At dawn, while Sawakuchi Town was still shrouded in a thin mist, the caravan had already packed up and was ready to set off.
The warning from the Reppu last night had clearly taken effect, and everyone wore a solemn expression.
After a quick meal of dry rations and a check of their belongings, the caravan once again embarked on its westward journey.
After leaving the town, the surroundings were once again replaced by boundless Gobi Desert and wind-eroded rocks, only the terrain began to become rugged, with rolling, craggy low hills appearing on both sides of the road.
The " Rolling Stone Gorge " area is not far away.
Reppu walked at the head of the group, his eyes carefully scanning the rocks in front and on both sides, not missing a single rustling sound.
The brothers Sada and Sasori were positioned about fifteen meters away from the flanks of the caravan, one on the left and one on the right. Their puppets, " Vulture " and " Scorpion Needle," had been released and, like loyal Hound, glided silently across the ground. Their joints were coated with a special grease, making almost no sound.
The puppet's head moved flexibly, scanning its surroundings with embedded Chakra- sensing crystals.
The Asuka, resembling a real bird, appeared and disappeared several hundred meters ahead of the procession.
Using the shadows cast by the rocks and his own speed advantage, he moved in a high-speed zigzag pattern, sometimes leaping onto high rocks to observe the distance, and sometimes crawling in the gravel to listen to the vibrations of the ground, his vigilance at its highest.
Shira walked not far behind Reppu, her right hand seemingly casually resting on the hilt of her new sword at her waist. Her steps were steady, her breathing long and deep, the breathing rhythm of the Seven Heavens Breathing Method quietly operating, raising her senses to their optimal state, keenly capturing any discordant atmosphere in the air.
A silent tension hung over the entire caravan. The porters and travelers seemed to sense something was amiss, their conversations barely audible as they hurried on their way, occasionally glancing nervously at the jagged cliffs on either side.
Meanwhile, about a mile ahead of the caravan, near the entrance to " Rolling Stone Gorge," a valley with jagged rocks and a suddenly narrowing passage.
A dozen or so figures lay in wait, blending into the shadows of the rocks. It was the gang of bandits led by " Viper ".
"Boss, they're here. They're not moving fast, but they seem quite wary." The Mandrill, like a true monkey brother, silently slipped back from behind a rock and reported in a low voice to the viper Viper behind a Giant Rock.
He pointed to several inconspicuous spots on either side of the valley. "Shipi and Iwagakure are already in position."
The Viper's sinister gaze followed the direction the Mandrill pointed, but it could detect almost nothing unusual.
But he knew that there, at least two former rogue missing-nin from Iwagakure were using their signature stealth Ninjutsu —the " Camouflage Concealment Technique."
This Ninjutsu is not complete invisibility, but rather it can synchronize the user's Chakra and body color with the surrounding rocky environment almost perfectly, achieving an extremely high degree of visual deception. Unless one is a sensory ninja or gets extremely close to carefully distinguish them, it is extremely difficult to be detected.
They were the "eyes" of this ambush and the first killing blow.
"Is the Giant Rock ready?" Viper asked hoarsely.
"Ready!" a burly bandit with a menacing face interjected with a sneer. "Boss Giant Rock and his men have set up some goodies on that narrowest part of the ' One-Line Sky ' slope ahead. They're guaranteed to get a taste of their own medicine! Tripwires, pitfalls, and his favorite Taiseki —everything's ready!"
"Very good." Viper licked his chapped lips, his eyes gleaming with a venomous light. "Tell the brothers that once the caravan has fully entered the canyon and been greeted by the Giant Rock's 'gift,' their formation will be thrown into disarray, and then we will ambush them from behind."
"Remember, the primary targets are the livestock and goods. Try to avoid direct confrontation with those Sunagakure, especially that Chunin. Have ' Shipi ' and ' Iwagakure ' find an opportunity to take out one or two Genin with Shuriken and Kunai to dampen their spirits!"
"Yes!" the bandits responded in hushed tones, their eyes filled with excitement for the impending slaughter and plunder.
" Shipi " was a short, stocky middle-aged man with skin as rough as old tree bark. He was currently lying on a rock face about thirty meters away from the planned route, his body pressed tightly against the rock, his breath held back to the extreme.
He was once Chunin Iwagakure, but was hunted down for embezzling mission funds and abusing prisoners, eventually escaping to this lawless area and becoming a bandit.
His " Camouflage Concealment Technique " is unparalleled; at this moment, he seems to be part of the rock wall, and even his breathing is barely audible.
He held several Shuriken coated with paralyzing poison in his hand, and his single, scope-like eye peered through the cracks in the rocks, its gaze fixed on the valley entrance, awaiting the arrival of his prey.
He also had several loose, appropriately sized rocks beside him, which could be used to create a rockfall if necessary.
At a similar height on the other side, " Iwagakure "—a former Iwagakure missing-nin from Iwagakure who was also skilled in Earth Release and stealth—was hiding in a similar manner.
He was younger, but his eyes were equally cold, and he was skilled at setting up simple Earth Release traps and using the environment to launch surprise attacks.
Time ticked by, and the air seemed to freeze. Only the howling of the wind through the cracks in the rocks could be heard, like the whisper of death.
Finally, from the direction of the valley entrance, the faint sounds of camel bells and footsteps could be heard.
"They're here." Shipi whispered almost inaudibly to Iwagakure not far away, his fingers slightly tense.
Iwagakure did not respond, but simply adjusted the angle of the Kunai in his hand.
The outline of the caravan gradually appeared at the narrow valley entrance. Reppu led the way with steady steps. The puppets of Sada and Sasori quickened their pace slightly, getting closer to the caravan.
The Asuka's figure flashed briefly on a rock to the side, giving a "nothing unusual ahead" gesture. But Reppu didn't relax. Instead, he raised his hand, signaling the entire team to slow down and be on high alert.
Shira's fingers gently caressed the cold binding rope on the sword hilt. The quieter it was, the tighter the string in his heart became.
Something's fishy! Something's wrong!
The towering, weathered rock walls on both sides cast huge shadows, making the valley somewhat dim.
A feeling of being watched by countless eyes, vague and insidious, like thorns in one's back.
The caravan slowly entered the narrowest part of Rolling Stone Gorge. The road narrowed here, allowing only three camels to pass side by side, and a sliver of One-Line Sky overhead made the atmosphere even more oppressive.
Reppu suddenly stopped, raised his hand, and clenched his fist. The entire caravan immediately came to a standstill.
"What's wrong, Captain?" Shira asked in a low voice, her eyes quickly scanning the surroundings.
Reppu didn't answer, but squinted and stared intently at a seemingly ordinary patch of ground on the road ahead, scattered with a few pebbles.
His experience told him that the color of the loose soil there seemed to be extremely subtle different from the surrounding area.
Just as he was intently examining it—
A sudden change has occurred!
"Enemy attack! Watch out above and to both sides!" Asuka's sharp warning suddenly rang out from behind a rock above and in front of him! Almost simultaneously, several Shuriken were driven into the spot where he had been hiding with a series of "thuds"!
Almost at the same moment the Asuka issued their warning, several barely perceptible, blurry figures, almost the same color as the rocks, suddenly moved on the rock walls on both sides!
"Hiss hiss hiss--!"
The poisoned darts, like the forked tongues of venomous snakes, tore through the air from unexpected angles, hurtling towards the center of the caravan, especially towards the positions of the ninjas! The true killing intent erupted at that moment!