After making another trip between the village and the camp, Tōshirō received another reconnaissance mission.
Sitting cross-legged on the back of the "Mountain Eagle", he carefully examined the mission scroll in his hand.
"Recently, reconnaissance missions have been quite frequent. Is the village planning something big?"
Frowning, Tōshirō began to slowly recall the intelligence he had encountered recently.
Many new faces had arrived at the camp, and they were all fresh graduates from the ninja academy who had been immediately supplemented thereafter.
At the same time, the number of members in various family compounds had generally increased, and material transportation was becoming more frequent!
It seems...
Putting away the scroll, Tōshirō looked up at the clouds in the sky, feeling the surging air currents as his thoughts began to drift away.
This is the thrill that supernatural powers can bring. What meaning is there in killing each other all the time?
Everyone should sit down together and have a peaceful discussion. Why not discuss trade and development? These people are so stubborn!
Even though it wasn't his own body experiencing the joy of flying, every time he rode on the back of the "Mountain Eagle" and looked down at the forests, mountains, and rivers below, he always felt a refreshing and exhilarating sense of freedom.
Lowering his gaze, he saw a distant high mountain, and Tōshirō couldn't help but frown. At this moment, he had just set out from the camp and was still within the Land of Fire.
"Idiot! Fly higher! Even though we're within our borders, we still need to be cautious. If something happens, we'll both be in trouble!"
This place could already be considered the "enemy-occupied zone." Beyond here was the Land of Rivers, and after that, the Land of Wind, which was the destination of his mission this time.
While Tōshirō was reminding his summoning beast, a giant bizarre machine, camouflaged in a dense forest on that distant high mountain, hid silently.
Near the machine, inside a rock large enough to conceal a person, a cylindrical object protruded and fixed its gaze on the distant sky.
"Target sighted, distance three kilometers, altitude approximately 1,500 meters, rapidly approaching, expected to pass high above the ambush point!"
That cylindrical object protruding from the rock was a long telescope, secretly observing Tōshirō's movements. It affirmed the old saying, while you observe the scenery, someone else might be watching you.
"Great! Finally, that damned guy has arrived. Sashiro, the rest is up to you. Make sure to shoot him down in one go!"
"Remember, we only have one shot. If we alert him, it will be hard to get another chance to ambush him!"
A clear voice rang out, but no one was seen on site.
At the same time, afraid that his subordinates might miss this hard-earned opportunity, the voice's owner reminded again.
"Don't worry, Captain! This time, I'll hit the mark and let that Konoha guy taste the power of the Sand Village!"
It turns out, Tōshirō flying around on his big bird within the Konoha camp, occasionally flying to the rear of the Sand Village camp, had long aroused their suspicion.
Based on intelligence from spies, they knew he often rode the bird to scout their rear positions.
The Sand Village had long intended to eliminate him, yet their own summoning beasts were inferior. Thus, they resorted to this clumsy method to ambush Tōshirō.
On all possible routes Tōshirō might take, they had selected suitable locations, deployed skilled personnel, and equipped them with specially developed secret weapons, aiming to eliminate him in one strike.
They knew that jutsu had limited attack ranges. Reaching even a hundred or two hundred meters was quite remarkable.
Even large crossbows or giant shuriken launchers used as anti-aircraft guns couldn't reach his altitude.
He was currently flying at more than 1,500 meters. Even if enemies were below, hiding in the slightly obstructive high mountain, they couldn't threaten him.
"The target will soon be within range. Flight trajectory unchanged. Wait a minute, the target is ascending!"
"Captain..."
Upon hearing this, the puppet master named Sashiro hesitated, unsure whether to attack or let this chance slip to avoid alarming the target.
"Damn, a cunning guy indeed. Sashiro, how confident are you?"
The captain clearly didn't want to miss this rare opportunity and still wanted to take a gamble!
They had deployed more than ten elite three-person teams at predetermined ambush spots, waiting for more than half a month.
If they missed today, who knew when such an opportunity would arise again.
"About seventy... fifty percent confident!"
"The opportunity is fleeting. As the target ascends, it'll become increasingly harder to hit!"
Initially wanting to say seventy percent confident, Sashiro watched the increasingly higher small dot in the distance, and his confidence diminished...
"With fifty percent confidence, we rely on you now."
Without any hesitation, the captain decisively issued the command.
Fifty percent was worth the gamble. Compared to the uncertain next time, she preferred to seize the present opportunity.
The entire mountain forest fell silent. Three long telescopes fixated on the dot in the sky, gradually adjusting their angles with its movement.
"Now!"
With the approaching figure in the sky, a loud shout broke the silence.
Click!
Buzz!!
A deep mechanical sound, surpassing ordinary crossbows, echoed.
Following it, a meter-long arrow, as thick as an egg, with small wings, glowing blue, shot toward the sky.
The little wings were wrapped in wind attribute chakra, exponentially increasing the arrow's range.
The secret weapon became useless after firing the arrow.
Unlike ordinary crossbows, this secret weapon was not only more robust but also had extra pairs of arms.
This was a specially developed weapon by the Sand Village for ambush!