Elsewhere.
At the center of the convoy.
A sensory ninja from the Yamanaka Clan suddenly shuddered.
"Lord Shikaku!"
"The Chakra signatures of the two patrol squads..."
"They've all... disappeared!"
"What?!"
Shikaku's expression changed drastically.
"All disappeared?!"
"Yes! Just now! The Chakra signatures of all eight members of the patrol squads have vanished!"
Shikaku sucked in a cold breath.
"In such a short time... they wiped out eight ninja, including two jonin?"
"This is serious..."
Shikaku's mind raced.
Anyone capable of this was at least Kage-level!
And there were two of them!
What was their target?
The most likely answer was the Jinchuriki!
"Notify Lady Tsunade immediately!"
Shikaku made his decision without hesitation and roared at the guards beside him.
"The enemy is extremely powerful! Ordinary ninja can't handle them!"
"Have all noncombatants and prisoners retreat toward the center of the convoy! Form a defensive formation!"
"Move!"
The orders were swiftly passed down.
The massive convoy began to stir.
Meanwhile.
Tsunade was irritably watching the sluggish pace of the march.
"Honestly, with so much dead weight, when are we ever going to get there?!"
She rubbed her brow, feeling a headache coming on.
Just then.
An ANBU ninja appeared before Tsunade in a Body Flicker.
"Lady Tsunade! Urgent intelligence!"
"Lord Shikaku Nara reports that enemies have appeared at the rear! The two reconnaissance squads we sent out have been completely wiped out!"
"The enemy is extremely powerful and is rapidly closing in on us!"
Tsunade's expression instantly darkened.
"Completely wiped out?"
She spun around and looked toward the sky behind the convoy.
Sure enough, a black dot was rapidly growing larger!
"Hmph! Insolent vermin!"
A cold killing intent flashed through Tsunade's eyes.
They actually dared to make trouble on Konoha's turf!
"Iwa! Shunichi! Tokuma!"
"Yes!"
Three elite jonin instantly appeared behind