At night.
In the forest, the group of the elite squad sat around a bonfire.
Although they successfully repelled the dozen or so 'Impure World Reincarnation bodies' summoned by Yakushi Kabuto in the fierce battle during the day, the elite squad's condition was also terrible. Guy, Kurotsuchi, Tokuma Hyuga, Muta Aburame, and Tsume Inuzuka were all attacked by spirits and fell into a deep coma. Others also consumed a lot of energy, so Kakashi had to choose to let the squad rest on the spot.
Firewood burned with a crackling sound in the bonfire.
The flickering flames reflected on everyone's faces, making their expressions look uncertain.
The battle during the day indeed dealt a heavy blow to the squad's morale. Not only did they lose contact with the captain Jiraiya, but the five injured and comatose members hadn't woken up yet, making the atmosphere in the squad even more depressing.
On a tree branch.
Kakashi, responsible for vigilance, observed the surroundings. After finding nothing unusual, his gaze shifted to Yakumo in front of the bonfire below.
Even now, he was puzzled by how easily Yakumo resolved Dan Katō's spirit.
In fact, not only Kakashi, but others sitting around the bonfire would also glance sideways at Yakumo from time to time.
Yakumo's performance of instantly defeating the spirit surprised and puzzled them.
Yakumo, aware of this, remained calm because she had no way to explain.
After invading her inner world, Dan Katō's spirit was suppressed by Ido almost immediately, who had the enhancement of the 'Koryugan' and occupied the home field advantage.
And Ido's suppression allowed Dan Katō's spirit to break free from Yakushi Kabuto's control.
Realizing how much damage he would cause to the village under Yakushi Kabuto's control, Dan Katō forcibly broke free from the 'Impure World Reincarnation' as soon as he escaped Yakushi Kabuto's control, returning to the netherworld within Yakumo's inner world.
Before returning, Dan Katō even looked at Ido with appreciation.
Obviously, being able to suppress his spirit instantly, the strength displayed by Ido had surpassed him, a jonin who had studied the 'Spirit Transformation Technique' for many years. So he was very glad that the village had a successor, a genius with top-notch talent like this!
However, he obviously didn't expect that while he looked favorably upon Ido with a gratified face...
Ido was somewhat exasperated. In her view, Dan Katō breaking into her territory was like takeout delivered to her door.
As a result, just when she was ready to feast, Dan Katō's spirit actually ascended to heaven. To her, this was undoubtedly a cooked duck flying away. She was so angry that even now, she was still throwing a tantrum, yelling and shouting in the inner world.
Yakumo ignored the tantrum-throwing Ido, silently savoring the battle just now.
The sharpness of Dan Katō's spirit attack greatly exceeded her expectations and also enlightened her on the correct way to use a spirit.
Although the current Ido was far inferior to Dan Katō in terms of proficiency, at least there was a template to learn from!
"If I can cooperate perfectly with Ido..."
Yakumo couldn't help but imagine that scene in her mind.
Perhaps only by putting on the red cloud cloak, wearing her own Hannya demon mask, and becoming Akatsuki's 'D', could she unleash her true strength.
"Ouch..."
Suddenly, Kurotsuchi woke up clutching her head.
Seeing this, everyone hurriedly gathered around: "Are you okay?"
Looking at the people surrounding her, Kurotsuchi frowned: "What happened? Why does my head hurt so much?"
Ameyuri Ringo said: "You were attacked by a spirit!"
"Spirit..." Pausing, Kurotsuchi's memory gradually returned, and her face darkened accordingly: "Yakushi Kabuto!"
Not long after, others also woke up one after another.
Perhaps for a quick victory, the invading spirit of Dan Katō didn't hurt them after suppressing their spirits, but attacked the next target instead. So apart from headaches, their bodies were fine after waking up.
After recovering a bit, Kurotsuchi muttered: "Damn Yakushi Kabuto, we definitely can't let him go this time!"
"Mhm!"
Ameyuri Ringo and Darui also nodded.
Unlike watching the Hidden Leaf's joke before, this time Yakushi Kabuto actually used 'Impure World Reincarnation' on the deceased ninjas of their villages, which made them feel very unhappy.
Sasuke said coldly: "It's not your turn to deal with that guy!"
Watching the few people scrambling, Kakashi instructed: "Don't underestimate the enemy, the opponent is not simple!"
Kurotsuchi snorted: "How powerful can a guy who only dares to hide behind the dead be?"
Ameyuri Ringo also looked dismissive: "So-called mastering Sage Art, he's just a guy who hides his head and shows his tail!"
Although Yakushi Kabuto caused them great trouble today and almost wiped out the elite squad, his behavior of not even daring to fight them made everyone feel that Yakushi Kabuto, who mastered Sage Art, might not be as strong as they imagined, and was most likely just a villain who could play some insidious tricks.
Just then, a noise came from the distant woods.
Kakashi, responsible for vigilance, hurriedly warned in a low voice: "Situation, everyone pay attention!"
Everyone hurriedly extinguished the bonfire and hid themselves respectively.
Not long after, a fully armed Hidden Cloud ninja army appeared in front of everyone.
Kakashi looked at Darui suspiciously, waiting for the other party's explanation.
Darui scratched his head: "Raikage-sama was worried that we didn't have enough manpower for this operation, so he specially sent some personnel to assist us."
At this time, Kurotsuchi raised her hand: "Actually, our Hidden Rock Village also sent people, they should be meeting us soon."
Kakashi's gaze was heavy. After weighing it for a moment, he nodded.
Obviously, whether it was the Hidden Cloud or the Hidden Rock, they had their own plans. As for what the Raikage and Tsuchikage wanted to do, it wasn't hard to guess.
Orochimaru was one of the 'Legendary Sannin', a disciple of the Third Hokage. They knew the Hidden Leaf wouldn't hand over Orochimaru, so their target was nine out of ten Yakushi Kabuto, who followed Orochimaru and mastered 'Sage Art'.
One must know that even large ninja villages like the Hidden Cloud and Hidden Rock knew very little about 'Sage Art'. So whoever could capture Yakushi Kabuto in the name of crusading against Orochimaru this time would likely knock on the door of 'Sage Art' first.
Even if he guessed the selfishness of the Hidden Cloud and Hidden Rock, Kakashi had no good way now.
Firstly, compared to 'Sage Art', ensuring the Nine-Tails didn't fall into the hands of the Akatsuki organization was more important, not to mention this operation also involved finding Naruto. Secondly, they really needed support right now. The Hidden Cloud and Hidden Rock ninja armies could greatly alleviate their shortage of manpower.
Anyway, power like 'Sage Art' wasn't something one could learn just by wanting to. Moreover, in Kakashi's view, Yakushi Kabuto wasn't that easy to catch!