Chapter 37: 36. Tactics
"Be careful, this kid is no ordinary opponent!"
The dissipating smoke screen revealed Ruri's Sharingan and Ayane's Byakugan.
As the only two doujutsu Kekkei Genkai clans in Konoha, Uchiha and Hyūga have caused great suffering to ninjas from various villages in previous ninja wars.
Sharingan even earned the reputation of being "someone you must flee from" in one-on-one battles.
In a solo encounter with Sharingan, the chances of winning were close to zero.
After Ruri and Ayane revealed their kekkei genkai, the besieging ninjas were concerned.
The first ninja who attacked Ayane was just a Chunin, easily dispatched by Ayane's Byakugan within the smoke. Under her watchful gaze, he couldn't execute any hidden moves.
Moreover, Ruri's Sharingan was fixated on him.
As for Shiraishi, the humble medical ninja, they simply disregarded him.
He was just a medical ninja. As long as they defeated the main force of the enemy, in their eyes, Shiraishi was no different from a lamb to be slaughtered.
"In that case, let's separate the three of them!"
A ninja wearing a Sunagakure's forehead protector stared intently, gathering a significant amount of visible chakra in their hands before slamming them onto the ground.
"Earth Release: Split Earth Palm!"
Boom!
The countenances of the three of them changed. The ground began to crack inch by inch, akin to an earthquake, with a large radius. It was too late to devise countermeasures.
The surrounding soil and rocks sank and cracked, forcing the three of them to infuse chakra into their feet, propelling themselves to soar away from the tremendous seismic force.
Observing Shiraishi and the others grow disoriented due to the shattered earth, the remaining ninjas leaped up once more, their eyes brimming with murderous intent.
"This guy..."
Ruri's gaze fixed upon the Suna ninja who used the Earth Release. Their remarkably skilled earth-based jutsus, immense power, and battlefield manipulation resembled the style of the Iwagakure rather than the Sunagakure.
The scarlet, two-tomoe Sharingan began to spin. When the enemy launched their attack, Ruri didn't retreat. Instead, she chose to confront the enemy head-on.
Regarding the Suna Ninjas they were facing, Ruri considered them as members of the Suna since they wore the Sandgakure's forehead protectors.
Although Ruri harbored doubts about the identity of this Suna Hidden Army.
Of course, it wouldn't be entirely accurate to dismiss the existence of the Suna Hidden Army, but there must be unidentified ninjas mingling within their ranks.
This ninja who confronted Ruri exuded immense confidence.
Experienced ninjas from the village had warned them that if they encountered a ninja with Sharingan, they needed to avoid direct eye contact, or else they would fall victim to illusions.
Even though it was easy for the enemy to avoid their gaze, as a special Jōnin, all they needed to do was intercept the opponent and allow the others to flank them, guaranteeing victory.
Thinking along those lines, the suna nin used kunai to deflect Ruri's kunai.
However, the tremendous force that surged into their arm turned their face pale.
They even hallucinated the sound of bones crunching.
For a moment, their body froze, and instinctively, they raised their head, directly meeting a pair of scarlet eyes.
In an instant, their consciousness fell into chaos, their gaze becoming dull.
Ruri wiped the blood off her kunai. As the blood spilled, she disappeared from their position with the Body Flicker Technique, rushing towards the next target with seamless speed.
Meanwhile, Shiraishi, observing Ruri and Ayane's impressive prowess, remained unfazed, without displaying any surprise.
Although the enemy's strength was formidable, the renowned Sharingan and Byakugan wielders in the ninja world, had gathered here. At the very least, they wouldn't be defeated easily.
After all, some of the strongest ninjas in this unit were focused on containing Sakumo, or rather, keeping him occupied.
The enemy's strategy likely involved restraining Sakumo, while the remaining combatants dealt with Shiraishi and the others as swiftly as possible. Afterward, they would regroup and besiege Sakumo, the esteemed White Fang of Konoha.
This way, Konoha's morale would suffer a significant blow.
However, they underestimated Sakumo's strength, and their more serious mistake was underestimating the formidable combat abilities of Ruri and Ayane.
Ayane, in particular, may fall slightly short of being on par with Jōnin, while Ruri's overall abilities have already reached Jōnin level.
With the deterrent power of Sharingan, it would require at least two Sharingan users to exert a suppressing force against them.
Just as Shiraishi was considering hiding behind a large tree, the ground beneath his feet suddenly cracked open, and something was about to emerge.
"Earth Release: Earth Splitting Decapitation—"
Pfft!
The enemy's ninjutsu release was interrupted.
A kunai had been thrust into the solid soil.
Shiraishi maintained his crouched position on the ground, his gaze calm.
"Don't suddenly pop up and startle me..."
The ninja hidden in the ground had met their untimely demise.
Gently pulling out the kunai, Shiraishi played with the soil, stabbed the kunai back in, plugged the hole mixed with blood, and slowly smoothed over the crack. He did so without haste or urgency, as if nothing had happened in that spot.
Afterwards, Shiraishi proceeded to retrieve a smoke bomb from his ninja pouch.
He tossed it towards Ayane.
The smoke bomb exploded, emitting a dense cloud of white smoke that enveloped the area. With their vision obscured by the smoke screen, the enemy sought to withdraw.
Another smoke bomb was thrown, expanding the area covered by smoke.
For Ayane, this was the perfect battleground.
While the enemy could use Earth Release to divide the battlefield, Shiraishi could counter with smoke bombs, creating an exclusive environment that favored Ayane's Byakugan.
Not only that, Ruri was also affected by the smoke.
However, having previously fought alongside Shiraishi with closed eyes in training exercises, Ruri simply needed to imagine herself fighting with closed eyes and recall the rhythm of the games she played without her eyesight.
In this manner, those Suna ninjas must have been frustrated with Shiraishi, the seemingly weak and retreating medical ninja who kept throwing smoke bombs.
Shiraishi pondered upon seeing how a small smoke bomb could have such a significant impact.
It appeared that a specialized smoke bomb needed to be created, one that would cause the smoke to linger for a longer duration and spread more widely. During battle, Shiraishi would then be responsible for providing medical support and tossing smoke bombs.
If this tactic proved effective, it would be a unique and innovative strategy developed by their Sakumo team.
"Damn it! Get rid of that kid who keeps throwing the smoke bombs first!"
The blinding environment had become unbearable for one of the hidden Sand Jōnin, who roared in frustration, almost on the verge of losing their composure.
They were not accustomed to fighting in smoke, and engaging the enemy with closed eyes was nothing short of a death wish.
But if they were to open their eyes, their field of vision would be severely limited, while the enemy seemed to possess intimate knowledge of their every move.
Such a predicament was incredibly infuriating.
Despite having a stronger lineup than their opponents, the battle situation had swiftly turned against them due to Shiraishi's sporadic smoke bomb attacks.
Furthermore, if they wanted to deal with Shiraishi, they would have to contend with the combined forces of Ruri and Ayane.
Simultaneously, a sense of bewilderment arose. Weren't there ninjas skilled in Earth Release? Why hadn't they made a move yet?
Did it truly take so long to handle a medical ninja with only Genin level strength?
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