bookbashuk Chapter 133 Omens
Chapter 133 Omens
Chapter 133 Omens
In the vast desert, a team of more than ten people were defending a wrecked wagon. Several hundred meters away, a figure charged forward, unleashing fireballs as he went, scattering four people locked in combat ahead.
Having just broken free from the entanglement with the Konoha Jonin, Jonin Iwahira knew he was in trouble. Sure enough, without the Konoha ninjas to hold him back, the swarms of Phoenix Flames immediately changed direction and chased after his group.
In the brief moment of retreat, Taiichi had already arrived in front of them, forming a pincer movement with Captain Yamaguchi to attack the enemy ninja.
Faced with the combined attack of two Jonin, the remaining three enemies exchanged glances and tacitly formed hand seals together, unleashing Earth Release: Flying Gravel.
The three of them unleashed the same ninjutsu together, creating a close synergy that far exceeded the simple sum of its parts. A deluge of flying stones hurtled towards Taichi and Captain Yamaguchi. This density of stones couldn't be easily dodged with agility and swordsmanship.
"A combined spell, you really are from Iwagakure!" Captain Yamaguchi shouted.
Taiyi was not to be outdone. They could combine their techniques to enhance their power, but their own ninjutsu was also formidable.
He shouted "Captain!" indicating that he needed to cooperate. He then formed several hand seals, unleashing Fire Release: Fire Dragon Flame Bullet.
The surging flames transformed into a fire dragon, exploding into a sea of fire in front of the Iwa ninja.
Over there, Captain Yamaguchi also formed hand seals, unleashing Earth Release: Earth Flow River.
The sand grains, under the influence of chakra, turned into mud, forming two rivers of mud that surged toward the Iwagakure ninja like arms, compressing their escape area.
Seeing the encirclement from both sides, the three Iwagakure members remained calm. They simultaneously formed hand seals and unleashed Earth Release: Earthquake Core. Their feet trembled, and they were suddenly lifted up, dodging the combined attack of the Earth River and the Flame Dragon.
But Taiyi wouldn't let them be so smug. He changed his hand seals and unleashed a torrent of chakra. The flames, which had been normal, suddenly turned bright gold, and the temperature of the flames rose sharply.
The raised earthen platform, resembling an icicle, was instantly ignited by the fire dragon and quickly melted into lava under the intense heat, collapsing into a soft mass.
"Damn it, where did this perverted brat come from? Is this still a Fire Release ninjutsu?" The roar of Iwagakure came from the earthen platform, but it did nothing to stop the platform from collapsing.
If this trend continues, the Hidden Stone Village, surrounded by flames, will only face certain death.
But at that moment, a signal flare rose into the sky from the mission's side, and even in daylight, Taichi and Captain Yamaguchi noticed it immediately.
"There are still enemies!" However, the two weren't particularly worried. Both of them had shadow clones left behind, and the fact that no memories were being transmitted back proved that the shadow clones were still intact, so the situation wasn't too urgent. Their primary objective now was to eliminate the enemies here as quickly as possible.
At this moment, a large amount of mud suddenly surged up from the earthen platform that had been trapped by flames. The mud surged down from high to low, extinguishing a large amount of flames along the way. Taking advantage of the fact that the flames had not been replenished, the three members of Iwagakure quickly broke out of the encirclement.
However, Taiyi was not about to let them have their way so easily. The Flame Dragon slightly veered in the direction they were fleeing, and the last bit of flame grazed past the last Rock Ninja running.
With just that one scorch, the Chunin had no chance to resist and was burned to a crisp in the blink of an eye.
The two ninjas running ahead had their pupils shrink. The flames were terrifying; they absolutely could not be touched.
Therefore, the remaining Iwagakure ninjas no longer chose to engage in direct combat, but instead used ninjutsu from a distance to entangle with Taichi and the other two.
After all, they had seen the signal flare and knew that they still had a Jonin on their side. They were sure that the person who ambushed the delegation was one of their own. They really didn't believe that there would be another Jonin over there if there were already two Jonin here.
However, things often develop in the least desirable direction. While the two from Iwagakure were still racking their brains to entangle the two from Konoha, another signal flare rose in the direction of the delegation in the distance.
The four men, unable to reach a conclusion, stopped fighting and stood looking in the direction from which the signal flare had risen.
Konoha's side: Huh, that wasn't our signal flare, then it's alright!
On the Iwagakure side: Holy crap, what's going on? How come it's our own distress signal? You, a Jonin, are being forced to send out a distress signal.
The two Iwagakure members exchanged a glance, then looked at the two Konoha members approaching with sinister smiles. Jonin Iwahira decisively ordered, "Retreat!"
After saying that, he turned and fled into the distance without looking back. The Chunin was just as fast, chasing after the Jonin, and soon disappeared from sight.
"Captain?" Taichi turned to look at Yamaguchi Seisuke.
"No need to chase them. Our mission is to protect the delegation. Besides, a Jonin who is determined to escape is not so easy to catch."
The two stood atop a sand dune, watching the direction the two from Iwagakure had left in. Only after making sure they wouldn't return did they turn back to the delegation.
From afar, one could hear Yangping's smug laughter, as if he were boasting about something.
At this point, the two voluntarily dispelled their shadow clones and learned the whole story.
While Taiichi was engaged in fierce fighting, the delegation was also ambushed by a Jonin. Fortunately, Yangping's Sharingan was always activated, and he discovered the Jonin who launched the attack immediately.
Yang Hei, with his three tomoe, was already close to a Jonin in strength, and the Sharingan gave him a significant advantage in one-on-one combat.
Besides, this wasn't a one-on-one fight, but a four-on-one battle, with two of them being shadow clones of Jonin, plus Saori providing occasional support from the sidelines.
The Jonin from Iwagakure was completely overwhelmed by this impressive lineup. After only a few exchanges, he was killed by Yohei, a classic case of dying due to insufficient intelligence.
After everyone cleaned up the battlefield, the precious Jonin's corpse naturally had to be sealed and taken back. Konoha's intelligence department naturally had the means to get the information they wanted from his mind.
The delegation resumed its return journey, but this time everyone was on high alert again. After all, two Iwagakure ninjas had escaped, including a Jonin, and no one knew what their next move would be.
Two hours after the delegation left, a group of Sand Ninja arrived at the battlefield. The group silently examined the traces on the field before finally regrouping.
"Captain, there are five bodies at the scene, one of which has been burned to a crisp."
"There are two groups. One group is skilled in Fire Release techniques, and their power is particularly great. They are probably ninjas from Konoha, and they are on the same route as the Land of Fire delegation. The other group uses Earth Release techniques, and there are signs of a coordinated attack. They are probably from Iwagakure."
"The Iwa ninja actually dared to come to my Sunagakure territory to intercept and kill the Land of Fire's envoy. What are they trying to do?"
"Isn't Iwagakure just a bunch of troublemakers? They're experts at sowing discord."
"Alright, once the inspection is complete, we'll go back and report. The key points are the Iwagakure assassination and the Konoha ninja who's skilled in Fire Release. The power of that Fire Release was terrifying." Thinking of the Fire Release that melted the entire earthen platform, the Sand Ninja captain couldn't help but shudder.
"Yes!" The Sand Village squad answered in unison and immediately turned back towards the village, eager to report their discovery as soon as possible.
Meanwhile, the delegation continued their journey amidst the tense atmosphere, finally leaving the Land of Wind and entering the Land of Rivers on the evening of July 24.
The afterglow of the setting sun shone on everyone's tired faces, and even the creaking of the carriage seemed to lighten up a bit.
"Finally, I can get a good night's sleep!" Yang Ping stretched, finally bidding farewell to the endless yellow sand, and even the sunlight wasn't so glaring anymore.
"We still need to be careful. Those two Iwagakure members might make a move in the Land of Rivers," Captain Yamaguchi whispered a reminder.
At this moment, the tattered curtain of the carriage was pulled open, and the three envoys, suppressing their urgency, ordered, "Proceed to the nearest city immediately; we need to rest thoroughly."
The guards obeyed, and the carriage immediately sped up, heading into the distance.
Two hours later, the delegation arrived at Mikawa Castle, a major town in the northern part of the River Country. The stone walls looked particularly imposing in the twilight, and celebratory banners hung outside the city gates. A brief inquiry revealed that the daimyo of the River Country had finally been appointed.
The delegation arrived at the best inn in Sanchuan City, and the three envoys couldn't wait to return to their rooms, seemingly to wash away the dust of their journey.
After settling everyone in, Captain Yamaguchi went out alone to gather information. Taichi and the other two then took on the task of protecting the delegation.
When the captain returned, a rare smile appeared on his face: "The eldest son of the River Kingdom officially ascended to the throne 10 days ago, and the entire River Kingdom has been undergoing personnel adjustments during this period."
"Excellent!" The deputy envoy slammed his hand on the table and stood up, spilling most of the sake from his cup.
As an envoy from the Land of Fire, he naturally knew that the eldest prince was close to the Land of Fire. The Land of Fire had also contributed significantly to the eldest prince's ascension to the throne, and now that they were finally seeing the fruits of their victory, how could they not be overjoyed?
The banquet was filled with laughter and cheerful conversation, and even the captain was pulled in by the three envoys to drink quite a bit of wine. Taiyi and his two guards, who were standing guard nearby, looked on in astonishment.
"With the eldest son becoming the daimyo, the Land of Rivers siding with the Land of Fire, and the borders being stable, our future missions will be much easier."
Taiichi explained the reason to Yohei and Saori.
"No wonder the captain is so happy; I've never seen him drink before," Yang Ping muttered to himself.
"That's because the war will be far from the Land of Fire, or at least it won't happen within the Land of Fire."
"Oh!" Yangping and the other man nodded in realization. If the second young master became the daimyo, and if the lands of wind and fire went to war, Sunagakure would be able to travel freely through the land of water and might even receive help from the land of water. At that time, the borders of the land of fire would be in danger.
This is why the people of the Land of Fire are doing everything they can to help the eldest prince ascend to the position of daimyo.
After a noisy and relaxing night, the three envoys did not get up until late the next day. After tidying up and retrieving their newly splendid carriages, the delegation did not embark on their return journey until the afternoon.
The journey that followed was smooth sailing. There were no sandstorms, no ambushes from Iwagakure, and they didn't even encounter the bandits they had met on the way there. The delegation was getting closer and closer to the Land of Fire.
As the delegation was traveling that day, a group of Sand Ninja appeared in Taiichi's senses. At first, Taiichi didn't pay much attention, but simply continued to keep an eye on the Sand Ninja.
But when the Sand Ninja team approached within 500 meters and clearly spotted the delegation, they moved towards the delegation without hesitation.
Taiyi immediately issued an alarm. After nearly a month of cooperation, the guards had become familiar with the style of the Yamaguchi Squad and immediately tightened their formation upon receiving the alarm.
Captain Yamaguchi instantly appeared beside Taichi: "What's going on?!"
"A bunch of Sand Ninja are approaching, and they seem to have ill intentions?" Taiichi pointed in the direction the Sand Ninja were approaching and briefly reported his discovery.
Following Taichi's direction, Captain Yamaguchi could now vaguely see the approaching Sunagakure members—a standard four-person team. As they drew near, Taichi could clearly sense their hostility.
Perhaps seeing the flags displayed by the delegation, the Sand Village ninjas scouted from a distance before decisively leaving without ever exchanging any words with the delegation.
The four members of the team looked at each other. They could all sense the obvious hostility. It wasn't directed at them, but it was definitely directed at the ninjas of Konoha.
In other words, there are Konoha ninjas nearby who are being hunted down by Sunagakure ninjas.
After a brief discussion, the four members of the team decided that Taichi and the other two should look at Captain Yamaguchi and wait for his orders.
"We're also on a mission and can't just leave. Besides, we don't know where they are right now, so it's even less appropriate to split up our forces," Captain Yamaguchi explained, which disappointed the three of them, since their comrade was being hunted at the time.
Just as everyone was about to continue their escort mission, Captain Yamaguchi made a 180-degree turn: "But we can't just stand by and do nothing about our fellow villagers."
Taiichi and the other two immediately looked up happily, their eyes filled with anticipation as they gazed at Captain Yamaguchi.
"How about this? We'll create shadow clones and explore the surrounding area. Firstly, this will create some noise to distract the Sand Village ninja, and secondly, if we encounter any of our own people, they can be of some help."
After some consideration, the three of them could only agree to this, since they couldn't really abandon their mission.
"Bang bang bang bang!" A burst of white smoke flashed by, and the four of them each created their own shadow clones. However, Taiyi's face was pale at this moment, as if he had exhausted himself.
Seeing this, Saori quickly stepped forward to support him, asking him about the situation with concern.
"It's alright, it'll be fine in a bit. I just gave most of my chakra to my shadow clones." With that, Taiichi immediately took out a soldier's ration pill and ate it.
Yang Ping, upon hearing this, stared curiously at Taiyi's shadow clone. Normally, shadow clones divide the main body's chakra equally, but the ability to freely control the distribution of chakra is something not everyone can do.
After examining Taiichi's shadow clone, Yangping stared curiously at Captain Yamaguchi.
The captain seemed to see Yang Ping's question and said with a helpless expression, "Don't look at me, I don't have that ability. It requires not only a high level of understanding of the Shadow Clone Technique, but also stronger chakra control. I can't meet either of those requirements."
Seeing Yangping's disappointed expression, Captain Yamaguchi's eyebrows twitched, and he wished he could punch him.
Taking a deep breath and suppressing his throbbing fist, Captain Yamaguchi ordered, "Yohira and Saori, form a team and scout eastward."
Taiyi is exploring westward, and my clone is heading north. Now, let's set off!
Watching their shadow clones disappear into the distance, the group did not linger and escorted the delegation back on their way.
As everyone expected, in the following days, as Saori and Yohei's shadow clones disappeared one after another, they brought back the latest news.
The Sand Ninja were indeed hunting down the Konoha ninja, but they didn't know exactly who they were. After the two shadow clones made some noise, Sand Ninja quickly caught up with them.
The two did not engage in combat, but simply kept running away, drawing the other's attention until their chakra was exhausted and their shadow clones dissipated on their own.
About half a day later, Captain Yamaguchi's shadow clone also disappeared, bringing back almost the same information as Yohei and the others. Now, the members of Team 8 couldn't help but worry about the Konoha ninja they had never met.
Such a large-scale manhunt—I wonder what mission they're carrying out.
Now, only Taiyi's shadow clone is still out there. As everyone travels, they keep glancing at Taiyi sitting on the roof of the car, hoping for news from him. But a whole day has already passed.
On the other side, since leaving the delegation, the shadow clone Taichi has been heading west. Even without using chakra, his physique allows him to move quite quickly.
Once he was far enough away from the delegation, Taiichi, like the others, used Fire Release to create some noise, which attracted some Sand Village ninjas. Taiichi then leisurely kept them in suspense, occasionally using his senses to survey the surroundings.
Whether it was Taiichi's good luck or the Sand Village's bad luck, as Taiichi once again activated his senses to explore his surroundings, two figures appeared in his senses at the northern edge of his perception.
It was just a tiny bit off; if the distance had been a little greater, or if the detection had been a few seconds later, Taiyi would have passed by those two.
Taiyi glanced back and saw that the Sand Ninja he was hanging from had not yet entered his perception range, so he didn't hesitate any longer, turned around and ran towards the two figures.
As they got closer, Taiyi's senses became clearer. It seemed that one of the two was seriously injured and didn't even have the basic ability to move.
As the two closed to within a kilometer, Taiichi finally clearly perceived the other's identity—it was none other than Konoha's White Fang, Hatake Sakumo!