Qi and his group fled.
The members of the Root continued their pursuit.
After all these people left, the area where the battle had taken place was left in a scene of devastation, filled with the stench of blood. About an hour later, several figures suddenly appeared in the distance, heading towards Konohagakure.
"Whoosh!"
"Whoosh!"
"Whoosh!"
The leader, with his familiar long white hair, was none other than Jiraiya, who had been ordered by the Third Hokage to lead the Anbu to stop the Root members from ambushing the Mist Ninja. Just as Jiraiya had told Hiruzen Sarutobi before setting off, it was generally necessary to prepare for the worst!
However, as expected, upon seeing the scene of blood flowing like a river below, Jiraiya's expression turned extremely ugly.
Just as Hiruzen Sarutobi and Mitokado Homura couldn't understand Danzo's actions, Jiraiya really wanted to cut open his elder's head at this moment to see what was inside!
There was absolutely no need for the Mist Ninja delegation, who harbored no ill intentions, to go for the kill!
Not to mention that almost all of them are children around 12 years old from the village!
Under such circumstances, Jiraiya truly believed that Shimura Danzō Danzo mad to still be able to dispatch Root's elite troops to issue a kill order!
" Lord Jiraiya, all those who died in the battle were Mist Ninja, a total of eleven. We haven't found any key figures yet. We estimate the battle lasted over an hour. Judging from the traces at the scene, the Mist Ninja likely scattered and retreated, and the ambushers pursued them!"
After a brief inspection of the scene, an Anbu member wearing a monkey mask leaped to Jiraiya, and quickly reported back.
This is a completely irreversible situation. The deaths of eleven Mist Ninja, even if they were only Genin, have drastically altered the nature of the incident. The events that occurred in the Forest of Death could be explained as an "accident during the exam," and Hiruzen Sarutobi had also made some follow-up arrangements. Considering the overall situation of the Shinobi World and the possibility of receiving some compensation, Yagura Karatachi could have chosen to let it go and not pursue the matter.
But this time it's different.
This ambush can be blatantly called a declaration of war by the ninja village!
Even if Kirigakure were to launch a retaliatory war against Konohagakure over this one incident, it would be perfectly reasonable!
The other Three Great Shinobi Villages will certainly be happy to watch the battle and reap the benefits!
In the current tense and dangerous situation in the Shinobi World, it cannot be said that the two ninja villages that started the war will definitely not have the last laugh, but it is really difficult for them to gain the upper hand in the early stages, not to mention that Konohagakure is often the one that is besieged by two or three ninja villages at the same time!
"First, report the intelligence here to Lord Sandai. Then, notify the other squads to conduct a thorough search along the southeastern direction, and try to intercept all those who are lying in ambush. If necessary, I authorize you to use unconventional methods. Understand?!"
Jiraiya took a deep breath and looked at the ANBU member wearing a monkey-face mask beside him, speaking in a Anbu voice.
The situation was beyond saving, but Jiraiya still wanted to try and salvage it. Putting everything else aside, if one or two more members of the Mist Ninja group could survive, that would at least be a good thing, right?
Of course, Jiraiya knew very well that he was probably just wasting his time, but he couldn't just give up. He still had to try and see if there would be any unexpected results!
"Yes, Lord Jiraiya!"
This Anbu lowered his head abruptly in response.
"Whoosh!"
He then leaped forward to convey Jiraiya's order.
"Old man, all I can say is that I'll try my best to salvage the situation, but you also need to be mentally prepared for the possibility of a Fourth Shinobi World War!"
Jiraiya glanced at the location of his own ninja village, took a deep breath, silently recited the sentence in his mind, and then Chakra from the soles of his feet.
He instantly flew away, leaving the spot where he stood.
Just as Kei's arrival from another world, besides gradually influencing the people and things in the original work, inevitably led to the following plot being completely different from the original work, becoming an unpredictable trend, Shimura Danzō's completely selfish, foolish, and insane actions will also bring about significant and irreversible changes to the Five Great Shinobi Villages and even the entire Shinobi World!
This is something no one could have predicted!
Whether this will trigger a new round of Shinobi World has become a Damocles' sword hanging over the heads of everyone in the Shinobi World.
However, this potentially devastating and unstable threat is currently a problem that Qi neither needs to consider nor has the energy to address.
After all, he still has four or five elite members of the Root chasing after him!
If these Root causes cannot be eliminated or resolved...
If Qi won't see the sun tomorrow, what right does he have to talk about the future Shinobi World War? No matter how serious the danger is, it has nothing to do with Qi.
'Damn it, I thought we could just break through and escape. I didn't expect these guys to be able to chase us so closely. Could it be that there are members of the Hyūga, Inuzuka Clan, or Aburame Clan in Root behind us?'
Qi sped through the primeval forest, glancing back every now and then with a hint of apprehension and seriousness in his eyes.
If there really are people chasing us from behind.
Qi knew he couldn't escape. His speed wasn't fast enough to easily shake off these people. Once his Chakra was exhausted, he would be completely at their mercy. However, the opponent's Chakra consumption was definitely not low either!
'We still need to put on a show first!'
A strong killing intent flashed in Qi's pupils.
Putting aside other considerations, at the very least, that Root member skilled in tracking must be killed; otherwise, he simply won't be able to evade their pursuit!
'I only have about 40% Chakra left. I can't linger in this fight; I must deliver a fatal blow!'
The initial high-speed advance and the subsequent fierce battles did indeed deplete a large amount of Chakra. His current Chakra reserves are insufficient to support another battle, not to mention that the combat power of his pursuers is even greater than his own.
You must clearly define your goals!
After making up his mind.
As he moved forward, he took out Explosive Tag from his pocket and stuck them on the tree trunks around him. He also used his Ice Release to create some small mechanisms on them. Of course, this couldn't stop the pursuing enemies behind him, but it could create more small opportunities for himself!