As Rin and the others took Nohara Aizawa away, Minato placed the little black cat on his shoulder. The Flying Thunder God technique quickly transported them to the mountainside where the kunai had been inserted. Takeshi almost lost his balance, but Minato caught him in time.
"Can you still track the scent?" Minato asked.
The black cat looked up, his eyes filled with contempt. In this riverside area, how could he possibly track a scent? he climbed down and sniffed, then shook his head. The other person walked along the riverbank, and the scent was quickly washed away, making it impossible to trace.
"Let's search around the riverbank," Minato suggested. He took back the kunai and began walking along the river with Takeshi.
The narrow valley had many paths, and Takeshi smelled and tested them one by one. After what felt like an eternity, at an intersection, Takeshi found something odd - the riverbank was soaked with water.
"Maybe there was a chase?" Takeshi called back to Minato.
Minato looked around and nodded in agreement. So, they walked forward, looking for places such as walls and woods that the other party might have overlooked. Eventually, they found the lingering scent of a ninja on a mountain wall. It was very light and intermittent but could still be traced by scent.
"Meow!" The black cat called out, then sneaked forward along the mountain wall, followed closely by Minato. One person and one cat, tracking along the way.
As they followed the scent, the smell became clearer and clearer, indicating that they were getting closer to the enemy. However, after catching up here, Minato noticed something was off – these enemies were guys seemed to be heading Kakashi and rest of team for an ambush. If they chose a faster route, they could easily sneak up from behind and attack.
"They might have summons beasts," Minato said, his expression turning serious.
"You show the way," Minato instructed Takeshi, placing the little black cat on his shoulder to guide them. He would be responsible for tracking.
As they followed the scent, the smell left on the road became newer and heavier, indicating that they were getting closer to the enemy. After walking for a while, Takeshi discovered several traps. It was obvious that the enemies had noticed them.
"Meow~ Have we been exposed?" Takeshi asked before, but now that they were so close, he couldn't help but feel that they had been exposed under the enemy's watchful eye.
Although the Seven Ninja Swordsmen could have suffered heavily from previous confrontation, dealing with ordinary ninjas was like cutting through fruits and vegetables for them.
Most of Takeshi's previous battles were surprise attacks and sneak attacks. He was only at Aizawa's level. Facing these seven people was really intimidating.
"Don't worry, I'll protect you," Minato reassured Takeshi with a smile. Then, his eyes suddenly narrowed as he spotted an ambush ahead. Takeshi lay on Minato's shoulder, his body arching up involuntarily - a cat's instinctive reaction to danger.
"Get ready!" Minato said, then accelerated forward, taking out a special kunai with his left hand. After getting close to a certain distance, he noticed a weapon similar to an axe. Kabutowari! It was a very heavy weapon, but it was extremely fast in the opponent's hands.
In the blink of an eye, the axe was already in front of him. However, a kunai also passed beside opponent and reached a corner behind the tree. The next second, the Flying Thunder God jutsu! After changing positions, Takeshi immediately used the wild lion mane jutsu to tie up the enemy. However, he found that the opponent was very strong and almost pulled him over with a sharp tug.
Takeshi took the opportunity to get closer, quickly jumped on the hammer, and used the force to jump and swipe the opponent's neck with his claws. The opponent dodged quickly, and it was probably only a minor injury.
What would be fatal was that the giant hammer swung towards him in the next second, and the large axe attached to the chain also flew forward. However, the black cat was just a cover, and the real killing move was yet to come - Minato launched a Rasengan from above enemy's head, killing the opponent instantly. But it's a pity that the other party disappeared in a splash of water, obviously it was a clone.
"It's the water clone." Minato continued on his way, but his mind was on the axe and the hammer connected to the axe. It seems that this is the ninja who has mastered Kabutowari. The opponent didn't reveal his forehead protector, but judging from his behavior, it's obvious its one of the seven ninja swordsmen.
Minato felt like he would get a headache and Konoha had been slowly recuperating for many years. Kumogakure, Iwagakure Ninja and Sunagakure had all recovered a lot of energy and were ready to make a move.
However, Kirigakure had been reclusive for more than ten years, and even Konoha's ANBU had less information on them. Now that they are dispatched and heading towards Konoha again... what a disaster! How troublesome!
"Continue to pursue meow~?"Takeshi asked Minato.
"Yes," Takeshi nodded. He left a kunai with Kakashi. If current plan didn't work, he could use the Flying Thunder God to return. If he could collect enough information, his companions would be fully prepared when dealing with Kirigakure ninjas. Often, intelligence determines the outcome of a battle. Takeshi actually had a rough guess in his mind.
The one with the Lightning Release must be Kurosaki Raiga, the user of Thunder Blade: Kiba, and the one just now should be the bluntsword: Kabutowari user Jinin Akebino. The third and fourth ones are hard to judge. There is a member of the Seven Ninja Swordsmen. If they are besieged, Minato can run, but he can't necessarily escape... 'I hope I can do more.'
While Takeshi pointed the way, he nervously gripped hard on Minato's shoulder with his claws. Unknowingly, he got some points, but at the moment, he had no time to look at the points panel. They were rushing to a valley pass, and Minato was about to move forward when he suddenly felt the black cat on his shoulder kicking away hard.
The next second, he saw a bolt of lightning falling from the sky. Lightning Release: Thunder Fang! Although Minato didn't have the strong intuition of a cat, his reaction speed was very fast.
The moment the lightning appeared, he directly used the nearest flying thunder god, coordinate - Takeshi. The lightning speed was very fast, and after he fled with the Flying Thunder God, there immediately a big crater into the ground they were standing on. If Takeshi hadn't dodged the blow first, Minato would have definitely chosen to retreat while injured, but now...
"Be careful to protect yourself." He only left one sentence, and then he disappeared away without a trace, leaving Takeshi alone. The wind behind was strong - 'what am I doing, why am I here? 'The most terrible thing is that he hid in the woods, smelled the scent and found out in despair that there was more than one person on the other side.
He knew nothing about this person, so it could only carefully track and move forward. Fortunately, Kurosaki Raiga was fighting by Minato and could not release any more lightning jutsus. As long as his next opponent was not member of the Seven Swordsmen, he could survive.
But the next second, Takeshi suddenly felt his eyes flashing.
"Meow!" He yelled immediately and then disappeared. Summoning Jutsu.
Above the cliff, Kakashi, Obito and the ninja dogs were constantly fighting against a ninja. This ninja was holding an axe and a giant hammer. It was the real Bluntsword holder Jinin Akebino whom Takeshi and Minato met before was a Bait.
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