Chapter 196: Sneak Attack

Takigakure Village

Senji and Shibuki led Sakura's group through the cavern passages. The initial cavern wasn't vast; looking deeper revealed a passage that seemed to stretch endlessly. Sakura figured this was the direct route into Takigakure village proper. The well-trodden path showed signs of frequent passage. These Takigakure folk really go to great lengths for secrecy, she mused.

Following Shibuki and Senji, the path wound steadily up and down. After walking for some time, Sakura gradually noticed the surrounding walls were no longer rock but gave way to wood – not artificially constructed, it seemed, but more like part of a massive tree itself.

The surroundings were dim; only a few shafts of light filtered down from somewhere high above. Sakura looked up, and then, with a sudden intuition, asked, "We're inside that giant tree, aren't we?"

This time, Senji offered no ready answer, simply keeping his head bowed as he doggedly followed Shibuki. Sakura paid it no mind. Shibuki, however, confirmed, "Correct. We are inside the God Tree now. From here, we can proceed directly into the village." He fell silent again, resuming his pace with his head down.

The group walked a while longer until the space ahead brightened considerably. Before them was a hollow within the tree trunk, tall enough for a person to stand upright and wide enough for two to walk abreast. The entrance was concealed by low-hanging branches and leaves from the great tree outside.

"From here, you can descend straight down into the heart of the village. It's perfectly concealed; they'll never find it," Shibuki said, his voice thick with fear, as he carefully parted the leaves covering the hollow's entrance.

Sakura peered out. Sure enough, below lay the village center. The invading ninja had gathered all the villagers in the central plaza, guarding them on all sides to prevent any escape attempts.

However, Sakura didn't spot anyone who appeared to be the leader among the guards below. Taking the villagers hostage was clearly meant to pressure Shibuki, she deduced. Combined with what Senji said about that thing*, the attackers' objective must be to force Shibuki to give up* that thing*. Still have no idea what* that thing actually is, though.

"The enemy is down there! Please, do something!" Shibuki pleaded, his terrified eyes fixed on the figures below.

Sakura quickly assessed the enemies – about ten of them. A quick sensor sweep confirmed they weren't especially powerful. With a surprise attack, Sasuke and Naruto should be able to take care of them.

"Sasuke, Naruto, you're up," Sakura said after a moment's brief consideration. "I'll sit back for this one. Let's see how much you've progressed with your recent training."

As soon as the words left her mouth, the two boys leapt out in a blur. With a resigned shake of her head, Sakura settled back. Her rationale for holding back was twofold: first, she genuinely wanted to evaluate their progress and teamwork. Second, the enemies currently visible were fodder, easily within Naruto and Sasuke's capabilities to handle, and more importantly, the true leader hadn't revealed themselves yet. Sakura decided to wait for the boss to show their face, then ambush them from behind. She saw nothing dishonorable about an ambush; honorable duels were for samurai. Calculated sneak attacks were the ninja way.

"Y-you... aren't you going to help them?" Shibuki asked, his face a mixture of anxiety and disappointment.

"Those two can handle it," Sakura replied nonchalantly. "If they get into trouble, I'll intervene." She then settled herself at the opening, peeking through the leaves to observe the situation below.

Hearing her casual confidence, Shibuki opened his mouth as if to protest, but thought better of it. He simply pulled his knees to his chest and huddled in a corner of the tree hollow.

Meanwhile, down below, Sasuke and Naruto had indeed improved significantly. Naruto didn't charge out with his usual battle cries but worked in tandem with Sasuke, using the surrounding buildings for cover. The enemies, perhaps grown somewhat complacent after securing the villagers, had let their guard down. This provided the perfect opportunity for a coordinated surprise attack. With clear coordination, the two boys swiftly moved through the plaza, incapacitating the ten or so enemies in short order.

"Hehe, Sasuke! I got six of 'em!" Naruto bragged after securing the last downed enemy, wiping the sweat from his brow.

"Idiot," Sasuke muttered, ignoring Naruto's meaningless tally as he methodically finished securing the enemies he'd taken down, tying them efficiently in a chain.

Seeing their captors swiftly defeated by the two young shinobi, the gathered villagers let out a collective sigh of relief.

"It's okay now, everyone! We came to help!" Naruto called out, stepping forward to address the villagers.

Although relieved, the villagers remained wary. "Who are you two?" one of them asked cautiously. "How did you get in here?"

"Don't worry! We're Konoha ninja!" Naruto replied cheerfully, without a care. "Shibuki-sama asked us to help, and he led us here!"

Hearing that Shibuki himself had brought them, the villagers visibly relaxed, though they immediately began murmuring amongst themselves.

"But... where is Shibuki-sama now?" a child called out from the crowd.

"Oh, him? He's uh..."

Just as Naruto was about to blurt out Shibuki's location, Sasuke interrupted him sharply.

"Shibuki-sama is somewhere safe," Sasuke stated firmly. He wasn't any less perceptive than Sakura; since she'd guessed the real leader was still lurking, Sasuke had reached the same conclusion. He'd expected the leader to appear after they took down the fodder. Since they still hadn't shown themselves, it likely meant they were still hunting for Shibuki. Sasuke certainly wasn't going to let idiot Naruto reveal their client's hiding place.

"Shibuki-sama wasn't fighting alongside you?" another child asked plaintively.

"That guy? Heh," Naruto blurted out candidly, without a shred of concern for Shibuki's dignity. "He's just a total coward! Scared out of his wits!"

While Naruto might have disregarded Shibuki's reputation, the child who had asked the question certainly took offense. He ran up to Naruto and delivered a surprisingly solid punch to his leg.

"You're lying!" the child yelled fiercely, pummeling Naruto with tiny fists. "Shibuki-sama is Hisen-sama's son! Hisen-sama was a hero! A hero's son is also a hero! He's not a coward!"

Naruto was stunned for a moment by the child's vehement defense of Shibuki. Suddenly, the child's mother hurried forward, pulling him back restrainingly. "I'm so sorry, so sorry!" she apologized profusely to Naruto. "Thank you so much for your help!"

Naruto waved it off good-naturedly. "No problem! Piece of ca— Urk!!"

Suddenly—! Before Naruto could finish his sentence, he went flying, landing flat on his face in the dirt. Sasuke reacted instantly, kunai already drawn, simultaneously launching four shuriken at the spot Naruto had occupied a split second before.

Sharp Clang! Clang! sounds echoed as the shuriken were knocked aside. The attacker, however, made no further offensive move. A figure regarded the bound shinobi on the ground and tsked in annoyance. "Seriously. Didn't expect you all to be so useless. What a letdown. Kirisame, Hisame, wouldn't you agree?"

Just then, emerging from beside the formidable-looking man, stood the alluring woman in the striking kimono. Hisame eyed Sasuke assessingly. "Well, well. Just a boy," she purred. "This is no place for you, kiddo." As she spoke, she gave Sasuke a coy wink with the utmost coquetry.

"That's enough. Let's finish this quickly, Murasame," said the masked ninja standing beside Murasame, his eyes glinting coldly from behind his mask, his voice ominous.

"Damn it," Sasuke tightened his grip on his kunai, shifting into a ready stance as he faced the trio. These three were in a different league entirely from the fodder they'd just fought – far more dangerous. The real opponents have finally decided to show their faces, huh?

Naruto pushed himself up from the ground, kunai flashing in his hand as he took position beside Sasuke, glaring at the newly arrived trio. "Damn it, there's more of them?!"

He started to move forward, but Sasuke put an arm out, stopping him. "Wait. These guys are different from the others. Don't be reckless. From their headbands," Sasuke noted, eyes narrowed, "they must be Rain ninja."

"Well now, little boy," Murasame sneered. "Not entirely clueless, are you? But..." With that, he launched several kunai straight at them. "Now die!"

The kunai screamed through the air with a piercing shriek. Sasuke's pupils narrowed instantly. Reacting faster than thought, he violently shoved Naruto, still processing the sudden attack, out of the path.

"Thwip! Thwip!"

Two dull thuds, the sickening sound of kunai sinking into flesh, came from Sasuke's previous position. Naruto whipped his head towards Sasuke just in time to see two kunai sticking out of his teammate's back, blood already staining the blue fabric of his shirt crimson.

"SASUKE!!!" Naruto yelled, scrambling to his side.

"Cough... cough cough..." Sasuke reached back without looking and yanked the two kunai free with a grunt. "It's nothing... superficial wounds," he rasped, straightening up. "Watch the enemy!"

In that split second before impact, Sasuke had activated his Lightning Cloak. The burst of speed allowed him to intercept the kunai meant for Naruto, and using the unique properties of his lightning chakra, he'd managed to trap the kunai tips between his muscle fibers, preventing them from reaching his vital organs. So, while the injury looked grim, the actual damage was minimal.

Sasuke got back to his feet steadily, his Sharingan flaring to life. His crimson gaze fixed unwaveringly on the three opponents. "Looks like we're in for a real fight, Naruto."