Chapter 1044: The Dark Blue Kunai Piercing His Back

A fierce battle erupted suddenly, just as Hatake Sakumo had thought.

The team of ninja in front of him was not simple; whether it was combat skills, ninjutsu, or coordination, they were by no means ordinary.

Even for a powerful Kage-level powerhouse like him, dealing with this group was extremely strenuous.

Not to mention that he was currently carrying a burden, and the Earth Release he was good at was affected by the enemy's sealing technique.

Overall, the situation was undoubtedly extremely dire for Sakumo.

Originally, Sakumo had already made plans in his heart.

If he truly encountered an irreversible crisis, he might choose to abandon the mission.

After all, this mission was full of oddities and contained a large amount of intelligence errors; if the mission failed, it wouldn't be his turn to take the blame.

As a powerful Kage-level ninja, even if Earth Release was affected, it would not be a difficult task for Sakumo to break out of the encirclement relying on his own strength.

The exposure of "Hai's" identity made Hatake Sakumo unable to choose to abandon "Hai" directly.

"Hai" was simply too important to Konoha!

So important that any Konoha ninja, I'm afraid, could not watch "Hai" fall into enemy hands!

So no matter what, the mission must be successful!

This was Hatake Sakumo's responsibility as a Konoha ninja!

He could only grit his teeth and push forward.

As the battle deepened, Hatake Sakumo's situation became increasingly difficult.

He keenly noticed that this group of ninja seemed extremely familiar with his sword technique.

Hatake Sakumo's sword technique, which had been invincible and broken through countless enemies in the past, struck these Kirigakure ninja as if it were hitting cotton; every time, at critical moments, it would be dodged by the opponent at an unimaginable angle.

It seemed as if they had known all along that Sakumo would attack this way.

The situation fell into a stalemate for a time.

But Sakumo knew very well in his heart that if this continued, he would sooner or later reveal a flaw due to the enemy's encirclement.

"Boom!!!!"

But just then, accompanied by a clear explosion, a stumbling figure actually broke through the enemy's encirclement and arrived at Hatake Sakumo's side.

The arrival of this person not only broke the stalemate on the field but also bought Hatake Sakumo some breathing room.

Hatake Sakumo looked toward the person and saw a familiar mask.

The person was none other than a member of the Root squad he had sent to feint and distract the opponent.

"My Lord, the feint in front did not go smoothly."

"I judged that you might have encountered danger, so I came to help you."

The Root squad member reported to Sakumo in a low voice with a still-numb tone.

It could be seen that it was not easy for this Root squad member to break through the enemy's blockade.

At this moment, he was not only covered in wounds, but even his mask had been shattered, revealing a piece of slightly pale skin beneath it.

It was likely caused by wearing a mask for a long time, with the face not receiving sunlight.

Sakumo did not ask why the other party came alone.

Hatake Sakumo looked at the Root squad member in front of him with complex eyes, and a strange emotion appeared in his heart.

The situation was critical, and he couldn't bother with small talk, so he just nodded to the Root squad member.

Subsequently, Sakumo immediately turned his back, leaving his back to the teammate who came to support, and formed a back-to-back posture with the Root squad member.

Hatake Sakumo himself stood ready to face the enemies in front.

Seeing that Hatake Sakumo had a "helper" by his side, the hostile Kirigakure ninja did not act in a hurry, but just stared coldly at Hatake Sakumo.

For a time, an invisible pressure filled the air.

Behind Sakumo, the Root squad member with the broken mask looked at Hatake Sakumo's back, and a little complexity and strangeness appeared in his numb eyes.

At this moment, even he, who had long been accustomed to placing himself in the darkness, had a little hesitation in his heart.

But this hesitation lasted only for an instant; soon, coldness and numbness filled his eyes again.

Because this was the fate of a ninja, and he was powerless to resist.

He slowly raised his right hand, holding a dark blue kunai.

Clearly, this kunai was already coated with a deadly poison.

"Clang!!!"

A cold light flashed.

He actually stabbed the kunai in his hand toward Hatake Sakumo, who had his back to him!!!

"Clang!!!!"

A crisp sound of metal clashing accompanied by dazzling sparks flashed by.

The expression under the Root squad member's mask became slightly distorted.

Hatake Sakumo, as if he had eyes on his back, swung the short blade in his hand at an extremely strange angle to block his backstab, which he had been certain would succeed!!

"Whoosh!!"

"Whoosh!!!" ===== CHAPTER 1046 =====