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To put it bluntly, the Third Hokage wanted to use Kagaya to establish authority!
Thinking of this, Shikaku couldn't help but feel a headache coming on. This mission was going to be rather troublesome.
They needed to project power and avoid capturing Kagaya, all while Kagaya's own strength was considerable.
'Tch.'
Shikaku glanced at the group of Jōnin around him, thinking to himself.
'No wonder they sent so many Jōnin.'
Meanwhile, Kagaya was unaware that the Third intended to use him to make a statement, and he didn't know Kakashi was leading a team of Jōnin straight towards him.
All Kagaya knew at that moment was that a group of ANBU had found them and had launched an attack.
"Did the Third Hokage only send a group like this to pursue us?" Kagaya wondered, somewhat puzzled, as he looked at the scattered ANBU corpses around them.
The moment these ANBU found them, they had attacked without hesitation.
And then... that was it. They were completely wiped out, while Kagaya and Haku remained unharmed.
Kagaya hadn't held back against these ANBU. He never had much fondness for them, whether they were regular ANBU or Root.
But that wasn't the main issue. The primary point was that Kagaya didn't believe the Third Hokage would send only a few ANBU operatives after him.
The Third should have witnessed how Kagaya and Haku swiftly dealt with dozens of ANBU back in Konoha. Having seen that, sending another group of ANBU would be sheer suicide, wouldn't it?
If the Third wasn't foolish, then there was only one possibility: this ANBU group had found Kagaya before the main pursuit force and launched their attack prematurely.
"Haku, sense the surroundings. See if anyone is heading towards us!" Kagaya instructed Haku. If these ANBU were the vanguard, the main force couldn't be far behind and might already be approaching their location.
"Okay," Haku agreed, closing his eyes to focus on sensing their environment.
A moment later, Haku opened his eyes and calmly shook his head. "I don't sense anyone approaching us."
Kagaya first frowned slightly, pondering for a moment, then suddenly smiled. "Alright then. Let's continue our training."
"Mm."
With that, the two resumed their practice.
Kagaya sat on the ground, unsealed the Scroll of Seals, and continued studying the enigmatic Flying Thunder God technique.
Not far from where Kagaya and Haku were, on a shadowy tree branch, Kakashi and his team lay concealed.
"It seems the young girl has been subdued by Inoichi," Guy whispered.
Mind Body Switch Technique!
They had arrived a short while ago, spotting Kagaya and Haku. However, following Shikaku's advice, the team decided to proceed cautiously. They hid themselves first, then had Inoichi Yamanaka find the right moment to use the 'Mind Body Switch Technique' from a distance, secretly taking control of the young girl beside Kagaya.
Haku, whose spiritual energy wasn't particularly strong, was easily controlled by Inoichi once he found an opening.
From the very moment Kagaya asked Haku to scout the surroundings, Haku had already been under Inoichi Yamanaka's control.
Shikaku looked towards Shibi Aburame. "Shibi, you're up."
Shibi Aburame nodded silently. He was a man of few words, but his strength was formidable. During the Third Great Shinobi War, whichever battlefield he appeared on would see its combat effectiveness multiplied several times over.
His skill in utilizing insects was exceptionally high, making it impossible to tell when one had fallen victim to his techniques.
At that moment, small black insects crawled from Shibi's arm onto the branch, then slowly made their way to the ground, moving leisurely towards Kagaya.
The insects were spread out. As they advanced, they wouldn't just move forward; sometimes they would backtrack, making them appear like normal insects wandering aimlessly.
Few would suspect that these seemingly clumsy bugs could be lethal assassins!
The insects under Shibi Aburame's control were very careful. To avoid detection, they genuinely behaved as if they were randomly roaming.
It took a full half hour for the insects to get close to Kagaya.
Kagaya, at this point, was still intently focused on the Scroll of Seals, completely unaware of the approaching insects.
Then, a moment later, one insect silently crawled into Kagaya's sleeve.
Shortly after, another followed.
Three, four, five...
As time passed, more and more insects crawled onto Kagaya's body. Under Shibi's control, these insects caused no unusual sensation upon contact. If one wasn't paying close attention, it was very difficult to notice them.
Another half hour passed.
Shibi, wearing his sunglasses, spoke succinctly. "Success."
The number of insects inside Kagaya's body had now reached a lethal level! With a single command from Shibi, the insects inside Kagaya could quickly kill him or rapidly consume all the chakra within his body!
Regardless of the outcome, Kagaya had now become a captive, completely at their mercy.
"What's the big deal? This was simple. Kakashi, you made it sound like this kid was so powerful," Guy remarked bluntly.
In the eyes of these Jōnin, the battle to recover the Scroll of Seals was already over.
Except for two people: Kakashi and Shikaku.
Shikaku frowned, narrowed his eyes, and wore a look of extreme caution, showing no sign of relaxation. He had a feeling that Kagaya's earlier smile was somehow off! It was the moment when Kagaya asked the girl to scout the surroundings, she replied that no one was there, and then Kagaya first frowned, then smiled.
Shikaku felt strongly that it wasn't over yet. No, he must have missed some crucial piece of information!
Kakashi wouldn't lie to them. Therefore, a Kage-level fighter couldn't possibly be defeated so easily.
"Wait, don't reveal yourselves yet. Stay hidden a while longer. Kakashi, does that Kagaya have any other aspects we need to be wary of? Besides his speed and the Sharingan?" Shikaku stopped the others from revealing themselves and asked Kakashi.
Kakashi furrowed his brow, trying to recall. Kagaya's speed and Sharingan had left too deep an impression on him, so much so that they were the first things that came to mind when he thought of Kagaya.
But aside from those, was there anything else about Kagaya that required caution?
A single technique slowly surfaced in Kakashi's mind – Fire Release: Great Fireball Technique!
The technique itself wasn't particularly remarkable. The main point was that Kakashi remembered how Kagaya had constantly used that technique to practice his hand seal speed. If Kagaya had never slacked off in that practice, his hand seal speed now should be terrifying!
Yes! Hand seal speed!
"Hand seal speed! Kagaya's hand seal speed is likely extremely fast!" Kakashi quickly spoke up.
The moment he said it, Shikaku's eyes widened, and he immediately shouted without hesitation, "Damn it! Scatter!"
"Boom!"
The Jōnin didn't hesitate and immediately dispersed – all except for one: Inoichi Yamanaka!
Kagaya, with the Scroll of Seals on his back, suddenly appeared on the very branch where Kakashi and the others had been standing moments before. His hand rested on Inoichi Yamanaka's shoulder as he looked at the surrounding Jōnin.
"One, two, three, four, five, six, seven... Hmm, plus this one in my hand, that makes eight Jōnin. The Third Hokage is truly generous, sending so many Jōnin after me."
Chōza broke out in a cold sweat. "When did he...?"
Kagaya smiled slightly. "From the moment Haku answered that no one was there, the one sitting there training has already been a clone."
Kagaya pointed towards the clone that was still sitting on the ground, intently studying the fake Scroll of Seals.