In the blink of an eye, Kakashi found his body covered in bees. He turned around and saw that Obito and Tekka were in the same predicament.
"Hmph, the ninjas of Konoha are nothing special," sneered a burly man with black tattoos on his face, wielding a samurai sword. With a single swing, he decapitated a man standing next to Obito.
"Kuno" Obito's mind went blank as he stared at the severed neck, the flesh and spine exposed. The hot blood from Kuno Tetsuji's neck sprayed onto his face, covering it entirely.
His teammate, who had been talking to him just that morning, was now dead.
The bees buzzed incessantly around him, and Obito felt as though he were sinking into mud, unable to struggle free. The image of Kuno Tetsuji's head flying through the air replayed endlessly in his mind.
"Obito!" Kakashi's pupils contracted. Obito was trapped by the honey, and so was he. If this continued, Obito would lose his life.
Kakashi quickly glanced around. The distant woods and tents echoed with angry shouts, and the clashing of weapons was relentless.
Rin was locked in combat with a queen bee, while Uchiha Tekka was also immobilized by honey. Further away, Shiranui Genma lay on the ground, stabbed and unmoving, his condition unknown.
This time, most of the ninjas left behind were from Kakashi's generation. Only a few had been promoted to chunin, while the majority were still genin. Faced with a surprise attack by at least twenty jonin, they stood no chance!
Thud!
The queen bee shot out a black stinger, and Rin froze in place, terrified.
In that split second, her peripheral vision caught sight of Kakashi.
Am I going to die? Rin felt a pang of disappointment. She had only been on the battlefield for a few days, and now her life was about to end.
Perhaps it's for the best. This tainted body of mine doesn't deserve to live.
Rin slowly closed her eyes, ready to accept her fate.
Buzz!!
A sharp, ear-piercing sound rang out.
A blazing fire sword sliced the stinger in half, and it fell to the ground, emitting an unusual roasted scent.
"Shimizu..." Rin opened her eyes. Instead of death, she was met with a warm, fiery presence.
The fiery sword left a faint warmth in the air where it had passed.
She clenched her fists. Honestly, being saved by someone she despised didn't feel good. But there was still a subtle, indescribable feeling.
Rin turned to look at Kakashi, only to find him staring intently at Obito.
Suddenly, a wave of sadness washed over her.
Kakashi, why can't your gaze linger on me? Even Shimizu noticed me. Why can't you?
Rin's eyes glistened with moisture, making her look pitiful.
...
"Hmph, an Uchiha?" Suzumebachi, the queen bee, looked toward the source of the fire sword. A handsome young man with thick black hair, resembling a wolf's tail, stood there. His crimson eyes glowed with a dangerous light.
"Jigabachi, Kurobachi, Akabachi, you three hold off the jonin."
"Yes!" Three towering ninjas responded gruffly, preparing to assist their fellow Joketsu clan members fighting against Konoha's jonin.
However, a flash of light moved faster than them. Accompanied by a burst of red flames, the three ninjas suddenly stopped.
Thud.
Three heads fell to the ground, rolling to a stop by the tree trunks.
The expressions on the heads were calm, as if they hadn't realized they had been decapitated. A few seconds later, their mouths opened in horror, gasping for air, their faces twisting in agony before they died. The cuts had been swift.
"Shimizu!" Shizune, who had just emerged from a tent, witnessed the scene, her eyes wide with shock.
How does Shimizu have time to practice ninjutsu while being so skilled in medical ninjutsu?
The last time she had seen Shimizu was during the Chunin Exams. Now, his strength had increased exponentially.
He had almost instantly killed three seemingly powerful ninjas.
This move stunned everyone.
While others were still engaged in back-and-forth combat, Shimizu had taken out three enemies in what seemed like less than two seconds.
"It's Shimizu," Kakashi muttered, unconsciously relieved.
He had been so focused on Obito that he hadn't noticed Rin was also in danger. Only now did he realize that Rin had nearly been killed by the stinger.
The Joketsu clan ninja who had been about to strike Obito hesitated for a moment. Seizing the opportunity, Kakashi's palm crackled with electricity, paralyzing the bees and causing them to fall to the ground.
With a powerful leap, Kakashi closed the two-meter gap to Obito and plunged his blade into the Joketsu ninja, resolving Obito's crisis.
"Haah... haah..." Kakashi panted heavily. He had only developed half of that technique, and even using a fraction of its power had drained most of his chakra.
"Everyone, stay calm! Don't lose your composure! There are only about twenty Iwa ninjas. If we work together, our hundred against their twenty means the advantage is ours!" Shimizu shouted.
The attack had come too suddenly. Most of the ninjas here were genin and chunin, inexperienced in handling ambushes. The few jonin present were also tied up by Iwa's jonin, leaving the remaining Iwa ninjas free to wreak havoc in this area.
The situation was dire, but stabilizing morale would help them overcome this crisis.
Shimizu had run simulations in his mind. This attack was only a single wave.
"Shimizu is right! Don't lose your focus!" A jonin from the Akimichi clan gave Shimizu an appreciative glance.
Remaining calm in the face of danger and rallying everyone in a critical moment showed excellent leadership potential.
"Damn Iwa ninjas, die!" After the initial fear, the ninjas' rage surged. They unleashed their signature jutsu, hurling them at the Iwa ninjas without restraint.
"We need to kill this kid first," Suzumebachi muttered, her expression darkening. She vanished, blending into the night like a shadow.
Her footsteps were swift, covering dozens of meters in seconds as she appeared behind Shimizu.
Whoosh!
Two kunai blades clashed, sparks flying.
"How...? You only have one tomoe in your Sharingan!" Suzumebachi's face was filled with disbelief.
The Uchiha clan's reputation was well-known in the ninja world. When Iwa invaded the Land of Fire, they had prepared countermeasures against the Uchiha. They had even analyzed the bloodline abilities of other clans in Konoha.
Her camouflage technique was an A-rank jutsu. A one-tomoe Sharingan shouldn't have been able to see through it. At least a two-tomoe was required, along with sharp reflexes.
"Take another look. Is it still one tomoe?" Shimizu held the kunai with his right hand, locked in a stalemate with Suzumebachi, while his left hand swung the fiery sword diagonally at her.
"What?! Three tomoe... This is a three-tomoe Sharingan!" Suzumebachi retreated rapidly, putting more than ten meters between them.
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