Bang!
On the other side, A and Namikaze Minato were in the heat of battle.
A understood very well. He had to defeat Minato as quickly as possible to have any chance of returning to the Cloud Village. Otherwise, when Ryoho Kyohiko returned, he would surely have no hope.
However, how could Namikaze Minato be an easy opponent? Without the Third Raikage and Killer Bee to support him, A alone was no match for the Flying Thunder God. As for the Lightning Release Armor, the Third Raikage's constitution and armor could withstand a Wind Style: Rasengan and then quickly recover his chakra and physique. He couldn't do that.
One by one, kunai scattered, and Minato's figure flew like a golden flash. A's eyes were constantly scanning his surroundings, reacting and counterattacking at the first sign of chakra fluctuation to avoid being put on the defensive. At the same time, he fought while retreating, never staying in one place.
However, another kunai silently appeared in front of him. Was that… thrown by a shadow clone? When?
A's whole body tensed, and he instantly flickered forward, rushing towards the kunai. The next second, the brilliant golden light left him stunned. What came through the Flying Thunder God wasn't Minato, but a flash bomb. The blinding light directly blinded A, who had rushed straight towards it.
A immediately knew something was wrong. However, the next moment, his body felt a strong impact, and the Wind Release chakra broke through the defense of his Lightning Release Armor. Soon…
Bang!
With one blow, he was driven into the ground, a deep, bloody hole appearing on his shoulder.
A struggled to his feet, but the next moment, Minato's kunai was already at his throat, Wind Release chakra gathered on it, enough to destroy his throat.
"Don't move! I don't want to kill you," Minato said coldly. Then, he couldn't help but be taken aback and let out a soft laugh.
A said with dissatisfaction, "What are you laughing at?"
"Nothing, I'm laughing at myself," Minato sighed softly. His feelings were something A could never understand, so there was no need or desire to say it.
The next moment, Kyohiko arrived via the Flying Thunder God. He relaxed and released the kunai from the other's throat. "I hope you'll cooperate and not ruin the friendship between our two villages."
"…" A was speechless. Friendship? At this point, what friendship was there to speak of? Besides, the relationship between Konoha and the Cloud Village being what it was, so-called peace was impossible to achieve in the first place. He remained silent.
Kyohiko said, "For the next period of time, I hope A-senpai will cooperate. You wouldn't want your father to have to bury his son, would you?" As he spoke, he couldn't help but let out a soft laugh. "I'm suddenly thinking, killing you is also a good choice. Although it would start a war with the Cloud Village, the Cloud Village would also lose an outstanding successor… Tell me, do you think the Third Raikage has the ability to cultivate a new successor before he reaches his end?"
Kyohiko's lips curled into a smile, but his expression and tone were serious, startling A.
And Minato… "Stop joking. What if he really gets scared and uses a suicide jutsu? We'd lose more than we gain." Minato gave an awkward smile and then looked at A. "Don't be afraid, that's not going to happen. At most, we'll just lock you up for a while. You can go back once your father comes over and negotiates a result."
The man before them was the next successor of the Cloud Village. The Third Raikage had even passed down his name. Killing him would not be an ordinary diplomatic incident; it would definitely trigger a great war that would affect the entire shinobi world. At that time, the other hidden villages would be overjoyed, and Konoha would be the one to suffer. Kyohiko wouldn't do such a thing.
And that was indeed the case. Kyohiko was just speaking casually, but in such an environment, A had clearly taken some of it to heart. If he died… the Cloud Village would indeed find it difficult to quickly cultivate a new successor. Although his father was still very capable, no one could say what the next ten or twenty years would bring. A's previously reckless thoughts were immediately reined in. I can't die yet!
"Thank you for your cooperation. Let's go." Kyohiko looked towards the Land of Fire, then glanced at the panel.
[You have suppressed an internal rebellion, prevented a serious leak of classified information, and defended the safety of Konoha.]
[Reward: Self-Cursing Seal (Proficient)]
[Reward: Wood Style Enhancement]
Two rewards? Kyohiko glanced at them, didn't claim them immediately, and instead escorted A south. Not long after, Aburame Shibi caught up.
"Minato, Kyohiko, this is…" He looked at A, somewhat surprised. Isn't this A from the Cloud Village? This is a big shot! Although not the Raikage, in terms of ability, status, and birth, he was basically the next Raikage. Good heavens! Kyohiko and Minato actually captured him?
Aburame Shibi was first surprised, then his face immediately became serious, and he released a large number of parasitic insects.
"Don't worry, we fought with the Third Raikage, so he won't be chasing us," Kyohiko stopped his excessive thoughts. However, after a moment of thought, he said, "It's fine to spread them out. At least ensure no one around will sneak attack and injure A-senpai. It would be bad if he gets hurt and the Cloud Village tries to extort us."
"…" A's mouth twitched. Although he was not as good as Minato and Kyohiko, he wasn't that weak, was he? This guy's real intention… is clearly to prevent the Cloud Village from creating chaos and giving me a chance to escape. A sighed inwardly, understanding that there was really no escape this time. This kid was watching him like a hawk, considering all possibilities. And at worst, he could be taken away by the Flying Thunder God. At that time, it would all be for naught, and they might even lose more.
"By the way, where's Aoba? Why didn't he come with you?" Kyohiko asked.
Aburame Shibi explained, "He said he found a clue and was going to that village to look for it. He told me to come and provide support first."
"I see…" Kyohiko frowned, not feeling very reassured. He then formed a hand seal with one hand, touched the ground with a finger, and under his chakra perception, everything within a few miles was known to him.
The next moment, elsewhere, the wood clone responsible for maintaining Sage Mode instantly disappeared. The next second, wood appeared on his body, and a new wood clone split off.
"Minato, I'll have the wood clone go with you. It should be enough to deal with him. You take him back to the Land of Fire first."
"Alright." Minato nodded lightly, understanding A's importance. However, he hesitated for a moment and said, "You're not going over there, are you?"
"No, I'm just going to Aoba's side to see. He seems to be in a bit of trouble. I'll go check it out," Kyohiko said.
Minato understood. The main purpose for Yamashiro Aoba and Aburame Shibi coming to the Land of Rice Paddies was to search for Mami's daughter, whose life was uncertain. If Aoba encountered problems, it should indeed be taken seriously. He nodded lightly. The next moment, Kyohiko disappeared with the Flying Thunder God.
---
In the Land of Rice Paddies, at the previous village.
Yamashiro Aoba held a hand seal, crows circling above him, their eyes fixed on the dozen or so samurai and a few children in front. He took a deep breath.
"I'm looking for someone, I have no ill intentions. Don't force me to act!" he shouted.
After a moment of silence, an old man walked out from the crowd. "Looking for someone? What person! You're clearly here to snatch someone. The people before were the same. We've seen plenty of people like you." He drew his sword. "Everyone, let's fight him! We wandering ninjas will never go back to how things were before!" As he spoke, the old man flicked his hands, and his figure leaped up.
Then—the other's shadow touched Aoba. "Shadow Imitation Technique!"
Aoba found he couldn't move! He was astonished. This is… the Shadow Imitation Technique? No! Absolutely not. The Shadow Imitation Technique was a secret technique of the Nara clan and couldn't be easily researched and learned by outsiders. Otherwise, the Nara clan wouldn't be able to maintain its current influence. Besides, if these wandering ninjas really had such an ability, they wouldn't be hiding out as bandits in the Land of Rice Paddies. There must be a problem.
He glanced up. The crows were cawing, flying scattered around the crowd, not daring to rush down. They circled above Aoba, constantly flapping their wings, hoping to help him out of his predicament this way. But obviously, with their abilities and distance, they weren't capable of such a thing.
Aoba immediately understood. "You're not using the Shadow Imitation Technique at all, but poison, chakra threads, and steel wires." He exposed the other's scheme.
The old man laughed loudly, then said sinisterly, "That's right, we don't have such secret techniques, so we can only wander around doing unsavory things. But you Konoha are already so powerful… yet you still want to take away our treasure!" As he spoke, he raised his sword. "Everyone, let's do it together! Kill him, then we'll all escape to the Land of Lightning or the Land of Water, to a place where Konoha can't find us!"
"Attack!" a group of people shouted. In an instant, a dozen people raised their blades together, including the children. Their eyes were fierce, full of ruthlessness.
The moment they leaped over—Boom! A terrifying chakra presence erupted. The crows, terrified, tried to fly high, but after only a second, they gathered around Aoba again, attempting to carry him away. Unfortunately… their strength was still too weak. They could only help break the steel wires and chakra threads, but couldn't help Aoba with the poison.
But Aoba knew he was safe! Because Kyohiko had arrived. As the dust settled, Aoba said with shame, "Sorry, I couldn't help, and I even caused you trouble."
"It's nothing. You're my subordinate, protecting your safety is what I should do." Kyohiko's gaze swept around. Those wandering ninjas were all forced back by his Superhuman Strength. A few were even killed directly by the impact of the chakra. The rest were terrified.
At this moment, the crows above cawed loudly. Aoba hurriedly shouted, "Captain, don't let that old man get away!"
"Alright." The next second, Kyohiko instantly disappeared from his spot. Then—in the blink of an eye, he had already appeared beside the fleeing old man, his blade at the other's throat. "If you don't want to die, you'd better cooperate obediently. Also, the same goes for your subordinates. Believe me, I have the ability to kill all of you." Kyohiko's tone was icy.
The old man's cheeks twitched. Faced with such a scene, how could he dare to move? He immediately waved his hands again and again, then shouted, "Don't move! Don't move! You all don't move either!" He was extremely scared, afraid his subordinates would disregard his life.
It had to be said, he knew his subordinates too well. Although he shouted for everyone not to move, unfortunately, no one paid him any attention. Some planned to run. Some rushed towards Aoba, intending to take him hostage to threaten their way to survival.
However, Kyohiko stomped his foot. Vines grew out, entangling them one by one. Then, he formed a seal with his finger. This single-hand seal… was the single-hand seal for the "Bringer-of-Darkness Technique." In the blink of an eye, the remaining few screamed in terror and fear. The old man panicked even more and wet his pants. "Don't, don't kill us! We'll release her, release her!" he spun around in terror.
Kyohiko walked to Aoba's side, checked on him, then gave him a basic antidote pill. "It's the most common paralysis poison, but you were indeed too careless."
"Next time, I will definitely be more vigilant," Aoba said, ashamed.
Kyohiko smiled. "Do more missions, see more people, and you'll naturally know how to be vigilant." Then, he asked Aoba about the situation here.
Aoba, following the crows' guidance, had found the place where the girl was suspected to live—the small hut not far in front of him. When he went over, this group of people pretended to be her fellow villagers and stubbornly refused to let him take her away, until he showed Mami's token. A drawing that only Mami knew. Although it wasn't the original, it still stirred the girl's memory. She wanted to go with Aoba, and then everything changed.
Kyohiko nodded lightly. He walked past the terrified and frantic group of a dozen people and went to the front of the small hut behind them. He pushed open the simple wooden door. Inside, a few terrified women were holding an unconscious girl. Seeing Kyohiko push open the door, one of them, holding a short sword, shouted sternly, "Don't come over! If you come over, I'll kill her! No one will get her!"
"Is that so?" Kyohiko smiled faintly. Then—he was already in front of her. His fingers clamped down on the sword, and with a flick, Clang! the short sword broke. The girl was also snatched up by Kyohiko.
The few women were terrified. Although they had been running around with the wandering ninjas, they had never seen such a technique. They were too scared to even scream and run away. Kyohiko didn't chase them. He pointed a finger, injected chakra, and slowly guided the chakra in the girl's body. A few seconds later, she slowly opened her eyes.
"You…" She looked around, her eyes filled with confusion and sadness. "Everyone, why do you want to kill me?"
"…" Kyohiko found it difficult to answer. He looked around and said, "I'll kill them for you."
"I… forget it." The girl said in a low voice, "They've been raising me. I don't want to kill them."
"Then let's go. I'll take you to see your mother." Kyohiko put her down. She had only been hit with a simple sleeping drug. She would recover after being stimulated with chakra and didn't need to take an antidote pill. As for those who had fled, they were naturally controlled by the recovered Aoba. Seeing Kyohiko, he looked ashamed.
"Kyohiko…"
"If Shibi-senpai were here, he could definitely help you deal with them. So this time, it was my side that affected your mission. Good thing we found her. Let's go."
"Yes!"