The Restricted Flying Thunder God Technique

Four hours later, inside a blood-red temple.

"Ha ha, die! All of you, die!"

"Great Jashin, grant me power!"

"How dare you defile the god? You'll all die! I'll curse you from hell..."

Several dozen cultists were bound with ropes, yet they still shouted without any awareness of the situation. Their pupils were blood-red, giving them the impression of having gone completely insane.

"Are these all the Jashin Cult's followers? They seem so weak." Might Guy ignored their shouting, finding it rather surprising. Aside from being crazier, they did not seem much stronger than bandits. It was hard to imagine they were the target of an A-rank mission.

Hizashi frowned. "According to the information provided by the village chief, there should be quite a few ninja in the Jashin Cult."

Might Guy stroked his chin. "Could they have received intelligence and escaped in advance?"

Hizashi glanced at the cultists who were still hurling insults and said gravely, "Judging by how crazed they are, they do not seem like the type to run away."

At that moment, Setsuna and Shizune emerged from the temple. Shizune's face was pale, and her steps were somewhat unsteady.

"Shizune, did you encounter a hidden enemy?" Might Guy hurriedly asked.

"No. Shizune was just disgusted." Setsuna shook his head slightly and sighed. "There's a blood pool beneath the temple. It's filled with severed limbs and corpses. There were even children only two or three years old."

"These bastards are scum! The lowest scum of all!" Shizune pressed a hand to her chest and cursed through gritted teeth.

She was no longer an apprentice ninja and could be said to have seen plenty of death, yet that scene had still disgusted her enough to make her vomit. It was simply inhuman.

"They've lost even the most basic humanity." Hizashi looked at the cultists with revulsion and made his decision. "Burn these scum and this entire temple to the ground."

Before this, Shizune might have felt that burning people alive was too cruel. But now, she would only applaud the decision and might even think it was too merciful for such scum.

Just then, a flare suddenly shot into the sky in the distance.

"That is Konoha's distress signal!" Hizashi recognized the flare at a glance.

"Could Kakashi and the others be in danger?" Might Guy asked worriedly.

"That is possible, but it could also be an ambush laid by the enemy to lure us over." Hizashi was extremely cautious. Not a single Jashin Cult ninja who should have been at the temple had appeared, forcing him to be suspicious.

After thinking for a moment, Hizashi looked at Setsuna. "Setsuna, what do you think?"

"Rescue them." Setsuna's answer was brief.

The most likely enemies in that direction were Hidden Cloud Village ninja, and they happened to be the enemies he feared least.

As for physical attacks, few people could even break through his defenses. Lightning Release was nothing more than a little game that helped activate his body cells.

"Fine, then we'll go rescue them." Hizashi nodded. With his and Setsuna's strength, ordinary ninja posed little threat as long as they did not encounter a large force.

"As expected of Teacher Hizashi, so decisive!" Might Guy had been worried that Teacher Hizashi would hesitate, but he had not expected him to make a decision so quickly.

After setting the temple ablaze, the group immediately set off.

Hot Water Country was not small, but it was long and narrow. Its relationship with the Land of Frost was like the grip and barrel of a pistol. The temple where Setsuna's group had been was not far from the Land of Frost, and before long, they entered its territory.

Meanwhile, in a forest within the Land of Frost, fierce winds howled, and a chilling killing intent filled the air.

More than twenty Hidden Cloud Village ninja walked through the forest. Their leader sneered. "Little rats, are you done running? Hiding is useless. I have plenty of patience to find you. Come out now, and I might consider sparing your lives..."

His voice echoed through the forest, but no one answered. The lead Hidden Cloud Village ninja did not mind. Instead, he enjoyed the thrill of the hunt.

At that moment, in a stone chamber hastily excavated underground with Earth Release, specially cultivated moss gave off a faint glow, illuminating the room and revealing the grim expressions of Kakashi's group of three.

As though he had made an enormous decision, Obito Uchiha stood up and said, "I'll lure them away. Kakashi, you have to take Rin and escape!"

Even his calves were trembling, but his tone was unwavering.

Kakashi stared into his eyes as though seeing him for the first time.

Obito Uchiha grew uneasy under his gaze and gritted his teeth. "Hurry up and go. It took everything I had to work up this courage."

After a moment of silence, Kakashi shook his head. "You're too weak. The moment you go out, you'll be killed. You can't draw the enemy away at all."

"I'm too weak?" Obito Uchiha ground his teeth. "I'm ready to risk my life, and not only are you ungrateful, you're even standing there making sarcastic remarks."

Kakashi said coldly, "I'm only stating the facts. Going out would serve no purpose other than getting you killed."

Obito Uchiha said indignantly, "Then you go lure them away. I'll take Rin and run."

Kakashi's tone remained indifferent. "I can't die."

Obito Uchiha snorted disdainfully. "A coward who doesn't dare sacrifice himself."

"Stop arguing. This isn't the time..." Rin stepped forward to mediate, then suddenly realized something. "Huh? Why has it suddenly gone quiet outside? Did they leave?"

Boom!

The ground collapsed. The sudden sunlight made all three of them squint, and through the haze, they saw a tall figure leap down.

Kakashi reacted extremely quickly. Before he could even see the enemy clearly, lightning gathered in his hand as he thrust toward the silhouette.

However, his killing blow was caught barehanded, and even the lightning had no effect at all.

Just as Kakashi's heart began to sink, a familiar, clear laugh came from the figure. "Your welcome ceremony is a little too enthusiastic."

"Senior!" Even someone as cool and reserved as Kakashi was overwhelmed with excitement.

Needless to say, Obito Uchiha was even more excited, tears and snot streaming down his face. "Great! It's Big Brother Setsuna and the others!"

Though excited, Rin did not forget to warn him. "Senior, be careful of the Hidden Cloud Village ninja. They might not have gone far. We should leave quickly."

"Don't worry. They're no longer a threat." Setsuna smiled and jumped out of the stone chamber.

Kakashi's group followed him out and found that all the Hidden Cloud Village ninja had already fallen. Might Guy was cleaning up the battlefield.

So strong! Kakashi was shocked. He had not heard the slightest sound underground, which meant those ninja had been taken down almost instantly.

Setsuna asked, "What exactly happened? Where is Senior Minato Namikaze?"

"We fell into a trap!" Kakashi could not hide his anger. "That bastard called Kaz is actually the leader of the Jashin Cult. He colluded with Hidden Cloud Village and deliberately lured us into an ambush. Teacher Minato Namikaze did everything he could to send us out, but he stayed behind."

Hizashi walked over and asked, "What kind of ambush could prevent even Minato Namikaze's Flying Thunder God from escaping?"

Kakashi continued, "Kaz used his subordinates to create a Cursed Formation. Within the area covered by the blood mist, sensory abilities are greatly weakened."

"His senses were weakened?" Might Guy asked blankly. "Wouldn't that make it difficult for even the Hidden Cloud Village ninja themselves to sense Senior Minato Namikaze's location?"

"They're restricting the Flying Thunder God Technique." Setsuna said gravely. "The Flying Thunder God Technique requires sensing the Flying Thunder God formula in order to move through space. Weakening sensory ability means Senior Minato Namikaze can only make spatial movements within a small area. Once enough time passes and his chakra is exhausted, he'll be left at Hidden Cloud Village's mercy."