With a leap from the treetops, Veigar drove his ninjatō straight through the heart of a young Sand shinobi.
The other Sand ninja—who had just opened his mouth to shout—was instantly beheaded by Kakashi with a swift slash.
A chūnin and three genin, all cut down in a flash by the Minato Squad. They never stood a chance.
At that same moment, a hail of senbon needles shot toward them at blistering speed.
Just as the group made their move, Yinbu, who had been observing with sharp vigilance, snapped his eyes open. His fingers twitched, and the Hornet Puppet hovering above him unleashed a barrage of senbon from its jaws.
He had been watching the battlefield from an elevated perspective—and had no intention of saving those four Sand shinobi. In fact, he used them as bait to trigger the ambush, targeting the enemy with full force. The unfortunate part? His own comrades were caught in the strike zone.
To take down Veigar's group, Yinbu was willing to sacrifice even his fellow villagers.
Yet, his attack failed to inflict a single wound.
After eliminating their targets, the four immediately scattered, wasting no time.
Shhh—shhh—shhh—shhh—!
Thud.
The four Sand shinobi, now riddled with senbon, collapsed lifelessly.
Despite the unexpected interruption, Veigar had achieved his goal—each of the Sand shinobi had died by their respective blades.
Their elimination meant significantly less pressure for Veigar and his teammates in the coming confrontation.
Standing back-to-back, blood still dripping from their weapons, the four members of the Minato Squad prepared themselves. Kaneya, gnashing his teeth, growled under his breath:
"Konoha… it really is you bastards."
Ssshhh—ssshhh—ssshhh—ssshhh—
As if on cue, two more Sand squads emerged from the surrounding forest, encircling them. Cold eyes glinted with killing intent as they locked onto the four.
A brutal fight was now inevitable.
Their earlier success had come from the element of surprise, combined with overwhelming skill. But now? There would be no second chance for an ambush. This would be a head-on clash.
Glaring at the four now surrounded, Yinbu gave his order with icy detachment:
"Kill them."
Before his voice even faded, Kaneya sprang into action.
"Wind Release: Blade Gale Technique!"
From Kaneya's mouth erupted wind-style chakra, shaped into slicing gusts that tore toward the tightly packed Watergate Squad.
The other Sand shinobi moved to join the assault, though they were just a heartbeat too slow.
Despite having no time to coordinate, the Minato Squad moved in perfect unison. Before Kaneya's winds reached them, each member sprang into action.
"Wind Release: Wind Reversal!"
Minato was the first to respond. He countered Kaneya's technique with a burst of wind-style chakra, reflecting the attack back toward its caster. Without retreating an inch, Minato charged forward, aiming to take on both Kaneya and Yinbu by himself.
Meanwhile, Kakashi and Shōgetsu flanked right, targeting a group of four Sand shinobi. Veigar dashed left, heading for another squad of four.
Centipede. Spider. Scorpion.
Veigar's gaze stayed calm as he faced off against three aggressive puppets. Without hesitation, he plunged into the attack.
But he had underestimated the coordination of the three puppet users. Before long, he found himself surrounded.
Forced onto the defensive, Veigar swung his ninjatō with blinding speed to parry the onslaught.
Clang! Clang! Clang!
The clash reached a standstill.
At that moment, a chūnin-level reconnaissance shinobi standing behind the puppet masters recognized an opportunity—and wasn't about to let it slip.
He had to admit: Veigar's strength was formidable. One-on-one, he likely couldn't match him.
But with Veigar preoccupied, tangled in puppet wires, he was nothing more than a lamb to the slaughter.
"Earth Release: Rising Spire Technique!"
The Sand chūnin slammed both palms into the ground. A jagged stone spike erupted just behind Veigar, aimed to impale him in a single, decisive strike.
"There's no way you're escaping this—"
A smug grin spread across his face.
He didn't realize… this was exactly what Veigar had been waiting for.
Pinned by the puppets in front, ambushed by the earthen strike from behind—any ordinary shinobi would have met their end.
But in that instant, Veigar sheathed his blade.
Rasengan: Revolving Heaven.
CLANG! CLANG! CLANG! CLANG!
The defensive spin of chakra deflected everything—shattering the stone spike and knocking all three puppets backward in chaotic arcs.
A cloud of dust and sand erupted, obscuring Veigar from view.
Realizing something had gone horribly wrong, the Sand chūnin leapt back instinctively, desperate to escape.
But Veigar wasn't about to let him.
Wind Release: Shunshin Iai Slash!
The moment the chūnin took flight, a gleam of steel flashed past his throat.
A massive head flew skyward.
Though surrounded moments earlier, Veigar had kept part of his attention locked on the chūnin—delaying his use of Rasengan: Revolving Heaven to set up this very moment.
Elsewhere, Minato, facing off against both Kaneya and Yinbu—one a wind-user, the other a puppeteer—was struggling. He hadn't yet faltered, but victory still felt distant.
Yinbu's hornet puppet danced around Minato, constantly harassing him, while Kaneya applied relentless pressure, not giving him a moment's breathing room.
Meanwhile, Kakashi and Shōgetsu—outnumbered two to four—were under the least pressure.
Still, something felt off to Kakashi.
It was as if he were being led around by the nose.
Thrown fight?
As he parried blows, Kakashi couldn't shake the suspicion—he wasn't fighting a fair battle, but one unfolding according to someone else's script.
BAM. BAM.
Finding an opening, Kakashi landed two sharp kicks on one of the Sand genin Minato had mentioned earlier, sending him flying.
Without pause, he slashed at another nearby opponent with his short blade.
But Kakashi failed to notice—the trajectory of the Sand genin he kicked was ever so slightly… off.
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