Just as Goku was about to answer, four figures burst from the forest at high speed, appearing nearby.
"Asuma-sensei, Shikamaru—are you two alright?"
A blonde female ninja—wearing a short purple skirt, fishnet stockings, and a high ponytail—spoke first, her face full of concern.
Another ninja, a stout man clad in samurai-style armor, chimed in immediately:
"We rushed over the moment we saw the distress signal. Did you find the target?"
They were Asuma's other two students: Ino Yamanaka and Choji Akimichi.
"We found it. If it hadn't been for this young man's help, we would have been wiped out."
Asuma instinctively reached into his pocket for a cigarette to calm his nerves, only to remember he had quit smoking because Kurenai was pregnant.
Shikamaru quickly recounted what had just happened.
"What? Even you and Asuma..."
The expressions of the other two Jonin—Raido Namiashi and Aoba Yamashiro—changed instantly upon hearing this.
After all, Asuma was an elite Jonin of Konoha, ranking among the very best of the Jonin class.
Izumo and Kotetsu were Special Jonin; with their seamless teamwork, they were capable of handling an average Jonin when fighting together.
As for Shikamaru, while his raw power might have been slightly lower, his intellect was renowned throughout Konoha, and his Shadow Possession Jutsu was a premier control-type technique.
Yet, this four-man squad had nearly been wiped out within ten minutes of encountering two members of the Akatsuki organization.
They hadn't even had a chance to retreat.
Had it not been for the sudden appearance of this young boy, Asuma would have lost his life.
One could only imagine just how terrifying the strength of those two Akatsuki members was.
"Mr. Goku, thank you for saving our mentor."
Upon hearing this, Ino and Choji immediately stepped forward and bowed respectfully to Goku.
Shikamaru silently joined them in the bow.
Deep down, they were truly grateful to Goku for saving Asuma—a mentor who was like a father figure to them.
"Were the two people you fought earlier... bad guys?"
Goku asked curiously.
From their conversation, he had gathered that the Konoha ninja were pursuing the two ninja who had just fled.
It hadn't been a standard sparring match.
"They were members of an evil organization called Akatsuki. A few days ago, they slaughtered all the monks at the Fire Temple.
We were ordered by the Fifth Hokage to hunt them down."
Shikamaru gave a brief answer; while he was grateful for Goku's help, he was careful not to reveal too much sensitive information.
"So, they were both bad guys."
Upon hearing that Hidan and Kakuzu had slaughtered everyone in an entire temple, Goku's brows furrowed.
He hadn't needed to use Legilimency; his spiritual perception alone was enough to tell that Shikamaru was telling the truth.
"Since they're bad guys, I'll help you catch them!"
He hadn't realized before that Hidan and Kakuzu were villains; he had simply thought it was excessive of them to go for the kill during a sparring match.
That was why he hadn't stopped them when they chose to leave.
Now that he knew they were the sort of villains who enjoyed slaughtering the innocent, he was naturally willing to step in and help capture them.
It was just like back at Hogwarts, where he would often join Dumbledore in hunting down dark wizards.
"Thank you, Mr. Goku. We don't know where they've fled to right now, so we'll have to wait until we gather some intelligence before going after them."
Asuma walked over upon hearing this, expressing his gratitude once more.
The impression Goku gave him was one of immense strength—particularly in taijutsu—yet the boy himself was incredibly simple and guileless.
He would give away a miraculous, life-saving medicine without a second thought, and the moment he heard those two were the villains who had massacred the Fire Temple, he eagerly offered to help catch them.
However, Hidan and Kakuzu were far too dangerous, and their current whereabouts were unknown.
Asuma didn't want to drag this innocent, kind-hearted youth into the fray unless absolutely necessary.
"Right over there—I can sense their location. They've stopped and aren't moving. If you want to catch them, I can teleport us right there immediately."
Goku pointed toward the north.
He remembered the ki signatures of Kakuzu and Hidan; as long as they hadn't fled beyond his sensing range, he could teleport to them at any moment.
"You can sense their location and teleport us there?"
Asuma's eyes widened in astonishment.
He hadn't expected this youth to be not only a master of taijutsu but also skilled in sensory ninjutsu and space-time ninjutsu.
Sensory ninjutsu was one thing, but space-time ninjutsu was a rarity across the entire ninja world.
In Konoha, only the Second and Fourth Hokage had ever mastered it.
Nowadays, the only way the village could manage it was through the combined effort of three shinobi—Genma Shiranui, Raido Namiashi, and Iwashi Tatami—working together.
"What do you think, Shikamaru?"
Asuma looked toward Shikamaru. Shikamaru pondered for a moment, then finally nodded.
They had already fully gathered intelligence on the one named Hidan, and he had devised a strategy to deal with him.
That left only Kakuzu.
On their side, Asuma had fully recovered, and they were reinforced by Raido Namiashi, Aoba Yamashiro, Ino, and Choji.
Most importantly, they had this expert named Son Goku with them.
So, a confrontation was definitely viable; even if they couldn't take the pair down, they should at least be able to force them back or make a safe retreat.
This would also allow them to gather intelligence on Kakuzu.
With information on both of them, they could formulate a targeted capture plan for next time, greatly increasing their chances of success.
In battles between ninja, unless there is a massive disparity in strength, intelligence is crucial.
Knowing the opponent's details allows for targeted strategies— enabling a Genin to kill a Chunin, or a Chunin to kill a Jonin— making such outcomes entirely possible.
"Mr. Goku, we'll be counting on you in a bit; you just need to get us close to them.
Once we return to Konoha, the village will certainly reward you!"
Recognizing the rare opportunity, Asuma ultimately agreed to Shikamaru's plan.
However, he didn't ask Goku to fight; he only wanted Goku to transport them to the vicinity of Kakuzu and Hidan.
Even if they could successfully take the pair down, he preferred not to have Goku intervene, to avoid any risk of injury to him.
"No problem. I'll drop you off just a short distance ahead of them."
Goku nodded.
The strength of Hidan and Kakuzu didn't particularly interest him, so he had no objection.
However, Shikamaru didn't have Goku take them over immediately; instead, he first took out a military ration pill to replenish the stamina and chakra he had expended.
Then, he began formulating a targeted battle plan.
"What is that?"
Goku wasn't interested in their battle plan, but he was intrigued by the small black pill Shikamaru had eaten.
He had noticed that after Shikamaru consumed the pill, his physical condition began to improve noticeably.
"This is a soldier's ration pill; it can quickly restore chakra and replenish physical strength."
Ino took out a homemade soldier's ration pill and handed it to young Goku, a look of surprise on her face.
She was astonished that an expert like Goku wouldn't know about soldier's ration pills.
Surely, no ninja would be unaware of them.
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