Naruto: From Novice to Grave

Chapter 89 - Traps are useless against experts in perception.

What would happen to a ninja who lacks effective defensive measures if struck by the full power of the dense wind blades of [Wind Release: Shadowless Sword]?

For details, please refer to the situation of a 12.7mm machine gun firing at a crowd.

The ground was littered with severed limbs and broken arms; not a single one of them died peacefully, all shattered into pieces.

Thanks to the timely support from Higashino Makoto's squad, no one from Konoha was killed.

When everyone arrived and saw this bloody scene, even though they were used to seeing dead people, they still felt a little uncomfortable.

But no one pitied these mostly dark-skinned Cloud Ninjas. Despite their discomfort, their eyes held a hint of glee.

A Konoha ninja spat at the corpse: "Pah, these bastards, they died so easily, you got off too easy."

His teammate said, "Alright, the man is dead. What do we do now? Should we pack him up and take him back? Captain Fang?"

""

Akaya, the captain of the Chunin squad that came from nearby to provide support, was also unable to make a decision and asked, "Kumomi Jonin, what do you think we should do?"

Moonlight Cloud saw without hesitation: "These are no longer of any use, let's bury them all. Just seal up the bodies of the four we killed."

Yi Ya gestured for his subordinates to handle the situation.

The leader of the Chunin squad stationed in this area was a member of the Hyuga clan. He said thankfully, "That was a close call. Luckily, your support came in time, or we would have been finished. Thank you so much."

Moonlight Cloud waved its hand: "They are all Konoha comrades, no need to thank me. You were just lucky. We discovered the trail of this Cloud Ninja group and chased after them all the way here, and just in time to catch up."

Higashino Makoto stepped forward and said, "Senior, let me treat you; you're still bleeding!"

Hyuga Chunin was somewhat surprised: "Oh, you also know medical ninjutsu? No wonder you're Konoha's number one genius of the new generation!"

With the arrival of the support troops, some of the latest important news from the village was also brought to the front line. After a few days, everyone had some understanding of Higashino's information.

Even if you don't know the person, you can tell from their unique fighting style that a ninja is a profession that is very good at analyzing intelligence.

Meanwhile, the Second Northern Command, responsible for fighting against Kumogakure in the Land of Hot Water, was overseen by the Hyuga clan, so there were Hyuga clan ninjas stationed along the defensive line at intervals.

This is also why they were able to detect the enemy in advance.

Trying to launch a surprise attack right under Hyuga's nose is no different from dancing in a minefield, leaving the Cloud Ninja helpless and filled with hatred for these Byakugan.

The young Hyuga Hiashi didn't care; he was now single-mindedly trying to emulate Uchiha Fugaku and gain a lot of merit. Unfortunately, some of his proactive attack plans were rejected by the others in the command.

Are you kidding me? All we need to do here is hold off the Cloud Ninja. The key to victory or defeat in the North lies with the First Command Post.

The Hyuga clan had already experienced this kind of greed and recklessness on the Eastern Front once before, and no one wanted to repeat it here. If they lost the eyes of the Hyuga clan head, no one could bear that responsibility.

After a short rest, Captain Yiya said, "Everyone, we need to return to our own defense zone. Take care."

Moonlight Cloud nodded and said, "Go. If you spot the enemy, don't force an engagement. Immediately send out a distress signal. We're patrolling this area and can get there to support you right away."

"Don't worry, Jonin Kumomi, we won't act recklessly."

As soon as Yi Ya finished speaking, a faint point of light appeared in the distant sky.

Konoha's distress signal flare.

Although they were far away, ninjas all possess chakra, and even without eye-related bloodline limits, their eyesight far surpasses that of ordinary people, so they can naturally see clearly.

After looking at it, Yi Ya immediately said, "That's the stronghold next to ours. It seems they've also been attacked."

Moonlight Cloud asked in confusion, "That's a bit strange. Aren't the Cloud Ninja's attacks on the defensive line supposed to be synchronized? Why are the signal flares going up so late?"

"Recently, the Cloud Ninja's roaming squads have been like this, their attacks have no pattern, and it seems that their only purpose is to eliminate the ninjas on the Konoha defense line."

"Is that so?" After hearing Yi Ya's words, Moonlight Cloud immediately ordered, "Two of our teams will go to provide support. The garrison squads in this area should remain unchanged in case the enemy breaks through from here."

"yes!"

In this situation, the Jonin automatically has supreme command authority, and everyone just needs to follow orders.

The two teams rushed toward the direction from which the signal flare had been launched, but halfway there, Higashino Makoto gestured for everyone to stop.

"Three people are moving towards us, about 6.5 kilometers away. Their chakra fluctuations are off; they used a transformation jutsu!"

Moonlight Cloud immediately knew what had happened: "It seems their companions over there have been wiped out."

The three members of the Akagami Squad looked at Higashino Makoto in surprise. Was this guy a sensory ninja? His sensory range was so far! He could see much farther than the average Hyuga clan member.

Yiya asked, "Senior Yunjian, should we still go over there?"

Moonlight Cloud glanced at the dense forest and said, "No need, just wait here. Zhen, continue sensing."

About a minute later, Higashino Makoto quickened his pace: "There are 17 targets about two kilometers away from the three of them, scattered in a semi-circle. These are hunting traps."

"Two kilometers? The Hidden Cloud Village knows a lot about the Hyuga clan!"

Akaya sensed trouble: "Should we retreat, Senior Kumomi?"

Seeing that Yueguang Yun didn't respond to him, she asked her disciple, "Zhen, do you think we can fight?"

"The enemy is in the open while we are in the dark, and they are scattered, so we can fight them."

"Alright, prepare for battle."

Soon, three Konoha ninjas appeared before everyone, covered in wounds. The leader exclaimed excitedly, "Great! We're finally saved!"

As they spoke, the three of them sped up and ran towards Higashino Makoto and the others, their expressions of escaping death vividly portrayed.

Deception is a required course for ninjas; most ninjas are masters of acting, far surpassing any young heartthrob.

Young male idols with bad acting skills can swindle money from their stupid fans, but in the ninja world, if a ninja's acting is bad, he'll risk his own life.

Unfortunately, they were exposed from the very beginning.

【Wind Release: Vacuum Sword】

The three were greeted by a lethal ninjutsu that Gekko Kumo had prepared long ago.

Just as the three Cloud Ninja were about to attack together, they were killed by wind blades. Their transformation jutsu was canceled, and they reverted to their dark-skinned appearance.

It was indeed a Cloud Ninja in disguise.

Why is the Transformation Technique considered the lowest level of ninjutsu? Because aside from dealing with ordinary people and careless ninjas, even slightly experienced ninjas won't fall for it.

Against Byakugan, Sharingan, and sensory masters like Makoto Higashino, the Transformation Technique can't even achieve the effect of surprise.

After taking down three disguised enemies in one move, Moonlight Cloud immediately said, "Shin, lead the way. Start by attacking the enemy's weak points."

"no problem!"

On the battlefield, having precise perception is like having X-ray vision—it's that overpowered. That's why every sensory ninja is a treasure to their respective village.

Unfortunately, Konoha ninjas use the clan as a unit of measurement, making other villages drool with envy.

Higashino Makoto led his team to change direction, break out of the encirclement, and begin eliminating the Cloud Ninja from the flank. Before the enemy could close in, he concentrated his superior forces to reduce their numbers.

They first encountered a squad of three people wearing standard Kumogakure uniforms. The three were also confused: This isn't right, this isn't the plan. Why are there suddenly seven Konoha ninjas?

Unfortunately, they didn't have time to verify with their companions. Moonlight Cloud and Higashino Masaki were ahead and quickly defeated their opponents. They didn't even have time to use a single ninjutsu before they were sent to the Pure Land.

"Well done, really, keep it up!"

Now, time is of the essence. Soon, they encountered a second Cloud Ninja team. This team consisted of four people, seemingly similar to the Cloud Ninja Team, with a Jonin leading his students.

Shinichi Higashino charged towards the enemy who appeared to be a Jonin, unleashing several invisible sword strikes. The opponent, experienced and quick-witted, saw the trajectory of the wind blades through the distortion of the air and narrowly avoided them, while simultaneously drawing his own sword to block Higashino's short sword.

His entire body was crackling with lightning, revealing him to be a master of Lightning Release Chakra Mode.

Unfortunately, very few Cloud Ninjas have been able to master this method to a high level throughout history. The most powerful ones were the Third and Fourth Raikage, while most of the other Cloud Ninjas who received the teachings were only at the beginner level.

Higashino increased the amount of wind-attribute chakra within his short sword, extending it into a long sword. He then frantically slashed at his opponent repeatedly, and after four strikes, he cleaved him in two, sword and neck in one swift motion.

In the ninja world, wind beats lightning.

At this moment, Moonlight Cloud and the others also eliminated the remaining three Cloud Ninja.

He asked with a hint of certainty, "Are the remaining enemies clustered together?"

"Yes, they reacted quickly and have already noticed the anomaly here."

Moonlight Cloud instructed, "Hurry up and recover. The next battle will be tough. Although we are outnumbered 7 to 10, we have the advantage."