Hatake Sakumo's preemptive strike clearly stunned the enemy. The Sand Shinobi squad leader, whose head Sakumo had severed, was naturally a very skilled individual, yet he was instantly killed without even a single exchange. The psychological shock this brought to the others was immense.
Hatake Sakumo swept past the headless corpse without a glance, fixing his gaze on the next person. The short blade in his hand subtly lifted, leaving a sharp, fang-like gleam in the eyes of others. After he crossed paths with another Sand Shinobi, that ninja's head separated from his neck. Before it even hit the ground, Hatake Sakumo lunged towards another person.
True life-or-death swordplay is like this; there are no flashy duels, and victory or defeat is decided in a short amount of time. Before Hatake Sakumo's rapid advance, the Sand Shinobi didn't even have time to react, unable to unleash a single ninjutsu. Two of them were already eliminated, and the number continued to grow.
Hatake Sakumo tore a path directly through the enemy squad, like a sharp knife slicing through dough, leaving a gaping rift. The enemy inevitably fell into disarray, and at that moment, those from the rear arrived, further widening the rift.
Yamanaka Risa followed closely behind Hatake Sakumo. At this point, Asuna and Mizuki, who were guarding her flanks, made their move. Mizuki unleashed a barrage of shuriken, which collided with each other and, with exquisite arcs, assaulted the Sand Shinobi from incredible angles. Caught off guard, many were hit, and those who weren't were forced to retreat.
"Wind Release: Vacuum Sphere."
On the other side, Asuna had begun forming hand signs the moment Hatake Sakumo charged forward. Now, she had finished. Taking a deep breath, she expelled a large number of wind bullets that shot towards the Sand Shinobi like projectiles. Like with Mizuki, those Sand Shinobi were either struck or forced to block and evade.
The two didn't linger. After temporarily forcing the enemy back, they immediately caught up with Yamanaka Risa, repositioning themselves to protect her. As for the remaining enemies, they would be dealt with by the incoming Konoha shinobi.
After Hatake Sakumo had penetrated the entire Sand Shinobi squad's formation, he saw that the number of people in this Sand Shinobi squad was not large. Their numerical advantage was very clear, and having caught the enemy off guard, he shouted, "Eliminate them all!"
No sooner had he spoken than Hatake Sakumo charged towards the nearest Sand Shinobi. The panicked enemy began to counterattack, but in just one exchange, the flash of a blade pierced his neck.
Meanwhile, Asuna and Mizuki protected Yamanaka Risa's flanks, keeping an eye on their surroundings. When a Sand Shinobi charged forward, Asuna glanced back, then charged out. Mizuki, with an unspoken understanding, did not follow. She knew this was Asuna's way of indicating she would handle all the enemies.
Seeing that her opponent was a delicate-looking young girl, this Sand Shinobi did not let his guard down, cautiously gripping his kunai. Asuna's speed was incredibly fast, and in a flash, she was in front of the Sand Shinobi. At this distance, there was no time to even use ninjutsu; Asuna's short blade had already swung.
In close-quarters combat, very few people can use ninjutsu. Even if they can, it's usually small-scale ninjutsu. Most rely on taijutsu, which is why taijutsu has always been of paramount importance to a ninja.
The Sand Shinobi blocked the incoming blade and was about to counterattack when he found the opponent's figure had vanished from his sight. He instinctively froze for a moment, and in that brief instant, he felt a sharp pain in his back, immediately crying out and falling to the ground.
It turned out that at the very moment the short blade and kunai collided, Asuna used the rebound force to spin her body. Using her petite frame, she slipped behind the Sand Shinobi and then swung her blade. With wind-style chakra infused, the short blade was practically able to cut through steel, let alone a normal person's body. The Sand Shinobi's upper body was almost completely severed, clearly beyond saving.
The nearby Sand Shinobi, who had come to assist, gasped at the sight. He hadn't expected this young girl to be so ruthless and astonishingly powerful, eliminating his comrade in just one exchange. Especially her movement technique, which seemed far from simple.
This Sand Shinobi didn't know that Asuna's movement technique was learned from her father's student, Hattori Heizo. Hattori Heizo knew that his frontal combat ability was slightly weaker than his peers, so he put a lot of effort into movement and illusionary techniques. Kazamori Masaki also helped a lot with this.
After dispatching that person with a single strike, Asuna charged towards the next. Mid-leap, she spun her body. The opponent only felt a blur before his eyes as Asuna kicked him in the chest with both feet, using the momentum to propel herself away. The man, having been kicked by Asuna, felt his blood surge. Before he could catch his breath, he felt a chill at the back of his neck.
In an instant, the Sand Shinobi felt the world spin, his vision revolving at high speed. Vaguely, he saw a headless corpse standing in place, which seemed to be his own body. This was the last thought that remained in his memory. Gradually, he never woke up again.
If anyone else had witnessed that scene, they would have known how that Sand Shinobi died. Just as Asuna spun her body, a thin wire silently wrapped around the back of the Sand Shinobi's neck. And as Asuna kicked him and flew away, the wire was pulled. Because its surface was imbued with wind-style chakra, it only took a certain amount of force to sever the head.
This was far from over. Asuna used that Sand Shinobi as a springboard, leaping away. Her entire body was like a sharp arrow, darting in front of another Sand Shinobi, thrusting her short blade and piercing his heart. The opponent couldn't even utter a word before falling dead.
Mizuki couldn't help but inwardly exclaim "Beautiful!" Asuna had deftly eliminated three Sand Shinobi, her technique truly exquisite. During their daily training, Mizuki was aware of Asuna's skill. She herself initially found it a bit difficult, only managing to evade Asuna's attacks through her honed experience. Novel 5 Website
As an observer, Mizuki could feel the danger even more acutely. She could clearly see Asuna's movements, but she completely missed when Asuna had thrown that thin wire and snared the Sand Shinobi. Perhaps only the Sharingan's observational prowess could have seen it clearly.
Currently, Asuna's frontal combat ability is not as good as Hatake Sakumo's, and her mastery of techniques is probably not as good as Hattori Heizo's. But she is now combining both, and the abilities she displays are truly terrifying.
After stabbing that Sand Shinobi to death, Asuna felt a subtle sound from behind her. She tilted her head slightly, and a wind bullet grazed her cheek like a thin wire. Because she was going into battle, Asuna had tied up her hair; otherwise, such an attack would have likely severed a large portion of it. Even so, a small cut appeared on her cheek, and blood slowly seeped out.
Asuna, without looking back, directly flung the thin wire she held behind her. This wire was made of a special material, and under the effect of wind-style chakra, it could be wielded like a whip and was extremely sharp. The Sand Shinobi who had launched a surprise ninjutsu attack was caught off guard, and a long gash appeared on his arm, blood splattering out.
Using the momentum of flinging the wire, Asuna charged towards her opponent. Her short blade instantly swung towards him. The opponent only managed to block for three exchanges. Because one arm was injured, he became stiff, and Asuna found an opportunity to slit his throat.
Asuna's face was expressionless. The enemy's blood splattered on her cheek. Looking at her dark eyes, like deep pools, gave people an inexplicable sense of fear. The surrounding Sand Shinobi unconsciously swallowed, feeling that this young girl was truly dangerous and planning to gang up on her to eliminate her. But they forgot that Asuna was not the only one here.
Soon, the other Konoha shinobi arrived and engaged in a chaotic battle. Asuna moved swiftly through the fray, often only having to face one-on-one situations. And within this Sand Shinobi squad, it seemed no one could defeat Asuna alone. One must remember that not only her, but another person was also hunting with astonishing speed.
Hatake Sakumo primarily specialized in Lightning Release chakra, which should have put him at a disadvantage against the Wind Release ninjutsu inherited by the Sand Hidden Village. However, when the two sides truly clashed, it was as if they completely defied the law of chakra elemental weaknesses. Not a single Sand Shinobi could last three exchanges against him.
The only one who lasted relatively long was a Sand Shinobi puppeteer. After more than twenty years, the Sand Shinobi's development in puppetry had advanced further, incorporating more hidden weapon mechanisms. Hatake Sakumo even discovered that they could now use ninjutsu. Previously, this technology was only found on the highest-grade puppets like the Chikamatsu Collection of Ten. He hadn't expected it to be used on lower-grade puppets now.
However, it still hadn't transcended the need for the puppeteer to provide chakra for the puppets to use ninjutsu. It was still a step behind the new type of ninja tools being researched by the Konoha Hidden Village, which aimed to abandon the user and directly power the tools with chakra storage blocks. If they hadn't yet solved the stage of making chakra storage blocks actively release chakra without a ninja having to extract it, the Konoha Hidden Village could now produce even more advanced weapons than the Sand Shinobi.
Hatake Sakumo used Lightning Release: Lightning Spear to transform his short blade into a javelin, throwing the active Lightning Release chakra—it was just chakra, he didn't throw the short blade itself—into the puppet's body. The Lightning Release chakra, losing its user's control, immediately went wild and then exploded.
The Sand Shinobi puppeteer was covered in blood from the exploding puppet fragments, falling to the ground, his body slowly twitching. Hatake Sakumo, unwilling to let him suffer any longer, threw a kunai, ending his life. In this brutal war that engulfed everyone, the only mercy Hatake Sakumo could offer was to let the opponent's suffering end quickly.
At this point, the battles in other areas had already concluded. Not a single Sand Shinobi remained alive. The entire battle lasted only three minutes, and a Sand Shinobi squad of over forty people was completely annihilated. The Konoha shinobi side only lost four people—and that was because they were caught off guard, and the enemy found an opportunity to commit suicide with them. Without these incidents, the entire assault squad might have suffered no casualties at all.
Although the number of Konoha shinobi was twice that of the enemy, the Sand Shinobi elite squad, honed in the desert environment, was easily wiped out. This only speaks to the astonishing strength of the assault squad and their excellent on-the-spot performance. This Sand Shinobi squad was annihilated before they could even fully unleash their strength.
"Collect the bodies, replenish chakra and stamina." Hatake Sakumo gave a concise order. He first ate the new type of dry rations developed by the Medical Department, then used chakra storage blocks to recover his chakra.
The bodies of their fallen comrades were stored using sealing scrolls. These were to be brought back to the village for burial. Assault squads, undertaking such vital missions, were considered heroic units of the village. Each person deserved to return to their homeland, and even if deaths were unavoidable, their bodies should be brought back.
Asuna moistened a handkerchief with rainwater and slowly wiped the blood from her face. Mizuki and Yamanaka Risa were eating and absorbing chakra nearby. Because the entire assault squad was incredibly effective, the sensory and communication ninjas within the squad were mostly unharmed. Mizuki, who was protecting Yamanaka Risa, basically didn't encounter any opponents. Only one Sand Shinobi, unwilling to give up and knowing Yamanaka Risa might be an important sensory ninja, tried to commit suicide with her but was dealt with by Mizuki from a distance using her inherited kunai techniques and a composite ninjutsu of Lightning and Fire Release.
Knowing that her Fire Release ninjutsu was very limited in the Land of Rain, Mizuki had asked Hatake Sakumo to teach her Lightning Release ninjutsu during her internship in the Land of Rain. Among the five chakra natures, Fire and Lightning are the two most active. Perhaps because of this, Mizuki also had great talent in practicing Lightning Release ninjutsu, and after several years, she had become quite skilled.
Here, neither Fire Release nor Lightning Release could exert their maximum power, but when combined, the abilities they displayed were completely comparable to Fire Release under normal circumstances, and even surpassed it. As a result, that Sand Shinobi tragically died in the continuous explosions of Fire and Lightning Release.
"I didn't expect it to go so smoothly," Mizuki said with some emotion.
"This is just the beginning," Asuna said faintly. Don't be fooled by how easy this battle seemed; in reality, it was extremely dangerous. It only *looked* smooth.
Once everyone had replenished their basic stamina, Hatake Sakumo announced their departure again. They still had a mission to carry out.