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Chapter 221 - Chapter 10: A Tactical Retreat Across a Thousand Miles

"Pengman! The Iwagakure ninjas behind us, they haven't caught up, have they?" Jing Hang asked, his voice steady but urgent.

"No, they haven't. I left message bees behind; if they start chasing, the bees will alert us immediately. For now, we're at least two kilometers ahead of them," replied Shimizuru Pengman, the captain of the 11th Battalion. Pengman was a stout man of short stature, with bow legs and a neck as thick as his head. Strapped to his back was the signature massive beehive unique to the Shimizuru clan. His expression was a mix of cold determination and unyielding resolve.

"Good. Dispel the shadow clones. Save your chakra—we've still got over a thousand kilometers to cover," Jing Hang instructed.

With a series of resounding "poofs," thick clouds of white smoke erupted across the battlefield. When the smoke cleared, only a tenth of the Sand Village ninjas remained.

The Third Raikage, who had barely recovered some of his strength, widened his eyes in disbelief. "What?! This—this is all the people you brought?!"

Jing Hang chuckled, handing the Third Raikage a military water flask and a small bottle of concentrated soldier pills. "Heh, I could only mobilize this many on such short notice. But it was enough to bluff that fool Kitsuchi. If I really had five thousand ninjas, I'd have fought him head-on."

The Third Raikage opened his mouth to express his gratitude, but Jing Hang raised a hand to cut him off. "Save it, old brother. We don't have time for pleasantries. Kitsuchi isn't a complete idiot. We've only managed to fool him for now, but he'll figure it out soon enough. We need to keep moving. Only when we reach the border between the Wind and Earth countries will we truly be safe."

The Third Raikage nodded, gulping down the entire flask of water in one go. Then, he unscrewed the bottle of soldier pills, poured them into his mouth, chewed, and swallowed. "Alright! After this, I could fight for another three days straight!" he declared with his usual bravado.

Jing Hang smirked and shouted, "All units, move out! Head to Sector 17 near the Wind-Earth border—advance at full speed!"

In military parlance, "advance" was just a euphemism for retreat. In reality, they were running for their lives. Despite his strength, Jing Hang was no "Dance King" capable of single-handedly taking on an entire ninja coalition.

"Why are the footprints suddenly fewer?" Kitsuchi crouched down, carefully examining the tracks on the ground.

The Iwagakure Chief Strategist, Monya, stepped forward to inspect the scene. After a moment, he spoke, "There's no sign of splitting forces. The footprints thinning out so abruptly and in such an orderly fashion... If I'm not mistaken, the Sand ninjas used shadow clones to pad their numbers. We've been duped."

"Shadow clones?!" Kitsuchi's eyes widened in shock. No wonder the Iwagakure's Black Ops hadn't detected any large-scale troop movements from the Sand Village. It was all Jing Hang's elaborate ruse. If only he'd been more decisive earlier, with their overwhelming numbers, they could've crushed the Sand ninjas like ants.

"How many do you think there really are?" Kitsuchi asked, his tone grim.

Monya studied the footprints again, making a quick mental calculation. "Around 400, give or take."

"They can't be far. Chase them down! Leave no one alive!" Kitsuchi growled through gritted teeth, the humiliation of being tricked fueling his rage.

"That might be difficult," Monya replied cautiously.

"What?!" Kitsuchi snapped.

"Lord Kitsuchi, our men have just fought the Third Raikage for three days and nights. They're utterly exhausted, while the Sand ninjas are fresh troops. We won't catch them like this."

"Then what do you suggest?" Kitsuchi demanded.

"There is a way," Monya said.

"Speak!"

"Firelight's unit of 800 ninjas has been held in reserve and hasn't seen combat yet. Their stamina and chakra levels are still intact. If we send them on a forced march to hound the Sand ninjas, keeping close enough to harass them, our main forces can flank them from both sides. We should be able to intercept them before they reach the Wind-Earth border."

"Lord Kazekage, about a kilometer behind us, there's a group of roughly 800 Iwagakure ninjas tailing us closely. They're moving fast and should catch up in about half an hour," Pengman reported, reading the flight patterns of his message bees.

Jing Hang came to an abrupt halt. "They're trying to grab our tail. If they manage to pin us down, it'll be a nightmare. Pengman, take the others and keep moving. I'll handle this."

He turned to head in the opposite direction, but his words caught the attention of the Third Raikage, who also stopped in his tracks.

"What's this? They've caught up? Good! I'll go slaughter them myself!" the Third Raikage declared. The chakra-boosting pills Jing Hang had given him were the latest third-generation product from Silver Sand Pharmaceuticals—faster-acting and with fewer side effects. The Raikage felt like at least half of his chakra reserves had been restored.

Jing Hang laughed. "Fine, but let's be clear—make it quick. Push them back and retreat immediately. Do not, under any circumstances, get bogged down. If you get surrounded by Iwagakure again, I won't be able to save you a second time."

"Don't worry, little brother Jing Hang. I know what I'm doing. By the way, got anything else to eat? Those soldier pills didn't fill me up," the Raikage said, patting his stomach.

"My bad," Jing Hang replied with a chuckle. He rummaged through his ninja pouch and tossed the Raikage a can of beef stew. "Here, this should tide you over. Once we're back in the Land of Wind, I'll treat you to a proper feast."

The Raikage didn't stand on ceremony. He caught the can, used his signature Four-Finger Nukite to slice the lid clean off, and began gulping down its contents.

"Jing Hang, how about I teach you a new technique?" the Raikage offered between bites.

"Oh? What technique?" Jing Hang asked, intrigued.

The Raikage smirked. "Lightning Release: Hell Stab."

Jing Hang glanced at his own arms and grinned. "I suppose you're thinking of pulling off a dual Hell Stab, aren't you?"

Meanwhile, Firelight led his 800 ninjas across the vast plains. As a young jonin handpicked by Kitsuchi, Firelight had proven himself to be a formidable leader. He excelled in Earth Release jutsu, kenjutsu, and genjutsu, but his greatest asset was his calm, analytical mind. He never underestimated his opponents, no matter the circumstances. (In the original manga, Firelight was the one who nearly killed Obito at Kannabi Bridge and broke Kakashi's White Fang short sword.)

For this pursuit mission, Firelight had prepared meticulously. He ordered his men to discard all iron weapons and metal objects. Despite outnumbering the Sand ninjas two-to-one, he planned to employ hyena tactics—keeping a calculated distance, harassing the enemy with hit-and-run strikes, and bleeding them dry over time. His strategy was as cruel as it was effective.

But Jing Hang's response left Firelight in a dilemma. When he saw Jing Hang standing alone, hands in his pockets, smiling at him, Firelight hesitated.

Should he attack? His 800 men might not be enough.

Should he hold back? If Jing Hang decided to flee, they'd never catch him.

Should he just wait for reinforcements? But Jing Hang wasn't giving him that luxury.

Before Firelight could decide, Jing Hang made the first move—charging straight toward them.

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