Pakura nodded. She had been blinded by rage toward Kiyoshi moments ago, but now that she thought about it, she should have stayed with the main force to wear them down slowly. Chiyo agreed and continued trekking through the distant desert with her elderly body.
While the others were already chasing Kiyoshi, Pakura looked at Maki. "Are you alright, Maki?" Pakura asked with concern.
"I'm fine, Pakura-sensei," Maki shook her head. Seeing that her teacher was largely unharmed made her happy, but that joy was quickly replaced by worry. Leaking ninjutsu was an act no different from betraying the village. She had only done so in a moment of desperation. Now that she had time to reflect, her heart was filled with regret and anger. Giving them up was treason, but not giving them up would have harmed her teacher. She could only hope that Kiyoshi wouldn't use those techniques recklessly and that no one would discover she was the one who leaked them.
The teacher and disciple stood in silence for a moment, the atmosphere somewhat awkward. Especially for Pakura—having had such a thing done to her by Kiyoshi, she didn't know how to face Maki. Did she still possess the dignity of a teacher?
...
After running for dozens of minutes, Kiyoshi's legs had reached their limit. He stood atop a tall rock formation, the yellow sand of the desert clinging to his black Uchiha robe. His shadow stretched long and narrow under the glare of the relentless sun.
Watching the Sand ninjas emerge from the desert horizon like a tide, Kiyoshi's expression remained calm. Thanks to Pakura, he had gained a new Trait and significantly increased his ocular power. Ninjutsu, Taijutsu, and Genjutsu—every aspect of his strength was rising. Furthermore, the constant battling against numerous Sand ninjas had allowed him to accumulate a wealth of combat experience. His swordsmanship, shuriken throwing, and tactical movements had all been optimized in his mind.
Only combat is the best way to test oneself. Of course, the prerequisite is being able to survive.
'With my current chakra control, it is more than enough to maintain a vortex of air around my body,' Kiyoshi thought to himself.
The fastest way to escape was, naturally, flight. Such an ability was considered rare in the ninja world. However, for now, Kiyoshi only needed a lower-level version: gliding. He would use Wind Style to form a layer of air around him and glide across the sky.
"Surrender now, and we might still spare your life," a Sand Jonin stepped forward, a hideous scar running across the corner of his eye.
"We don't necessarily want to harm you, but the matter is of great importance. We need you to remain here for a period of time," Chiyo arrived as well, surrounded by her ten white-robed puppets.
A Sand ninja ran up to Chiyo to report that the main force had found traces of Sasori. Since Sasori was the last person seen with the Third Kazekage, finding him should lead to the Kage's location. Another unit, led by Fujūro, had taken a shortcut to intercept Tsunade near the border.
"Dismissed," Chiyo said, letting the ninja retreat before looking back at Kiyoshi. As long as they captured this Uchiha and joined forces with Fujūro to surround Tsunade, they should be able to keep the news sealed within the borders of the Land of Wind.
It seemed as though Kiyoshi and the others had been running for a long time, but they were still within this desert. As long as they were in the desert, the Sand ninjas held the home-field advantage. Moreover, Leaf ninjas were famously protective of their comrades. Chiyo didn't believe Tsunade would simply abandon Kiyoshi and leave without looking back. Once hesitation took root, there would be room to manipulate the situation. As for the negative impact on relations with the Land of Fire—that was a problem for later.
Without a Kazekage, the Hidden Sand Village would descend into chaos by tomorrow!
"You have no path of retreat," Chiyo reiterated.
"Is that so?" Kiyoshi looked at the crowd of ninjas, his expression still unchanged. He stood at the edge of the plateau, a deep ravine behind him leading down to a curved slope of smooth sand. Fifty meters ahead were the Sand ninjas, many of them powerful experts. These were not the "trash" he had dealt with earlier; these were the elites.
"Have you never heard that heaven always leaves a path?"
A vortex of air surged around Kiyoshi's body. By simply venting [Wind] chakra from several major chakra points on his skin, he could achieve this effect. With his top-tier chakra control, maintaining this state was no trouble at all. To the Sand ninjas, however, this looked like the final struggle of a trapped beast.
"Wind Style: Great Breakthrough!"
"Wind Style: Vacuum Wave!"
"Wind Style: Sickle Weasel!"
...
Numerous gusts of wind in various forms chased toward Kiyoshi. If he took them head-on with his current physical body, he would be heavily injured or even torn apart. The winds whipped up the sand, and just as they were about to consume him, Kiyoshi's hands moved in a blur of seals.
Calculating his remaining chakra, Kiyoshi spat out four Great Fireballs in succession. The fireballs roared like beasts, clashing with the wind currents and causing a violent explosion. The two-tomoe in Kiyoshi's pupils spun frantically, capturing the rising trails formed by the hot air currents.
By instantly releasing Fire Style ninjutsu to generate intense heat, he could heat the surrounding air and create a thermal updraft. Sensing the moment, Kiyoshi didn't hesitate. Riding the shockwave of the explosion, he leapt upward, arcs of electricity crackling beneath his feet as he pushed his chakra to the limit.
Relying on the activation from Lightning Style to jump high, he quickly shaped his [Wind] chakra into a membrane that was narrow in the front and wide in the back. This created a low-pressure zone with fast-moving air above and a high-pressure zone below, generating lift.
In an instant, it was as if Kiyoshi had learned to fly, rising higher and higher. The Sand ninjas below stood dazed, completely unexpected that Kiyoshi could "ascend to the heavens" from a standstill.
"Fl... flight ninjutsu!"
"He has Wind Style chakra around him; it must be a Wind Style technique!"
"This Uchiha can fly?"
Both the Jonin and the other ninjas were shocked. Flight ninjutsu was as rare and specialized as Space-Time ninjutsu, providing the user with immense mobility and speed.
"He can fly?" Chiyo frowned, sensing something was amiss.
"It's the thermal updrafts, sister. He utilized the air currents generated by our own Wind Style," Ebizō said in a deep voice from the middle of the group. "According to intelligence from my spies in the Leaf, Kiyoshi Uchiha is also a medical ninja. Having this level of chakra control is not difficult. What's important is that his chakra can actually sustain such an action."
Ebizō believed that Kiyoshi possessed at least Jonin-level chakra reserves. And how old was he now? After continuously releasing Fire Style while under the high pressure of pursuit, he could still consume chakra to maintain a stable Wind Style shape transformation. It was a terrifying feat. This indicated that Kiyoshi's temperament and talent were top-tier; he was destined to become a powerhouse.
***
Read 30 Chapters early on P-atreon.com/Redestro666