Chapter 65: Lion Ape (Mid)

The sudden turn of events caused the corner of the battlefield where Haseo stood to seem frozen in an instant.

Menzuomen and his signature puppets, the Chikamatsu Collection, were well-known figures to both Sunagakure and Konoha ninja. Suna ninja had been anticipating their village's hero-level operative to make his mark on the battlefield, while Konoha ninja had braced for more dangerous actions from this ruthless enemy. Yet no one had expected him to fall so soon—or at all.

And the one who killed him was such a young Konoha ninja. At this moment, whether enemy or ally, the gazes of those nearby on the battlefield all focused on Haseo alone.

Yet Haseo himself seemed completely unaware that he had just pulled off something huge. The intense [Lightning Release] surrounding his body gradually dissipated until it returned to its original, "weaker" state.

The sounds of battle from elsewhere on the field jolted both shocked sides back into reality. The temporarily paused fight resumed—no matter how many fell, battle always marched on.

But Haseo no longer charged forward recklessly like before. Instead, he withdrew, retreating behind Konoha's frontline ranks.

A sudden burst of rapid assassination might be a good strategy, creating an effect of catching opponents off guard. However, with the enemy now focusing heavily on him, continuing to act arrogantly would only lead to death. Therefore, Haseo once again concealed himself, waiting for the chance to prepare another thunderous strike.

Seeking the spotlight on the battlefield was never his purpose—it was merely a side effect of achieving his goal.

"Haseo, you pushed too far ahead. Just now, our entire formation completely fell apart!" Nagisa Nara warned him with a serious tone.

At this time, as Haseo withdrew, his squad members finally caught up and reassembled around him.

They all thought that upon seeing Menzuomen, Haseo had gotten worked up over their past conflict and rushed in recklessly without control. But that wasn't the truth at all—because even after defeating Menzuomen, Haseo remained perfectly calm.

Even when the other members of the squad stared at him in shock over his ability to defeat Menzuomen, Haseo himself stayed indifferent and composed, as though he hadn't fully grasped the significance of a mere genin killing Menzuomen.

"Sorry, I just happened to see him, and I figured I had a chance to take him down this time, so I went for it," Haseo apologized to his teammates, his attitude implying a promise that he absolutely wouldn't do such a thing again.

However, likely no one within the squad would easily trust his words next time... He was the very one who had first told everyone to maintain formation, yet he became the first to break it.

The three team members exchanged glances. Regarding Haseo's explanation about attacking Menzuomen, they could tell he truly meant every word he said.

In truth, Haseo personally held no grudge against Menzuomen, nor did he harbor hatred or seek revenge over their last battle. Their conflict was merely a matter of opposing village positions, and because of this, Haseo could approach the fight with a calm mind.

Yet it was precisely this "honest explanation" that made what Haseo said sound even more inhuman.

Would someone please explain — what kind of logic is "I felt like I could kill him, so I just did"?

At this moment, even Renjiro had already prepared a line he'd use decades later when telling his descendants: "There was a time when I fought alongside Haseo. You won't believe how he learned ninjutsu and went into battle..."

His descendants definitely wouldn't care, but this clearly reflected how deeply shaken the ancestor himself was at this moment.

"Haseo, the jutsu you used just now..."

Before Nagisa Nara could finish asking the question, Haseo answered voluntarily, "Yes, it's the one I mentioned wanting to test before we started fighting. In terms of results, it performed exactly as intended. Its power is definitely there, but... we shouldn't count on it too heavily. This technique consumes an enormous amount of chakra, and the difficulty of performing it is quite high. With my current abilities, I'm unable to use it skillfully."

Haseo feared his teammates, who had witnessed the Water Dragon Blast's power, might overly depend on this technique in emergency situations, so he felt the need to immediately temper their expectations… After all, [High-level powerful Ninjutsu] couldn't be expected to be unleashed repeatedly like it's nothing.

"I understand," said Nagisa after listening to Haseo's explanation, immediately nodding his head. Every ninja clearly understood the basic principle — powerful, high-level jutsu always came with corresponding risks, so one couldn't constantly rely on them under normal circumstances.

As long as his teammate understood, everything was fine. Haseo nodded, then after the squad reestablished its battle formation, he continued, "From now on, we'll remain within the battle lines. Pay attention to Hokage's position and prepare to provide support there at any time."

"Don't worry, I've been watching over there constantly. Hokage's movements definitely won't escape my eyes." So promised Renjiro. Haseo glanced at him, almost forgetting this man was actually the team's reconnaissance ninja. Yet his wording sounded off — not quite what you'd expect from a recon ninja reporting on surveillance.

Just as Haseo was about to say something else, agonizing cries suddenly erupted from nearby. At the same time, the stench of blood surged around them, sharp enough to sting their noses and mouths.

The Konoha ninja ahead moved forward, clearing the obstruction blocking Haseo's field of vision. Then, he saw it — those puppets of the Chikamatsu Collection which he had just shattered apart moments ago were now flying again... Although many damaged puppets only had half their bodies functioning, their killing power remained just as formidable as before.

Could it be that Menzuomen, whose upper body had been blasted open by Lightning Release and pierced straight through the heart, still hadn't died? For an instant, such an absurd thought flashed through Haseo's mind.

"No, that's not it.

Very soon, he dismissed that idea. Haseo's gaze followed the damaged puppets behind him and landed on a three-man team from Sunagakure. These puppets were now under control of one person from this group.

This was a squad composed of two males and one female. The male and female bore certain facial resemblance and appeared to be in their twenties—likely siblings. The broken Chikamatsu Collection must've been controlled by that kunoichi.

In addition, the remaining member among them looked significantly younger. He kept his hands stretched outward, as if ready to manipulate something at any moment. If Sansho's words were any indication, this enemy ninja was about the same age as Haseo.

Haseo looked down and saw layers of fine iron sand beneath their feet. Though he couldn't judge solely by appearance, something about them clicked in Haseo's mind. He was nearly certain these three were Chiyo of Sunagakure, Ebizō, and an unidentified Kazekage.

Beyond rows of enemy and allied ninjas, Haseo met Chiyo's eyes—four eyes locking together. There was nothing soft or human about their gaze, only icy, all-consuming killing intent.

"Can we take them down?" Nara whispered quietly behind Haseo.

"It's dicey." Actually, what Haseo meant to say was they absolutely couldn't win. If he hadn't misidentified those enemies, this trio definitely belonged to Sunagakure's strongest battle force configuration.

Ebizō's situation was unclear—better not jump to conclusions yet. Although Chiyo's poisons were peculiar, they still could barely be dodged—but regarding that [Third Kazekage]'s Magnet Release technique, Haseo truly felt very uncertain.

Just as Haseo pondered ways to deal with them, suddenly, the "peer" among the enemy extended his arm toward their direction and tightly clenched his fist.

"Damn it!" Haseo exclaimed aloud, but it already was too late.

At this moment, beneath their feet, a pitch-black curtain suddenly protruded from underground, unfolded widely, and then, just like a man-eating flower, attempted to envelop Haseo's team within itself.

[Magnet Release], capable of crushing flesh and blood into powder.

With Haseo's speed alone, personally escaping from this technique might still be possible, however, his teammates had now fallen into life-threatening danger. Instantly, Haseo yanked Chichio closer beside himself. This wasn't the time for politeness; saving even one person counted as success.

Yet right when the magnetic-force-formed "iron wall" was about to compress inward, an even larger, swifter iron club surged downward from midair with immense strength, smashing the Magnet Release technique into pieces.

[Enma…] Is that the Third Hokage?

That club came from Enma—the summoned beast of the Third Hokage—transformed into his golden staff form. At this moment, the Hokage had rescued Haseo and his team.

Haseo's squad couldn't defeat that Sand ninja team, but sorry—they weren't a match for the Third Hokage. Although saying defeating such enemies was an easy task for the Hokage would be arrogant overestimation,

It was doable—barely, at a moderate level of difficulty.

<><><><><><><><>

Thank you for reading! Your support will keep me updating!

~ Every 50 Powerstones = **4 Bonus Chapters** this weekend!

<><><><><><><><>

~ 100+ Advanced Chapters Available on Patreon!

~ More *Free* Chapters and Books Available on Patreon!

patreon.com/Tansnovel

<><><><><><><><>