Spear Egret!
The young Spear Egret wasn't much different from an ordinary egret and didn't have much combat power yet. It had come to help Yuka scout for information.
Konoha knew the Uzumaki clan too well, possessing intelligence on the vast majority of its members.
Seeing the Spear Egret now, even without Yōkō's reminder, Captain Black Gorilla immediately said, "It's Uzumaki Yuka! Uzumaki Yuka is nearby!"
Captain Black Gorilla didn't act rashly. Instead, he carefully crawled closer to the Spear Egret.
The Spear Egret was completely unaware.
Just as Black Gorilla and Yōkō were about to capture the Spear Egret, the bird flew up and into the woods behind them.
Black Gorilla and Yōkō quickly got up and followed.
The park's forest was large, with a faint mist that made it difficult to see into the distance.
As they chased, Yōkō heard two egret calls.
Why was another egret flying towards them from the opposite direction?
"Not good! Run!" Black Gorilla shouted, no longer caring about stealth, and leaped backward.
The other Spear Egret had brought Kiri-nin!
Uzumaki Yuka had learned to divert disaster onto others, to drive a tiger to swallow a wolf.
Eight Kiri-nin surrounded Black Gorilla and Yōkō.
The battle erupted instantly!
Captain Black Gorilla's fist swelled in size against the wind.
It turned out Captain Black Gorilla was from the Akimichi clan.
The cart-sized fist smashed into the Kiri-nin directly in front, sending the ninja flying backward.
The sound of shattering bones was horrifying.
Captain Black Gorilla took another step forward but suddenly found his feet stuck.
The ground had become covered in a sticky mucus, trapping Black Gorilla's feet.
Seeing this, Yōkō didn't dare to step forward either. He didn't know what strange Water Release that was.
Captain Black Gorilla's weight was too great; he tried to jump several times but couldn't get free.
Yōkō threw out a steel wire, wrapping it around Captain Black Gorilla's waist, but couldn't pull him out no matter how hard he tried.
Kunai came flying from all directions.
Yōkō had no choice but to draw his own kunai to block them. His taijutsu skills were now quite good, and amidst a series of clanging sounds, he deflected the incoming kunai.
Squad Leader Black Gorilla wasn't so lucky. Unable to move, he could only swell one palm to block the kunai with his flesh.
After his hand shrank back to normal, the kunai fell off, but his hand was already covered in blood.
"Fox! Go! Take the intel to Squad Leader Hippo! I'll cover your retreat!"
Squad Leader Black Gorilla decided to stop trying to escape.
Hearing this, Yōkō left without looking back.
Even if Squad Leader Black Gorilla hadn't given the order, Yōkō would have left upon seeing the situation turn sour.
After running about a dozen steps, Yōkō ran headlong into another Kiri-nin squad.
As he prepared for battle, a tremendous noise came from behind him.
A jet of water pierced through the tree trunk behind him, carrying terrifying kinetic energy as it shot towards Yōkō's lower back.
Hearing the commotion, he immediately twisted his waist and dove sideways.
The moment he landed, he sensed something was wrong; the ground beneath him was also covered in the Slimy Water Release.
His hands and right leg were stuck, making it impossible to exert any force.
Yōkō quickly formed hand seals, wanting to use the Earth Release: Fish in Earth Reflection Technique to dive underground.
With the mucus present, the diving speed was very slow.
His chakra reserve was too small.
Thud! Thud!
Two consecutive kunai struck his head and throat.
--
His vision went black, then shifted. The full moon shone in Yōkō's eyes.
Yōkō's expression changed; he had returned to the previous full moon.
He appeared on the coast of the Land of Fire, just about to follow Squad Leader Hippo into the Land of Waves.
The Land of Waves was too dangerous. The Kiri-nin, like Konoha, were also determined to obtain the scroll of the Uzumaki elder.
[Mochizuki's Arc activated!
The host has one resurrection opportunity per month. Upon death, they will resurrect on the night of the previous full moon.
Reward: One lottery draw opportunity:
1- Water Attribute Chakra;
2- Chūnin-level Chakra Reserve (Stackable);
3- Shuriken Throwing (Proficiency).]
Water Attribute Chakra was temporarily useless, so he eliminated it directly.
The Proficiency level in Shuriken Throwing was very tempting.
Being able to accurately kill enemies with kunai from a distance of over thirty meters would mean no need for close combat, increasing his survival rate.
The Chūnin-level Chakra Reserve was also very useful.
With a larger chakra reserve, if he encountered the Slimy Water Release again, he could forcefully break through it using chakra to dive underground.
After careful consideration, Yōkō chose the Chūnin-level Chakra Reserve.
With the Chūnin-level Chakra Reserve, added to his original 2x Chūnin-level amount, his chakra reserve problem was finally somewhat alleviated.
Letting out a long breath, Yōkō found it easier to extract chakra, and his whole body felt full of power.
This time, while crossing the Land of Waves strait, Yōkō didn't feel very tired.
Standing on the rolling, surging waves, chakra supported his feet and legs, making him fearless against the wind and waves.
Last year's Chūnin Exam passing standards had been lowered, promoting 200 chūnin at once. Only now did Yōkō truly feel like a chūnin.
Just like in the previous timeline, after searching the Land of Waves for a long time, they entered the Land of Waves' capital.
After entering the capital, Yōkō found Captain Black Gorilla. One of Black Gorilla's arms had been severed, greatly reducing his combat power.
Later, they spotted the Spear Egret again by the lake.
The egret led the two into the park's forest.
In the forest, Yōkō whispered, "Captain, do you think this could be a trap?"
Squad Leader Black Gorilla, hearing the hint, nodded repeatedly:
"That is indeed possible. Let's not advance rashly or chase the egret hastily from now on. First, we'll determine a general area, then notify Squad Leader Hippo to bring people for reconnaissance."
The two slowed their pace.
Yōkō jumped to the treetops, watching the Spear Egret from afar to see where it would go.
Black Gorilla rested under the tree.
He thought to himself that this subordinate, Fox, was quite good—cautious, careful, and always completed missions. Now that he had lost an arm, Fox was considerate, letting him rest as much as possible.
After losing an arm, his balance was much worse, making standing on the treetops quite strenuous.
Fox's skills were also very good. Judging by how he gathered chakra in his feet and stood effortlessly on the treetop, his fundamentals were solid.
Yōkō jumped down from the treetop and said to Squad Leader Black Gorilla:
"Captain, I saw another egret flying towards us from the opposite direction. There are two egrets in the forest. Should I use a Shadow Clone to investigate?"
"Good." Black Gorilla felt that Fox was indeed cautious.
The Shadow Clone disappeared deep into the forest.
A few minutes later, Fox suddenly looked up.
"Captain! The last thing the Shadow Clone saw were Kiri-nin! The Kiri-nin are also in this forest! Let's go!"
Black Gorilla and Yōkō quickly left the forest and ran out.
Exiting the forest, they entered the park's lakeside, where many capital civilians were still enjoying themselves.
Yōkō said, "Captain, I'll stand guard here. Please go contact Captain Hippo."
"Alright, be very careful."
Black Gorilla was growing fonder and fonder of this subordinate, Fox.
When his squad was rebuilt, he would put Fox to good use.
After waiting for Black Gorilla to go far away, Yōkō took out a very small scroll.
The Spear Egret was here, so Yuka was most likely hiding somewhere in the forest.
He hoped Yuka would find him.
A few minutes later, rustling sounds came from the bushes behind Yōkō.
"Yuka, is that you?"
...
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(End of Chapter)