Chapter 22: The Raid on Sunset Mountain
The air on Sunset Mountain was thick with the scent of pine and damp earth. Team 7 moved through the dense undergrowth with practiced silence, their forms little more than shadows flitting between the trees. Soon, the bandit stronghold came into view—a cluster of rough-hewn wooden cabins nestled in a clearing.
"There!" Sakura whispered, pointing toward the largest structure.
The team halted at the tree line, observing the comings and goings of roughly two dozen men. The intelligence had suggested fifty, meaning the rest were likely inside or on patrol.
"According to the intel, their numbers are around fifty. I'll lead the frontal assault. Your priority is to neutralize any stragglers and prevent escapes," Kakashi ordered, his voice low and focused.
The three genin nodded in understanding.
In a flash, Kakashi was moving. "Shadow Clone Technique!" Two identical copies materialized beside him, and the trio of silver-haired shinobi burst into the clearing, a whirlwind of precise, lethal force.
"Shadow Clone Technique!" Naruto echoed, summoning three clones of his own to join the fray, instantly doubling their effective fighting force.
Sasuke watched them go, a familiar, bitter envy twisting in his gut. 'The Shadow Clone... I need to learn it.'
By the time Sasuke reached the clearing, Kakashi and Naruto had already dispatched nearly a dozen bandits with terrifying efficiency. Not to be outdone, Sasuke's hands flew through a sequence of seals.
Ram → Snake → Monkey → Boar → Horse → Tiger
"Fire Style: Great Fireball Technique!"
A roaring sphere of flame erupted from his mouth, engulfing a small cabin and the men hiding within it in a conflagration of purifying fire.
Sakura, her stomach churning, stayed close to Sasuke, her role purely defensive. She intercepted bandits who tried to flank him, using her superior taijutsu to disarm and disable without delivering killing blows. Even with her reluctance to kill, the team's momentum was unstoppable—a tidal wave of shinobi skill crashing against a shore of mundane thuggery.
Just as the outcome seemed inevitable, a powerful gust of wind ripped through the clearing, forcing Kakashi and his clones to leap back.
"Wind Style: Great Breakthrough!"
A man, larger and more imposing than the others, stepped out from the main cabin, his hands still sealed. "Are there ninja among them?" Kakashi's demeanor shifted instantly. He flashed to Sasuke and Sakura's position, putting himself between them and the new threat.
Ram → Snake → Monkey → Boar
"Earth Style: Earth-Style Wall!"
A solid barrier of earth erupted from the ground, effortlessly deflecting the C-rank wind jutsu.
"B-rank earth ninjutsu?!" the bandit leader spat, his face contorted in rage and disbelief. "That old miser paid for shinobi of this caliber?!"
His remaining men, about thirty in number, quickly rallied around him, their morale briefly restored by their leader's show of power.
"Boss!"
"Hey, you, masked one!" the leader yelled at Kakashi. "I'll double whatever the old man paid you! Just walk away!"
Kakashi let the earth wall crumble, his team now assembled behind him. "A shinobi does not break a contract. It's a matter of principle."
"Principle?!" the bandit leader laughed, a harsh, ugly sound. "Don't give me that! You just want the treasure for yourselves! I know how you ninja dogs operate!"
Kakashi didn't bother with further debate. Though the bandit leader was, at best, a genin-level threat, the mission had already escalated. He needed to end this, now. He reached up and pulled down his mask, revealing the crimson, tomoe-spinning eye of the Sharingan.
[Ding! Sharingan detected. Your eyes are envious and have proudly awakened the Sharingan!]
A flicker of red passed through Naruto's own blue irises so quickly it was almost imperceptible. A faint smile touched his lips. "Kakashi-sensei," he chided lightly. "You're bringing out the Sharingan for this small fry?"
'Sharingan?!' Sasuke's head snapped toward Kakashi, his mind reeling. 'How does he have it? Is he... one of us?'
"I'm ending this. The mission is officially B-rank now. I won't risk any more surprises," Kakashi stated, his voice grim. First the client's suicide, now a ninja among bandits. The Hokage's warning echoed in his mind. He glanced at Naruto and Sasuke. These two prodigies could not be lost to mere carelessness.
His hands moved again, forming a different, more complex set of seals.
Ram → Monkey → Boar
A cacophony of a thousand chirping birds erupted as lightning coalesced around his right hand. "Lightning Style: Chidori!"
Sasuke stared, mesmerized. "What... what kind of jutsu is that?"
In a streak of blue-white light, Kakashi vanished. He reappeared an instant later, his lightning-charged hand piercing clean through the bandit leader's chest. The man looked down, a bubble of blood forming on his lips. "How... is this... possible...?"
As the leader crumpled, his men stared in stunned horror before a wave of vengeful fury took hold.
"BOSS!"
"Kill him! Avenge the boss!"
The thirty remaining bandits surged forward as one. But Kakashi was already gone, a blur of motion retreating to a safe distance.
"Now!" Naruto barked.
He and Sasuke moved in perfect sync, their hands flying through identical seals.
"Fire Style: Great Fireball Technique!"
Twin infernos, one from the left, one from the right, converged on the massed bandits. The clearing was filled with a final, collective scream as the flames consumed them.
As the fire died down, Sasuke shot a sharp, assessing look at Naruto. 'He knows the Great Fireball, too? I thought my ninjutsu was an advantage...'
Kakashi landed softly beside them, his mask back in place. "Good work, all of you." His gaze included Sakura, who stood looking at the carnage with a pale, complex expression.
Sasuke accepted the praise with a stoic nod. Naruto simply shrugged, looking as bored as when they started. Sakura managed a weak, strained smile. In the face of such overwhelming power from her teammates, her own contributions felt pitifully small. The gap between them seemed less like a crack and more like a chasm.
(End of Chapter)
♧♧♧♧♧
IF YOU LIKE MY WORK, POWER STONE WOULD BE APPRECIATED
♧♧♧♧♧
YOU CAN ALSO JOIN MY PATREON AT
https://www.patreon.com/collection/1762174
FOR ACCESS TO 20 EARLY CHAPTERS
BE A PART OF THE STORY AND SUPPORT ME.