His speed was astonishing; he covered vast distances in the blink of an eye, leaving Kakashi and the others far behind.
As Kakashi and Obito hesitated, Rin spoke up.
"Help me make a makeshift stretcher! We need to get Lord Kura back to camp quickly - his injuries are too severe! Hurry!"
"But..."
"Fine."
Obito gritted his teeth, drew Kakashi's blade, and began swiftly chopping down two thick branches.
Following Rin's instructions, he started constructing the stretcher.
Kakashi's lips twitched, but he eventually added, "The Third Raikage's power is terrifying. We'd only be a burden if we went.
It's better to stay here and help."
"Understood."
Guy looked disappointed but resigned himself to assisting with the tasks at hand.
He's right, they realized.
Who could possibly defeat a Kage-level figure?
Not even the entire Eastern Theater, except perhaps Lady Tsunade, could stand a chance against the Third Raikage.
Sending Genin would be suicide.
The Kakashi Squad clearly had more frontline experience.
Genma Shiranui silently helped with the work, pushing aside all other thoughts.
"You're saying you killed three people and severely injured the Third Raikage's son?"
Minato accelerated to his maximum speed.
At this point, his movements could only be described as lightning-fast.
His natural talent for speed was truly remarkable, though even he had to admit that humans were still slightly inferior to cats in this regard.
A cat's reaction speed far surpassed that of a human; there was simply no comparison.
"Meow!"
Raj nodded.
Minato clicked his tongue inwardly.
Who is the Third Raikage's son?
The A-B Combination had been making waves recently, and Bee was considered the next successor of Kumogakure.
In terms of strength, he was undoubtedly among the elite Jonin, and even Minato himself wasn't confident he could defeat him.
Yet Raj had managed to severely injure Bee while protecting Tetsuo...
For a moment, Minato felt a pang of disappointment at being surpassed, but then swelled with pride.
His emotions were a complex mix, leaving him unsure how to articulate his feelings.
"We're here," Minato announced, sensing residual chakra fluctuations ahead.
He immediately slowed down, observed and sensed the area for a moment, and only emerged from the forest after confirming there were no enemies nearby.
The scene was one of utter devastation.
The scattered limbs and corpses painted a vivid picture of the brutal battle that had taken place.
Three or four trees had been toppled, their trunks scarred with Lightning Release marks - likely the work of the "A" Raj had mentioned.
"Meow..."
Raj's mood seemed somber.
Although these people had nothing to do with it, witnessing their gruesome deaths was still unsettling, evoking a sense of shared fate, like a rabbit mourning a fox.
Raj averted its gaze, scanning the immediate area.
Minato was examining the corpses, searching for survivors or clues.
As Raj turned, it suddenly caught the scent of another team.
The lingering traces were mixed, but faint traces remained.
It sniffed.
"Meow! Another team!"
After alerting Minato, it followed the scent.
Minato immediately followed.
Soon, they found the scene.
The location was outside the Land of Fire, but still a considerable distance from the Land of Lightning's border.
No bodies were visible, only faint scorch marks from lightning.
"Meow~"
"Two more teams."
Four teams, with only Tetsuo Uchiha surviving.
If not for Raj's intervention, Tetsuo would have perished as well.
This proved Kumogakure was serious, striking with lightning-fast precision.
Even Tsunade's reorganization of patrol teams into larger units couldn't prevent the tragedy.
Soon, two or three more teams arrived.
Kumogakure seemed to have abandoned further attacks, so Raj returned to rest.
It had expended considerable energy earlier.
Though it had rested briefly, its Chakra reserves remained low.
In this state, a proper sleep was the best way to replenish them.
Raj had barely drifted off to sleep when he felt the world spinning.
Opening his eyes, he saw Takuma kneeling anxiously by the bed, staring at him.
Raj looked around - was this Takuma's room?
Takuma, wearing a nightgown, looked even more beautiful than usual.
"Meow?"
"Lord, I just summoned A'Shui to inquire about the situation," Takuma said, leaning forward. "Yahiko and the others have already reached the Land of Snow and are searching for the village according to your instructions."
Raj tilted his head, pondered for a few seconds, and then asked, "Anything else?"
"They wish to relay several intelligence reports to you, all personally written by Yahiko," Takuma said, pulling four scrolls from her sleeve.
Raj took the scrolls and spread them open with his paw.
The reports detailed troop movements along the borders of the Land of Earth and the Land of Wind, each marked with a date.
Taken together, the four reports revealed recent ninja deployments by Iwagakure and Sunagakure along their borders, along with some rumors.
One piece of information stood out: Rasa has become the Fourth Kazekage.
This intelligence was from a few days ago.
In recent days, Akatsuki had been busy preparing for their retreat and procuring supplies, so their intelligence gathering had been significantly reduced.
'Now that Rasa has become the Fourth Kazekage, how long until they launch a war against Konoha...? It can't be much longer now,' Raj thought to himself.
After a moment's consideration, he said, "Konoha has been in turmoil recently. Be careful, meow.
I can take you to the Land of Snow. It's sparsely populated, so no one will care about your hair color."
"Thank you, Lord," Takuma replied with a sweet smile. "But I think it's best to stay here for now. I'll ask for your help if things get too difficult."
"Meow!"
Raj cried out before vanishing from the Ninja Cat Castle.
Its Summoning Technique had expired, returning it to the camp.
The scroll remained behind.
Raj couldn't risk revealing his continued collaboration with Yahiko and the others.
If word of their ongoing contact leaked, the events of that day could be exposed.
Moreover, while Yahiko's intelligence was valuable, it wouldn't significantly alter the overall situation.
Orochimaru and Jiraiya had long anticipated attacks from Sunagakure and Iwagakure.
They had already prepared for war, so Raj's intervention to warn them would be unnecessary.
The Three Great Sages were seasoned veterans.
Tsunade's swift response tonight proved that a commander with years of battlefield experience was vastly different from a greenhorn.
'But what should I do next? I can't just sit here and take a beating. I need to make something happen...'
Raj began to strategize.
Attacking Kumogakure wouldn't be easy.
While A and Bee weren't particularly strong yet - Raj could easily bully them with his current skills - the Third Raikage was a formidable opponent.
His defenses were impenetrable, and his attacks possessed both immense power and piercing capability.
Even combining Needle Jizo with Ice Release might not withstand his assault.
'Looks like it's time to exchange for the Wind Release Rasengan.'
Wind Release countered Lightning Release.