Chapter 51: The Action Begins and Unexpected Events

That night, a light rain fell from the sky.

Everything around them was pitch black.

Qingming and the others followed Furukawa, stealthily approaching a location about a hundred meters west of a village.

This village was the Iwa-ninja's stronghold.

Faint glimmers of light flickered in the distance, hinting at the presence of the enemy.

As they arrived at a low slope, Furukawa raised his right fist, signaling everyone to stop.

Immediately, all movements ceased; the process was marked by strict discipline.

Indeed, the battlefield served as a crucible for honing one's skills. Those who had survived the encounters with the Iwa-ninja over the past month were no fools.

At the very least, no one had acted recklessly or deviated from their roles.

Furukawa glanced at the time and confirmed they had about ten minutes before launching the attack, signaling everyone to take a moment to rest.

In response, everyone silently adjusted their breathing, preparing for the imminent battle.

Time ticked away in silence, with only the faint sounds of their breaths and the patter of raindrops on the ground breaking the stillness.

It seemed as if the heavens sensed that a fierce battle was about to erupt, as the rain began to intensify slightly.

Qingming stretched out his hand to feel the rain, his brow furrowing slightly. "This environment isn't very conducive to using Fire Release!"

However, as he touched the short blade at his waist, he relaxed.

Nothing to worry about; the lv3 (430/1000) "Leaf Village Sword Technique" gave him enough confidence.

Boom~

Suddenly, an explosion echoed from a distance.

Qingming turned to look, only to see a burst of crimson flames erupting from the south side of the village, a clear sign of an explosion caused by an explosive tag.

Moments later, the sounds of metal clashing followed.

It was evident that a battle had broken out.

'Did someone get exposed?'

This thought flashed through Qingming's mind.

For this mission, they had been divided into four teams, each tasked with launching an assault from different directions simultaneously.

Their team, led by Furukawa, was responsible for the attack from the west, while the other three teams would strike from the other three directions.

Given the current situation, it was likely that the southern team had been compromised.

Otherwise, they wouldn't have launched an attack before the agreed time.

Qingming could anticipate Furukawa's thoughts.

After only a few moments of contemplation, Furukawa decisively ordered, "Plans have changed; everyone, follow me!"

Without hesitation, he took the lead, sprinting towards the Iwa-ninja stronghold.

Seeing this, Qingming and the others immediately followed suit.

Clearly, Furukawa intended to launch a preemptive strike, and he wasn't the only one with such thoughts.

As they swiftly approached the Iwa-ninja stronghold, another explosion erupted from the north.

'That works too; as long as it's not a solo fight,' Qingming thought, scanning his surroundings, always alert for hidden dangers.

Crack~

A faint cracking sound reached Qingming's ears.

He quickly looked down at his feet.

A slight tremor could be felt beneath him, reminiscent of a mild earthquake; the sensation wasn't intense.

However, this subtle tremor sent a chill of foreboding down his spine.

Without hesitation, Qingming grabbed Ryo and Shizuko by their arms, pulling them away with a burst of speed.

At the same time, he shouted to his teammates, "Watch out for the ground!"

"What?"

Some were confused by his warning and reacted slowly, while others quickly understood and followed him, racing to the sides.

In the next instant, the earth split open, and dozens of cracks of various sizes appeared along Qingming's path, accompanied by a violent tremor.

Those few Konoha genin who had reacted slowly were instantly swallowed by the gaping fissures.

It was only then that Furukawa and several jōnin up front sensed the abnormality.

This wasn't due to Qingming's sensory abilities being sharper than the jōnin; it was simply that the enemy had aimed their attack directly at the middle and lower-ranked ninjas, deliberately avoiding Furukawa and the others.

Otherwise, with Furukawa's vigilance, they wouldn't have missed the disturbance underground.

Before the group could regain their footing, numerous rock spikes suddenly burst forth from the ground, sprouting like mushrooms after the rain.

Several Konoha ninjas were caught off guard, sustaining injuries from the sharp spikes.

Fortunately, no one lost their life.

Given that their team consisted of just over twenty members, losing four or five in the first wave of attacks would significantly undermine their strength.

All of this was thanks to Qingming's timely warning.

That shout had prepared everyone mentally, preventing them from being completely dazed by the first wave of attacks. Otherwise, several more would have perished in the second wave.

Swish swish swish~

Dozens of shuriken flew from the hands of Furukawa and the jōnin beside him.

Moments later, the sounds of metal clashing echoed through the darkness.

Clearly, their attacks had been intercepted.

However, the barrage of attacks directed at Qingming and the other middle and lower-ranked ninjas ceased along with the counter-offensive.

Thud thud thud~

A series of heavy footsteps approached.

From the darkness emerged an Iwa-ninja jōnin.

Upon seeing the newcomer, Furukawa wasted no words. He immediately instructed one of the jōnin beside him to confront the Iwa-ninja while he led his team towards the Iwa stronghold.

Before they set out, Qingming and the others had been briefed on the mission objectives—first, to eliminate as many enemy forces as possible, and second, to destroy the enemy's supplies.

From Furukawa's demeanor, he clearly intended to accomplish the latter.

Qingming didn't wish to engage in a protracted battle with the Iwa-ninja, so if they could achieve that, it would be ideal.

Once the objective was met, they could retreat.

But would the Iwa-ninja allow them to complete their mission so easily?

The answer was clearly no.

As soon as Qingming and the others approached the village, they were immediately forced back by a hail of shuriken flying toward them.

Earlier that day, they had just repelled the Iwa-ninja with the advantage of their home ground.

Now, they faced the enemy's home turf and were about to engage in battle.

The Iwa-ninja's indiscriminate use of shuriken was a stark contrast to the restraint they had shown while fighting away from home.

Unless they were proficient in space-time ninjutsu, allowing them to carry extra gear and supplies, the items a ninja could carry were quite limited during missions.

In such a scenario, it was impossible for them to engage in a war of attrition.

Moreover, breaking through such a defense wasn't insurmountable.

A Konoha jōnin quietly stepped forward from beside Furukawa, raising both hands and quickly forming seals.

In the next moment, a large amount of chakra surged from his body, mixing with the falling rain to form a giant water dragon over ten meters long.

The water dragon roared and lunged forward, aiming for the not-so-sturdy wall ahead.

If it collided, the wall would collapse in an instant, taking down the Iwa-ninja hiding behind it as well.

In such an environment, the power of the Water Release: Water Dragon Bullet Technique could not be underestimated.

The Iwa-ninja clearly understood this too, as a furious shout erupted from behind the wall before the water dragon could make contact.

"Not on my watch!"

Along with the voice came a towering earth wall that rose from the ground.

Qingming recognized the technique; it was the B-rank ninjutsu known for its defensive power—Earth Release: Earth Flow Wall.

Naturally, earth release was generally effective against water release, and since this technique was also performed by a jōnin, the Water Dragon Bullet couldn't breach their defenses.

All Qingming heard was a dull thud as the water dragon collided with the wall.

He felt the ground tremble beneath him as the water dragon dissipated into a splash of water, failing to inflict any damage on the Iwa-ninja behind the wall.

Fortunately, the jōnin on their side had more than one trick up their sleeves.

Sorry for the delay; I'm still stuck in traffic, and I managed to type this chapter on my phone when I had some spare time.

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