In the ship's cabin, Kurenai cautiously peeked outside, her face filled with tension.
The Hidden Cloud Village...
A!
It was said that this man was the heir to the next Raikage title. His strength must be extraordinary.
At the very least, Nara Shikaku alone was definitely no match for those people.
She looked at Kyohiko.
"What do we do?"
"Let's watch first. The Cloud Village's style is as consistent as ever. It's quite reassuring," Kyohiko said with a wide smile.
A and the Cloud ninja were as simple and brutal as always, not giving a single thought to the influence of their village.
If the Cloud Village's strength was above Konoha's, or on par with it, then under the circumstances of being surrounded by enemies, Konoha would indeed have to compromise and negotiate, just as Sarutobi Hiruzen did.
But now...
The times have changed!
Kyohiko wasn't afraid of trouble. In fact, he was hoping the Cloud Village would start something first so he could counter-attack and finish them with one punch.
Strike first to prevent a hundred future blows.
Sitting in Konoha and waiting for the enemy to attack was not Kyohiko's style, but he didn't plan to go out directly either.
The unknown is the most terrifying. If he acted directly, they would know his strength and his secrets, giving the other side time and space to weigh their options and prepare, to choose whether to fight or not.
What Kyohiko wanted was—
To not give A any time to think. Otherwise, with the number of people on that ship, it was still possible for them to come up with a decent plan.
But at this moment, Kurenai was already incredibly nervous.
Because that ship was still approaching! Especially after hearing Shikaku announce who he was, the Cloud Village's ship seemed to be rapidly closing in on them.
"Don't worry. Take this."
"What is this?" Kurenai asked Kyohiko.
"A sealing scroll. A wood clone's chakra is sealed inside, but it has no consciousness. As soon as you unseal it, I can instantly activate it and turn it into a clone."
"Understood?"
"Yes!" Kurenai nodded heavily.
This was to prepare for the upcoming battle!
But... was her speed really fast enough to unseal the scroll before those two could attack her? Kurenai took a deep breath, forcing herself to calm down.
She couldn't panic! The moment she panicked, she would be even less able to display her strength. What's more, besides doing this, she also had to protect Might Gai.
Outside.
Kojin Shun was dumbfounded.
"Shikaku-sama, what's going on? Isn't your Konoha on good terms with the Cloud Village?"
"Don't worry," Shikaku said calmly.
With Kyohiko here, a single ship's crew had no chance of taking them down. If the Cloud Village really made a move, they would be the ones who'd have to figure out how to clean up the mess. Moreover, Konoha would then have a justification to act against the Cloud Village in the future.
Although the ninja world was chaotic and not everyone played by the rules, for a large village like Konoha with many allies, having a just cause was extremely important. In the current situation, the latter was even more important than the former!
In the distance, A was also hesitating. Although the Cloud Village had a secret alliance with the Hidden Stone and Hidden Mist, it hadn't been exposed, and no one wanted to fire the first shot.
If he started a war here... His eyes flickered.
"A-sama, maybe we shouldn't fight?"
"Let's see first," A said, taking a step forward. "We are searching for a spy who stole intelligence. We hope that Jonin Shikaku of Konoha will understand and allow us to search your ship's cabin."
"You may. You can send two people aboard," Shikaku replied without objection.
A smiled. "Good!"
With that, he flickered and instantly charged towards them, followed by a young, dark-skinned ninja—his inseparable partner, Killer B.
Kojin Shun's body tensed. He wasn't harboring any spies, but for a great ninja village, wasn't the decision to fight or not just a matter of a single word? What if Konoha couldn't protect his ship...
His face fell. "Shikaku-sama, my ship is carrying precious goods back home. I hope you can be gentle!"
"Rest assured, the Cloud ninja are very friendly. They won't cause trouble on the ship," Shikaku said with a faint smile.
At this moment, A had already flickered onto their ship. His speed had improved considerably compared to a few years ago; he was completely impossible to track with the naked eye. Even chakra sensing could only vaguely perceive his position.
However, in battle, such a vague perception was of no help at all and could even lead to misjudgments that would harm oneself.
Kurenai's palms were sweating. If Kyohiko wasn't here, A alone could have wiped out their entire squad on the ship. This was the power of a Kage-level ninja! Just imagining it made her forehead break out in a sweat. And Kyohiko's strength was above A's; one could only imagine how powerful Kyohiko was now...
Kurenai glanced at Kyohiko, who was disguised as "Yamato."
I hope everything goes smoothly!
A boarded the ship, first chatting with Shikaku for a few sentences, then taking a tour around the deck.
"A-sama, these are all important goods we are transporting to the Land of Snow, not related to the ninja domain..." Kojin Shun said nervously, proactively offering to take A to the cargo hold below.
His cargo hold was filled with dried and pickled vegetables. In the Land of Snow, which was freezing in the winter, imported dried and pickled vegetables were their most delicious delicacy, a favorite among all the nobles.
"Mm," A said, not caring at all about Kojin Shun's cargo.
He only cared about... how many Konoha ninja were on the ship, and why were they so fearless? Or was it... that Nara Shikaku had gone mad and truly believed that Konoha and the Cloud were one big happy family?
A was muttering to himself. Finally, he and Killer B were led to the rear.
"Are these three your subordinates?"
"Yes. She is Kurenai Yūhi, and the other two are Gai and Yamato. Gai is not feeling well right now," Shikaku explained.
Kurenai stood up and immediately bowed to them.
A nodded lightly.
Killer B took a step forward and said, "Brother, below, spy!"
A narrowed his eyes.
From the looks of it, Konoha really only had one squad! Should I do it?
He only hesitated for a second.
Do it!
In an instant, he threw a punch, aiming directly for Nara Shikaku. But in that same moment, a black shadow spread from under Shikaku's feet.
Shadow Imitation Technique!
Shikaku controlled both of them by himself and then instantly leaped down.
In that instant, Kyohiko drew his sword and slashed at A.
A caught a glimpse out of the corner of his eye, seeing the figure above rapidly striking down, and his entire body's chakra exploded.
Instantly—
Lightning Release Chakra Mode!
Boom!
His chakra erupted, his body covered in an armor of lightning. Although his powerful body was immobilized, the force he could unleash in that instant was enough to block a sword strike.
Normally, that would be the case! But this sword strike...
Wind Release chakra was highly condensed on the blade, forming an invisible air blade on the outside. Wind Release naturally countered Lightning Release, and the chakra condensation in Kyohiko's strike was at an extremely high level, which he simulated to be the theoretical limit Kakashi could currently achieve.
The sword came down...
Tsch!
Powerful Tailed Beast chakra erupted from Killer B's body. Under this immense power, Shikaku's Shadow Imitation Technique instantly shattered, unable to control both him and A at the same time.
Following that—
A tail shot out towards A, pulling him to his side.
One slash.
The octopus tail that had formed behind Killer B was instantly severed by Kyohiko's sword.
Plop!
The severed octopus tail was immediately thrown onto the deck above by Kyohiko, who then instantly charged forward.
Killer B's eyes narrowed.
He's fast!
Such an ability, and at such a young age, was extremely rare in Konoha.
"Hatake Kakashi?"
"Damn it, bro, you idiot, bro!"
Killer B hummed in a strange tone, quickly throwing A further away. He then instantly drew two swords and charged at Kyohiko. In his Tailed Beast Mode, his speed was comparable to A's, almost like teleportation. His other tail swept towards Nara Shikaku.
The sword came down.
"Kyohiko" dissolved into a splash of water.
Water Style: Water Clone Technique.
The tail was swiftly dodged by Shikaku.
The next second, the sea churned.
Water Style: Water Dragon Bullet Technique!
A water dragon shot out, charging towards A like a spear.
Boom!
With a roar, the water dragon shattered against A's body. The powerful impact sent him crashing into the sea, but with the water as a cushion... the next second, he shot out from the sea.
Landing on the water's surface, A's lips curled upwards. "Heh, now what other tricks do you have?" His body was wrapped in Lightning Release chakra, his face dark as he scanned the surroundings. "Nara Shikaku, Hatake Kakashi, two Jonin participating in such an escort mission!"
If it had been ordinary Cloud ninja coming to cause trouble, they probably would have already been dealt with by these two from Konoha.
Unfortunately for them, they had run into him!
"Is the Cloud Village trying to tear up the alliance with our Konoha?" Nara Shikaku's face was grim.
A said lightly, "Alliance? Our alliance ended when you attacked us in the Land of Rice Fields. What followed was just a tacit cooperation."
"You were the ones who broke the alliance that time! As expected, you will never learn to repent!" Nara Shikaku's tone was cold.
Up above, Kojin Shun had collapsed into a heap. How did it seem like Shikaku-sama, who kept saying "no problem," was now on the losing end? Was this trip really going to end in disaster?
However, just then, he heard a strange movement from the side.
What's going on?
Kojin Shun's lips trembled as he turned to look, only to see that a person had suddenly appeared on the ship... a very handsome young man.
"Ah!" he yelped in fright.
"Please don't be afraid. This is one of our Konoha ninja," Kurenai said in a low voice.
Kojin Shun's face was slightly pale. He looked at Kurenai, then at Might Gai, who was struggling to get up inside the cabin.
A Konoha ninja? He looked... a bit older than these two, but what use was that! Could he defeat the two men down there?
On the other side, the Cloud ninja were already moving down to provide support.
A raised his hand, then instantly charged at Shikaku. As long as he took care of Shikaku, the other one, Hatake Kakashi, though slippery, wouldn't be too hard to deal with. After all, no matter how talented one was, that talent had to be fully developed. The future Hatake Kakashi might be able to reach their level, but right now, he was just a boy.
A's speed was so fast it was suffocating for Shikaku. In an instant, he was right in front of him.
Such a difference in speed... At this moment, Shikaku finally understood how enemies felt when facing Namikaze Minato or Ryoho Kyohiko. Unless you had an extremely powerful life-saving ability, facing these two was just insurmountable despair!
But he believed Kyohiko wouldn't abandon him. The man himself was right down there!
Instantly, a sword struck up from below.
Bang!
A blocked the sword with one punch. "At this level, as long as I block for a moment, you can't break my defense!"
Behind him, Killer B rapidly closed in.
Just then.
Swoosh!
A figure, moving at a terrifying speed, suddenly appeared near the battlefield.
Before A could even react, he was sent flying by a single punch.
Bang!
One punch.
A flew backwards like a meteor for an unknown distance, smashing a large hole through their own ship behind them.
"A-sama!"
Cries of alarm rang out from all around. The Cloud ninjas stared blankly, completely unable to believe... that A, who had been so powerful and almost unstoppable a moment ago, was sent flying like a stone in the next second. No one had reacted.
Including Killer B.
But the Eight-Tails, Gyūki, inside Killer B, was frantic.
"Go, quickly!"
"What's wrong?"
"This guy is powerful, far more powerful than you can imagine! Even though it's just a wood clone, I feel... that even if you and A teamed up, you wouldn't be his match!"
Gyūki was panicking. Ryoho Kyohiko's aura was even more terrifying than Senju Tobirama's. This guy had truly grown!
"What if I borrow your power?"
"We can try," Gyūki said.
Killer B stopped thinking. He... quickly transformed into his Tailed Beast form. Then, the fully transformed Gyūki rapidly gathered chakra in its mouth.
Nara Shikaku's pupils shrank. The Cloud Village had indeed achieved the level of perfect Tailed Beast transformation! This terrifying speed of transformation was something even the current Kushina couldn't do.
Fortunately, Kyohiko was with them... Cold sweat dripped down his forehead. He finally understood why Kyohiko had insisted on coming along on this trip. If Kyohiko wasn't here, they would have had a hard time just getting through the waters of the Land of Lightning.
The Tailed Beast Bomb was charging.
But at this moment, A cried out in alarm—
"Don't!"
What? Killer B was stunned for a moment, but by now, his Tailed Beast Bomb was already halfway charged.
So... he fired the half-charged bomb.
Water vaporized. Under the terrifying chakra pressure, the surrounding sea level dipped. A powerful ball of chakra rushed towards Kyohiko's wood clone.
But... Kyohiko's wood clone extended a hand.
Flying Thunder God: Conductive Thunder!
The powerful chakra instantly vanished before their eyes.
Killer B was stunned for half a second. Then, behind him, a terrifying explosion rang out.
BOOM!
The Tailed Beast Bomb detonated. Their Cloud Village ship was blown into countless fragments in the explosion...
Killer B was dumbfounded on the spot.
"Brother!"
"B, don't lose focus!" Gyūki hurriedly reminded him.
Then, the chakra contracted. Killer B quickly transformed into a torrent and rushed towards the explosion. But in the next instant, that familiar figure blocked his path.
He had only one thought in his mind—
So fast! Faster than my brother!
At this moment, black markings had appeared on Kyohiko's shadow clone.
Sage Mode, on!
And then...
Sage Art: Amber Sealing!
Amber rapidly froze the surroundings. The Eight-Tails' chakra within Killer B surged outwards but couldn't immediately break through the amber stone. Amber also formed below, turning the area into a stone platform.
Following that, Kyohiko's hands formed another seal.
Sage Art: Gate of the Great God!
BOOM!
One after another, torii gates slammed down, instantly sealing Killer B's chakra.