"Retreat!"
Chiyo gritted her teeth and spat out these two words, her eyes blazing with fierce hatred as she stared fixedly at Kawaki.
The man who killed [Hanzō of the Salamander] was truly powerful.
Just thinking about the losses in this battle made Chiyo's heart bleed.
The Chikamatsu Collection were puppets she couldn't replicate on her own.
She put away four puppets, but had to leave the Gozu Puppet behind.
"You think you can come and go as you please?"
"Do you think this is your home?"
Kawaki saw a Sand ninja take out a flare from his pocket and fire it into the sky. He knew it was a signal for retreat.
[Swordsmanship, Death Anthem]
This was the same move Kawaki used to split the [Tailed Beast Ball].
Accompanied by the sound of thunder, Kawaki charged towards the Sand ninjas and Chiyo.
"Lady Chiyo, you go first."
This Sand ninja pushed Chiyo aside. His eyes were full of determination. He could die, but Chiyo couldn't.
"Retreat!"
Chiyo looked back one last time and shouted loudly. She and the scattered night - raid forces covered each other's backs.
They retreated into the territory of the Land of Wind without looking back.
[Sand Style, Shield of Shukaku]
The Sand ninja took a Military Rations Pill and formed hand seals.
A wall made of condensed sand appeared in front of him, with the head of Shukaku on it.
He was actually a Sand - Style ninja. He also used a defensive ninjutsu developed by imitating Shukaku.
When Kawaki's sword hit the [Shield of Shukaku], it immediately met resistance, and the speed of his sword was affected. Moreover, the deeper he chopped, the greater the resistance became.
The Sand ninja behind the [Shield of Shukaku], who was continuously outputting chakra, was already pale. After all, he couldn't compare with Gaara in the original plot in terms of chakra reserves.
If he hadn't eaten the Military Rations Pill in advance, it was hard to say whether he could have used this move.
After the move's power was fully absorbed, Kawaki's sword got stuck in the center of the [Shield of Shukaku].
"Not a bad move."
Just as Kawaki was about to pull out his sword and deliver a final blow to the Sand ninja, he found that the [Shield of Shukaku] was slowly disappearing.
Then the Sand ninja behind it was revealed, already lifeless.
He sacrificed his life to save Chiyo.
The Sand ninja night raid ended in a complete failure!
"First, carry the wounded back to the camp. Take the captured Sand ninjas alive for interrogation."
Tsunade's voice came from afar, arranging the post - battle matters.
"Is this the elite Jonin of Sunagakure, Suna Storm?"
Hayato Yamanaka had also arrived with Tsunade. The secret techniques of the Yamanaka clan were excellent in interrogating for intelligence.
When he saw this dead Sand ninja, his eyes widened in shock and were fixed for a few seconds as if he had been electrocuted.
"What's so strange about it?"
Tsunade didn't think there was anything special. He was just an elite Jonin, far inferior to [Hanzō of the Salamander].
"Um, Lady Tsunade, well..."
"This Suna Storm is proficient in Sand - Style Ninjutsu and has strong defensive capabilities. It's said that he once withstood a [Tailed Beast Ball] head - on."
Hayato Yamanaka was awakened by Tsunade's words. He sorted out his thoughts as he had long had intelligence on Suna Storm.
He never expected to witness Suna Storm's death with his own eyes this time.
After saying that, Hayato looked at Kawaki with a different look in his eyes.
Kawaki's slaying of [Hanzō of the Salamander] seemed distant to him, but witnessing Suna Storm's death with his own eyes had a much greater impact on him.
"The defensive power is indeed good.
Kawaki put away his sword. The curse symbols on his face dissipated, and his pupils returned to their normal color.
"The Tailed Beast Ball? It's just average."
"I'm relieved you're okay. There are many poisoned people. I'll go and help first."
Tsunade curled her lips. She didn't think much of the Tailed Beast Ball. Didn't Kawaki chop it with one sword strike?
After saying that, she turned around and left, leaving Kawaki and Hayato staring at each other.
"Lord Kawaki, I'll take my leave."
After a moment, Hayato broke the dull situation and followed the Konoha Ninjas who were escorting prisoners into the camp.
Kawaki's thoughts were wandering. He wondered how his Aniki was faring.
Actually, when the Sand Ninjas attacked the Konoha camp, Sakumo also led a team to sneak into the Sand Ninjas' defense line.
However, he didn't bring many people with him. In this operation, Sakumo's goal was to burn the supplies and cause chaos.
Mainly, he didn't know that Chiyo had taken a group of elite ninjas away. Otherwise, he wouldn't have been so cautious.
"Two hundred meters ahead, there are three hidden sentries."
A Hyuga clan member with Byakugan beside Sakumo reported what he saw one after another.
"Handle them."
Sakumo waved his hand, and three ninjas with swords quietly left behind him.
After a moment, the three of them came back and gestured to indicate that it was done.
When Sakumo finally led the team into the camp inside the defense line, he was a bit stunned to see the sand houses all over the land.
It was so confusing. He couldn't tell one thing from another, so he had to catch a prisoner to ask.
"Stay here. I'll be back soon."
Sakumo left a Flying Raijin mark on the spot and teleported away at an extremely fast speed.
When he came back, he was carrying an unconscious Sand Ninja in his hand. It seemed to be a Chunin.
Sakumo didn't choose someone with great strength because they would easily make noise.
A Chunin knew more than a Genin, so it was the optimal choice.
After the interrogation expert among his subordinates questioned, they learned the location of the supplies, and this Sunagakure Chunin's life ended.
"Burn all the supplies and act according to the situation."
The team dispersed and acted in groups.
The Sand Ninjas' supplies weren't all stacked together.
When the first ray of fire soared into the sky.
"Enemy raid! Enemy raid!"
The entire Sand Ninja camp was in action.
However, the burning of the supplies was already a certainty.
When the team regrouped, Sakumo found that two teams were gone. Undoubtedly, they had been detected.
The sound of fighting could already be heard in the distance.
"You go ahead. I'll go back to rescue them."
Sakumo didn't hesitate to choose to go back to save the people.
The remaining people looked at each other. After some thought, they still followed Sakumo.
With such a leader, what else could they complain about?
When Sakumo reached one of the battlefields, he found that only two of the five Konoha Ninjas were still desperately holding out.
However, the numerical disparity was too large, and they wouldn't last long.
"Damn it!"
Sakumo cursed in a low voice, drew his Tantō, and teleported over.
The Tantō glowed white, like the Shinigami's call.
Everyone in the straight line he passed through was killed with a single, accurate sword strike.
Charging into the battle circle, Sakumo grabbed the arms of two Konoha Ninjas. The next second, they left the battle circle and reached a safe place.
Although Sakumo was more proficient in using Flying Raijin, carrying two people restricted the distance he could travel, and they were still in the same hiding spots near the camp as before.
"You two wait here. I'll be back soon," Sakumo said.
He took out a Military Rations Pill from his ninja tool pouch and ate it to replenish the heavily - consumed Chakra.
On the other side, the situation was much worse. The Konoha Ninjas who had come back to help had joined the fight.
Surprisingly, none of the Konoha Ninjas who had been discovered earlier had died.
Sakumo watched the chaotic battle in front of him, his head aching.
There was no way he could lead them all out, so he had to charge into the battle.
He drew his Tantō again and joined the fray.
Thankfully, Chiyo had taken away most of the elite Sand ninjas. Otherwise, the Konoha Ninjas might not have lasted until now.
"Fight your way back and don't get caught up in a prolonged battle!" Sakumo shouted as he blocked an attack from a Sand ninja for a Konoha Ninja.
He then swiftly slit the Sand ninja's throat.
"Want to escape? In your dreams!"
A young Sand ninja couple looked grim, their fingers dancing nimbly as they maneuvered their Puppets to attack the Konoha Ninjas.
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