"Fire Style: Toad Oil Flame Bullet!"
Jiraiya stood atop the Iron-Armed Toad's head and spewed out a massive wave of flames, forcing back the Fourth Raikage, A, and Darui.
"Raikage-sama, confirmed. The man ahead is one of the targets—Jiraiya of the Konoha Sannin," Darui reported.
"Mm. Today, we cut off one of Konoha's arms. Before Konoha realizes what's happening, eliminate as much of their active fighting force as possible," A said coldly.
This had been their plan from the very beginning.
Strike before Konoha could react and kill as many Konoha ninja operating outside the village as possible.
Even taking down a genin would be worth it.
Not to mention...
They had actually run into a Kage-level monster like Jiraiya in the Land of Hot Water.
(Aburame Shiken: Why does this plan sound so familiar? Did you people pay the copyright fee or not?)
The moment they received the intelligence, A rushed over at top speed.
At the time, Jiraiya had still been "gathering research material," so there was no way he could retreat in time.
"And who are you supposed to be? With skin that dark, you're from the Hidden Cloud Village, right? What, are you people trying to start another war with Konoha?"
A's dark face reddened instantly.
Not from embarrassment—
From rage.
"I hate idiots like you who keep calling Cloud ninja dark-skinned! Hell Stab: Level One!"
A transformed into a bolt of lightning and appeared above Jiraiya in an instant.
"So fast!"
Jiraiya was shocked.
He immediately ordered the Iron-Armed Toad to raise its arms overhead while he himself used Body Flicker to evade.
As the smoke cleared, the Iron-Armed Toad had already been sent back to Mount Myōboku.
At this point, Jiraiya realized this wasn't some simple test attack anymore.
They genuinely wanted him dead.
So—
"Earth Style: Underworld Swamp!"
The ground beneath them instantly transformed into a massive swamp, temporarily halting A and Darui's pursuit.
Jiraiya turned and fled immediately.
One versus two?
I'm not an idiot. Of course I'm running.
Besides, the Land of Hot Water is ridiculously close to the Land of Lightning. You people can call reinforcements anytime.
Fighting you here?
Either my brain's broken, or I've gone insane.
But the Cloud ninja had clearly prepared for this.
"Lightning Style: Lightning Illusion Flash Pillar!"
An intensely blinding pillar of light erupted suddenly, cutting off Jiraiya's escape route.
"Our Hidden Cloud Village has gone to great lengths for you, Jiraiya-sama. How could we not invite you to visit the village personally?"
"Cee, well done."
"Thank you for the praise, Raikage-sama."
The one who stepped forward to block Jiraiya was none other than the Hidden Cloud Village's next-generation strategist, personally selected by Dodai as his successor—the genjutsu ninja, Cee.
"Looks like if I don't go all out, I really am getting captured today…"
"I just hope Minato realizes what's happening soon enough. The ninja world's about to fall into chaos again."
Jiraiya bit his finger without hesitation.
"Summoning Jutsu: Gamabunta!"
...
Land of Wind
"Move! Don't let Konoha's White Fang Jr., Kakashi Hatake, escape the Land of Wind!"
Maki shouted loudly.
At the moment, he was leading more than thirty Sand ninja in hot pursuit of Kakashi Hatake.
Hearing Maki's yelling while sprinting for his life, Kakashi nearly stumbled and fell flat on his face.
At the same time, he couldn't stop himself from complaining internally.
It's all Dad's fault.
Now everywhere I go in the ninja world, people call me "White Fang Jr."
Dammit.
Does the youngest jonin in ninja history not deserve his own nickname?
As Kakashi grumbled inwardly, he accelerated his escape.
The desert terrain of the Land of Wind was terrible for him.
Up ahead was the Land of Rivers.
Once he got there—
He'd deal with these Sand ninja properly.
A strange gleam flickered through Kakashi's eyes. Clearly, he already had plenty of plans in mind.
...
Land of Grass
Yūhi Shinku and Mitarashi Shishō sat back-to-back, taking a rare moment to rest.
These past few days had exhausted them.
Together with over a dozen Konoha ninja, they had been desperately evading pursuit from the Stone ninja.
"Haa... haa... Shinku, do you think those Stone ninja have gone crazy? Why are they chasing us so desperately?" Mitarashi Shishō asked.
"Who knows? But I'd bet they've started getting ideas about Konoha again. A few years ago, Stone ninja would run the moment they saw us," Shinku replied as he unfolded a map.
Right now, they needed to plan a route back to the Land of Fire as quickly as possible. Their old route was obviously no longer safe.
"No kidding. After Hideki wrecked the Stone ninja so badly last time, they still dare think about attacking Konoha. Honestly, in a way, I admire them. If Gan wasn't stuck recovering in the village, the three of us together would wipe out however many came at us."
"Forget Gan. His family situation's already enough of a headache. That little girl who can't control her powers is driving him insane."
Shinku sighed sympathetically for Gan.
Thankfully, his own daughter was unbelievably obedient and adorable.
"You done planning the route yet? We need to get word back to Konoha immediately about the Stone ninja moving again."
"Already finished. We head north. The Hidden Stone Village and Hidden Cloud Village have always had terrible relations, so we can circle through the Land of Lightning before returning to the Land of Fire."
"Got it. I'll gather the others. Break time's over—it's time to move."
...
"Slash."
Shisui Uchiha cut down a Mist ninja with a single strike.
The remaining twenty-plus Mist ninja reacted instantly.
"Damn it! It's Konoha's Body Flicker Shisui! Everyone stay alert—don't get separated!"
"Use the Hidden Mist Jutsu!"
"Are you stupid? Did you forget he's an Uchiha? That monster from their clan definitely already taught them how to counter the Hidden Mist Jutsu! If you use it now, you're trying to get us killed!"
"Then what do we do?!"
"Everyone stay together and watch all directions while moving as a group. Remember—whoever ends up isolated is definitely Shisui in disguise. Attack together and don't hesitate, got it?!"
"Understood!"
"Understood!"
Hidden in the shadows and eavesdropping, Shisui felt utterly speechless.
The "monster" they were talking about...
Couldn't possibly be his teacher, right?
Still, what exactly had his teacher done to the Mist ninja?
How terrified did they have to be to stop using the Hidden Mist Jutsu—their village's signature technique?
And the strangest part was—
He had only followed his teacher's orders to confiscate all the ill-gotten wealth of a merchant from the Land of Waves.
So why had these Mist ninja immediately tried to kill him the moment they saw his Konoha forehead protector?
No.
I need to figure this out.
There's definitely something seriously wrong with the Hidden Mist Village.
In the pitch-black darkness, scarlet three-tomoe Sharingan spun silently.