Hearing Hibari's words, Hitenn hesitated and said, "Deputy Commander, what if there isn't another support squad behind them? We'd just let them all pass..."
"What are you afraid of? Aren't Hiruzen and the others still on standby at the border between our Land of Fire and the Land of Hot Water? Trust me, as long as you're sure that guy is one of the Gold and Silver Brothers, there will definitely be subsequent reinforcements! Quickly send a message to Kagami's team, otherwise, it'll be troublesome if they start fighting..." Hibari said with great confidence.
Hitenn was, of course, very confident in his Byakugan's abilities. A Jinchūriki could be clearly seen, but that individual clearly wasn't one. Connecting this to the more peculiar individuals in Kumogakure, besides the Gold and Silver Brothers, that person couldn't be anyone else. Therefore, after hearing the Deputy Commander Hibari's order, he quickly nodded and took out a small whistle.
Then he quickly blew the whistle. The sound emitted was not a normal whistle, but rather the cry of a hawk.
The sound quickly spread. Kagami's squad, who had been watching the approaching Kumogakure shinobi and were ready to launch a surprise attack, stopped their poised movements upon hearing this sound.
Kagami, hiding in the shadow of a tree canopy, had his three-tomoe Sharingan behind his mask spin twice before slowly deactivating. He looked towards Hibari's location with some confusion, wondering why the original plan had been changed.
"Is there some special situation?" Kagami wondered.
Although he was a bit confused, he didn't question it. After all, they were on the front lines and couldn't detect many situations, whereas the people behind them would observe more information. Perhaps there really was some unforeseen change.
Thus, Kagami's squad watched as a group of masked Kumogakure shinobi casually walked past them.
Meanwhile, by the hot spring, Hitenn watched the Kumogakure shinobi walking further away, then said, "Deputy Commander, if your estimation is wrong, we will be held accountable..."
Hibari glanced at Hitenn, then said, "What's there to be afraid of? If there's really no movement later, then the rear squad becomes the vanguard, and the ambush mission turns into a pursuit mission. We'll just chase after and eliminate those dog-faced brats, won't we?"
Hearing Hibari's simple and crude response, Hitenn nodded helplessly and said, "That makes sense..."
"Huh? You actually joked with me?" Hibari said with some surprise.
"Deputy Commander, I've heard that you and Commander Hiruzen often call me 'Mr. Serious' in private," Hitenn said softly.
This made Hibari scratch his head awkwardly, then he said, "Terms of endearment, all terms of endearment..."
For the next period, nothing happened, which made Hibari even doubt if he had truly miscalculated. If that were the case, it would turn into a pursuit mission... how annoying.
"There's no reason... Could it be that Kumogakure's plan to consume the Eight-Tails actually succeeded in an individual case?" Hibari murmured, touching his chin in surprise.
Ever since Kumogakure's Gold and Silver Brothers survived eating the Nine-Tails' flesh and greatly increased their strength, Kumogakure, after obtaining the Eight-Tails and Two-Tails, hadn't stopped causing trouble, constantly trying to eat the flesh of these two.
But without exception, all the brave warriors who dared to participate in this live-beast-eating activity exploded and died, with not a single one surviving.
But at this moment, Hibari was very puzzled. Could it be that his appearance caused some deviation in this matter? Did Kumogakure really find another exceptionally talented individual to become a Dokaku (Bronze Horn) after Kinkaku and Ginkaku, those fierce warriors who ate tailed beasts alive?
"Damn it, this is bad luck. Could it be that one of the Gold and Silver Brothers got diarrhea? Damn it... Hitenn, notify Kagami's team to change the ambush plan to a pursuit plan, chase down that squad up ahead, and kill them!" Hibari said, somewhat annoyed.
Just as Hitenn was about to contact Kagami's team, his Byakugan suddenly detected something else. He said in a deep voice, "Deputy Commander, there's a change. Another five-person squad has appeared in the previous location. Just as you guessed, there's also someone with abnormally evil chakra within them..."
Hearing this, a smile appeared on Hibari's lips, and he said, "See? I knew these two bastards were playing some tricks. Get ready. We'll take down this five-person squad, then surround them and hit their reinforcements, making those idiots who passed by earlier come rolling back!"
As soon as Hibari's words fell, Hitenn blew his whistle again, and then the sound of a cuckoo bird spread out.
Upon hearing this sound, all the members of Kagami's squad, hidden up ahead and ready for ambush, perked up. Kagami's black pupils, hidden within a tree canopy, gradually transformed into spinning three-tomoe Sharingan.
"There really is a situation... Can we finally make a move?" Kagami murmured softly.
As the five Kumogakure shinobi in the distance drew closer, Kagami slowly began forming hand signs.
Just as the five Kumogakure shinobi entered Kagami's attack range, Kagami completed his hand signs.
"Fire Release: Great Dragon Fire Technique!" Kagami roared, simultaneously unleashing a gigantic fire dragon from the tree canopy, aiming downwards at the five individuals.
At the same time, the members of Kagami's squad also coordinated perfectly. The moment the B-rank ninjutsu, Great Dragon Fire Technique, was unleashed, they simultaneously released Wind Release ninjutsu to amplify the power of the Fire Release ninjutsu.
In just an instant, the already powerful Great Dragon Fire Technique grew even stronger, surging towards the five Kumogakure shinobi with immense destructive energy.
The situation changed so rapidly that these five shinobi were somewhat bewildered. After all, they were a reinforcement unit. Logically, the ten-person squad in front should have been attacked first, and then they would quickly reinforce them. So why did the people in front pass through unharmed, only for them to suddenly be attacked?
Fortunately, there was also a skilled individual among them. The one with the evil chakra in his body, who, due to his mask, was unknown to be either Kinkaku or Ginkaku, reached out and grabbed a fan hanging from his waist. He then fiercely fanned out a chakra energy blast towards the oncoming Great Dragon Fire Technique.
The chakra energy instantly changed its nature, directly becoming water-attributed energy, and collided with the Great Dragon Fire Technique.
The high temperature evaporated a large amount of water vapor, instantly filling the area and obscuring everyone else's vision.
"Spread out and prepare for battle! We've been ambushed!" the masked leader quickly commanded.
Kagami, who had just unleashed the 'Great Dragon Fire Technique,' frowned at this sight and said, "The legendary Ninja Tool of the Sage of Six Paths, the Bashōsen? It really is just as the intel Hibari gave predicted, full of power... This means this guy is Kinkaku?"
However, there was no time for further thought. Keeping in mind the characteristics of the Sage of Six Paths' Ninja Tools that Hibari had mentioned, Kagami heightened his vigilance and charged into the misty clouds.
At the same moment, the Anbu squad members led by Kagami all revealed themselves from various locations and plunged into the mist.
"...Hitenn, you continue to keep watch here and see if those people up ahead return. If they do, remember to alert me immediately," Hibari said, flexing his wrists with a chuckle.
Hitenn, seeing that the plan was indeed unfolding as Hibari had predicted, felt his initial apprehension subside. He nodded and said, "Understood, Deputy Commander!"
"The Bashōsen... Kinkaku, which means that bastard Ginkaku has already passed through. In that case, the Kōkinjō and Benihisago aren't present. That makes things much easier to handle..." Hibari murmured softly, then formed a hand sign. The next second, he activated the Body Flicker Technique, disappearing from Hitenn's side.
At this time, Kagami was already engaged in battle with Kinkaku within the misty water. The two continuously attacked each other's vital points with their weapons.
Through the two tiny slits on Kagami's mask, Kinkaku managed to catch a glimpse of the eyes behind them. His heart tightened, and he quickly said, "Sharingan... You're from Konoha?"
However, Kagami constantly remembered the intelligence Hibari had given him and had no intention of responding to Kinkaku, lest he fall into his trap.
As for Kinkaku's surprise, it wasn't about encountering an Uchiha clan member. Since they had already decided to launch a war against Konohagakure, encountering a skilled Uchiha was normal. His surprise was that they hadn't even reached the Land of Fire yet, and Konohagakure shinobi were already ambushing and attacking them without hesitation. What did this mean?
It meant that their plan to raid Konohagakure was completely exposed to the enemy. Kinkaku, who had previously thought that Kumogakure held the initiative and advantage, felt a bad premonition at this thought. How could he not be shocked?
But before he could be too surprised, an extremely fast flash of lightning shot towards him from the vision-obscuring mist.
Kinkaku's eyebrow twitched; he was even more surprised because he was very familiar with this feeling...
'Did the Raikage betray us?' Kinkaku suspected this in his mind. Then, he dodged Kagami's short blade with a side step, and without hesitation, activated his Nine-Tails chakra energy, instantly wrapping himself in a Tailed Beast Cloak.
The next second, the lightning bolt had already burst in front of him. Two powerful arms directly seized his arms, and with immense force, Kinkaku, who had no time to react, was directly picked up.
"Liger Bomb!" Hibari roared in a low voice.
The next moment, powerful Lightning Release power instantly slammed Kinkaku into the ground, simultaneously exploding and dispersing some of the surrounding mist.
The moment Hibari made his move, Kagami, who had already pulled back some distance, watched the scene, his eyelids twitching involuntarily. He smacked his lips and said, "That's quite a fierce strike..."
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