the tremendous impact, until he suddenly spat out a mouthful of blood.

At that critical moment, a burst of buzzing sounded. The dense Parasitic Destruction Bugs instantly enveloped the Jonin, forming a massive black sphere as endless screams came from within.

"Secret Technique! Insect Sphere!"

Aburame Shibi formed a hand seal. The black sphere abruptly contracted, and the screams stopped at once.

The battlefield suddenly fell silent, leaving only the buzzing of the insect swarm flying overhead. The caravan members' Adam's apples trembled as they stared blankly at the rogue shinobi on the ground, eaten by insects until only their skeletons remained.

That was... over?