"Yun!!"
Just stepping out of the meeting, Yun was stopped by a voice behind him.
"You again?"
Running up was Uchiha En, a newly promoted Chūnin who had passed the exams just a year and a half after graduating.
"Where's my S-rank Lightning Release jutsu?! It's been over half a year already!"
Yun scratched his head. "You've asked me about it nine times this month, thirty-eight times in total over the past half-year. Who told you to hand over the goods before learning the jutsu? Looks like… You got scammed."
Uchiha En's eyes widened. In his line of sight, Kakashi, just stepping out of a tent, was trying to sneak away. En instantly grabbed him.
And so the target shifted, Uchiha En charged straight toward Kakashi.
"Swoosh!"
Kakashi vanished with a Body Flicker Technique.
En turned back.
"Swoosh!"
Yun was gone too.
"You two bastards!! That was my Collector's Edition of Icha Icha Paradise...!"
His furious roar echoed behind them. Not far away, Yun and Kakashi reappeared on a tree branch.
"You took his stuff, why not just pay up? Now this guy's been chasing me for half a year."
Kakashi scratched his head. "That level of Lightning-style jutsu, Raikiri, doesn't really suit him. But it's almost ready. I've been working on simplifying it over the past six months. Once it's done, I'll pass it to him."
Yun let out a breath. "Do it soon. If you keep dragging it out, I'll have him show up at your place with goggles."
Kakashi froze. "Isn't that a bit shameless?"
Yun chuckled. "Hey, I didn't send Moeka after you; that's already me going easy. That kid and En are kinda related."
"Pfft!"
Kakashi sneered. "There are so few Uchiha left; being relatives is normal."
Just as he said that, a transmission alarm sounded from the camp.
A group of people entered through the barrier, carrying a stretcher. One of them looked in their direction, blood tears still stained under his eyes.
'Uchiha Itachi. Uchiha Shisui?!'
Ten hours earlier…
A squad of twelve, three jōnin, Mizuki, Inuzuka Ri, Hyuga Kyou, and nine chūnin had been dispatched to intercept a detonation tag transport convoy from Kumogakure, deep in the Land of Hot Water.
The intel had cost the lives of three ANBU spies. Since detonation tags were unsuitable for teleportation, the tags were being transported physically, hence the interception mission.
To aid deception, high-tier fighters like Yun and Jiraiya had been seen openly in camp that morning. But clearly, things hadn't gone smoothly.
"Shinko, stay close and just cover me, okay?"
Itachi's eyes were fixed on the transport convoy; he seemed nervous. Not out of fear, but because something felt off.
Detonation tags like these… shouldn't they be transported in sealed scrolls?
All these wagons looked more like they were transporting weapons...
Just as he was about to say something, Mizuki's voice came through the radio:
"Remember, because we're dealing with detonation tags, do NOT use Fire Release jutsu. At that scale, even we could get caught in the blast."
Itachi hesitated. "Sensei, are detonation tags really transported in wagons? I think something's wrong. Wouldn't Fire Release be the best option to destroy them?"
There was a long silence.
Then, Inuzuka Ri, another jōnin, replied: "Because the war has dragged on so long, we have fewer and fewer ninja left for missions. These detonation tags are extremely valuable..."
Itachi fell silent after hearing the reasoning. He signaled Shinko to be extra cautious.
But just then-
A wave of chakra surged from within the trees where Konoha ninja were hiding.
"Kyou!"
A low voice rang out. Hyuga Kyou's face twisted in alarm.
"It's a trap, retreat!"
His voice roared through the radio.
BOOM! BOOM…!!
Explosions rocked the forest, Konoha ninja scattered, many dying or wounded.
Even the three jōnin were all injured.
"Kyou! How did you not detect the tags inside the trees?!"
Hyuga Kyou's face was ferocious, veins bulging around his Byakugan.
"Kumo used special tech to mask the chakra signature! The tags weren't in my original scan angle inside the tree trunks!"
"Enemies incoming! It's a setup, fall back!"
From deep within the forest, a group of enemy ninja surged forth, clearly having accounted for the Byakugan.
"Lightning Release: Black Static Net!"
Black lightning surged through the trees, pinpointing every scattered Konoha ninja.
"Lightning Release: Thunder Drop!"
BOOM!
A bolt struck down, charring a chūnin. As he struggled, a lightning-infused blade beheaded him.
"Splurt!"
Blood sprayed from the neck,
"Mizuki! Ri! Get them out of here!"
Kyou roared. His mistake had cost lives; he would atone with his own.
Because of this war, Hyuga owed a debt to others.
"Eight Trigrams: Air Palm!"
A compressed blast of air scattered the Kumo ninja. Itachi kicked away the rescued Tenma.
"Spacing out here will get you killed!"
In Itachi's eyes, his three-tomoe Sharingan spun rapidly.
"Buzz…"
A Kumo ninja froze, caught in a genjutsu.
"Fire Release: Phoenix Fire Technique!"
Shuriken flew out, wrapped in flame, breaking through and piercing the enemy's chest.
"Uchiha?!"
A voice barked.
Then, a ring of lightning struck from above.
BOOM!!
The ground scorched. Samui's lightning-infused blade came swinging down at Itachi, who had barely dodged the strike.
CLANG!
Lightning blade clashed with a kunai. Itachi backflipped away and shook his hand; had it not been a special kunai, he'd have been paralyzed.
Thanks to the prolonged war, Kumo had become more cautious against the Sharingan.
"Wind Release: Wind Cutter!"
A massive wind blade sheared through trees, hurtling toward Samui, kicking up a dust cloud.
"Move!!"
Mizuki appeared, helping Itachi, Shinko, and the injured Tenma to retreat quickly.
"If you all escape, I'll be in big trouble, you know."
Darui let black lightning crackle again, but in the next instant…
"Eight Trigrams: Air Palm"
Compressed air forced Darui to shift his stance, giving Mizuki enough time to pull his team out.
Darui turned to Hyuga Kyou: "You're covering the rear? You alone can't stop my black lightning!"
.....
If you enjoy the story, my p@treon is 30 chapters ahead.
[email protected]/DaoistJinzu