Battling Rasa

Qingyun had already sensed that something was wrong. This valley was perfect for an ambush, yet he had detected no hint of danger.

Either Orochimaru had eliminated all the Sand Ninja who had circled around to the rear, or Sunagakure had never sent anyone to launch a surprise attack.

But was that possible? Chiyo knew that Konoha's Front Lines were running low on supplies. After she had destroyed their previous Supply Convoy, the supplies at Konoha's Front Lines had grown even scarcer. With the new compound poison she had developed, she could launch a full-scale assault on Konoha's Front Lines as soon as she destroyed another Konoha Supply Convoy.

When that happened, no matter how powerful Tsunade's Medical Ninjutsu was, how many people could she save without supplies?

Chiyo could not possibly pass up such a tempting opportunity.

Qingyun was therefore convinced that Sunagakure's ambushers were hiding somewhere nearby, most likely just before the valley's exit.

Once people passed a location well suited for an ambush, their taut nerves would ease and their guard would drop. A sudden attack at that moment would surely catch them unprepared.

That was the main reason Qingyun had left his earlier words unfinished, instead asking Shinnosuke Sarutobi to organize the Earth Release ninja and have them ready to use a combined defensive ninjutsu as they approached the exit.

At the time, Qingyun had not yet been certain whether Sunagakure would lay an ambush near the exit as he suspected.

Yet the closer they came to the exit, the stronger his sense of danger grew.

Just as they were about to leave the valley, Qingyun keenly detected a faint chakra fluctuation beneath the ground. He shouted a warning while hurling explosive tags to blast the enemies out of hiding.

Sure enough, just as Qingyun had