Defeated Again
Nara Yan Shui, hearing the unusual sounds, gripped his Kunai but didn't move, noticing Maki subtly blocking the upstairs corridor.
Is this a test for Lin Ke?
Such undisguised intentions. They have the Chunin Exams as a platform, yet they resort to these petty tricks during missions...
He watched Maki. Last time, in the Land of Rivers, they almost fought. Had the other party not been wary of Lin Ke's techniques, they could have killed them all there.
Don't think alliances preclude killing. Ninjas are, after all, a profession that walks in darkness.
The Chunin Exams are attended by allies, but deaths are ignored. In different missions, encountering each other, you can't trust anyone except your own village comrades.
However, this suggests the opponent is a cautious, traditional ninja.
Nara Yan Shui's mind raced.
Traditional ninjas value using information for a single, decisive blow, never prolonging the fight. Once they act, they'll pay any price to end the battle quickly.
"Crack!"
The sound of breaking glass echoed.
Has Xia clashed with that female ninja? Nara Yan Shui worried. He didn't know much about his three subordinates' growth recently. Judging by a normal two-month progression, they'd likely lose soon.
With two of his three subordinates engaged, Yuan Wei downstairs probably wouldn't be an exception.
Even if Lin Ke surprised them, facing three opponents without using large-scale secret techniques would be tough.
Unfortunately, king against king, general against general, he couldn't leave his post.
"Shua!"
The shadow's kick landed, sinking into a mass of sand.
Sand Clone.
"Crack~" The gourd-carrying boy's sand quickly tightened, the shadow emitting a cracking sound, most of its body shattering.
The shadow's strength depends on the original. Lin Ke's body still can't withstand this ninjutsu's damage.
The shattered shadow fell to the ground, becoming a fragmented two-dimensional form, then an abstract black line quickly returning to the original's feet.
In mid-air, the gourd-carrying boy, standing on sand, reached out towards Lin Ke.
"Shua!"
The scattered sand on the ground rapidly gathered, trying to envelop the target.
But the next moment, the shadow under the gourd-carrying boy's feet, elongated by the moonlight, retracted and stood up, kicking the original.
His expression changed as half his stamina was drained when the shadow formed. He was kicked off the sand and fell out of the building.
"Shua!"
The sand around Lin Ke trembled and scattered.
The sudden loss of stamina was unpleasant. With Gaara's fragile mentality, prone to berserking after seeing blood, being ambushed by his own shadow caught him off guard, making it impossible to maintain the technique.
Of course, he had a Plan B. If the Shadow Clone Technique couldn't interrupt the sand's capture, he could try kicking the sand apart, then use the Body Flicker Technique to escape, or throw his head out to regenerate his body.
His physical abilities were vastly different now, with many cards to play.
Gaara, a ninjutsu-type opponent, seemed the easiest to deal with.
He chose the Shadow Clone Technique mainly for intelligence reasons. The opponent knew he could manipulate shadows, and revealing he could manipulate opponents' shadows was better than exposing other techniques.
"Gulp."
Lin Ke swallowed a Soldier Pill. Losing half his stamina was manageable. With his strengthened body, his recovery speed was faster. As long as he replenished in time, using a Shadow Clone before the fight wouldn't affect the battle.
The gourd-carrying boy downstairs was still entangled with his shadow.
An opponent's shadow is usually familiar with the original, so without close-combat, rapid-cutting attacks, quickly defeating a shadow is difficult.
Yakushi Kabuto, a medical ninja with superb skills, is rare. Most lack the means to sever limbs in one blow, needing Kunai, Shuriken, or other ninja tools.
Especially for a Jinchuriki, whose massive Chakra creates a shadow with ample stamina to repeatedly repair blunt-force damage, making it extremely troublesome.
"Clatter!"
A somewhat disheveled Kasumi leaped onto the rooftop, while on the other side, Temari, carrying her fan, also jumped up.
"Shua!" Gaara, the gourd-carrying youth with cracks all over his face and neck, returned to the rooftop using a Sand Clone, his expression somewhat twisted as he formed hand seals.
"Shua!"
Maki appeared behind him, restraining his subordinate, and said in a deep voice, "Gaara."
No matter what, large-scale ninjutsu couldn't be used in this confrontation; the mission client was still downstairs.
A few Genin and Chunin having a small scuffle was fine, as long as no one died, it could be treated as if nothing happened. But causing a ruckus by indiscriminately using ninjutsu attacks in the hotel, regardless of the client, would seriously damage the Sand Ninja Village's reputation.
The overly weakened Sand Ninja Village couldn't afford the cost of openly killing a Land of Fire merchant they had invited onto their own territory.
Gaara's chest rose and fell a few times, staring intently at Lin Ke, the hand seals he was forming dropped.
He was a neurotic Jinchuriki, not a true madman. Having been trained as a ninja for so many years, even if he occasionally disobeyed, he could still control himself when not injured.
"Shua!"
Nara Yan Shui arrived, carrying the unconscious Yuan Wei, glanced at his unharmed subordinate, and silently looked at Maki.
Whether to fight or make peace, the decision now rested with the other side.
Anyone could guess what happened to Oil Paint Guy; he wouldn't stand a chance against a Jonin.
In the end, the confrontation upstairs had affected the balance.
If the Sand Ninja Village's Jonin acted first, they would definitely be at a disadvantage. On the other hand, the confrontation between the four Genin was negligible.
"..."
Maki stared intently at the spotless Lin Ke for a long while, deeply engraving this Konoha Village Chunin, who had frustrated him twice, in his mind, and then decisively led his two subordinates away from the rooftop.
Why stay and actually fight?
As his opponents left, the Wood, Water, Fire, Earth flames of blue-white Chakra that had appeared on the five fingers of Lin Ke's lowered hand extinguished.
He calmly took Yuan Wei, whom Nara Yan Shui tossed over before leaving, and asked Kasumi, "Are you alright?"
Kasumi shook her head, a little worried, "Yuan Wei, he..."
Lin Ke sensed him, his Chakra was stable, his vital signs were normal, and other than being unconscious, there were no abnormalities. He shook his head to indicate that he was fine.
"Dong!" A flick to the forehead.
"Ouch!" Yuan Wei woke up in pain.
Kasumi breathed a sigh of relief.
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