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Chapter 156: Ghost Sword

Ding~

The kunai and the short sword clashed, producing a crisp metallic clang.

Staring at Ishida Shinsuke who was close at hand, Seimei smiled slightly, activating the hypnotic ability of the Sharingan.

However, Ishida Shinsuke, who was already prepared, immediately averted his gaze.

Seeing this, the smile on Seimei's face suddenly disappeared, and his temperament changed accordingly, no longer having the arrogance of before.

At the same time, his entire fighting style also underwent a tremendous change, from the head-on confrontation when killing those Iwa-nin Chunin before, to the current unpredictable and ghostly movements.

The moment Ishida Shinsuke looked away, Seimei's figure flickered slightly, and he appeared in the opponent's blind spot.

Immediately afterward, the short sword in his hand thrust straight out, aiming at Ishida Shinsuke's heart from a position he couldn't see.

Instantly, a sense of crisis struck Ishida Shinsuke's heart, and he instinctively retreated, dodging Seimei's attack.

Seimei reacted quickly, and after the attack missed, he immediately adjusted his posture and appeared in Ishida Shinsuke's blind spot once again.

Without any hesitation, the short sword thrust out again.

Sensing the danger, Ishida Shinsuke dodged once more, and Seimei's attack missed again.

However, there was no disappointment on Seimei's face, only absolute calmness. His blood-red Sharingan stared at Ishida Shinsuke's every move.

Then, based on this, he predicted the opponent's actions, took his position in advance, and continued to attack from the blind spot.

Even though Ishida Shinsuke himself was not weak, under these circumstances, he could only passively defend, unable to utilize even 60-70% of his strength.

This was also the reason why the survival rule "When encountering a Uchiha ninja, in a one-on-one situation, flee immediately" circulated in the ninja world.

Ultimately, it was because the Sharingan had too strong a restraint on ordinary ninjas.

Just the hypnotic ability alone was enough to give many ninjas a headache.

After all, hypnosis was an inherent ability of the Sharingan, and it could be activated without any hand seals, and the process was completely silent.

Although the effect wasn't very strong, in intense battles, a moment of distraction was enough to be fatal.

Therefore, many ninjas didn't dare to make prolonged eye contact when fighting against Uchiha ninjas.

Naturally, this would greatly reduce their combat effectiveness.

On the contrary, Uchiha ninjas could use the Sharingan's insight ability to anticipate the enemy's actions and further grasp the initiative.

With this ebb and flow, ordinary ninjas were naturally no match for Uchiha ninjas.

Of course, all of the above was based on the premise that the strength difference wasn't too great, and the Uchiha ninja could skillfully use the Sharingan.

If a Jonin bullied a Genin who had just awakened the Sharingan, that was a different story.

Similarly, if an Uchiha ninja couldn't skillfully use the Sharingan, the enemy wouldn't be afraid to make eye contact.

However, it was obvious that neither of the above points applied to Seimei.

In fact, compared to other Uchiha ninjas who used other tactics to complement the Sharingan, the 'Swordsmanship' that Seimei created by combining the 'Konoha-Style Kenjutsu' and the 'Uchiha-Style Kenjutsu' was undoubtedly more suitable.

This resulted in even greater suppression for his enemies.

Just like now, in Ishida Shinsuke's eyes, there was only the short sword constantly thrusting from various tricky angles, and the corner of Seimei's clothes as he moved.

Nothing else could be seen.

Yet, Ishida Shinsuke didn't dare to search for Seimei's whereabouts.

Because just a moment ago, he tried to confront Seimei head-on, but he was immediately caught in the genjutsu and almost had his throat pierced by Seimei's sword.

This made him afraid to seek a head-on fight anymore.

Of course, he also thought about running away, but Seimei didn't give him the chance. Relying on his superior 'Swordsmanship', Seimei stuck close to him in close combat.

Coupled with the Sharingan's insight ability, whenever Ishida Shinsuke made a move, he could detect it in advance, and the opponent couldn't create any distance at all.

As for forming hand seals to use ninjutsu...

That was even more impossible.

Because Seimei wouldn't give him the chance to form hand seals.

With his current 'Swordsmanship' and reaction speed, if the opponent dared to spend time forming hand seals, Seimei would dare to take him out with one sword strike.

Beads of cold sweat slid down his cheeks. Ishida Shinsuke's senses were fully open, alert to any slight movement around him, ready to face Seimei's attack at any moment.

At this moment, he felt like a fish in a net. The more he struggled, the tighter the net around him became, making it difficult for him to even breathe.

Whoosh~

The sound of air being pierced came, pulling Ishida Shinsuke's thoughts back to reality.

He almost instinctively judged the direction of the attack, and swung the kunai in his hand sideways, blocking Seimei's attack just in time.

'How many times has this been?'

Ishida Shinsuke pondered in his heart, and then thought to himself, "Next, he should disappear into my blind spot and then attack again, right?"

It had been like this for the past few minutes, and he was gradually getting used to it.

In fact, after suffering several injuries, he felt that he was slowly able to grasp Seimei's fighting rhythm.

Perhaps, if he persisted for a while longer, he would be able to find an opportunity to break free from Seimei's entanglement and completely escape the battlefield.

"Hmm?"

While thinking, Ishida Shinsuke suddenly noticed a figure in front of him. When he saw the person's face, he was startled and immediately wanted to close his eyes.

However, it was too late.

'Demonic Illusion: Shackling Stakes Technique~'

In an instant, Seimei completed the hand seals and cast this Sharingan genjutsu that he had already mastered to perfection.

Immediately, Ishida Shinsuke felt a piercing pain.

Then, his body felt as if it was nailed by several giant iron stakes. Although his consciousness was clear, his body couldn't move at all.

As the saying goes, "A prolonged defense will inevitably lead to a lapse."

Ishida Shinsuke had been on the defensive, only able to follow Seimei's fighting rhythm.

Although he gradually adapted to Seimei's rhythm as time passed,

Similarly, the conditioned reflex formed under high pressure would also hinder his normal reactions to some extent.

So, when Seimei suddenly changed his tactics, he couldn't react in time.

As for the consequences?

It was like this now, Seimei decisively seized the opportunity and instantly defeated him with the 'Demonic Illusion: Shackling Stakes Technique'.

However, Ishida Shinsuke still didn't give up.

He stared at Seimei with his eyes wide open, his body trembling slightly, trying his best to break free from the control of the 'Demonic Illusion: Shackling Stakes Technique'.

Originally, Seimei was still thinking about whether to keep him alive as a 'chakra battery', but seeing his performance and considering the current situation, he ultimately gave up with regret.

Puchi~

The sound of a blade piercing flesh rang out.

Ishida Shinsuke felt his body relax, and he could move again.

But immediately afterward, a sense of weakness washed over him. Ishida Shinsuke looked down and saw a familiar short sword already embedded in his chest.

Blood trickled from the corner of his mouth. Ishida Shinsuke looked at Seimei one last time and struggled to utter two words: "Ghost Sword!"

"Ghost Sword?"

Seimei repeated these two words, inexplicably feeling that it suited him quite well.

As of now, his 'Swordsmanship' combined with the Sharingan, when fighting against others, was indeed like a ghost, only the shadow could be seen, not the form.

Therefore, it wasn't an exaggeration to call it "Ghost Sword".

At this time, Seimei didn't know that in the coming months, the four words "Ghost Sword Seimei" would become his exclusive title, resounding throughout the Land of Rain battlefield, becoming a taboo known to everyone.

(End of Chapter)

Chapter 157: Tactics

Tssss~

Seimei pulled the short sword out of Ishida Shinsuke's chest, watched his body slowly fall to the ground, and then scanned the surroundings.

At this moment, the Iwa-nin had been divided and surrounded by the Konoha ninjas, caught in a fierce battle.

After all, although Iwagakure had hidden some of their forces, the total number was only a little over a hundred. And on their side?

Nearly five hundred!

The two sides weren't even on the same level.

Therefore, Seimei wasn't worried about the outcome of this battle, but he was concerned about whether the subsequent advance would be smooth.

However, those were matters for later. Let's check the gains from this battle first!

Seimei hadn't forgotten his main purpose for joining the combat team. If the rewards weren't up to expectations, he wouldn't put in too much effort later.

Opening the panel, Seimei's gaze directly locked onto the 'Swordsmanship' option in the skill column.

He saw that the proficiency behind it had directly increased by more than twenty points compared to before. This was almost equivalent to half a day's worth of his cultivation.

Seimei was very satisfied with this.

'It seems I can't slack off later.'

Thinking this in his heart, Seimei closed the panel and then searched the battlefield for a new target.

Soon, an Iwa-nin Jonin wielding a sword entered his sight.

After carefully observing for a while, Seimei determined that the opponent's swordsmanship level was average.

But even a mosquito leg was still meat. Seimei didn't disdain it. With a few flashes, he directly appeared in front of this Iwa-nin Jonin.

Ding~

A crisp metallic clash sounded.

Seimei raised the short sword in his hand, blocking the Iwa-nin Jonin's strike.

Then, without turning his head, he said, "I'll take this one. You go and direct the battle."

Hearing this, the Konoha Jonin who was previously entangled with this Iwa-nin Jonin looked back at the place where Seimei had fought earlier.

Seeing the already dead Ishida Shinsuke, he couldn't help but gulp, then decisively nodded and said, "Okay!"

This simple word revealed absolute trust.

After all, he was only a Tokubetsu Jonin, and the Iwa-nin Jonin he was fighting was also a Tokubetsu Jonin.

However, he had glanced at Ishida Shinsuke, who was fighting Seimei, and the opponent was definitely a true Jonin.

And such a Jonin died at Seimei's hands in just a few minutes, so what else did he have to worry about?

Now, it should be the Iwa-nin Jonin on the other side who should be worried.

In fact, that was indeed the case.

When Toyama Daito followed his gaze and saw Ishida Shinsuke's corpse, his heart trembled, and then a thought of escape arose.

Especially when he saw Seimei's blood-red Sharingan, he felt even less confident.

However, since Seimei had already arrived, whether to fight or flee was no longer up to him.

Not giving him a chance to think, Seimei loosened his wrist, retracted the short sword, then his figure flashed and appeared beside Toyama Daito.

Then, he swung his sword, aiming directly at the opponent's neck.

Sensing the impending danger, Toyama Daito quickly focused his mind, dodged to the side, and at the same time swung his sword to counter Seimei.

However, the moment Toyama Daito's arm muscles bulged and his legs shifted their stance, Seimei had already guessed his movement.

Thus, he dodged in advance, causing Toyama Daito's attack to miss.

And before Toyama Daito could regain his footing, Seimei's second attack arrived.

As always, the attack came from the blind spot, leaving Toyama Daito with very little time to react. He could only dodge to the greatest extent possible.

This was equivalent to compressing the opponent's counterattack time.

Taking advantage of this opportunity, Seimei continued to launch attacks around the opponent's blind spot.

In a short while, Toyama Daito fell into the same situation as Ishida Shinsuke, unable to do anything but passively defend.

However, Seimei wasn't in a hurry to finish him off. Instead, he used this opportunity to continuously improve his tactics.

What?

You say such simple tactics still need improvement?

Isn't it just using the Sharingan to force the opponent into an abnormal fighting state and then attacking from their blind spot?

If you really thought that, then Seimei could only say that you were underestimating the enemy.

Which ninja who had been promoted to Jonin didn't have rich combat experience?

If he just rigidly adhered to attacking from the blind spot, he would probably be countered or even exploited in reverse after a few attempts.

This tactic seemed simple, but it was actually very complex.

Not only did he need to constantly judge the enemy's movements, but he also had to be able to come up with countermeasures based on the enemy's movements in an instant.

The countermeasures here didn't just refer to dodging movements, but also went a step further, that is, thinking about the counterattack after dodging.

Only in this way could he force the enemy into his rhythm. And once he made a mistake, the enemy might seize the opportunity.

At that time, whether the enemy escaped or counterattacked, it meant he had to start all over again.

Therefore, to trap the enemy, he couldn't afford a single mistake.

Obviously, to achieve this, he had to have the Sharingan's assistance, otherwise, it would be impossible to make so many decisions in an instant.

But just having the Sharingan wasn't enough, he also needed rich combat experience.

Otherwise, if the enemy made a feint and he fell for it, it would be useless.

In addition, to ensure the effectiveness of the attacks, he also had to have decent close combat skills. In Seimei's case, it was his lv5 'Swordsmanship'.

But even so, Seimei had practiced for a long time before gradually mastering the tricks.

Back when he wasn't proficient, the enemy often broke free from his rhythm.

Although those people were eventually killed by his ninjutsu, it was enough to show that this tactic wasn't easy to master.

Even now, he could only use this tactic to deal with some relatively mediocre Jonin. When encountering stronger Jonin, he usually couldn't completely trap them.

Not only that, but this tactic also had a drawback, that is, it couldn't deal with multiple enemies and could only be used for one-on-one combat.

So, it had quite a few limitations.

However, it was good for honing 'Swordsmanship'.

Just like now, even without opening the panel, Seimei could clearly feel his 'Swordsmanship' slowly improving.

In fact, not only him, but Toyama Daito on the other side also vaguely sensed this.

Although Seimei's evaluation of his swordsmanship was average, it was still considered good among ninjas.

And to be able to train swordsmanship to this level, he must have some talent.

Therefore, it was natural for him to notice the improvement in Seimei's swordsmanship.

But precisely because of this, he felt even more despair, because it meant that Seimei wasn't even using his full strength, and was just using him to practice his sword.

The expression on Toyama Daito's face changed again and again. He glanced at the decreasing number of Iwa-nin around him, and finally, with a hardened heart, he ignored Seimei's attacks and launched a counterattack.

And the moment his movements changed, Seimei noticed the anomaly.

(End of Chapter)

Chapter 158: Unstoppable Momentum

"Hmm?"

Seimei, who was immersed in honing his 'Swordsmanship', suddenly sensed something amiss.

Immediately, his thoughts moved, and the three tomoe in his Sharingan spun rapidly, instantly discerning Toyama Daito's intentions.

"Wanting to perish together? Naive!"

Muttering to himself, Seimei exerted force in his arm, and the short sword that had just been thrust out was forcefully retracted before it could get close to Toyama Daito.

Then, his figure flashed, skillfully dodging Toyama Daito's desperate strike.

"Damn it!"

Feeling his sword strike miss, Toyama Daito's heart trembled.

However, before he could think further, the sound of air being pierced came from beside him.

"Danger!"

Toyama Daito's senses were screaming in alarm. He immediately wanted to dodge, but it was too late.

Slash~

The sound of a blade cutting through flesh rang out.

Seimei's short sword grazed Toyama Daito's chest, leaving a deep wound that exposed bone.

"Ugh~"

The intense pain made Toyama Daito let out a muffled groan. Instinctively, he reached out to cover the wound on his chest.

However, the blood still couldn't stop flowing out, causing his vision to darken.

Toyama Daito knew that if he didn't take some measures soon, the blood loss alone would be enough to kill him.

But...

Toyama Daito scanned his surroundings, but there was no sign of Seimei. How could he dare to treat his injuries with peace of mind?

However, he soon didn't have to worry about this anymore.

Because in the next moment, a short sword pierced through his back, directly penetrating his heart and emerging from the front.

Pfft~

A mouthful of blood spurted from Toyama Daito's mouth.

He looked down and saw the blood-stained tip of the sword piercing through his clothes, exposed.

"Is it over..."

Feeling the strength draining from his body, Toyama Daito murmured.

In the last moments of his life, he thought of his family and couldn't help but think, "If only there were no war!"

Tssss~

Seimei pulled out the short sword, taking away the last trace of Toyama Daito's life force.

His keen senses allowed him to clearly feel the emotional changes in the opponent just now, but he didn't delve deeper or think too much about it.

After all, they were enemies, and Seimei wouldn't be so bored as to sympathize with them.

Putting away the short sword, Seimei's gaze swept across the battlefield.

At this point, the battle here was basically over, with only a few scattered Iwa-nin still struggling.

Also, judging from the commotion coming from the other directions, the battles there were almost over as well.

So, Seimei didn't waste any more time looking for new targets. Instead, he started treating the wounded on his side with the medical ninja on the team.

It just so happened that his 'Healing Technique' needed to accumulate proficiency, and these people were the perfect tools.

Of course, this was just Seimei's own thought.

In the eyes of other Konoha ninjas, his actions were those of a model ninja - taking on the most dangerous enemies during battle and then immediately helping his comrades afterward.

If this wasn't a model ninja, what was?

Even the way other ninjas looked at Seimei carried a bit more admiration.

Although Seimei didn't care about reputation, sometimes, reputation could also act as a protective umbrella.

Therefore, he didn't pay attention to the private discussions of these people.

...

Time passed by.

Half an hour later.

The battle completely ended.

According to statistics, a total of one hundred and five enemies were annihilated this time, with seventy-five casualties on their side. After treatment, twenty-two were confirmed dead.

The casualty ratio between the two sides was close to five to one.

Undoubtedly, this was an exaggerated ratio.

The reason for such a large gap wasn't that the Iwa-nin were so much weaker than Konoha, but rather the huge difference in the number of participants in the battle.

Nearly five hundred people were mobilized from Konoha's side, and most of them were Chunin and Jonin, with Genin accounting for only a small portion.

And Iwa-nin?

There were only a little over a hundred people in total, and most of them were Genin.

Not to mention the individual differences between the ninjas, just in terms of numbers, it averaged out to four or five Konoha ninjas besieging one Iwa-nin.

So, how could the casualty ratio not be exaggerated?

In fact, if it weren't for some Iwa-nin fighting back desperately before dying, Konoha's casualties would have been even smaller, and correspondingly, the casualty ratio would have been even more exaggerated.

Of course, not all Iwa-nin were captured or killed.

After all, they didn't form an encirclement from the beginning, so it was normal for some Iwa-nin to escape.

Even if they had surrounded the entire Iwagakure base from the start, it would have been impossible to stop everyone.

There were so many ninjutsu in the ninja world, who knew what methods people would use to escape?

So, it was impossible to stop them all.

Once the battle here started, the leakage of information was almost inevitable.

Next, it depended on who was better prepared and who was better at seizing opportunities.

After about an hour of rest, Seimei and his group set off again.

According to the plan, they would continue forward and attack a second-line camp of Iwagakure.

Like Konoha, Iwagakure's defense line was also divided into several layers, and their mission was to push forward relentlessly, breaking through each layer and forcing other Iwagakure bases to send reinforcements.

In this way, the Konoha base that had cooperated with them in the feint attack would launch a real offensive, thereby putting pressure on Iwagakure's entire front line.

The whole plan was that simple!

In the ninja world, where extraordinary powers were revealed, tactics and the like could only serve as support.

More often than not, it was a test of the overall strength of the ninja villages.

Therefore, Orochimaru didn't formulate any complex tactics, but only ensured their advantage in the first wave of attacks.

Next, it depended on how they performed.

An hour and a half later.

Seimei and the others arrived at their destination.

As he had guessed before, the information about their attack had already been leaked, and the Iwa-nin in this camp were already on high alert.

However, it was of no use.

In such a short time, it was impossible for them to wait for reinforcements. With only a hundred or so people in the camp, they couldn't stop their attack at all.

The battle ended in just over half an hour.

In this battle, Seimei only killed one Tokubetsu Jonin.

It wasn't that he didn't want to kill more, but there weren't many Jonin in this second-line camp.

With limited targets, he was able to snatch one because he was a member of the combat team and had the duty to deal with high-risk enemy targets. Otherwise, he wouldn't have gotten even one.

Moreover, those Jonin seemed to have already planned to retreat. As soon as the situation turned unfavorable, they immediately led people to escape.

Uh...

Although they didn't take many people with them.

But from their actions and the ninjas they took away, it could be seen that Iwagakure was intentionally preserving its high-end combat power.

It was foreseeable that they would face a tough battle soon.

At that time, these preserved forces would be one of the main forces in that battle.

With this thought, Seimei said to himself, "It seems that in the next battles, I need to kill as many enemies as possible."

Keeping this thought in his heart, Seimei once again helped the medical ninja treat the wounded.

As for the problem of chakra depletion leading to a decline in combat power, there was no need to worry about that.

The lv5 'Chakra Absorption Technique' allowed him to absorb a thousand chakra points in one second and convert ninety percent of it into his own chakra.

Seimei only needed to find an opportunity to touch the enemy for a few seconds before they died to replenish a considerable amount of chakra.

Therefore, there was no need to worry about the problem of not having enough chakra.

(End of Chapter)

Chapter 159: Encirclement and Annihilation

After treating the wounded and resting for about an hour, Seimei and his group set off once again.

Treading under the starlight, they marched forward. In the next few hours, they successively took down two more Iwagakure camps, pushing the front line directly to the vicinity of Iwagakure's third line of defense.

By this time, dawn had broken.

Even though everyone could get some rest after each major battle, the intermittent fighting throughout the night still left them quite exhausted.

Fortunately, their initial goal had been achieved. Messages had come from the other bases, indicating that Iwagakure had secretly withdrawn personnel from these bases last night.

And their feint attack was about to turn into a real offensive.

As for the time...

It was at 10 o'clock this morning!

Therefore, the Nara clan Jonin in charge of command issued the order to rest in place.

From now on, it wasn't about other bases cooperating with them, but rather them cooperating with those bases.

Undoubtedly, Iwagakure withdrawing personnel from the front line must be because of them, and their next task was to contain these people.

Seimei glanced at the time. There were still more than three hours until the general offensive, just enough time to rest.

However, while they wanted to rest, Iwagakure didn't want them to.

In less than an hour, the camp on the third line of defense ahead, their next target, actually took the initiative to send people to attack them.

Well...

Saying they attacked was a bit of an exaggeration; it should be harassment.

These people launched sneak attacks from the periphery from time to time, frequently using explosive tags and ninjutsu with loud noises, clearly not wanting them to rest properly.

Seimei was annoyed by the disturbance, so he simply stopped resting, informed Nara Shikaku, who was in charge of command, and took the initiative to take on the defensive task.

Walking out of the队伍, and coming to the periphery, Seimei keenly sensed some prying eyes. Looking towards the forest, he could vaguely see some Iwa-nin figures.

Seimei carefully sensed for a moment but didn't detect any dangerous aura. They were most likely just some Chunin.

Despite this, Seimei still didn't let his guard down. He summoned a few Konoha Chunin responsible for patrolling and entered the dense forest with them.

Ten minutes later, the Iwa-nin in the surrounding forest were cleared out by Seimei. Although he didn't kill many, it was enough to deter them for a while.

Of course, it was impossible to make them completely stop the harassment.

Because these people had obviously received instructions from higher-ups, no matter how dangerous it was, they had to come and try.

And Seimei took this opportunity to replenish his chakra and also gained some proficiency in various skills. Although it wasn't much, it was better than nothing!

...

Time passed by.

In the blink of an eye, it was mid-morning.

Whether it was Konoha's side or Iwagakure's side, the atmosphere became subtle. Both sides seemed to have the intention to make a move.

Seimei's side naturally wanted to take action to coordinate with the general offensive launched by the other bases.

And the only possibility for Iwagakure to take action was that their reinforcements had arrived, or were about to arrive. They were afraid that Seimei and his group would leave in advance, so they were preparing to attack.

Nara Shikaku sensed this and immediately changed the attack order to retreat.

Seimei thought for a moment and understood his intention. This was obviously to use the Iwa-nin's eagerness to keep them there to lure them out of the camp.

Facts proved that his strategy was successful.

The Iwa-nin in the camp ahead, seeing them leave, immediately organized their forces, left the camp, and pursued them.

This wasn't to say that Nara Shikaku's strategy was particularly brilliant, but rather that those Iwa-nin had to act.

As for the reason...

It was simple. Seimei and the others' crazy killing spree last night had angered the Iwagakure high command. They had given these Iwa-nin a death order, which was to keep Seimei and the others at all costs.

Precisely because of this, as soon as Seimei and the others showed a slight intention to retreat, those Iwa-nin couldn't wait to jump out.

And without the home field advantage of the camp, fighting again would undoubtedly be a bit easier for their side.

But it was only a bit easier.

This time, the number of Iwa-nin dispatched was two hundred, and most of them were Chunin and Jonin, with Genin accounting for only about one-third of the total.

This configuration was completely different from the previous camps.

It wasn't that this third-line camp was special and needed so many ninjas stationed there.

Rather, the Iwa-nin who had escaped from the previous bases and camps that Seimei and the others had breached had all gathered here.

The Iwa-nin who managed to escape were generally quite skilled, and Iwagakure had also transferred the Chunin and Jonin from the two nearby camps.

This was why the number and quality of Iwa-nin in this camp exceeded that of an ordinary third-line camp.

Similarly, it was also for this reason that Seimei said that even if they lured these people out of the camp, the battle would only be slightly easier.

After all, the overall strength of these Iwa-nin was there. No matter how much they strategized, the fight wouldn't be too easy.

Fortunately, their overall strength was still superior, and they wouldn't be at a disadvantage. It would just be a bit more difficult to fight.

After retreating a certain distance, Nara Shikaku had everyone stop, adjust their formation, and prepare to face the Iwa-nin's attack.

And the Iwa-nin didn't disappoint. After catching up, as if afraid they would escape, they launched an attack without any废话.

"Earth Release: Rock Bullet Technique~"

Instantly, dozens of Iwa-nin formed hand seals simultaneously and cast this technique.

Thumb-sized pebbles were spat out from their mouths.

Then, in mid-air, they rapidly spun and grew larger, eventually transforming into fist-sized rocks that smashed towards the team where Seimei was.

In response, nearly a hundred Konoha ninjas threw the kunai in their hands, shooting towards the Iwa-nin's formation.

However, facing such an attack, neither the Iwa-nin nor the Konoha ninjas showed any signs of panic.

No wonder, such an attack couldn't cause any substantial damage to the ninjas on both sides, at most, it would just disrupt their formation a bit.

The final outcome still depended on the subsequent close combat.

"Kill!"

A loud shout erupted from the Iwa-nin ranks.

Instantly, all the Iwa-nin, as if injected with chicken blood, charged towards the Konoha ninjas, and a chaotic battle instantly broke out.

In no time, various sounds filled the entire battlefield.

There was the clanging of metal from colliding ninja tools, the rumbling of exploding tags, and the screams and cries of injured ninjas.

In short, it was utter chaos.

However, Seimei didn't have the time to pay attention to these for now, because he was currently being besieged by three Iwa-nin Jonin.

That's right, besieged by three people.

Just a moment ago, he had just targeted an Iwa-nin Jonin, but immediately two other Iwa-nin Jonin rushed over and formed a three-person team with the first Iwa-nin Jonin he attacked, launching a siege on him.

Obviously, his information had been leaked.

Otherwise, the Iwa-nin's reaction wouldn't be so strong.

But...

Seimei's gaze swept over the three, dodging their attacks while sneering inwardly, "Hehe, do you really think three mere Tokubetsu Jonin can besiege and kill me?"

That's right, after some probing, he had determined that all three of them were only Tokubetsu Jonin. As for their specific specialties, he hadn't figured it out yet.

However, it didn't matter anymore. As long as these three weren't true Jonin, Seimei had enough confidence to deal with them.

(End of Chapter)

Chapter 160: Counterattack

Ding~

Seimei swung his sword, blocking an attack from an Iwa-nin Jonin.

Before he could make his next move, another Iwa-nin Jonin swung his unique weapon, a scythe-like tool, making it difficult to block, especially with no opportunity to do so.

Seimei pushed off the ground, leaping into the air as the scythe swept past his feet with a whoosh.

He sheathed his short sword, landing two or three meters away.

Before he could steady himself, several more whistling sounds filled the air.

Seimei turned sharply, the tomoe in his Sharingan spinning rapidly. He instantly saw the flight paths of several incoming kunai.

With a flicker, he narrowly avoided the kunai thrown by the third Iwa-nin Jonin.

At that moment, a figure appeared before him, thrusting a kunai directly at his throat.

It was the first Iwa-nin Jonin he had blocked, attacking again.

Seimei, without taking a breath, swung his sword, blocking the attack.

The Iwa-nin Jonin persisted, continuing his assault with the kunai.

However, with the Sharingan's keen insight and his Lv5 Swordsmanship, Seimei blocked every attack with precision.

Soon, the Iwa-nin Jonin began to tire.

Seeing this, Seimei prepared to counterattack.

But then, the Iwa-nin with the scythe approached, joining the attack.

Seimei had no choice but to continue defending.

This was the three Iwa-nin Jonin's tactic: through continuous attacks, force him to reveal an opening and then kill him.

Seimei could sense that these three had clearly trained together.

The ones with the kunai and scythe were the main attackers, while the one who had thrown the kunai from a distance filled in the gaps.

Their roles were clear, their movements skilled. They had obviously cooperated many times and had a good chance of success against ordinary Jonin.

But Seimei was different; he was not an ordinary Jonin.

Although the three cooperated well, there were flaws, at least in his eyes, they were not perfect.

Just like now...

Seimei dodged the kunai thrust from the Iwa-nin in front of him. Although the scythe-wielding Iwa-nin immediately stepped in to fill the gap, it still gave him time to react.

And that was enough for him to launch a counterattack.

With a thought, Seimei instantly activated the Sharingan's hypnotic ability.

The scythe-wielding Iwa-nin, relying on his companion, had never avoided Seimei's gaze and was immediately caught in the genjutsu, freezing in place, briefly losing focus.

"Dairo!"

The kunai-wielding Iwa-nin noticed the abnormality and, with a low shout, flashed in front of Sugimura Dairo, blocking Seimei's short sword for him.

Before Seimei could launch a second attack, the Iwa-nin Jonin in the distance, acting as a backup, had already thrown several shuriken, aiming at Seimei's vital points.

Hearing the subtle whistling sound, Seimei smiled slightly, pushed off the ground, and suddenly retreated, avoiding the incoming shuriken.

Then, he flipped his hand, and several shuriken appeared in his palm.

Seimei glanced at the distant Iwa-nin Jonin, instantly judged his movement, and then threw the shuriken in his hand.

Then, regardless of the result, he made a few more backward leaps, once again creating some distance between himself and the two Iwa-nin Jonin in front of him.

At this time, Sugimura Dairo had just recovered from his daze.

However, what greeted his eyes was a giant fireball.

It turned out that during his retreat, Seimei had already completed the hand seals and unleashed the signature ninjutsu of the Uchiha clan - Fire Style: Great Fireball Technique.

Moreover, this time he used 300 chakra points, creating a fireball nearly three meters in diameter with an extremely high temperature.

Even from a distance, Sugimura Dairo could feel the intense heat emanating from it.

Seeing that he was about to be engulfed by the fireball, Sugimura Dairo didn't show much fear on his face.

It wasn't that he wasn't afraid of death, but in front of him, the kunai-wielding Iwa-nin Jonin had already responded.

He saw him quickly complete the hand seals with both hands and then slap the ground, using the ninjutsu - Earth Style: Earth Shore Return!

The ground in front of them flipped, and a stone slab about two meters long suddenly stood up, blocking the two of them.

Boom~

The fireball hit the stone slab, causing a violent explosion.

Immediately afterward, flames surged from the edges of the stone slab, bringing a terrifying heat that made the two people behind it feel a burning pain on their cheeks.

Crack~

Suddenly, the sound of something cracking came.

The two Iwa-nin looked in the direction of the sound and saw a thin crack appear on the stone slab in front of them.

Crack, crack~

Two more cracks appeared.

Seeing this, the two of them changed their expressions and jumped back together.

At the moment they left, the stone slab exploded, turning into countless stones, carrying blazing flames, and smashing in all directions.

Sugimura Dairo and the other Iwa-nin flickered, avoiding the flying stones.

However, their clothes were burned with several large holes, making them look somewhat disheveled.

Seimei looked at the two of them, raised his hands, and was about to press his advantage and continue attacking.

But at this moment, a slight tremor came from under his feet. Seimei didn't even think, immediately jumping backward.

The next moment, a sharp rock spike, a full one and a half meters long, suddenly emerged from the place where he had been standing.

"Earth Spear?!"

Seimei instantly recognized this signature ninjutsu of Iwagakure.

Then he glanced around and saw the Iwa-nin Jonin in the distance.

At this time, the opponent's hands were pressing on the ground, his eyes fixed on him.

Obviously, this "Earth Style: Earth Spear" technique was cast by him.

'If that's the case, then there's definitely more than just this one.'

Seimei was thinking this when the familiar tremor came from under his feet again.

He immediately retreated, and another rock spike, almost identical to the previous one, emerged from the ground, piercing through the spot where he had just been standing.

And this was just the beginning.

In the next few breaths, Seimei continuously flickered, avoiding nearly a hundred rock spikes.

The later these rock spikes appeared, the faster they emerged, and the less noticeable the prior movement was.

If Seimei didn't have the Three-Tomoe Sharingan with its amazing insight, he might not have been able to avoid them so easily.

Feeling the movement underground disappear, Seimei murmured, "Is it over?"

He glanced around, and the original forest had turned into a stone forest, with sharp rock spikes everywhere, making one's scalp tingle.

Looking at the Iwa-nin Jonin in the distance, his face looked a bit unsightly.

Obviously, he wasn't very satisfied with the result.

(End of Chapter)