It was already sunrise.
Fortunately, the autumn sun wasn't scorching.
They were running at full speed, and the teenager was already sweating.
"Catch up!"
The excited boy slipped and fell in front of Kakashi.
"You're late again. " Kakashi looked down at Obito at his feet. "You bastard, everyone has been waiting for you for hours!"
"No, that's because a black cat was lying in front of me..."
He had to make up an excuse.
Obito Uchiha, who was always late, used strange excuses as if the world's troubles were all on his head.
Sure enough, Kakashi not only didn't buy it but became even more agitated, "You don't even bother to think of an acceptable excuse for lying! You don't deserve to be a shinobi with that kind of attitude. "
"Manoshi-senpai vouch for me. " Obito turned to Manoshi, pleading for help.
"Ah? It's none of my business. "
Manoshi, who was leaning against a tree in a daze, tilted his head in bewilderment.
"Obito is here. Let's go. "
Stretching comfortably and greeting the late Obito, Manoshi walked alone towards the forest.
"Eh, how come Manoshi-senpai doesn't have his walking stick with him today?" Rin Nohara noticed the difference in Manoshi. Not only was he wearing the ninja uniform, but he also wasn't even carrying a cane.
"Without a walking stick to explore the path, wouldn't it affect your movement? "
Manoshi, who turned his back to everyone, replied, "No, I used the walking stick because the village was safe enough. It's better to go all out when I'm outside the village now. "
In fact, as mentioned earlier, the power of the divine dragon could perceive more than actual vision. It's just that Manoshi didn't use it to adapt to the ever-increasing other senses and conserve his energy consumption. The walking stick was also prepared for this purpose.
However, naturally, Rin Nohara couldn't fathom such secret matters.
Kakashi took the opportunity to preach to Obito, "You are both from the Uchiha clan. Why is your attitude when going out on a mission so different compared to Manoshi? "
"I went out as early as Manoshi-senpai!"
"All right, Kakashi and Obito stop arguing. You three should hurry up and follow. " Minato Namikaze, the teacher, stepped between the two. "Sensei has to go do some work too. "
"Alas. Aren't you going to work with us, Sensei?" Rin asked curiously.
"I have some special assignments, and I need to take a detour. "
Minato Namikaze pointed to Manoshi, who was ahead. Konoha was short of manpower right now, and all the forces that could be transferred have been drained. Now there were two Jōnin-level combat forces, so it was only natural to make full use of them. Not to mention, Minato Namikaze, who was the best in mobility, was very suitable for this kind of "multitasking rush" work.
"Anyway, Manoshi was a Jōnin before. So, I'll leave the task of leading the team to him. "
...
After some retelling by the three, Manoshi figured out the situation.
"So, Minato-senpai left you three to me to lead?" Manoshi sighed. "Okay, okay. Kakashi, Obito, Rin, you three are responsible for planning the route. "
"What do you mean by that 'reluctant to bring children' look? " Obito was furious, "Are you going to run off to the side to rest again while the three of us work?"
"Bingo! But there's no prize. "
"Or do you, as Genin, want to disobey a Jōnin's orders?"
With these words, Manoshi leisurely walked deeper into the forest.
And not far away, under the thick branches of the tree canopy, three Suna-dressed men were lurking among them.
"This is the only path for Manoshi Uchiha to get to the borderline quickly. "
The man with sunglasses said suddenly, beating rhythmically on the trunk of the tree with his fingers.
"Yamanaka is responsible for diverting the three students of Minato Namikaze. Aoba and I will ambush Manoshi Uchiha. "
"Yes."
At this time, Manoshi was already quietly approaching the location of the three.
'A group of three, two adults and a teenager, a strange team match. They're dressed in Suna's clothes. Is it a disguise?'
'If Suna ninjas really appear around Konoha village, it will be a bad thing.'
'That means that the boundary line of the Land of Fire has probably fallen.'
In this case, capturing a prisoner and torturing him for information was particularly important.
"Looking" at how the two adult shinobis commanded the young shinobi, one of them was most likely the team leader. 'So, it's better to let the young shinobi leave and prioritize killing the two adult shinobis.'
With this in mind, Manoshi quietly went higher up in the canopy and swooped down to launch a sneak attack.
The first time he fought a real enemy, Manoshi was like a beast out of a cage, without any moves to speak of, and unleashed his power to the fullest.
A blow was struck, and the branch broke, but the two people crouched on the branch dissipated into smoke.
It's a trap!
With Tatsuma Aburame present, it is almost impossible to escape from his senses to get close.
Especially in the middle of the forest, the Aburame clan's parasites might lurk among the fallen leaves of various tree branches and crevices.
Tatsuma Aburame, who had already spotted Manoshi, didn't move to inform his companions, while Aoba, as the captain, sent the young Yamanaka away from the battlefield.
The two left their body doubles and hid in the dark, waiting for Manoshi to strike.
Wind Release - Vacuum Great Sphere!
He took a deep breath, compressed the chakra, and spit it out like a cannonball.
Aoba was confident that this blow would be enough to knock Manoshi Uchiha out.
He was only a war-time promoted Jōnin and the pride of the Uchiha clan. Moreover, he had lost his eyes, so how could he be a match for him, who had received the true teachings of Danzō-sama?
Manoshi, who was falling with the trunk fragments, had nowhere to leverage himself. The Vacuum Great Sphere hit him squarely on his waist, accelerating his fall and causing countless leaves to fall.
"It's not his actual body!" Tatsuma, who was controlling the parasitic insects, quickly noticed the difference from the insects' feedback.
At this time, another person leaped out in the air. It was Manoshi himself.
He was blind, not a fool.
How could he not defend himself in a real battle?
Fire Release - Phoenix Flower Scarlet Claw!
Throwing shuriken in Fire Release, the flame-wrapped shuriken scattered in the air flew towards Aoba.
In a game, it was a mix of magic and physical damage.
Its purpose wasn't to kill but to block the enemy's movement.
Aoba, who was in the center of Phoenix Flower Scarlet Claw's attack range, had no time to dodge and could only use Wind Release hastily to blow away the flames on the shurikens.
But that's when Manoshi's kill shot came out.
He followed shurikens and rushed toward the enemy. His fist and feet were his kill weapons.
However, at this time, Aoba was sneering.
"You fell for it. Secret Technique - Insect Sphere!"
The insects that had been lying in ambush swarmed around Manoshi under his command and closed in on him to extract the chakra from Manoshi's body.
Manoshi: 'Danger!'