Escape from Konoha.

Failure to complete the mission is secondary; the real problem is if his carelessness leads to the enemy's trap, resulting in the complete annihilation of the Shuo Mao squad in this mission.

"No, I have to save them!"

Jiraiya was so anxious that he was covered in sweat and rushed out of the tent without caring about anything else.

"Wait, Jiraiya, don't be impulsive. Even if you rush over there now—"

However, by the time Tsunade caught up with him, Jiraiya had already disappeared into the vast night, vanishing without a trace.

"This idiot, rushing to the rescue like this will easily lead to an enemy ambush!"

Tsunade cursed under her breath, then could only stand helplessly at the tent entrance.

Chapter 56 The Trap of Roots

Deep in the dark and cold forest, it was already around one o'clock in the morning. Shiraishi and his two companions hurried towards their destination.

By the faint moonlight, one could see that numerous steel wires connected the trees, forming an impenetrable spider web, waiting for prey to fall into it.

It's not that we don't want to start the assault from a safe location, but this is the weakest point of attack.

Further ahead lies an important supply point for the Sand Village ninja.

In other words, it would be impossible for them to break in silently under any circumstances. In addition, such an important place must have sensory ninjas monitoring it, and their whereabouts have likely been exposed.

Cut through the spiderweb made of steel wire, and kunai and shuriken shot down from the dark sky in dense formation. Some of the kunai had explosive tags attached to their handles, and their edges were sizzling and burning.

Boom!

Boom!

The relentless bombardment caused people's eardrums to ache.

The earth trembled, and the surrounding trees quickly burst into flames, shattering the tranquility of the night.

However, this also proves that the area ahead is an important supply point for Sunagakure. Otherwise, there would not be such a meticulous defensive trap. Even if one had observed it beforehand with the Byakugan, it would not have been possible to avoid it without making a sound. One could only force their way in.

"They're here: eleven from the west, nine from the south, and seventeen from the north."

Ayane used her Byakugan to observe the number of ninjas who came to stop them from advancing into the defensive position; there were a total of thirty-seven.

Most of them were Chunin, with a few Jonin mixed in as team leaders.

"Start taking the antidote."

After finishing speaking, Shiraishi swallowed the white pill.

Ruri and Ayane followed suit and took the antidote.

Shiraishi then took out two smoke bombs from his ninja tool bag and detonated them in the forest engulfed in flames. In an instant, a hazy cloud of smoke filled the sky. Even though they were useless against sensory ninjas, they could be used to hinder the other ninjas and throw them into chaos.

"Damn it, this smoke is highly poisonous! Get out of here right now!"

The well-trained Sand Village ninjas entered the smoke-filled area and immediately sensed something was wrong. Their bodies began to feel weak and powerless, and a suffocating pain made their heads spin. Some ninjas with lower poison resistance collapsed to the ground, convulsing in pain.

Fire Release: Great Fire Annihilation!

Ruri quickly formed hand seals, and a massive amount of chakra, far exceeding that of the Great Fireball Technique, accumulated in her mouth before releasing it all in one breath.

The towering flames swept through the forest ahead with overwhelming force.

The blazing firelight painted the night a blood-red hue.

The originally cold air rose sharply, making those within the fire zone feel as if their bodies were immersed in boiling water, their skin becoming unbearably hot.

Three small figures darted forward like lightning. These greetings would surely make the Sand Village ninja at the supply point restless.

Ruri's Fire Release technique has a very large range, and there are flammable trees everywhere here. Using Wind Release will only fuel the fire and make it burn even more fiercely.

These fires could only be extinguished with Water Release, which is the least proficient jutsu among the Sand Village ninjas. Moreover, the massive sea of ​​fire had been completely dispersed, and its affected area was far beyond what ordinary Fire Release jutsu could compare to.

It's not something that can be extinguished in a short time using water-based techniques.

Since they only had ten minutes to act, the feint attack plan seemed to have worked, but Shiraishi and his companions couldn't guarantee how much attention the Sand Village ninjas would attract. They could only do their best to complete the mission.

Ten minutes later, regardless of the success or failure of the mission, you must leave the battlefield.

Amidst the blazing fires of the forest, agonizing screams echoed continuously. The battle between the Sand Village forces, who had encountered Shiraishi and his companions head-on, was over in the blink of an eye.

Shiraishi twirled the kunai in his hand, passing by a Sand Village ninja who rushed up, severing his carotid artery and killing him instantly.

"Eight Trigrams - Empty Palm!"

boom!

Ayane's outstretched hand emitted a chakra shockwave similar to an air cannon, striking the Sand Village ninja who was trying to ambush from behind. The ninja was sent flying backward, coughing up blood, and crashing into a tree.

This is a unique long-range taijutsu derived from the Byakugan of the Hyuga clan. The technique is invisible and colorless, and the point of attack is almost impossible to discern with the naked eye. Unless you are a sensory ninja, it is very difficult to avoid this technique.

This ranged attack technique was a reward given to Ayane during the last mission.

The Hokage and the elders of the Hyuga clan negotiated, hoping that the Hyuga clan could teach Ayane, a member of the branch family, more Gentle Fist techniques in order to enhance the fighting power of Sakumo's team.

The Eight Trigrams Empty Palm technique is one of them.

In this plan to attack the Sunagakure supply point, Shiraishi and Ayane will be responsible for the outer perimeter. Ruri only needs to accumulate chakra and continuously release fire-style ninjutsu to increase the scale of destruction and attract all the attention of the Sunagakure ninjas, so as to open a gap for the Anbu to attack the local supply point.

A massive wave of fire surged up again, the scorching heat and rolling flames sweeping away the cold air of the forest.

Everywhere you look, there are traces of flames.

The price paid was also high. Due to the continuous use of high-level fire-style ninjutsu, Ruri's chakra was rapidly depleted. It is estimated that after a few more high-level fire-style ninjutsu, her chakra would be completely depleted.

Liuli knew when to stop. The unrest here had almost reached its peak, and they needed to advance a little further to try and expand the scale of the unrest.

As they ventured deeper into the heart of the Sand Village, a stream came into view near the supply point. On the opposite side of the stream, numerous tents were pitched, surrounded by tall trees that could provide cover for the camp.

The fire that broke out in the forest opposite had already alerted the Sand Village ninjas here. Under the effective command of the Jonin, the Sand Village ninjas who were on high alert here remained in perfect formation and were not worried about the enemy's fierce attack.

"Are they Konoha ninjas? Why are they attacking this place? Have they discovered a secret weapon here?"

One of the Sand Village Jonin frowned.

"If that's the case, things are not good. You know, Jinchuriki cannot be careless in the slightest."

"No matter what, the matter of using the Tailed Beast weapons must not be leaked beforehand. We must catch Konoha off guard!"

The eyes of many Sand Village Jonin were filled with murderous intent, determined to wipe out every single invading Konoha ninja.

On the other side of the river, Ayane's body suddenly trembled and she stopped.

Seeing Ayane stop, Shiraishi and Ruri also stopped.

"what happened?"

As the eyes of the entire team, without Ayane's Byakugan, Shiraishi and Ruri would be flying around like headless flies.

"Something's not right. I didn't see any warehouses storing supplies. This isn't a supply point in Sunagakure at all!"

Ayane's face turned pale; she realized the seriousness of the situation.

Sakumo had told them that the main objective of this mission was to cut off the Sand Village's supply points, which required cooperation with the Anbu.

Although they were ninjas who called themselves 'Root,' they were also a branch of the Anbu. In addition, they had a very familiar understanding of the mission, so the three of them believed it to be true.

However, Ayane scanned the heart of this 'supply point' with her Byakugan and found no warehouses for storing supplies, only a large number of Sand Village ninjas guarding the area.

There was nothing else.

Regardless of why this place was occupied by the Sand Village ninja, Ayane can be certain that it is not a supply point.

Upon hearing Ayane's words, Shiraishi and Ruri's expressions changed.

There's something wrong with the mission! The thought instantly formed in my mind.

"go!"

Not daring to linger for even a moment, Bai Shi was the first to react. Forgetting that they were on a mission, this matter needed to be addressed.

If the mission failed due to a lack of ability, Shiraishi has nothing to argue with.

However, since the information provided was incorrect and the mission was full of deception, there was no need to persist.

The three quickly set off to retreat, but by then, the Sand Village ninjas had already deployed personnel around them, forming an impenetrable net that surrounded Shiraishi and his companions.

……

Above a distant cliff, four Root ninjas, some standing and some sitting, stood or sat, their backs bathed in moonlight, looking down indifferently at the turmoil and fire in the forest.

"Those three are quite capable. No wonder Lord Danzo wanted to eliminate this Uchiha genius and let her grow up. She was too dangerous."

"In the end, Uchiha guys are just not trustworthy. It's a pity about the Byakugan and that medical ninja."

"There's nothing we can do, but if we can eliminate the evil Uchiha ninjas, those two will know that their deaths were worthwhile."

"In this way, Konoha's White Fang will also have to bear the reputation of an incompetent boss who cannot protect his subordinates. The next Hokage position will undoubtedly belong to Lord Danzo. Only Lord Danzo can lead Konoha onto a stronger path."

The four of them communicated word by word, worshipping the 'Lord Danzo' they spoke of with fervent devotion.

According to the original plan, they should have started their suicide attack on the Sunagakure camp from here. However, they are now just watching from the sidelines, completely ignoring the fact that their own village's ninjas are surrounded by the enemy and remaining indifferent.

"Should we leave now? There doesn't seem to be anything to see."

"Wait, although we don't believe they have the ability to break through, just in case, if any of them manage to escape, we'll go up and take care of the survivors. We can't leave any evidence; that's an order Danzo gave us."

Chapter 57 Shukaku's Uprising

As numerous Sand Village ninjas surrounded them, Shiraishi and his companions experienced a brief surge of emotion, but this was quickly suppressed.

Since the die is cast, panicking here will only make your situation more dangerous.

"Ayane, how many people are there in total?"

Bai Shi turned his head and asked.

"Including the Sand Ninja who haven't taken any action, there are a total of 176 people. Currently, 103 Sand Ninja are attacking us."

This Sand Village base is not very large, but it has already penetrated deep into the heart of the territory. Ayane can use her Byakugan to see the number and location of the enemies at a glance.

"One hundred and three people, which means each person has to deal with an average of thirty-four enemies. This is a real problem."

Moreover, in order to incite the riots, Ruri had already used up almost all of her chakra, so she probably only has half of her chakra left now.

Ruri, with half her chakra remaining, could handle ordinary enemies, but facing so many Sand Ninja, including Jonin, it seemed like an impossible and terrible situation to win.