Do you know how wolf packs hunt?
It is common knowledge that wolves act in concert, working as a team and dividing roles among themselves. Under the leadership of the alpha, they display a chilling cunning and a capacity for complex tactical maneuvers, operating with a discipline akin to that of an army, where orders are executed without question. The nature of a wolf is a combination of four qualities: savagery, cruelty, greed, and ferocity. But beyond these, there is another crucial trait—resilience.
Imagine a scenario: a herd of bulls confronts a pack of wolves. To repel the threat, the bulls form a tight group, creating a defensive circle. The strong adults stand on the outside, while the calves remain within. Under normal circumstances, an adult bull can easily trample or gore a lone wolf. The wolves understand this perfectly, so their tactic is one of attrition: they prevent the herd from escaping while simultaneously wearing it down, forcing it to keep moving.
This standoff can last for several days. The bulls starve, as do the wolves. When everyone's strength is depleted, a contest of wills begins. This is the true test of endurance, of resilience. In the end, when the bulls can no longer hold their formation, their ranks break, and they flee. The wolves pursue them relentlessly, targeting the calves that have fallen behind.
As relatives in the canine family, dogs possess a resilience that can sometimes surpass even that of wolves. So, what should you do if you find yourself facing a pack of ninja hounds from the Inuzuka Clan? There is only one answer: you are in dire straits. Do not run. You will not be able to escape them, and any attempt to flee will only hasten your demise. The chase is an innate instinct for dogs. They will attack from behind, and the moment you fall, the entire pack will descend upon you in a frenzy, tearing you to pieces. The scene would resemble a feast for a horde of zombies. Once you fall, you will not rise again. There are no second chances.
The correct course of action is...
Inuzuka Rin glanced at Ryoto, who was sipping something, and thought that the correct course of action was simply to catch this white-haired boy and beat him half to death.
The loyal Masao was incapable of such a thing. Though he could have escaped the ninja hounds, he chose not to, which meant his only option was to face the pack head-on. The scene that unfolded was truly brutal: blood sprayed in every direction—the blood of the ninja hounds and the blood of Masao. From time to time, young dogs would be sent flying with pitiful yelps, landing on the riverbank and struggling to their feet, breathing heavily. Masao's body—his back, his legs, his arms—was completely covered in dogs that sank their sharp fangs into him with immense force, and blood flowed in streams. A furious, deafening barking echoed along the entire coast.
A brief respite came. Defeated ninja hounds lay scattered on the ground. Then, some of them began to rise. They still wore the clothes sewn by their deceased masters and the ninja headbands they had been given. Inuzuka Rin looked at Masao. The bulldog's face was contorted with fury, but his body did not tremble; he merely snarled and let out a low growl. Observing him, Rin concluded, based on her experience, that his sense of pain was dulled and his hide was thick and coarse.
Within the Inuzuka Clan, there were many ninja hounds with minor peculiarities. For instance, some could speak. Others, when enraged, would see their fur turn red. Masao was one of these types: an incredibly resilient and powerful fighter. Essentially, it was related to a skin condition. The wounds he had sustained could not even be considered light. Rin stroked the head of Smarty, who was much the same.
The humanoid form offered a tremendous advantage. That was precisely why the Inuzuka Clan had developed the Human Beast Mimicry technique, which allowed them to combine the agility and skill of a human body with the strength, sharp fangs, and claws of a beast. The functionality of the hands was also incredibly high. This training simulated a battle between ninja hounds and shinobi.
The first wave of the attack concluded, having exhausted the strength of some of the ninja hounds and weakened their combat capability. The second wave began. These dogs were veterans who had been through the war and the full training program for ninja hounds. They possessed a wealth of combat experience, and because of this, the fight instantly grew more ferocious, the tempo quickened, and the battle itself became more akin to a ninja duel.
Black shadows darted swiftly along the riverbank and across the surface of the water, surrounding Masao and searching for an opening in his defense to strike. In response, Masao also began to move rapidly. His running speed was nearly comparable to an instantaneous movement technique. In the whistling wind stirred by their clashes, the cold glint of claws flashed intermittently, and tufts of fur and sprays of blood flew into the air. It was a classic ninja taijutsu battle.
"Can Ryoto even see what's happening?" Rin wondered.
Forming a seal with one hand, she altered her pupils: the round human pupils transformed into vertical, coal-black slits. These eyes did not possess the ability to see great distances. Through her binoculars, Rin looked into Ryoto's eyes—they too had changed, becoming golden with vertical pupils.
Originally, the Beast Mimicry technique was developed to grant humans animalistic abilities: superior vision, hearing, smell, touch, bestial strength, and so on. Generation after generation, this technique evolved and was passed down, resulting in members of the Inuzuka Clan being born with these abilities, far surpassing those of other clans. It was difficult not to call it a Kekkei Genkai, albeit not a very conspicuous one. The strength of these abilities varied depending on the constitution of each clan member, but in one aspect, they were similar—in their incredibly sharp dynamic vision. Rin knew that her ability to track moving objects was in no way inferior to the Three Tomoe Sharingan of the Uchiha Clan. She could discern a fast-moving object from a kilometer away. The Uchiha were incapable of such a feat; their maximum range was only about twenty-three meters.
Her own dynamic vision was not outstanding within the clan, nor among the ninja hounds. The strongest bloodline, granting the sharpest vision, had been inherited by Smarty, who sat in her arms. Furthermore, she did not have the nearsightedness typical of ninja hounds.
"I suppose it's about to begin," Rin murmured, squinting slightly as she watched the fight.
The wave attacks had failed to exhaust Masao. On the contrary, some of the ninja hounds, having sustained injuries, had prudently retreated. The dogs remaining in the fight were veterans among veterans, and Masao found it difficult to reach them and force their withdrawal. The situation seemed to have reached a stalemate. But on Ryoto's command, both sides rushed into a final attack.
Once again, a head-on collision.
It was Fang Over Fang!
Nine spinning drills formed simultaneously. Eight of them converged on the central, ninth one, and twisting together, they crashed down. The earth shuddered, sending stones and sand flying, a deafening roar erupted, and then, gradually, all fell silent.
The masterless ninja hounds had used ninjutsu on their own. And this was only natural. After all, Fang Over Fang itself is one of the few in the shinobi world... a Seal-less Technique! It was perfectly suited for the Inuzuka Clan and their ninja hounds, as if created specifically for them. These dogs, capable of using Fang Over Fang on their own and possessing a wealth of combat experience, were the secret treasure of the Inuzuka Clan, its true elite.
The training was over.
As the shockwave subsided, eight ninja hounds staggered to their paws. A moment later, Masao, who had been slammed into the ground by eight Fang Over Fangs, also stood up, shaking his head.
"This one..." Rin narrowed her eyes. His current physique was far too anomalous. In a normal situation, he would have been torn to pieces by now. After all, he had previously been no different from the other ninja hounds, utterly average, with no outstanding qualities whatsoever.
Rin looked at Ryoto. That boy was exceedingly cautious. A person from another clan would likely not have—no, simply could not have—noticed these minor anomalies.
"Well, that's progress," Ryoto clapped his hands, jumped down from the boulder, and beckoned Masao over.
Masao immediately canceled the Human Beast Mimicry, dropping to all fours, and as his body shrank, his wounds also became smaller. He ran to Ryoto and began to wag his tail.
"Alright, you pups, get a move on, or you won't be able to move at all soon," Ryoto called out to the other dogs.
Hearing this, all the dogs that could still move rushed into the forest and soon returned, carrying mouthfuls of medicinal herbs and insects. After chewing them, they applied the resulting paste to the wounds of their injured comrades or ate it themselves. Dogs are healers in their own right, and much of the Inuzuka Clan's medical knowledge had developed from observing them.
Watching this scene, Rin felt the urge to intervene and personally test what her wayward son was capable of. And not at all just to give him a beating.
Meanwhile, on the riverbank, Ryoto, along with the pack of ninja hounds, began their daily exercises. One by one, the dogs straightened up, standing perfectly still, like statues. Those who were heavily injured lay to the side and watched, while the lightly wounded performed the exercise with everyone else.
The Stance.
What kind of training was this? At first, Rin didn't understand. But over time, whenever one of the dogs started to fidget or wanted to lie down, unable to bear the strain, Ryoto would walk over and kick it so hard it would yelp in pain. Finally, Rin understood why these dogs didn't fall into depression. With such a packed day, who would have time for despair? It seemed she had been spoiling them.
However, this boy, Ryoto, was a true devil. More ruthless than the wolves themselves. Far too harsh. Every piece of meat and every sip of sake he gave them had to be earned.
Rin rubbed her forehead. This stance continued for several hours. The afternoon sun beat down mercilessly. As it began to dip towards the horizon...
"At ease!" Ryoto commanded.
With howls and whimpers, the pack of dogs scattered in every direction: some collapsed to the ground, some lolled their tongues out, panting heavily, and others began to jump in place. As for Ryoto, he tore off his clothes in one swift motion and, with a flash of his bare backside, took a running dive into the river. Seeing this, the dogs followed him, and soon the whole company was splashing merrily in the water. The sound of dogs howling and Ryoto's laughter echoed across the river's surface.