Otsu closed his scroll and, before the large group of Kumo-nin could encircle them, charged towards the battlefield where Hatake Sakumo and the Two-Tails Ryūjin were fighting.
He formed a single hand seal and used Wind Release: Great Breakthrough.
To obtain the codename 'Otsu' within Root, this Shimura clan ninja's Wind Release level was quite good.
Under the powerful Wind Release, the Two-Tails Jinchūriki took a slight step back, then firmly anchored herself on the sea surface with all four limbs.
Hatake Sakumo shouted, "Otsu! Your help is not needed!"
He was on the verge of shouting 'Don't cause trouble!'.
However, Otsu continued to provoke the Two-Tails Ryūjin.
This time, after forming five hand seals, Otsu took a deep breath and spat out a long wind blade.
Wind Release: Vacuum Wave!
This was a top-tier Wind Release ninjutsu of the Shimura clan, with destructive power second to none among Wind Releases.
Similar to the Water Cutting Wave, this long wind blade sliced towards the Two-Tails Ryūjin.
However, Ryūjin's Tailed Beast Cloak was extremely tough; the Vacuum Wave couldn't break through the defense or leave any injury.
Then, relying on Hatake Sakumo's distraction, Otsu continuously formed hand seals, using Vacuum Bullets, Vacuum Great Sphere, and other Wind Releases in succession.
Yōkō understood what Otsu was trying to do and recorded on his scroll:
Otsu joined the battlefield to experiment with the destructive power of Wind Release against the Tailed Beast Cloak. Great Breakthrough, Vacuum Wave, and Vacuum Bullets could not harm the Two-Tails Jinchūriki;
The only effective technique was Wind Release: Vacuum Serial Wave. Under the enhancement of five or six Vacuum Waves, it broke open the Tailed Beast Cloak, briefly exposing the Jinchūriki's own skin;
However, it was only a brief opening, not injuring Ryūjin beneath the Tailed Beast Cloak.
I didn't expect Otsu's Wind Release mastery to be so high, almost entirely inheriting Danzo's Wind Release ninjutsu system.
Danzo is truly greedy, still hypothesizing about his own performance when facing a perfect Jinchūriki.
Yōkō felt tempted. Should I extract a Wind Release from him?
Yōkō observed Ryūjin's state and continued writing:
The Two-Tails Jinchūriki seems to have been enraged, firing Tailed Beast Balls one after another;
After Ryūjin's guards died, she became even more unrestrained;
She occupied the direction of the port, using Tailed Beast Balls to force Hatake Sakumo and the others towards the open sea.
The next scene left a deep and shocking impression on the pursuing Kumo-nin.
Kumogakure's top-tier offensive method, the Jinchūriki's Tailed Beast Ball, was actually being slashed apart one by one by a white blade aura?
Hatake Sakumo found his rhythm, gained experience, and boosted his morale.
This was his first time dealing with Tailed Beast Balls. A Tailed Beast Ball the size of a human head was nothing special.
The sea surface was covered with successive explosions, sending up mushroom-shaped plumes of water spray.
Watching Hatake Sakumo and the others retreat calmly and orderly, Yōkō looked down at himself in astonishment.
What's going on? I've been left behind?
But I can't leave.
Key intelligence still needed recording: the Jinchūriki's mental state after battle, whether large numbers of ninja were needed to suppress the Tailed Beast chakra, etc.—all required someone to observe.
He could only watch as Hatake Sakumo and the others moved away.
Even Otsu, who had disrupted Hatake Sakumo's offensive rhythm, left with Hatake Sakumo.
Danzo, in order to evaluate his own combat effectiveness against a Jinchūriki, sent the Shimura clan's Otsu. Disregarding the success of the mission, he forcibly intervened to test the effectiveness of the Shimura clan's Wind Release.
No wonder Danzo can accomplish great things.
Yōkō watched the situation of the Kumo-nin on the sea surface from afar.
The Kumo-nin were all dumbfounded, unable to believe that Tailed Beast Balls could be slashed apart by a blade, and the explosive aftershocks couldn't harm the White Fang in the slightest.
After the battle ended, the Kumo-nin formed a large semi-circular line, not daring to approach the Two-Tails Jinchūriki Ryūjin.
The terrifying legends about Jinchūriki made the Kumo-nin fearful.
The four guards familiar with Ryūjin had died early; the others, unfamiliar with her, didn't dare to step forward.
However, after Hatake Sakumo and the others had gone far away, Ryūjin slowly raised her two forelimbs and stood upright.
The Tailed Beast chakra slowly seeped back into Ryūjin's body, disappearing extremely smoothly.
The two tails changed from brown-red to translucent, then from translucent to completely disappearing.
Yōkō hurriedly recorded:
After high-intensity combat, firing over a dozen Tailed Beast Balls, Ryūjin can voluntarily retract the Tailed Beast chakra;
In the First Shinobi World War, when villages deployed Jinchūriki, the victorious side still had to suppress the rampaging Jinchūriki. That situation does not exist with Ryūjin;
Ryūjin's Two-Tails chakra can be released and withdrawn at will, and she remained rational throughout;
Judging from the Kumo-nin's attitude towards Ryūjin, most Kumo-nin have a certain degree of confidence in Ryūjin, no longer simply disliking and fearing the Jinchūriki.
After thinking for a moment, Yōkō added a sentence:
Hatake Sakumo's White Fang Short Sword possesses super-strong capabilities comparable to a Tailed Beast Ball, capable of dispersing Tailed Beast Balls ranging from fist-sized to human-head-sized.
The village's mission was over. Yōkō closed the mission scroll.
He thought to himself, After returning to the village, I need to actively promote the White Fang's feat of slashing Tailed Beast Balls, build momentum for Hatake Sakumo, and continue accumulating prestige.
In the distance, Sakumo and the others sprinted across the sea surface.
Three Kumo-nin reconnaissance squads followed behind, not getting close, just tracking Hatake Sakumo and the others from afar.
If they couldn't shake off those reconnaissance squads, they would eventually be caught by large numbers of Kumogakure pursuers.
Konoha actually sent people deep into the Land of Lightning to target a Jinchūriki? This was simply slapping Kumogakure in the face and undermining Kumogakure's foundation. Kumogakure would definitely not let it slide easily.
Yamashiro-dera said, "I'll handle it!"
Otsu thought, Is he going to have Yamashiro-dera act as the rear guard? It seems Hatake Sakumo doesn't value his comrades as much as the legends say.
After forming hand seals, Yamashiro-dera caused a massive flow of water to surge up from the sea surface, enveloping everyone.
When the water wave disappeared, everyone had vanished into the sea water.
Otsu found himself caught in an underwater current, moving submerged along the sea floor.
He mentally noted this as new intelligence: Yamashiro-dera can carry multiple people while moving submerged underwater.
The group disappeared beneath the sea, then came ashore far away and vanished into the mountainous area.
Along the way, Hatake Sakumo had Gekkō Sō continuously leave signals, hoping Fox could catch up.
They moved quickly, traveling south along the Land of Lightning's coastline, not daring to stop, to avoid being caught by the main Kumo-nin force.
Several days later, a figure appeared in a Body Flicker near Hatake Sakumo and the others.
Everyone tensed up, but relaxed when they saw it was Fox.
Yōkō glanced at Otsu. This terrible guy is just awful.
Let it slide this time. Next time we deal with Root, you'll be at the front.
The group returned to the pattern of Hatake Sakumo's five in front, with Fox and Otsu following behind.
During a rest, Otsu said, "Show me your scroll. What happened on the coast after I left?"
Yōkō was taken aback and said, "Is the Shimura clan so lacking in upbringing that you just reach out and demand things from others? Do you see everything as if it belongs to you?"
Otsu's hand slowly lowered, but the chakra throughout his body became increasingly agitated.
"Lord Danzo is the Anbu Battalion Commander. Root is Lord Danzo's directly subordinate internal organization. What right do you have not to cooperate with me?"
Yōkō was genuinely angered.
But considering that if Otsu died, neither Hatake Sakumo nor he could escape blame, he could only suppress his anger.
It wasn't that Otsu couldn't die, but he couldn't die during this mission.
Once Yakushi Nonō gives me Otsu's travel plans, the next time Otsu leaves Konoha will be his death day.
"I refuse."
Otsu initially wanted to form hand seals, but then slowly lowered his hand. He said:
"Fox, this mission has exposed many problems regarding coordination between the Anbu and Root.
The Anbu will promulgate new rules. Root is an organization superior to the four Anbu squads.
I hope you can remain this tough during the next mission."
***
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(Chapter End)