Chapter 11 — Driven into Desperation
'Earth Release: Earth-Style Wall!'
Several earthen walls rose once more. This time, they were much closer to Gekkō Ren. The Suna ninja had already shortened the distance from one hundred meters to fifty. Once they closed in to within ten meters, the advantage of firearms would be suppressed, while their speed advantage would become even more pronounced. They would also be much safer—capable of launching an instant assault.
Gekkō Ren understood just as clearly what it would mean if the Suna ninja managed to close the distance. After shattering the Earth Bullets and Earth Dragon Projectile, he canceled the Barrett template and switched both hands to the M249 light machine gun template.
"Da-da-da-da-da…!"
The roar of the light machine gun replaced the thunder of the Barrett. Crimson streams of bullets sprayed forward like sparks scattering from steel under a cutting torch, sweeping densely toward the constantly moving Suna ninja fifty meters away. There was no need for precise aim—so long as the stream passed over their bodies, it was enough.
'Earth Release: Earth-Style Wall!'
The Suna ninja, who had been closely watching Gekkō Ren's hands the entire time, immediately noticed the change. Already on high alert, they reacted the instant the crimson bullets poured from the muzzle, casting their jutsu without hesitation.
"Ah—!"
A scream rang out.
Despite their caution and preparation, one Suna ninja was struck by two bullets before the earth wall fully rose. He cried out as he fell onto the shattered stones of the riverbank.
Although the 7.62mm standard rounds of the light machine gun did not possess the terrifying destructive force of the Barrett's bullets, they still easily punched cherry-sized holes through his chest and abdomen. This Suna ninja happened to be one of the sensory types.
The other sensory ninja had already permanently closed his eyes earlier, deep within the forest behind them.
When Gekkō Ren attempted to fire another shot to finish him, he was a moment too late. The belated earth wall finally rose, blocking the follow-up rounds—all within a flash of lightning speed.
"Thud-thud-thud…!" Bullets struck the earth wall with dull impacts, sending fragments of stone flying.
"Hirota!"
Two nearby ninja immediately rushed behind the wall, pressing down on their comrade's wounds.
"It hurts… I've been shot through…" Hirota struggled to speak, attempting to turn over but lacking the strength. Though only two small holes had pierced through his body, the internal damage caused by the cavitation effect was already severe.
(Cavitation effects can be categorized as near and far, differing in mechanism and outcome. Tumbling effect refers to a bullet flipping after striking the body due to directional change.)
Hearing this, the two Suna ninja quickly adjusted him—one covering the wounds on his chest and abdomen, the other gently turning him over. On Hirota's back were two thumb-thick exit wounds, blood flowing continuously.
"You'll be fine, Hirota! They're just through-and-through wounds!" one ninja said, taking out medicinal herbs to staunch the bleeding.
...…
The gunfire continued.
With Hirota's example fresh in their minds, and under the dense hail of bullets, the Suna ninja dared not expose themselves again for more than a dozen seconds, hiding behind the Earth-Style Walls. But they would not simply sit and wait for death.
'Earth Release: Earth-Style Wall!'
Every few seconds, another earthen wall rose from the riverbank—one after another, each closer to Gekkō Ren than the last. The Suna ninja moved behind these rising barriers without revealing themselves, steadily closing in.
'Wind Release: Gale!'
Closing the distance with walls alone was not enough. Fierce gusts of wind and kunai wrapped with explosive tags rained down upon Gekkō Ren. Explosions engulfed him, while the gales restricted his movements. Faced with the light machine gun, the Suna ninja had devised a safer countermeasure.
As they advanced relentlessly, Gekkō Ren felt anxiety creeping in. In this situation, close combat was unavoidable. The gap in raw strength between himself and elite ninja—his greatest weakness… mobility—would soon be exposed directly before them.
'Earth Release: Headhunter Jutsu!'
Suddenly, a pair of hands seized Gekkō Ren's ankles and dragged him downward into the ground. The Suna ninja had prepared more than one countermeasure.
Seeing their comrade's ambush succeed, the other Suna ninja's faces lit with joy. Two jōnin immediately used Body Flicker Technique from behind a wall only twenty meters away, charging straight toward Gekkō Ren. For them, a distance of twenty meters required less than half a second.
The remaining Suna ninja rapidly formed hand seals. If the two jōnin failed, they would instantly deliver the finishing blow. They were determined to seize this opportunity to kill Gekkō Ren. Even Pakura prepared a powerful Wind Release technique in her hand (Scorch Release being a combination of wind and fire chakra). The enemy before them was far too dangerous—any slight oversight could prove fatal.
"Bang! Bang!"
Two gunshots rang out.
Gekkō Ren's legs instantly transformed into Barrett rifles and fired, freeing his feet from the ground. The hands dragging half his body underground immediately went limp, releasing their grip. But that was enough.
"Die!"
In less than half a second, the first Suna jōnin arrived before Gekkō Ren, thrusting his kunai viciously toward the forehead of the half-buried target.
'Beast Wave Palm!'
The other Suna jōnin condensed sharp wind blades in his hands, slashing toward Gekkō Ren's shoulders to sever his arms. Those hands posed the greatest threat to them. Even a one-percent chance of a desperate counterattack could be lethal—they would not risk it.
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Ten minutes earlier, in the forest roughly five kilometers in the direction Pakura and the Suna ninja had come from—
"Minato-sama, there's a battle ahead. Eight people in total. Should we head over?" A Yamanaka clan ninja with a single ponytail asked the handsome young blond ninja in front of him.
The blond ninja was Konoha's prodigy, a disciple of one of the Three Legendary Sannin, Jiraiya—Namikaze Minato.
"It might be Konoha ninja fighting Suna ninja," Minato said after brief consideration. He immediately accelerated toward the direction indicated by the Yamanaka ninja. The other Konoha ninja quickly followed. Including Minato, there were ten of them—all elite ninja.
They were here because a Konoha spy embedded within Sunagakure had uncovered the location of an important Suna supply depot. Orochimaru, known as the Cold Lord and serving as the battlefield commander for the Suna front, had decisively dispatched ten elite ninja—including Namikaze Minato—to destroy it. They had already completed the mission and were now on their way back.