Hunting

The surroundings were far too quiet. Even the calls of birds and the chirping of cicadas had vanished, leaving the entire forest utterly silent. At some point, Miao's pitch-black pupils behind his mask had turned into the Three-Tomoe Sharingan.

Those scarlet, profound eyes seemed capable of piercing through layer upon layer of obstacles, clearly discerning the enemies hidden among the dense trees. Blue Chakra points were distinctly captured by Miao's Sharingan. After all, the Sharingan could see the Chakra within an enemy's body. To Miao, enemies who seemed deeply concealed had actually been completely exposed within his line of sight. The Chakra on their bodies made them living targets.

As his body grew, the advantages of the Uzumaki Clan bloodline gradually revealed themselves. The rate at which his Chakra increased had completely surpassed that of ordinary Ninja. Although he was only fourteen, the Chakra Amount within his body had already completely exceeded that of Jonin-level Ninja, by more than double. It was no less than the Chakra Amount of a Kage-level Ninja.

Only now did Miao understand just how terrifying the Uzumaki Clan bloodline was. Leaving aside their long lifespans, their Chakra Amount alone surpassed every Ninja clan apart from the Senju Clan. It was practically monstrous.

Thus, even keeping the Sharingan activated at all times was extremely easy for Miao now. Maintaining the Sharingan consumed an enormous amount of Chakra, but to Miao, who possessed a vast reserve of Chakra, it was nothing.

However, Miao did not want to expose his Sharingan yet. Though he was not afraid of Konoha, he did not want to invite trouble for himself at present. Still, he would go to Konoha sooner or later. A bold plan was gradually taking shape in his heart.

"Maintain the formation!!!!" At this moment, Might Guy stopped laughing loudly and shouted sternly at the Chunin. "Understood!!!" The three Chunin wore grave expressions. At some point, Kunai had appeared in their hands as they guarded the perimeter of the group in strict formation.

Miao also drew a Kunai from the ninja tool bag at his lower back and gripped it in his hand. The Sharingan behind his mask emitted a scarlet glow, its three tomoe slowly rotating within his eyes.

"One, two, three, four... eleven!!" As he observed through the Sharingan, Miao counted silently in his heart.

"Judging by their Chakra Amount, every point has Chakra above Chunin level. They do not seem to be Shadow Clones, which means there are eleven enemies in total. But I cannot rule out enemies hiding farther away, in places I have not noticed." He immediately reached a judgment. After all, the Sharingan was not the Byakugan; its perception was limited to the surrounding area.

This was the edge of the forest, though they had not yet left its bounds. The main road had disappeared, leaving only a narrow path ahead. On either side stood not only towering trees but also dense, tall thickets.

Might Guy's expression was solemn, and none of his earlier laughter remained. Every muscle in his body was tensed as he guarded against an attack that could arrive at any time. The Chunin surrounded the cargo, watching vigilantly.

Since Kurenai Yuhi was a Genjutsu Ninja, she remained within the center of the group to protect the person in charge, Matsumoto Akira. Holding a Kunai, she stood beside Matsumoto Akira's carriage with the other guards, keeping watch over their surroundings.

"Jonin Kurenai, is something wrong?" Matsumoto Akira lifted the curtain of his carriage and leaned out, asking nervously. "There may be enemies hiding nearby who intend to attack the merchant caravan. But please rest assured, we will protect both your goods and your life." Kurenai Yuhi answered solemnly.

Wiping the cold sweat from his forehead, a trace of determination flashed across Matsumoto Akira's face. He said gravely, "Then I'm counting on you!!!"

"Although I know the number of enemies, I do not know their target. The cargo? Or Mr. Matsumoto? But it does not matter who it is. My mission is to defeat these enemies, and passive defense is not my style!!!" Miao thought silently.

At that thought, the Corner of the Mouth beneath Miao's mask curled into a Cold Smile. Then his figure instantly vanished from where he stood. His movement startled everyone else. So fast!! they could not help thinking.

"Hey!!! Don't move around!!! You'll ruin the protective formation!!!" One of Konoha's Chunin immediately roared angrily at Miao.

But Miao ignored him completely. His body instantly became a Black Shadow as he rushed into the bushes, the Kunai in his hand flashing with a chilling gleam. With the Body Flicker Technique unleashed at full force, his body became a black afterimage weaving through the Woods.

He instantly appeared beside an ambusher who had yet to react. "What!!! You...!!" The masked Ninja's face changed in shock, but Miao was faster. With a swift slash, pfft!!! the sharp Kunai instantly cut through his throat.

Without even looking, Miao vanished from the spot once more. However, the others noticed what had happened. "Not good!!!" The remaining Ninja were immediately alarmed. They had been intently watching the caravan, but Miao had been positioned at the rear of the caravan, where he was well concealed. They had never imagined that Miao had already discovered their positions. On top of that, Miao was simply too fast; at least, with their strength, they could not keep up with him at all.

Pfft!!! Pfft!! Pfft!!! Blood sprayed as three more Ninja had their throats slit by Miao before they could react.

"Damn it!! Eldest brother!! He's too fast!! In this place covered in dense forest, we can't keep up with him at all!!!" Another Ninja said in panic.

They had never expected that the place they had used to conceal themselves would instead be exploited by their opponent as terrain to assassinate them. Of course, the prerequisite was knowing their locations.

"Everyone, get out of the bushes!!!" The leader was also an experienced Ninja and immediately shouted at the others.

Pfft!!! Another Ninja had his heart pierced directly by Miao's Kunai. Damn it!!! Who exactly is he!!! The Ninja leader was both shocked and enraged.

Whoosh!!! Whoosh!!! Whoosh!!!! Several Black Shadows instantly leaped out of the dense bushes and appeared on the main road. At this moment, Kai and the others saw them as well.