No one expected Might Duy to finish the battle so quickly. They had heard that Might Duy practiced a powerful taijutsu, which, while putting a strain on his body, could rapidly increase his combat abilities. Despite this, they didn't believe the taijutsu's power would be that strong. This taijutsu was clearly a forbidden jutsu; no matter how easy it was to learn, allowing someone as untalented as Might Duy to master it, its power couldn't be exceptionally great.
Although the difficulty of a jutsu's training isn't always directly proportional to its destructive power—some difficult jutsus might not be very destructive but have special uses in other areas, and some easy-to-learn forbidden jutsus might only have unfavorable conditions in certain aspects—for example, the reason Multi Shadow Clone Jutsu is listed as a forbidden jutsu is that excessive chakra distribution, after summoning a large number of shadow clones, puts the user's body in a very dangerous state, and the actual combat ability might not reach an ideal level.
However, powerful jutsus all require talent without exception. Because of this, they believed that the forbidden jutsu Might Duy could learn would only offer a certain degree of power amplification. As Might Duy had taken the lead and rushed into the encirclement formed by the rock walls, those outside were preparing to follow and help, but they were startled by the violent tremors from within.
When they came to their senses, they saw Might Duy break through the rock wall and emerge, carrying a half-dead Hidden Mist ninja. Such rapid combat speed left them stunned. Just as they were about to ask about the situation, Might Duy involuntarily collapsed to the ground, blood seeping from the corners of his lips.
Everyone immediately jumped in fright and rushed to Might Duy's side, anxiously asking what happened. Might Duy gasped, feeling a faint pain in his chest with every breath. Although the Eight Inner Gates could provide extremely powerful combat abilities, once it entered the Fourth Gate stage, it began to become dangerous. Moreover, Might Duy's talent was not good, and his physical abilities were not strong enough to suffer minimal damage.
"I'm fine, it's just a side effect of the forbidden jutsu. My body is just temporarily unable to move. This guy still has a breath left, let's see if we can get some information out of him," Might Duy said slowly, his breathing a little shaky.
"Alright, you rest assured, we'll handle the rest. Others were very pleased with the current situation; quickly eliminating the Hidden Mist ninja's reconnaissance personnel meant the sudden loss of information would make the enemy suspicious and certainly not advance easily. This could buy some time for the transport squad's retreat, allowing them to calmly increase the distance and obtain intelligence from the captured Hidden Mist ninja.
And all this credit came from Might Duy's efforts. If they could return safely this time, they would have to report Might Duy's achievements to the village. Even if Might Duy didn't get the combat assignment he longed for, he might still receive other rewards.
One person helped Might Duy up, while another grabbed the half-dead Hidden Mist ninja, re-covered the traces on the ground, and then they immediately darted into the jungle, putting distance between themselves and the area. They stopped at a certain location, observing the movements ahead while attempting to interrogate the Hidden Mist ninja to obtain enemy intelligence from him.
Even if he couldn't know very detailed information, as a reconnaissance ninja, he should have some understanding of the enemy's marching route. Regardless, for the Konoha Ninja Village, which had vague intelligence, the clearer the information obtained, the better it would be for the deployment of the Konoha ninja forces.
While the Konoha ninjas were interrogating for information, the Hidden Mist ninja squad to which this reconnaissance team belonged quickly noticed that the reconnaissance team operating ahead had suddenly disappeared. This abnormal situation immediately caught their attention. Well-trained reconnaissance ninjas would not lose contact for no reason; there was only one possibility: they had encountered an accident, and this accident was very likely related to Konoha ninjas.
So, the Hidden Mist ninja squad advanced cautiously,
paying attention to every movement around them. When they saw the bodies of the reconnaissance team lying ahead, they quickly ran over and formed a protective formation around the area, allowing them to both monitor the surroundings and safely investigate the bodies.
"All killed with a single blow. The attackers are not simple," after a simple autopsy, the Hidden Mist ninjas concluded that all these individuals had died instantly. From the scattered rocks around, it was evident that the enemy must have used Earth Style to quickly trap the reconnaissance team and then rushed in to annihilate them.
"One person is missing; they must have been captured for interrogation. It seems to be the work of Konoha ninjas," someone said slowly.
"It seems the Konoha ninja squad nearby isn't simple. No, it's very likely not just a squad, but a large force," someone said, sweating profusely.
According to the tactics honed by ninjas during the First Great Ninja War, the front lines would always be manned by reconnaissance ninjas responsible for gathering intelligence, interspersed with combat capabilities to ensure necessary fighting power. Every ninja force's battle began with these ninjas carrying out scout missions.
In other words, the Konoha ninjas capable of quickly eliminating the Hidden Mist reconnaissance squad, even if only responsible for reconnaissance, possessed such combat ability. The combat ninjas in the rear would only be stronger. This was a standard tactic used by every ninja village, and it was unlikely to be problematic.
As far as this Hidden Mist ninja squad knew, apart from the squad led by Commander Gengetsu Hozuki and its affiliated squads having this capability, no other Hidden Mist ninja squads had reconnaissance ninjas of such strength. Everyone couldn't help but wonder if an entire Konoha ninja force might be nearby. If that were the case, it wouldn't be something they could handle.
Everyone exchanged glances and decided to report the situation here to Gengetsu Hozuki, and not to advance further. If they went deep alone and faced a formidable ninja force, they would only meet with complete annihilation. Everything depended on Gengetsu Hozuki's decision.
The report on this matter was quickly sent to Gengetsu Hozuki via the Hidden Mist Village's reconnaissance ninja beasts. Gengetsu Hozuki had just decided on the next destination when he received this report. After a quick glance, Gengetsu Hozuki's brow furrowed slightly. If the report was true, there might indeed be a ninja force nearby. Although the defense level of this southern town suggested that the Land of Fire had not yet focused its efforts here, and the deployed ninja force couldn't be too strong, allowing that ninja force to remain there would still cause some trouble.
"Let's go eliminate these guys first," Gengetsu Hozuki thought for a moment and decided to target this Konoha ninja force first. Facing these useless samurai of the Land of Fire, while pleasant, didn't evoke much passion. Their main enemies were not these samurai, but Konoha ninjas.
During the Battle of Uzushio, Gengetsu Hozuki's unit was ambushed by Konoha ninjas, failing to achieve their objectives and suffering significant losses. This incident had always been on Gengetsu Hozuki's mind. He was willing to accept the village's punishment to remember this humiliation.
Although the opposing force might not necessarily be under Hiruzen Sarutobi's command, as long as they were Konoha ninjas, Gengetsu Hozuki didn't mind retaliating against them, treating it as an appetizer before the main course. Gengetsu Hozuki thought, then gathered the nearby Hidden Mist ninja forces and headed towards the reported location.
At the same time, the Hidden Mist ninja squad there wasn't doing nothing; they were still cautiously scouting the situation ahead, but without any results. Because they truly believed there was a relatively strong Konoha ninja force ahead, they dared not delve too deep. The Konoha reconnaissance ninjas, capable of eliminating those reconnaissance squad ninjas, were strong enough to be on par with the current Hidden Mist ninja squad.
And the Konoha ninjas, observing the situation, noticed that the enemy suddenly stopped moving, realizing they had successfully bluffed them. However, judging by the enemy's reaction, they had probably informed the Hidden Mist ninja force commander of the situation, and were now likely waiting for the Hidden Mist ninja force to arrive.
"I really don't know how to handle the rest of this. By the way, do you remember where the village arranged the movements of the nearest unit?" one person asked, their voice trembling slightly.
"You forgot, there's one near the supply depot. But I'm not sure if their combat capabilities can handle these Hidden Mist ninjas. Those who can travel all this way to land and fight here must be elites from the Hidden Mist Village, right? This isn't something an ordinary unit can handle," someone replied.
"If only Lord Torifu's Third Ninja Unit could arrive quickly," one person said with some hope. Chōza Akimichi, the leader of the Third Ninja Unit, was also a student of the Second Hokage. Moreover, his Akimichi clan was one of the rare ninja clans skilled in direct combat. Even during the Warring States period, the Akimichi clan's power was no less than that of elite samurai armies.
Even without the Ino-Shika-Cho formation, the Akimichi clan's combat units alone could organize a very powerful frontal assault force. If they adopted a dispersed combat style like ninja squads, then Ino-Shika-Cho would certainly be more advantageous. But if it was an offensive formation similar to samurai, a unified Akimichi clan unit could unleash its strongest power.
"The communication hawks are faster than us. By now, nearby units should have received the intelligence. With the information we've gathered here, establishing a relatively strong defensive line shouldn't be a problem," everyone said. The Hidden Mist ninja lay near them, having been interrogated for information. In exchange, he hoped the Konoha ninjas would spare his life.
The Hidden Mist Village did not engage in demonizing propaganda. On this isolated island, Hidden Mist ninjas were more or less aware of Konoha Village's prisoner policy. The information this Hidden Mist ninja knew was not very important, so he chose not to remain silent but to reveal everything to protect his life. There was no reason for him to die for information of this level.
Moreover, it now seemed that due to Konoha Village's actions, the Hidden Mist ninja force's movements had already changed, and this information had lost its original value, at most serving as a reference.
The Konoha ninjas were also true to their word, giving him simple treatment to keep him alive, then leaving him aside. At such a time, they were too busy to care for themselves and couldn't provide him with the same treatment as in a prisoner-of-war camp. Being alive was already very good.
At this moment, the Konoha ninjas suddenly noticed movement in the nearby jungle and immediately became tense, then saw a small animal emerge. Seeing this small animal, everyone breathed a slight sigh of relief. This was an animal trained within Konoha Village, bearing the Konoha Village mark, meaning it carried intelligence from their own village.
Untying the letter from the small animal, everyone immediately read it. It turned out that after receiving the message from the communication hawk, the nearby Konoha ninja forces quickly mobilized. Not knowing the exact movements and numbers of the enemy, they decided to take defensive measures and investigate for intelligence. Along the way, they encountered the transport squad, learned about the situation ahead, and while escorting the transport squad back, they dispatched investigative personnel and informed them of the current situation.
Knowing that the nearby ninja forces had already begun to act, everyone was undoubtedly relieved. They wrote the current situation in a letter for the small animal to take back, and then retreated with Might Duy, whose body was still unable to move freely, and the Hidden Mist ninja.
Not long after they left, the Hidden Mist ninja forces began to converge on the area. Gengetsu Hozuki arrived first and called over the squad that had initially discovered the situation, asking about it. Upon learning of their observations, Gengetsu Hozuki frowned slightly. If there really was a Konoha ninja force nearby, why hadn't they found anything? Even a squad not skilled in reconnaissance shouldn't have found absolutely no trace.
At this point, Gengetsu Hozuki suspected the enemy was bluffing. He quickly ordered his men to investigate the scene again. Thus, under the search of professional intelligence ninjas, they soon noticed the doubly concealed traces. When he realized that supply trucks had passed through here, Gengetsu Hozuki became certain that this was very likely a feint.
Thinking about it now, if the Konoha ninja force had really been nearby, they should have attacked quickly while the Hidden Mist forces had not yet finished gathering, instead of waiting for them to assemble their troops calmly. Who would choose to fight the enemy under such circumstances?
Gengetsu Hozuki couldn't help but glare at the Hidden Mist ninja squads. Because they hadn't immediately reported the situation here, he had missed a good opportunity. If he had known the situation earlier, he would have ordered them to quickly advance and search, and they might have captured the Konoha ninjas.
However, it might not be too late now. The enemy might not have arrived yet. Gengetsu Hozuki decided to go and see first. Regardless of whether there was a Konoha ninja force, the Konoha Village's supply depot alone was worth attacking.