Now they only hoped Iwagakure would react a little more slowly, giving them time to cover more ground.
That way, they would face far fewer ambushes on the rest of their journey.
However, their hopes were rosy, while reality was cruel.
Just as they shook off a small force of Rock Ninja, Hyuga Jingci suddenly brought bad news.
Of course, it was hardly bad news to Yechen. He had been worried these people wouldn't come!
"The road ahead is blocked."
Hyuga Jingci activated his Byakugan and surveyed the scene several hundred meters ahead.
"Oh..." Yechen smiled at the news.
"How many are there, and how strong are they?"
Hyuga Jingci observed them for a while before replying.
"A little over a hundred. Fewer than ten Jonin; the rest are Chunin and Genin."
Yechen curled his lip. "That's it...?"
He had gotten excited for nothing. With so few enemies, the main force would sweep them away in a single charge. How many scraps would that leave him?
"Wait!"
As he was thinking, Hyuga Jingci suddenly exclaimed again.
"Two more forces are closing in from the left and right. Their strength is roughly the same as the first group."
"Oh... now that's much more interesting." Yechen grinned.
Afterward, Hyuga Jingci reported what he had seen to Nara Yijiu.
Upon receiving the news, Nara Yijiu glanced in all three directions, then compared their positions against the map of the surrounding area in his mind.
After a moment's thought, he made his decision.
"It looks like the enemy sealed off all our escape routes in advance. Once they confirmed we were taking this road, the other two forces moved in to surround us.
"Notify everyone to get ready. We're going to break through one of their defensive lines in a single push."
The others