Chapter 12: Aren't We the Reinforcements?

Accompanied by the crackling of the campfire, a cold voice shattered the silence.

"Enemy attack! Protect the medical ninja!"

Over a dozen squad captains' faces changed in unison as they reacted swiftly, each running toward the medical ninja around them.

However, whether intentional or not, Senju Rikuto, who had been walking in the middle, had no one guarding him.

His face was deathly pale; the usually steady Rikuto, faced with the overwhelming killing intent, went blank in an instant and stood rooted to the spot in a daze.

"Kekkei Genkai: Ten Finger Bullets!"

A skyful of shuriken, kunai wrapped in explosive tags, and bone arrows rained down, swallowing the area around the campfire in an instant.

A sudden roar of explosions, smoke screens billowed up, and the shrill screams cut off abruptly.

"Kill them all!"

Dozens of figures, eyes wild with madness, charged out of the forest, and a thick fog gradually rose around them.

"Damn it, it's the Mist ninja!"

"Don't be afraid, we have more people. Everyone, counterattack! The Uchiha are on the front line—they'll definitely come help us!"

Right, the Uchiha were still on the front line; as long as the commotion was loud enough, it would surely draw them over.

The others, seasoned by long experience on the battlefield, quickly calmed down, and each squad gathered together to counterattack.

"Wind Release: Great Breakthrough!"

"Fire Release: Grand Fireball Technique!"

Anyone who could become a squad captain was at the very least a chunin, and those who had survived until now had generally picked up a few ninjutsu.

Working together, they tried to blow the fog away, but although there weren't many Mist ninja, they were terrifyingly strong, and with chakra reinforcing it, the fog refused to dissipate.

"Konoha fools, taste my Water Release: Exploding Water Shockwave!"

One man leapt out from among the Mist ninja. His aura was overwhelming, a savage grin curling at his lips. After forming hand seals and slamming his palms down, a volume of water enough to form a lake gushed from his mouth, flooding several hundred meters around in an instant.

"Wh-what ninjutsu is this? How can the enemy have a powerhouse like this?"

The reinforcements were thrown into chaos; they stood on the water's surface, staring at their opponent in terror. A ninjutsu on this scale was far beyond anything they could imagine—a power they could never hope to reach in their lifetimes.

The Mist ninja who had cast the jutsu was also panting; clearly, it had cost him a great deal.

Large-scale ninjutsu like this, even for the powerful, was generally not used carelessly in war, because it consumed too much chakra and was extremely dangerous—but right now, they had to end the fight quickly.

With the water environment established, the Mist ninja's strength was boosted, and the chakra cost of their water-release ninjutsu dropped accordingly.

The surrounding Mist ninja followed close behind, riding the waves, no longer bothering to conserve chakra, and unleashed their ninjutsu in unison.

"Water Release: Water Disorder Wave!"

Streams of water-release ninjutsu erupted from every direction, and in a single clash they shattered the Konoha ninja's formation.

"Water Release: Water Severing Wave!"

A high-pressure water jet sliced through; several genin who couldn't dodge in time were cut apart on the spot.

"Kill!"

After the Konoha ninja's formation fell apart, the Mist ninja launched several more jutsu, and soon both sides were locked in close combat.

In just two short minutes, the reinforcements realized that even with their numerical advantage, they were no match for the enemy—the two sides' combat power wasn't even on the same level.

"Hold on! The Uchiha will definitely come!"

Someone roared; this was their last stand, and only on the battlefield would they long for the Uchiha like this.

Fortunately, apart from Senju Rikuto, the other medical ninja were well protected; even when some ninja suffered minor wounds, they recovered quickly under their ninjutsu.

"Why are there still medical ninja?"

Someone among the Mist ninja was puzzled—who sends medical ninja to the front of a reinforcement column? Aren't you just handing them over for free?

"Forget it, kill them first!"

They had originally planned to hold back some chakra for an escape later, but now it seemed that wasn't going to happen.

"Let me handle this—Water Release: Great Waterfall Technique!"

The already churning water surface boiled even more violently; layer upon layer of massive waves, like the sky itself tipping over, surged toward where the medical ninja were.

"Fire Release: Grand Fireball Technique!" Using fire against water was foolish—but also the only choice they had.

The few squads guarding the medical ninja had already used their strongest techniques, but in this environment the Great Waterfall Technique's range was simply too vast.

The Grand Fireball struck the towering wave and only kicked up a puff of white steam before vanishing completely.

"Damn it, damn it all!"

The massive wave crashed over them, scattering them completely in an instant. Several Mist ninja seized the moment, and while the medical ninja hadn't yet found their footing, they rushed in with blades swinging.

"It's over!"

Watching the tachi slash toward them, despair and terror flashed in their eyes; some even shut their eyes on instinct.

Swish, swish, swish~ Clang, clang, clang~ Just then, the sound of something cutting through the air came, followed by the clash of metal that jolted everyone awake.

"Shuriken?"

"It's the Uchiha—they're here! Our reinforcements are here!"

They saw dozens of figures in the distance, neatly outfitted, wearing their clan crest, rapidly approaching—and leading them was none other than Shisui Uchiha!

"Excellent! Everyone, move out—don't let them escape!"

Someone shouted, immediately breaking away from the Mist ninja and gathering to one side.

"Eh? Aren't we the reinforcements?"

Someone couldn't help but quip, though their expression was equally thrilled.

"That direction? How are they behind us?"

Others were puzzled, but clearly now was not the time to dwell on it.

On the other hand, the Mist ninja's morale instantly plummeted. They had already gone all out, but the intelligence had been wrong—there were medical ninja among the reinforcements too—which had cost them precious time.

"What's the panic? I want to see just how厉害 Shisui of the Body Flicker really is!"

A man stepped out from among the Mist ninja. He wore a kimono, his hair tied into two skyward-pointing buns, his eye sockets a pale grey, his aura savage and violent.

"All of you, attack together — kill him along with the rest!"

"Dead Bone Pulse — Camellia Dance!"

A length of arm bone shot out from his shoulder, transforming into a bone sword that slashed toward the approaching Shisui.

Seeing this, Shisui formed hand seals, and two human figures appeared on each side, rushing forward.

The bone sword pierced through, passing straight through Shisui's body.

"What?!"

The Mist ninja were greatly shocked — though the bone sword had passed through, there was no sensation of having struck anything solid.

"A fake!"

He grinned savagely, having made a guess. The bone sword swept out again, slashing toward the other four figures — yet every strike missed.

"All of them fakes? How is that possible?"

The bone sword slashed wildly; he refused to believe he couldn't find the real body!

The five Shisuis neither dodged nor evaded, letting the bone sword attack them without pause, while rapidly closing in. A flash of silver light — and the Mist ninja gave a strangled groan and sank beneath the water.

"Retreat!"

A single exchange had taken down a Blood Mist elite ninja. Once again they saw with terrible clarity the gulf between ordinary ninja and those who bore a famous name.

The Mist ninja's morale collapsed; one after another they lost the will to fight.

"Fire Release — Senbon Shower!"

Shuriken wrapped in flames flew from Shisui's hands, striking the Mist ninja from bizarre, treacherous angles each time, like flame sprites.

Immediately after, several dozen Uchiha clansmen completed the encirclement. The battle turned into a one-sided rout. In just ten minutes the fighting was over — several dozen Mist ninja lay in pools of blood, sinking into the land along with the receding lake.

In this battle, not a single prisoner was taken.

(End of this chapter)