Heading towards Yugakure.
Asuma, a cigarette dangling from his lips, leaped swiftly over towering trees in the dense forest, his face grim.
Izumo Kamizuki, Kotetsu Hagane, Shikamaru followed behind with some concern.
Kotetsu Hagane used the Konoha Torture and Interrogation Force's methods to obtain information from the manager at the Bounty Station location closest to the Fire Temple.
The bounty on Chiriku has already been claimed, and the stronghold Chiriku's body is kept is located near the Yugakure.
Although the enemy's exact whereabouts were not found.
But even if they wanted to retrieve the body, the four of them alone wouldn't be enough to guarantee safety.
The relevant information has also been sent back to Konoha.
Presumably, the reinforcements should be able to reach Yugakure soon.
"Etc!"
Izumo Kamizuki lowered his voice and reminded Asuma, who was standing ahead.
Upon hearing the sound, the three stopped simultaneously and silently hid behind a tree.
Izumo's role in the squad is that of a reconnaissance and intelligence-gathering operative.
Although the reason had not yet been explained, the urgent tone made the group immediately prepare to conceal their true intentions.
As Genin, Shikamaru barely managed to keep up with the teamwork of the three Jonin thanks to his intelligence.
Izumo frowned and gave the three of them several coded hand signals.
There are three of them, they are quite strong, and it is unclear whether they are friend or foe.
Even Shikamaru, a graduate of the Ninja Academy, could easily recognize the simple communication codes.
Shikamaru frowned and analyzed inwardly: The fact that they didn't speak but instead used a coded message indicates that the three of them are very close.
For Izumo- senpai, a senior with Special Jōnin skills, to issue such a powerful signal, the person who arrived must be no ordinary individual.
"Shhhhh..."
The giant scythe was held horizontally behind his head, its curved blade aimed at his neck.
With his hands behind his back resting on the scythe, he looked exactly like a street thug from the Shinobi World.
His slicked-back gray hair and wide-open mouth gave him an air of gangsterism.
Red clouds and black robes—this is a genuine member of the Akatsuki, not an imposter!
Because Uchiha Itachi, who was closely following behind Haruma, had already shown his face.
Uchiha Itachi, Obito Uchiha, and the Rinnegan that appeared in Konoha back then are all confirmed official members of the Akatsuki.
The person dressed the same and traveling with Itachi was probably not an imposter.
One, two, three, four?!
The group was simultaneously startled; there was a discrepancy between the number of people and the code signal Izumo had given earlier!
Shikamaru was startled.
They didn't even dare to meet the eyes of the people who came, only daring to observe their movements out of the corner of their eyes.
Four possibilities.
First, one of the opponents has a method to conceal their Chakra, and they have not revealed it yet.
This situation is relatively rare, since all four people are members of the same organization and are walking openly on the main road, so there is absolutely no need for them to do anything unnecessary.
Second, the strength of one of the opponents far exceeded the limits of what Senior Izumo could perceive.
Otherwise, the senior wouldn't have confidently given the three-person signal. Even if he could barely sense a trace of their presence, he should have given a gesture indicating an unknown number of people.
three...
One of our opponents was incredibly strong and also detected our presence first...
Thinking of the worst-case scenario, Shikamaru broke out in a cold sweat.
If it has already been discovered...
If they weren't completely overwhelming in strength, and were just playing cat and mouse, they should have called for our help long ago, or even taken direct action.
The fourth scenario is the safest, but also the least likely.
The other side had no idea where we were hiding...
But looking at the rogue ninja carrying a missing-nin, with that mocking smile on his lips and his straight advance towards them...
The most dangerous situation seems to be approaching.
Our team has been treated like prey to be toyed with.
Even if I don't have Shikamaru's intelligence, I can still analyze several problems so quickly.
But as the clear Haruma drew ever closer, Asuma and the others realized something was amiss.
"Snap!"
On Haruma, I stepped into the dense forest and saw a large tree that I had cut in half.
"Bang!"
A large tree crashed down, the loud noise startling countless birds into flight.
A smirk played on Haruma's lips as she twirled the blood-red scythe in her hand. "Yo~ looks like I'm in luck today."
"We had barely set off when the Lord Jashin's takeout arrived at our door."
"Bang, bang bang!"
Haruma slowly approached Asuma and the others.
Behind them, rows of giant trees had fallen.
Kakuzu, Kisame, and Itachi stopped at the entrance to the dense forest.
Kakuzu and Itachi didn't want to spoil Haruma's fun.
Kisame, on the other hand, was curious about the strength of this brat who believed in an evil cult.
Someone was hiding in the dense forest, and Kisame only realized it when he cut down the first large tree on Haruma.
"Call out,"
A two-meter-long, sharp blade of energy, enveloped in blue Chakra!
Every fallen leaf that passed by was torn to shreds by the sharp blade!
Despite the danger approaching from above, Haruma merely slightly raised his giant scythe!
"Clang!"
A crisp clang of metal clashing together exploded into Kakkō.
Realizing that he had been exposed, Asuma launched the first attack.
"A formal member of the Akatsuki?"
Seeing that his sneak attack had failed, Asuma revealed himself from behind the tree.
The odds of winning a four-on-four battle are too low, but fortunately, we had previously relayed information to the village.
Rescue is on its way; delaying the inevitable is the best strategy now!
"How?"
"The murderer who killed your friend is right in front of you. You're not going to take revenge, but you still want to talk to me?"
These sarcastic words were accompanied by a wicked smile.
Haruma's villainous character is absolutely top-notch.
Upon hearing this,
Knowing that this was the person who killed his friend, Asuma's eyes flashed with anger, but he quickly suppressed it.
Now is not the time to act impulsively.
We can settle our scores when reinforcements arrive; ensuring the safety of our comrades and disciples is the top priority right now!
"Fine, if you're not going to do it, I'll do it."
With a light touch of his toes, Haruma's giant scythe transformed into a red afterimage!
A murderous glint flashed in his eyes, Haruma swung his sword in a straight strike.
Wow, that's fast!
A look of horror flashed in Asuma's eyes, and he hurriedly raised his hands to block his chest!
"Sizzle!"
The True Straight Line, tightly gripped in his hand, sparked with lightning as the red blade struck down!
An irresistible, surging force!
Asuma felt excruciating pain in both hands, he couldn't help but kneel down on one knee!
"Snap!"
The tree branch snapped in half from the kneeling motion!
"Bang!"
With a somersault in the air, Asuma landed firmly on the ground!
A bead of cold sweat slid down Asuma's forehead. He looked up at the Haruma, his eyes filled with seriousness.
"Not bad, at least it withstood one blow."
With a wild Haruma laugh, he stomped on a tree and fell like a shooting star!
Raising the scarlet sword in her hand, Haruma said softly, "Your existence is somewhat superfluous."
Asuma completely failed to grasp the deeper meaning behind Haruma's words.
Although his hand holding the knife was still trembling slightly, Asuma's eyes showed no panic as he looked at the impending danger.
After all, he wasn't alone!
" Water Release: Water Candy Barrier!"
"Forbidden Lock - Dual Blade Slash!"
"Secret Technique: Shadow Imitation Technique!"
A thick, yellow liquid is falling from above!
Two sharp longswords, accompanied by a powerful gust of wind, attacked from behind a blind spot!
Just as Haruma was about to step onto the ground, a black shadow was drawn across it!
Three techniques combined, two techniques used for control!
The Haruma initially gained the upper hand, but their counterattack was equally impressive!
P. S.: I'm a few minutes late with my update; I'm still working on the extra chapter for this afternoon!
Updating non-stop for a month and a half~
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