Even Akakage wouldn't joke around with his own life.
He reached out to touch the stone wall of the dune, and then, his entire body merged into the wall, moving through it unobstructed.
More convenient than Earth Style, this is one of his Kekkeigenkai abilities.
And infiltrating the dunes in this manner is definitely a method the enemy wouldn't expect.
Inside the dunes, there's only the subtle sound of sand being blown by the wind. The enemy's shadow is absent, but the types of traps are plentiful.
Fortunately, he didn't rush in from the front. If he had, even he couldn't have entered the heartland unscathed.
Using so many traps to prevent someone from rescuing that foolish princess, they are indeed being overly cautious.
But, not seeing any trace of the enemy, could they have gone out to meet their employer?
No, better to be careful. Akakage thought to himself.
Not rushing to rescue Princess Tamahime, he continued moving within the walls of the hill, and after repeatedly confirming the absence of enemy traces, Akakage was finally certain of his judgment.
The Bounty Hunters who captured Princess Tamahime have gone to meet their employer.
It's best to bring her back as soon as possible.
Compared to annihilating the Bounty Hunters, Akakage feels that quickly bringing Princess Tamahime back is the most important task at hand.
He would temporarily let these Bounty Hunters off the hook.
He found the room where Princess Tamahime was held. She leaned powerlessly against a cold wall, sitting there limply.
Her fancy attire was still neat, but her face had some dust, along with the weariness of exhaustion. She must have suffered quite a bit during the journey.
Upon hearing approaching footsteps, Tamahime's body trembled slightly and she looked up to see a familiar figure approaching.
"Mmm... Mmm..."
Due to a cloth gag in her mouth, she could only make such muffled sounds, looking incredibly frantic and excited.
Although Akakage very much wanted to curse this troublesome princess directly, he thought carefully and realized that her capture by Bounty Hunters seemed partly his responsibility.
Moreover, even if he doesn't particularly like this woman, she is still an important daughter of the Daimyo of the Land of Bear, so he had to remain calm and not be angry.
Maintaining a heart like Shisui is the most crucial mindset for a Ninja.
At any moment, one must remain unperturbed.
Akakage carefully checked and confirmed there were no traps beside Princess Tamahime.
Were those Bounty Hunters too confident, or just too careless? Akakage didn't want to discern that further.
Squatting down in front of Princess Tamahime, Akakage reached out to remove the cloth gag from her mouth.
"Ninja sir, leave here quickly!"
"Hm?"
Hearing Princess Tamahime's loud shout, Akakage was slightly stunned and then realized something, reaching out to tear open the outer layer of Tamahime's attire.
A large number of Explosive Tags were affixed to Princess Tamahime's undergarments, burning rapidly.
Akakage's pupils instantly contracted.
No time to think too much, Akakage instinctively reached out and ripped off the Explosive Tags affixed to Tamahime's undergarments.
Outside the hill, a figure stood on the sands, dressed tightly in a black Ninja Suit, face masked, only a pair of cold eyes visible.
The mouth under the mask seemed to curl upward.
Boom!
Accompanied by a violent explosion, the dune in front of him was suddenly ravaged.
A massive dispersion of earthen stones flew everywhere, with terrifying explosive flames subsequently erupting in all directions.
The night instantly transformed into daylight, and the fiery glow raised the surrounding air temperature, the flames dancing freely in the Black-clothed Ninja's eyes like the Karmic Fire of red lotuses.
The fierce winds generated by the explosion scattered furiously after a slight delay, and the blaze from the explosion underwent a terrifying sublimation, further expanding to devour the sand.
The Explosive Tag placed initially on Princess Tamahime was merely a decoy mechanism, triggering the rest of the mechanisms inside the dune to explode simultaneously at the moment of detonation.
No matter how skilled a Ninja is, facing such an ordeal, feeling powerless is inevitable.
The human body is flesh and blood, incapable of resisting such high destructive Explosive Tags.
The Black-clothed Ninja confirmed this, then sensed something, his brow furrowed slightly.
Chakra Wings unfurled behind him like the tails of a peacock, extending beautifully.
These wings gently flapped in the air, casually lifting the Black-clothed Ninja into the sky, his sharp, cold gaze fixated on the heart of the fiery sea.
"Interesting. Under such circumstances, not only can he protect the hostage, but he himself remains undying."
If confronting head-on, he'd definitely be no match. In this, the Black-clothed Ninja was absolutely certain.
In the center of the fiery sea, Akakage's body, mostly burned, looked like a beggar on the roadside, blood running down his head, flowing into his eyes, making the sight before him turn a bizarre red.
Behind him was Princess Tamahime's body.
Only a small part of her clothes was burned, her originally neat, long black hair was now messy, covered in dust. Overall, she was still safe and sound.
The Black-clothed Ninja, witnessing this scene, was naturally surprised.
"To loyally protect the master despite facing such mortal terror, Ninja truly are troublesome. Wouldn't dying in the previous explosion be easier?"