Chapter 23: The Sand Ninja Appear
When Kyosuke woke up again, he found that the team was not far from the border of the Land of Fire.
According to the intelligence report, it would take at least another two hours of travel to intercept the Sand ninja team. But that would still be enough to stop them before their reinforcements arrived.
Soon, the rested rescue team set off again in pursuit of the enemy.
This time, after traveling for only about an hour, they found traces left by the enemy.
Fugaku skillfully went forward to examine them. After circling the area, he said with certainty, "The enemy is not far from us. Everyone, be on your guard."
After speaking, he turned and gave Kyosuke a signal.
Kyosuke nodded, jumped down from the back of the Jounin who had been carrying him, and formed the hand seals.
"Summoning Technique."
Poof.
With a flash of smoke, the group of small snakes from before was summoned once again.
He gave them a slight nudge with his chakra, and the small snakes scattered in all directions. As soon as they found the enemy's trail, they would immediately alert Kyosuke with a special chakra wave.
All that was left was to wait.
According to Fugaku's judgment, the enemy was currently resting, so they also had to halt their advance. The task of searching for the enemy was left to Kyosuke's summoned creatures.
This was the advantage of having a sensory ninja on the team.
Without Kyosuke, the rescue team would have had to spread out and advance. Although the chances of finding the enemy this way were not low, the risk of being ambushed was also very high. A single mistake could lead to heavy losses.
With the Uchiha clan in a state of gradual decline, ten Jounin represented a significant portion of their combat power. They could not afford to lose them easily.
Moreover, among them were the future clan head and the immensely potential Kyosuke.
So, Fugaku felt that he couldn't be too careful.
Half an hour passed as the rescue team waited anxiously.
Finally, a small snake five kilometers away sent a special signal to Kyosuke.
Kyosuke's tightly closed eyes snapped open. He nodded to Fugaku, then led the way toward that location.
A distance of five kilometers was nothing for a Jounin. Even Kyosuke could reach it in a short amount of time.
When they were less than a kilometer from the enemy, Fugaku suddenly grabbed him. Without any room for argument, he assigned a Jounin to protect him and ordered him to stay put.
The person assigned to protect him was Fugaku's girlfriend, Uchiha Chiko.
Kyosuke shrugged helplessly at Chiko, and the two of them watched the rescue team depart.
Less than a few minutes later, they suddenly heard a thunderous roar from the distance.
This meant that the rescue team had engaged the enemy.
And Kyosuke could only wait here. Although he understood Fugaku's good intentions and knew that this was the best course of action, he couldn't sit still.
Chiko watched Kyosuke pace around anxiously and smiled gently. "Don't worry, Kyosuke-kun," she said reassuringly. "I'm sure Fugaku and the others will rescue Princess Nagisa."
Kyosuke could only nod helplessly and started to chat with her to pass the time.
As they talked, the conversation turned to marriage.
"Speaking of which, when are you and Brother Fugaku planning to get married? Be sure to invite me," Kyosuke asked, trying to sound casual.
Chiko blushed at his question and said with a soft laugh, "Fugaku and I have already agreed. After this mission is over, we'll go home and get married."
Hey, hey, watch what you say. Don't go raising death flags. Aren't you afraid you won't make it back? Kyosuke's mouth twitched as he thought to himself.
Hm? Wait a minute...
Chiko, who never appeared in the original story...
This sudden kidnapping...
Fugaku's Mangekyo Sharingan, which appeared for an unknown reason in the original story...
Three seemingly unrelated events were suddenly connected in Kyosuke's mind.
No way... Kyosuke looked at Chiko with a strange expression, silently praying that he was wrong.
But as Murphy's Law states, the more you worry about something, the more likely it is to happen.
And the fact that the sounds of battle in the distance had already stopped gave Kyosuke an even greater sense of unease.
Suddenly, one of his still-active summoned creatures informed him that two people were rushing toward them.
Receiving this message, Kyosuke's heart sank.
No matter who was coming, it probably wasn't good news. If it was the enemy, they would have to fight. If it was someone from the rescue team, the situation was even worse.
Soon, Kyosuke's worries became a reality.
The person who arrived was a blood-soaked Uchiha Fugaku.
In his arms, he held an unconscious Uchiha Nagisa.
"Fu... the others... are they all..." Chiko stared at the scene in shock. After taking the unconscious Nagisa, she finally managed to stammer out the question.
Fugaku's face was grim. He nodded silently, confirming her fears.
Instantly, the faces of both Chiko and Kyosuke darkened.
Kyosuke thought of the clan members who had taken care of him along the way and clenched his fists tightly.
"What on earth happened?" Kyosuke squeezed the words out through his teeth.
"I'll explain on the way," Fugaku said, looking back. He took off his blood-stained jacket and led the way toward Konoha.
"There are still pursuers?!!" Kyosuke's pupils contracted sharply, and he quickly followed.
This time, he had to rely on his own two feet.
On the way, Fugaku explained what had happened.
Although the enemy had not detected the rescue team's approach, they had cautiously laid traps.
These traps were the Sand ninja's specialty, a technique that dominated the shinobi world: the Puppet Technique.
They had cunningly used a perfect camouflage that even the Sharingan could not detect to hide several puppets in their surroundings.
When the rescue team launched their surprise attack, they immediately counterattacked with these puppets.
Although Fugaku and his team were powerful, they suffered heavy casualties when faced with the overwhelming number of traps. It couldn't be helped; this was the advantage of an army at rest fighting a tired one. The enemy not only had the advantage of stamina, but the traps laid by a puppet master were on a completely different level from Kyosuke's amateurish attempts.
But even so, Fugaku and his team managed to kill all of them and rescue the unconscious Nagisa.
They had thought that despite the casualties, they had at least upheld the Uchiha's reputation and prevented the enemy from escaping.
But then, the unexpected happened again.
The Sand ninja's reinforcements arrived half a day earlier than expected.
Now, the rescue team, having just fought a bitter battle, had no choice but to face the Sand ninja's reinforcements head-on.