"That's it."
"Is that Asuma's?"
Yasuke held the strange weapon engraved with the Leaf Village symbol, and Kurenai Yuhi and Dakota couldn't help but exclaim in shock.
Because Kurenai clearly recognized that peculiar weapon!
She also knew that the weapon, known as the knuckle blade, was specially made for Sarutobi Asuma by the Third Hokage!
Made entirely of special metal capable of conducting chakra, just one of the knuckle blades Yasuke was holding was incredibly valuable.
As for the reason?
It's simple! Just like the chakra test Yasuke got recently, special metal that can conduct chakra is also priceless in the ninja world. Besides a few big ninja villages and wealthy clans, ordinary people would need quite a bit of luck to obtain metal that can conduct chakra.
And the Sarutobi Asuma, who didn't follow Yasuke and the others to break through, undoubtedly became a lucky find for Gozu, the Mist Jonin!
So, the moment Yasuke took the knuckle blade from Gozu, he had to face a difficult choice!
That was, while breaking through, should he also go rescue Sarutobi Asuma!
But, just as Yasuke was pondering this difficult question, he noticed Kurenai Yuhi and Dakota's odd state. Frowning slightly, Yasuke quickly said to them, "Kurenai, Dakota, don't worry for now. If I'm not wrong, Asuma should be safe."
"Even the Mist Ninjas need intelligence sources, and Asuma, being a carrier of intelligence, should be a guest in the Mist camp for now. He shouldn't be in any immediate danger."
"Oh? Is that so? Kid, your deduction might not be right!"
Yasuke's reassurance had just started to work, and Kurenai and Dakota seemed much better, but the "resurrected" Gozu used just a few words to make them panic again.
To be honest, Dakota's state was still better.
Having been in the Anbu, Dakota was used to seeing comrades die. If not for Sarutobi Asuma's special status, he might not even feel any fear.
The one who truly troubled Yasuke was Kurenai.
It was clear that Kurenai had a deep bond with Sarutobi Asuma. The two had known each other for a long time, and among the group, Kurenai was the most worried about Asuma.
Then, feeling that Gozu might cause more trouble, Yasuke slightly narrowed his eyes and knocked Gozu unconscious with a hand chop. With the troublemaker down, Yasuke took a deep breath and finally started to discuss Asuma's situation with Kurenai and Dakota.
"Kurenai, Dakota, if I'm not mistaken, Asuma probably left the camp before we regrouped and tried to break through on his own."
"But why, Yasuke? What good does it do for Asuma to break through alone?"
Listening to Yasuke, Dakota couldn't help but ask.
However, just as Dakota's voice fell, Kurenai sighed deeply and said apologetically to Yasuke, "Yasuke, Dakota, I know some reasons."
"Because Asuma and I both doubted Yasuke's abilities, we didn't believe he could lead us to break through successfully, so we had thoughts of challenging him early on."
"But... but I never thought Asuma would be foolish enough to try breaking through alone!"
Saying this, Kurenai tightly grabbed Yasuke's sleeve, pleading, "Yasuke, for the sake of our comradeship, you must save Asuma! He's really a good person, just occasionally a bit temperamental!"
"Yes!"
"As the Third Hokage's son, it's normal for Asuma to have a bit of temper, after all, he's a 'noble son'!"
Kurenai's plea undoubtedly put Yasuke on the edge of a volcano.
You have to know, Yasuke and the others' mission was about the survival of the Leaf medical team!
In such a situation, not to mention for Sarutobi Asuma, even for the Third Hokage or the Fourth Hokage, Yasuke and the others had to prioritize breaking through and delivering intelligence. Otherwise, the worst outcome would be an entire medical team perishing in the Mist's encirclement, not just one ninja dying at their hands.
But now, what could Yasuke do?
If he didn't rescue Sarutobi Asuma, not only would Kurenai and Dakota be disappointed, but the team Yasuke had just formed would collapse instantly. Even if the Third Hokage understood that his son's life was not worth more than a medical team, blood is thicker than water. Could Yasuke be sure the Third Hokage wouldn't hold a grudge later?
Moreover, the Nara, Yamanaka, and Akimichi clans, as the Hokage's loyal clans, had the duty to protect the Hokage's bloodline.
So, with a deep sigh, Yasuke glanced at the fallen Gozu, and replied bitterly, "Kurenai, Dakota, since Asuma is our comrade, we must rescue him. But while rescuing Asuma, we must complete our mission first. So, we need to mark the area with codes that can let passing Leaf ninjas know our team's situation. Once we finish marking the codes, our mission will be half done, then we can go rescue Asuma. How does that sound?"
"No problem, Yasuke, I trust you!"
"Yasuke, thank you on Asuma's behalf!"
"No need for thanks, let's hurry! As long as Asuma's not in immediate danger, we need to move quickly!"
Waving at Kurenai and Dakota, Yasuke took out a kunai, first taking care of the unconscious Gozu at his feet, then cleaned up the Mist ninja corpses. He then led the more teamwork-oriented Kurenai and Dakota to mark codes in the outer area, before preparing to rescue the captured Sarutobi Asuma.
However, just after Yasuke and his team's figures left, the place where they had encountered the Mist ninja suddenly made some rustling sounds.
Following the direction of the sounds, one could see hands slowly digging through the freshly buried soil.
Then, as the surrounding soil was completely dug away, if Kurenai or Dakota were there, they would surely exclaim again. Because the one climbing out of the dirt was none other than the Mist Jonin Gozu, who had died multiple times but never really died!
And when Gozu slowly crawled out of the dirt, stretched a bit, his eyes filled with ferocity, he looked at the traces left by Yasuke and the others and showed a cruel smile!
"The Third Hokage's son, huh?"
"Kid from the Anbu, you really brought me some good news!"
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