"We have to go now," Kakashi said, his voice urgent. He carefully wrapped the scroll and handed it to Kenji. "Your stealth and versatility skills are better than mine. You keep it. I'll clear the way."
Kenji nodded, tucking the scroll inside his jacket. "Danzō is a cautious man. He surely has some kind of sensory jutsu placed here. He knows we've taken it."
No sooner had he finished his sentence than their premonition came true.
From the shadows of the surrounding trees, dozens of figures in black robes and blank, white masks silently emerged. They surrounded them, leaving no gaps. They emanated no chakra of anger or fear. Only a cold, empty void.
Root.
"Hand over the scroll," one of them spoke, his voice as monotonous as a machine's. "And you will be granted a merciful death."
Kakashi drew the short sword from his back, its steel glinting under the moonlight. "I hate to say this," he whispered to Kenji, "but it seems we have no choice but to fight."
Kenji smiled behind his mask. "I've never shied away from an uneven fight."
Kage Bunshin no Jutsu!
In an instant, twenty of Kenji's Shadow Clones appeared, forming a defensive circle around them. "Kakashi, you handle the individual attackers. I'll hold back the majority," Kenji commanded.
"Got it!"
The battle erupted.
The Root members charged like a pack of wolves. They moved with perfect, wordless coordination. But they were facing two of the Leaf Village's most elite shinobi.
Kenji's clones immediately rushed forward, creating a chaotic battlefield. They didn't fight to win; they fought to disrupt. One clone grabbed a Root member's leg, creating an opening for another clone to attack. Another clone self-destructed, creating a thick cloud of smoke.
In that chaos, Kakashi moved like a silver flash. He weaved past one Root member, and by the time he was gone, the man had collapsed with a fatal wound. He dodged an attack from behind while simultaneously striking another agent in the neck with the hilt of his sword. Obito's Sharingan in his left eye socket whirred, reading and neutralizing every attack aimed at him.
Their coordination was nearly perfect. Kenji created chaos and openings. Kakashi exploited those openings to deliver precise, finishing blows.
But the Root members were too numerous. And they were fearless. One was taken down, and two more immediately filled the void.
A Root member suddenly formed a hand seal, aiming directly at Kakashi. Shibari no Jutsu! (Binding Jutsu!). But before the technique could take effect, one of Kenji's clones leaped in between, taking the full force of the jutsu and vanishing.
"Thanks!" Kakashi yelled, immediately using the opening to close in on the caster.
"We can't hold them off forever!" the real Kenji, who was standing at the center and directing the battle, said. "We have to break the encirclement and head for the Hokage Tower!"
"Do you have a plan?" Kakashi asked, dodging a volley of shuriken.
"Create a straight path for me!" Kenji replied.
Kakashi understood. He fell back, standing beside Kenji. His right hand began to spark with bluish-white lightning. The piercing sound of a thousand chirping birds began to fill the air.
Chidori!
"All of you! Open a path!" the real Kenji roared in his mind.
All the remaining Shadow Clones, about fifteen of them, stopped defending. They charged forward in unison, aiming for a single point in the Root encirclement. They were a kamikaze wave, a wall of chakra-flesh with the sole purpose of creating an opening, even if only for a second.
The Root members were taken by surprise at such recklessness. They were forced to fall back to deal with the frenzied wave of attacks.
"NOW!" Kenji yelled.
Kakashi shot forward, his right hand a spear of lightning. RAIKIRI! (Lightning Blade!)
He plunged directly into the gap the clones had created. The power of the Raikiri didn't just defeat the Root members in his path; it created a powerful shockwave, blowing others away and forging a straight, clear path.
"Run!" Kakashi yelled.
Without a second's hesitation, Kenji and Kakashi burst through the path of lightning, breaking the encirclement. They landed on the rooftops of the Leaf Village and began their race towards the distant Hokage Tower.
Behind them, the remaining Root members were regrouping and giving chase. An alarm had been raised in their shadow world.
The battle in the forest was over. The chase across the entire village had just begun.