Saving the Uchiha clan starts with becoming the clan leader.

It's an excellent choice for scouting.

While it may not be as effective as a shadow clone in transmitting information, it's perfectly acceptable to first use a water clone to test for danger, and then use a shadow clone to investigate the situation if there is any danger.

Furthermore,

With his water-transformation technique, he is virtually unharmable by ordinary means.

Seeing that Hozuki Mangetsu had chosen the dangerous task of scouting, Uchiha Itachi thought for a moment and didn't try to compete for it. His crimson eyes turned back to black, as keeping the Sharingan active for too long consumed a lot of chakra.

He deliberately stayed at the very back, clearly intending to cover the rear of the group, forming a formation with Hozuki Mangetsu in the lead, Hatake Kakashi in the second, Uchiha Chihaya and Ringo Ameyuri in the middle, and Kaguya Kimimaro and Uchiha Itachi at the rear.

And so, the group ventured into the remote and uninhabited Sumilu Mountain.

雾，

It gradually became thicker.

"Whew! Whew! The temperature is dropping so fast!"

Within ten minutes of entering the mountain, Kakashi Hatake felt the negative effects of the cold environment. And it wasn't just him; everyone felt that as the white mist around them thickened, the rate at which their body heat was being lost was accelerating.

of course,

This is not enough to make them feel that it is difficult.

However... if this situation continues to worsen as they delve deeper, it won't be a good thing.

He rubbed his hands together and looked around.

Because they were wary of traps, they didn't go at full speed, but with their speed, they had already reached the depths of Mount Sumilu. There were no longer any established roads, and they were now traversing through the rocky forest that looked like wolf teeth.

The hazy, cold fog obscured their vision; it wasn't pitch black, but they could only roughly see what was happening within five or six meters around them.

at this time,

"boom!"

A loud noise came from ahead, as if some hard, heavy object had hit the ground.

"Watch out, all my water clones have been wiped out."

Hozuki Mangetsu stopped in his tracks, staring intently at the space ahead shrouded in a thick, white mist. Just as he finished speaking, four iron-colored crossbows pierced through the mist and flew toward the group.

"Crossbow?"

When Kakashi heard the strange noise, he had already raised his headband, revealing his scarlet eyes. He could clearly see the trajectory of the crossbow bolt flying towards him. If he wanted, he could have dodged it without much effort.

just,

Behind him were Uchiha Mae and Ringo Ameyuri. He was a little worried that if he dodged the crossbow, he might be met with an even more terrifying slash from behind. These two battle maniacs knew no restraint when they started fighting, and always went as far as possible in an exaggerated way.

After a fraction of a second of thought, Kakashi chose to swing his kunai to parry the two crossbow bolts that were coming toward him.

As for the other two iron-colored crossbows, they were directly knocked away by Hozuki Mangetsu wielding his twin swords, Hiramekarei.

"Good weight!"

Kakashi exclaimed in surprise.

The impact of those two crossbows was quite strong, making his arm go numb.

"But... what exactly are these things? Are they dogs?" His attention was drawn to the strange dogs that appeared before them through the thick fog, clad in bone armor and carrying crossbows on their shoulders.

"I think so?"

Hozuki Mangetsu looked at the monsters in front of him, not quite sure either.

"It should be dogs, but they've obviously been modified. Maybe we've really found the right place this time." Uchiha Itachi, standing at the back of the group, said in a deep voice. The strange dogs formed an encirclement, and under the cover of the thick fog, they had unknowingly surrounded them.

"Cybernetics? I never knew such technology existed... Ma and the others' schemes are truly ambitious!"

Kakashi quickly understood the value of these things.

The two crossbow attacks from earlier were not a problem for him, but ordinary Chunin might not be able to gain any advantage against him, and could easily suffer a great loss if they were not careful.

Once the number of these strange dogs exceeds a certain level, it will definitely become a big problem.

"Kakashi, is it time to make a move?"

Not everyone thinks as much as Kakashi. For Chihaya Uchiha, she was too lazy to think about so many useless things. No matter what trouble she encountered, she would just cut it down with one slash. If one slash wasn't enough, she would just cut it down a few more times.

"Go ahead and make your move!"

Kakashi paused for a moment, then realized that now was not the time to think about these things. Dealing with these strange dogs in front of him was the most urgent task. As for the rest... he could think about it later.

【Uchiha Style: Heavenly Wind Chaos】

After enduring for a long time, Uchiha Senza unleashed six lightning-fast slashes in an instant.

Amplified by the Kusanagi sword called "Vacuum Blade," the extremely sharp slash directly tore the six monster dogs apart. The seemingly hard bone armor was no stronger than rotten wood in the face of the slash, and even the stone pillar behind the monster dogs was left with deep slash marks.

I don't know if it was the smell of blood that stimulated me.

Or perhaps it's being manipulated by someone behind the scenes.

The strange dogs, which had simply surrounded the group and stopped moving, suddenly roared, and crossbow bolts rained down from all directions like a storm.

fighting,

it has started.

"Luckily, I didn't bring them up with me."

Kakashi, who had escaped using the Substitution Jutsu, looked at the wooden stake that had been shattered by crossbow bolts while standing in his place and wiped away a cold sweat. If he had been with those two ANBU squads, fighting would have been incredibly difficult and restrictive.

The Dark Division is no longer the special forces unit that relied solely on assassination tactics.

The Anbu, which was expanded into a behemoth under Hiruzen Sarutobi, is all-encompassing, with all sorts of talents. It can't be said that this is a bad thing; at the very least, talents like those who are proficient in tracking techniques are still very useful.

[Lightning Release: Giant Serpent Star]

Ringo Ameyuri excitedly swung her Thunder Blade, Fang.

The vast and mighty lightning swept away all the strange dogs that dared to stand in her way. Its destructive power was so strong that it was astonishing. Even Kakashi, who was also skilled in lightning release techniques, could only look up in awe. He and Ringo Ameyuri were clearly on two different paths in their training in lightning release techniques.

He's definitely a technically skilled person.

It emphasizes how to defeat the opponent efficiently and effortlessly.

Needless to say, Ringo Ameyuri is clearly pursuing the ultimate destructive power of Lightning Release Technique.

"Has it gotten stronger again?"

Hozuki Mangetsu wielded his twin swords, Hiramekarei, and smashed the head of a strange dog. Gazing at the constantly flashing lightning, he realized that in just about three months, Ringo Ameyuri seemed to have become a little stronger.

This destructive power,

He was also very envious.

Their clan's water transformation technique excels in survivability, but it's not particularly outstanding in terms of destructive power, unless one can master the techniques left behind by the Second Mizukage. However... this prodigy, beloved by the ninja swords, doesn't seem to be favored by his ancestors.

The techniques left behind by the Second Mizukage have yet to be mastered.

It makes me extremely annoyed every time I think about it.

"Hey, Man-wol, don't get distracted!"

Kakashi shouted.

"…Sorry, I suddenly remembered something."

Hozuki Mangetsu shook his head, clearing his mind of distractions, and continued to focus on eliminating the considerable number of strange dogs. His Blood Mist Blade Technique from Kirigakure was on full display, slaughtering the strange dogs as easily as cutting melons and vegetables.

He wasn't the only one cutting grass.

Aside from Kakashi, who was suspected of slacking off, everyone else was working extremely hard to clean up these strange dogs. Uchiha Chihaya and Ringo Ameyuri, the two battle maniacs, needless to say, fighting was not a burden for them, but rather a pleasure.

There's also Uchiha Itachi and Kimimaro.

One of them combined Uchiha-style throwing techniques with fire-style techniques, effectively killing these strange dogs, but compared to Kimimaro... his speed was still a bit slower.

Kaguya's clan members who awakened their bloodline limits were once known as killing machines during the Warring States period.

The current situation,

It perfectly illustrates what a killing weapon is.

Kimimaro removed his upper body clothing, revealing pale, sharp, and solid bones emerging from various parts of his body. From a distance, he looked like a white hedgehog, a killing weapon that would prick anyone who reached out and draw blood.

Combined with the fighting style passed down through generations of the Kaguya clan,

Kimimaro's bones, which protruded from all over his body, were stained red with the blood of those strange dogs. He himself was not even scratched. Behind him lay a pile of the strange dogs' corpses.

The battle broke out suddenly and ended just as abruptly.

"This is the last one."

Kakashi, who had been coasting the whole way, took down the final monster dog.

At this moment, the stone forest was filled with the corpses of strange dogs, their scarlet blood staining the nearby land. Only the white, cold mist remained untouched, silently drawing heat from the living and the dead.

"Has everything been resolved?"

Hozuki Mangetsu crouched on a stone pillar, looking around warily. Unfortunately, he didn't possess any eye techniques, so he couldn't see very far at this moment.

"Yes, it's almost cleaned up."

"Itachi Uchiha replied."

The Sharingan doesn't have farsightedness, but it can still see through the mist to some extent. He looked around and didn't find any more living monster dogs, however—

"Kakashi-senpai, Mangetsu-senpai, I think we can head north next!" Itachi Uchiha suggested.

"North?"

Hozuki Mangetsu looked over in confusion.

"These monsters, if I'm not mistaken, came from the north. There are quite a few footprints on the green moss over there."

[Chapter 301: Tsunade Picked Up Money!!!]

There were indeed many footprints on the green moss under the stone pillar to the north. Judging from the direction they faced, those strange dogs, which were definitely not natural creations of the ninja world, came from the north. After a short rest, the group continued their journey, groping their way forward along the remaining footprints and other clues.

The dense fog was still quite an eyesore.

but--