A massive convoy was moving slowly along a narrow path cutting through a vast, deep forest—a sea of green that seemed to stretch on forever.

  Sunlight filtered through the dense canopy, casting dappled patterns of light and shadow that cloaked the entire group in an air of quiet mystery.

  The ninja escorts were visibly on edge, their sharp gazes scanning the woods with vigince. After all, the supply line was the lifeline of the front lines. No one could afford to let their guard down—not when the next ambush could come at any moment.

  The ctter of hooves and the rumble of wooden wheels broke the forest’s natural silence. Startled birds burst from the trees, fpping their wings as they fled deeper into the woods.

  Towering trees lined the trail on either side, their branches intertwined to form a natural wall of green. A breeze stirred the leaves, sending a soft rustling through the air.

  Gotta hand it to the Land of Fire—they really knew how to take care of their environment.

  This escort mission was part of a rge-scale war operation. Haichi’s squad wasn’t the only one involved. The convoy included sensory units, combat squads, a command detail, and even a handful of medical-nin.

  With this many supplies on the line, the vilge wasn’t taking any chances.

  Shimizu Miketsuki and his team were positioned at the very front of the formation—perfect for Haichi-sensei to scout ahead and rey intel back to command at top speed.

  At the moment, Haichi was expining the mission parameters to Miketsuki and Ruri, both of whom were on their first assignment outside the vilge.

  "Our squad has two objectives," Haichi said. "First, to detect any ambushes. Second, if we’re attacked, we’ll support the combat squad in the counterattack."

  As he listened, Miketsuki had already scanned a radius of several dozen kilometers with his perception skills. Nothing suspicious so far. Still, he kept his expression serious and alert.

  A rookie in a squad had to look the part, at the very least.

  Haichi gave an approving nod. He was genuinely satisfied with Miketsuki—a top graduate who not only had the skills but none of the arrogance common to other so-called geniuses.

  "Any questions, Miketsuki?"

  "No, sir."

  Ruri Uchiha, in contrast, was the opposite of Miketsuki. Her strength was undeniable—she was an Uchiha, after all—but her understanding of war was still far too naive.

  Haichi sighed inwardly. Honestly, rookies like her were probably more normal. Miketsuki was just too composed. He could only hope that Ruri would find her footing quickly when things got real on the battlefield.

  …

  Hmm?

  Miketsuki's senses picked up a group of Sand shinobi slowly approaching the convoy.

  About twenty of them, splitting into smaller units—two four-man cells circling around both fnks. A cssic pincer maneuver.

  He shot Haichi a subtle gnce. Might as well take this chance to test how far his sensei’s detection range extended.

  Sure enough, once the enemy was about eight kilometers out, Haichi's warning came.

  "Alert. Twenty enemies. Twelve at twelve o'clock. Four each at three and nine o'clock. Likely aiming for a double pincer attack."

  The Yamanaka Cn’s abilities were as impressive as ever. No need for shouting—just a clean, silent transfer of intel straight into their minds.

  Honestly, Miketsuki couldn’t help but wonder—if someone used this ability mid-fight to spam trash talk, that’d be pretty effective psychological warfare.

  The command squad received the intel as well, and before long, their leader’s orders came through.

  "Haichi Squad, engage the enemies on the right fnk. Combat Squad, send a unit to take care of the left fnk and then support Haichi Squad."

  Haichi reyed the new strategy to his team.

  "Move out!"

  At his signal, the squad veered off toward the right side of the convoy.

  From Miketsuki's perspective, the chakra signatures of the four enemies on the right were crystal clear—definitely Jōnin-level. Same went for the group on the left. And the main force straight ahead? Also no joke.

  Sand was pulling no punches this time.

  But Miketsuki wasn’t too worried. The convoy’s combat unit was made up of elite Konoha shinobi, and their commander was a top-tier Jōnin from the Sarutobi cn.

  He just needed to focus on the enemies in front of him.

  “Our job is just to stall them until backup arrives. No need to go for kills. I’ll take two of them. Heiji!”

  "Here."

  "You take one. Miketsuki, Ruri—you two handle the st one."

  "Understood."

  "Got it."

  On the enemy side, the Sand shinobi were still lying in wait for orders from their main force, blissfully unaware that Konoha had already marked them.

  "Captain, if we wait any longer, they’ll notice us first and strike before we’re ready!" grumbled a rge Sand-nin with tribal paint on his face.

  "Don’t get impatient. Our squad’s purpose is to draw out part of their escort force," their captain replied calmly.

  "What about the other team?"

  "Same deal. We’re not waiting for signals—we’re sending them. Once Konoha takes the bait, we let the main force know."

  "Then why didn’t you say that earlier?"

  The captain regretted expining anything to this idiot. His expression suddenly shifted.

  "Shut up, Kuro-Suna! Stop asking questions—the enemy’s here!"

  Shadow Shuriken Clone Technique!

  Miketsuki didn’t waste time. The moment the Sand-nin entered his strike range, he unched his attack.

  With a sharp flick of his arm, a gleaming kunai shot from his hand like a meteor, streaking toward the spot where the enemy squad was hiding.

  As it flew, Miketsuki formed a single-handed seal—and in the blink of an eye, the lone kunai split into thousands.

  A storm of shimmering bdes filled the sky, bnketing the area in an overwhelming flurry.

  But this wasn’t the basic shuriken shadow clone jutsu he used when training with Rin.

  This version was infused with Wind Release nature transformation—Wind Shuriken Shadow Clone Technique.

  Each clone hovered like a floating cannon, cold steel with the explosive force of modern artillery.

  The dense forest stood no chance. Trees were shredded, crashing to the ground. The earth exploded into craters of varying depth and size.

  The area looked like it had been shelled by a barrage of missiles.

  Miketsuki gnced at the devastation and couldn’t help but think—If this were my old world, I’d be in jail for life just for environmental destruction.

  But Sand-nin weren’t pushovers. As one of the Five Great Vilges, their shinobi were well-trained. Even caught off guard, they managed to dodge most of the barrage.

  Their captain, a veteran named Mashu, emerged from the chaos and immediately fired a red signal fre into the sky.

  "So that was your jutsu, huh? Not bad for a brat from Konoha," Mashu said warily as he locked eyes with Miketsuki.

  He’d survived countless battlefields during the Third Shinobi War and had his own survival instincts. The most dangerous opponents weren’t the seasoned veterans—but the absurdly strong prodigies from the major vilges.

  Especially Konoha. Their “brats” had a nasty habit of being monsters in disguise.

  He gnced over the enemy formation. The oldest one—probably manageable. The Hyuga? As long as he didn’t get into close combat, fine. The little girl? Statistically speaking, female powerhouses were rare in the shinobi world.

  Only that kid is worth worrying about, Mashu concluded.

  Then, without warning, he charged at Haichi with a loud yell.

  "I’ll take the captain with Kuro-Suna—Shaarmin, go take out that brat who threw the shuriken!"

  50 Advanced Chapters Now Avaible on Patreon!

  https://p-atreon.com/kakaty2077

  (Just remove the hyphen to access Patreon normally.)

  <><><><><>

  ~ If you like the story, please leave a review.