As Izumi confirmed their safety, she didn't hesitate for a moment. Her eyes gleamed with fierce determination as she unleashed the Blazing Explosion Array once again. Countless Exploding Tags shot forward like a deadly rain toward the two enemy targets.
The two instantly reacted, leaping into the air and vaulting toward a nearby tree to evade the deadly barrage. Izumi's sharp gaze followed them closely.
"Jiro!" she shouted.
"Right!" came the quick response.
Suddenly, Akido Jiro appeared beside her. With a shout of "Human Bullet Tank!," he began executing the Partial Expansion Jutsu. His body rapidly grew, morphing into a massive sphere that spun violently, like a living cannonball rolling at breakneck speed toward the enemies.
One of the enemies, Asenyi, could only stretch out his arms in a desperate attempt to block. Akido Jiro slammed him hard into the ground with tremendous force.
Yet, Asenyi was no ordinary opponent. His body was trained in Nin-Taijutsu and exceptionally durable. Even slammed into the ground like that, the damage was minimal.
With a roar, Asenyi released a torrent of electricity from his body. Lightning crackled wildly, shocking Akido Jiro. The latter screamed in pain as the current surged through him.
Watching this, Yamamoto Kawa and the other two Genin were stunned. None of them expected their enemy to possess such raw power.
"This is... alright! Let's go! Yoshida!" Izumi commanded sharply.
Without hesitation, the two injured Genin fled from the battlefield, disappearing into the dense forest.
Asenyi glared at the unconscious Akido Jiro. He wanted to finish him off, but his attention was drawn by another danger. His subordinate was entangled by ropes on the ground, and Izumi had already thrown several kunai toward him.
Ignoring his downed ally, Asenyi teleported in front of his companion, deflecting the incoming kunai and quickly cutting the ropes binding his subordinate.
Looking up, he saw that the other two injured Genin had escaped, leaving only him and his two remaining comrades. Rage flashed across his face — he hadn't killed a single enemy and had already lost a subordinate.
"There are too many traps here, Rai!" he growled.
At his side, the Chunin Rai immediately formed hand seals and prepared to cast a powerful ninjutsu.
Izumi's eyes sharpened. "That hand seal — Wind Release! Everyone, get out of here!"
With that, Izumi grabbed Yamamoto Kawa, pulling him behind a tree just as Rai unleashed a mighty gust of wind.
The wind blew violently, sweeping away many of the exploding tags and traps laid throughout the forest. Those that remained were now exposed and useless.
Breathing heavily, Izumi motioned for the others. "You two injured, run now. We'll cover you."
The two injured genin nodded and hurried away. They knew they would only slow the others down if they stayed.
Concealed among the shadows, Asenyi scowled as he watched the traps vanish. With a sneer, he called out, "Why won't you come out? Show yourselves, or I'll kill your companions one by one!"
He started moving toward Akido Jiro's prone body, his footsteps silent yet menacing.
Suddenly, from the side, Yamamoto Kawa sprang into action. He hurled a flurry of shuriken toward Asenyi and shouted, "Shuriken Shadow Clone Technique!"
In an instant, the single handful of shuriken multiplied into dozens, rushing at Asenyi like a deadly swarm.
"Hmph," Asenyi sneered, brushing off the shuriken with ease as they bounced harmlessly off his body and clattered to the ground.
"Ah! Damn it!" Yamamoto Kawa cursed and tried to retreat, but Asenyi was too fast. He suddenly appeared in front of him and struck a powerful blow to his head.
With a loud bang!, Yamamoto Kawa's body vanished.
"Shadow Clone!" Asenyi snarled, scanning the nearby trees.
Yamamoto Kawa suddenly reappeared behind him and stabbed a kunai into his side.
"You idiot! You know I'm stronger in close combat and still chose to fight me here?" Asenyi taunted, delivering a crushing punch that sent the clone flying.
But that was only a clone.
In that instant, dozens of Shadow Clones appeared all over the forest, surrounding Asenyi.
"Impressive," Asenyi remarked, "For a Genin, your Multiple Shadow Clone Jutsu isn't bad. But it consumes a lot of chakra. When your clones vanish, can your real body survive?"
Asenyi surged forward, attacking the clones with ruthless precision, breaking and destroying them one by one.
Meanwhile, Izumi appeared beside Chunin Rai, engaging him in a fierce Taijutsu duel.
Both combatants moved with lightning speed and immense strength. Their strikes landed with bone-crushing force, and their agility kept them constantly circling one another.
"Hmph!" Rai grunted as he felt a numbness creeping into his arms and legs. "This little girl's strength... it's even greater than mine! Her speed is impressive, too."
Drawing his katana, Rai slashed at Izumi.
Without hesitation, Izumi met the strike with her own sword. The two blades clashed, sparks flying.
Suddenly, Rai's arm crackled with lightning as he activated Lightning Release. His sword glowed with electrical energy.
"Ah!" Izumi gasped as the shock surged through her body. Her arms went numb, weakening her grip on the sword.
"Damn it," she muttered through clenched teeth.
Rai smiled cruelly. "Such a fine sword—it wasn't destroyed by my Lightning Blade, but being electrocuted is quite unpleasant, isn't it?"
Although weakened, Izumi took advantage of his momentary arrogance. Her black eyes flashed, transforming into the fiery red of the Sharingan.
Rai's expression suddenly changed to alarm. "What—?"
Izumi vanished, seemingly dissolving into thin air. Rai's sword was suddenly severed, falling from his hand.
The forest around them darkened. Rai found himself disoriented; the enemy, his companions, and even the surrounding trees seemed to have disappeared.
"Damn it! Genjutsu!" Rai shouted, quickly dispelling the illusion.
But as he lifted the spell, Izumi was already before him, sword raised high, ready to strike.
"No—!" Rai cried, too late to defend.
Just then, Izumi suddenly sensed danger.
With a swift motion, she swung her sword sideways, blocking a brutal punch aimed at her head. She gripped the blade with both hands, bracing against the force.
"Bang!" The punch slammed against her sword, nearly knocking her off balance. Izumi was driven to one knee, arms trembling but still holding firm.
Glancing quickly, she saw Yamamoto Kawa lying on the ground, spitting blood but still alive. He had lost consciousness but was not dead.
The enemy must have come rushing to his aid.
At that moment, Asenyi's shock was palpable.
He had once trained under the Third Raikage himself and had been a candidate to succeed him. Despite his failure and disgrace, his Nin-Taijutsu skills were formidable.
Yet, this girl, so young and wielding the Sharingan, kept up with his speed and strength.
"I've never seen such a young girl block my attack before," he muttered, respect mingled with disbelief. "A formidable genius."
But his admiration was fleeting. "Die!" he roared, shifting his open hand into a palm strike aimed at Izumi.
At the same time, Rai slashed toward her with his sword.
Izumi's body split into three images, but instead of wounds, paper seemed to pour out from her body where she had been struck.
"Paper?" she murmured, watching as her upper body floated, surrounded by the sheets.
The paper then surged, enveloping her lower body.
"Exploding Tags?" Asenyi exclaimed, alarmed. "Rai, run!"
"No!" Rai shouted.
The explosion detonated with a deafening roar.
Rai was obliterated instantly, reduced to dust.
Asenyi staggered, disheveled and bleeding from the blast, staring at Izumi with wide eyes.
"How—how did the power of this Exploding Tag become so strong? Is it just my imagination? No, she must have used some method to amplify it."
Pain wracked his entire body.
Izumi, meanwhile, calmly produced countless sheets of paper from the wounds on her body, reconstructing herself piece by piece into a complete human form.
She stretched her numb arms, her senses sharpened once again.
With a small, confident smile, she said, "Hehe. Now this is a real battle. It's thrilling to fight seriously—and even better that no one is watching. Finally, I can get serious."
Asenyi looked at her in disbelief. A child claiming she was just getting serious? Ridiculous.
But Izumi's expression told a different story—a fierce determination that promised the battle was far from over.
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