Chapter 43

"Fire Release: Phoenix Sage Fire Technique!"

Using several small fireballs as cover, Ryūri charged forward.

Behind her, naturally, were Shiraishi and Ayane. Among the three, Ryūri was undoubtedly the best suited to lead the charge.

Since there were Wind Release ninjas among the enemies this time, the effect of smoke bombs was not significant, at most causing some interference before being dispersed by the Wind Release.

Even if they wanted to create smoke that couldn't be easily dispersed by Wind Release, it would require time and materials, and a complex mixing process, which was not something that could be done in a short time.

Fortunately, the upper-level ninja skilled in Earth Release was accidentally interfered with by Ryūri's genjutsu at the beginning and suffered a serious injury. This meant that among the Sand shinobi surrounding them, only two upper-level ninjas were in perfect condition, the rest were chūnin.

This made the situation better than the last time.

The several small fireballs landing naturally caused some chaos, trees burning, and black smoke with a burnt smell rising.

To avoid being controlled by Ryūri's bizarre genjutsu, the Sand shinobi naturally had to try to avoid it.

However, Ryūri's Body Flicker Technique was very fast, and it was not easy for the upper-level ninjas she targeted to escape her sight.

So, without investigating how Ryūri's genjutsu was triggered, they mainly used feint tactics.

Both Shiraishi's group and the Sand shinobi knew that the key to winning this battle was not on their side.

It was in the battle with Shōmō.

The outcome of that battle would determine the final direction of this fight.

What they could do was just to buy as much time as possible.

Shiraishi engaged a chūnin, judging from his techniques, he was mainly a taijutsu user, with speed and strength surpassing those of ordinary chūnin. Using the sword techniques he learned from Shōmō, Shiraishi could barely hold his ground.

The opponent seemed to be slightly relieved to have found a worthy opponent.

If possible, he really didn't want to fight a ninja with the Sharingan and Byakugan, especially the girl with the Byakugan who looked very innocent and harmless.

The last time a comrade attacked her, he was directly pierced through the heart by two fingers and killed instantly.

It was different from the Gentle Fist technique described in the textbooks. Although it had the shadow of the Gentle Fist, it was more personal, and being hit once meant certain death.

Fighting with the Sharingan, one had to be wary of the unpredictable genjutsu, which even upper-level ninjas could fall for. For a chūnin like him, it was too difficult.

"You're not bad, to be able to hold out against me for so long."

The opponent's self-satisfied attitude suggested he was the type who easily became overconfident when facing a weaker enemy.

"But... it ends here!"

His speed suddenly increased, circling behind Shiraishi and locking his neck with his arm, making it difficult for him to breathe.

"How about it? Now you—"

Bang!

Shiraishi turned into a log, with an exploding tag attached to it, burning.

The Sand chūnin's pupils contracted, hastily jumping back.

Boom!

He was blown away by the explosion's shockwave, crashing into a large tree and stopping, with a trail of blood at the corner of his mouth.

Shiraishi stood on a branch of another large tree, smiling and said, "Impressive, to dodge the explosion of the exploding tag. That's one of my few special moves."

"Damn brat! How dare you—"

It seemed that Shiraishi's trick had enraged him. Gathering chakra in his feet, he rushed towards the tree, determined to make Shiraishi suffer.

"Unfortunately, it's already over..."

As Shiraishi finished speaking,

The Sand shinobi's fist was just a few inches from his face when a white blade of light extended from behind Shiraishi like lightning.

A neat cut appeared on the Sand shinobi's neck, and he instantly lost consciousness, falling from the air.

"It seems that side is already resolved, Shōmō-sensei."

"This side doesn't need me to worry."

Shōmō nodded, satisfied with the performance of Shiraishi and the others.

With a little more polishing, they would eventually catch up to him.

After all, they were only twelve years old, and the future was promising.

The Sand shinobi fighting Ryūri and Ayane knew things were not looking good the moment Shōmō appeared.

They also cursed the male and female puppeteers, who had claimed they were sure to win this time, but failed even faster than last time, in just a few minutes.

They immediately lost their fighting spirit.

"Earth Release: Earth Flow Wall!"

The Earth Release upper-level ninja gathered chakra in his hands without hesitation, casting a large-scale Earth Release technique.

Rumble!

Rumble!

A massive, solid stone wall rose, the vast area causing the ground to tremble.

Ryūri and Ayane climbed to the top of the giant stone wall, seeing an empty land.

Shōmō and Shiraishi soon joined them.

"Ayane, with me, let's start!"

"Yes!"

Even with a brief signal, Shiraishi and the others knew Shōmō's plan.

Shōmō was going to pursue the most troublesome enemies, and at such times, he needed Ayane's Byakugan to assist.

Find the male and female puppeteers and eliminate them.

From now on, it was time for Konoha to counterattack the fleeing Sand shinobi.

Thus, Shōmō and Ayane formed one group, and Shiraishi and Ryūri formed another, beginning their search.

Soon, Shiraishi and Ryūri encountered the disheveled Tenshū upper-level ninja, who was followed by a dozen Konoha shinobi, all with minor injuries but not severe.

The upper-level ninja and a few chūnin had been facing Tenshū earlier.

Neither side could gain the upper hand, but after the male and female puppeteers were defeated, the Sand shinobi lost their mainstay and could only retreat.

"Since that's the case, I'll also join the search. This time, I must avenge my fallen comrades!"

Tenshū's face was filled with anger.

He had heard of this Sand shinobi group wandering in the Land of Fire, which had attacked five or six Konoha outposts, causing dozens of Konoha shinobi to die, including some upper-level ninjas.

If it weren't for Shōmō's team coincidentally resupplying here, all the Konoha shinobi in this outpost might have been wiped out.

After bidding farewell to Tenshū, he led the remaining Konoha shinobi to another route to start the search.

If they encountered powerful enemies, they would signal for help.

Even if something unexpected happened, they could provide timely support.

"By the way, Ryūri, I have a good plan to lure them in."

While running, Shiraishi suddenly smiled and said.

"What are you up to?"

"After all, this is the fastest way to end the battle. Since Shōmō-sensei and Ayane are not here, I don't have to hide my strength."

As he spoke, Shiraishi suddenly increased his running speed, quickly pulling away from Ryūri and disappearing from her sight.

Ryūri, using her Sharingan, silently watched where Shiraishi disappeared, seemingly tacitly agreeing to his "plan."

Half an hour later, Shiraishi arrived in a quiet, open forest. In front of him was a clear stream, with a few fish playing in it.

Shiraishi looked around, picked up a sharp stone from the stream, and stopped in front of a tree, preparing to carve a mark on it.

A cold sensation made the hairs on his neck stand up; it was a kunai.

The hand holding the kunai was made of wood, and the arm extending from the black sleeve was smooth and hairless, with some joints that only puppets had.

A puppet.

"Drop the stone and raise your hands."

It was a cold female voice.

Shiraishi obediently dropped the stone and raised his hands, a thin layer of cold sweat naturally appearing on his face.