Naruto: Hyuga Warlord

"705 coins secured!"

A brief yet intense skirmish ended in less than five minutes—all twelve Sunagakure ninja were killed on the spot, not a single one escaped.

Hyuga Soushu alone accounted for two Jonin and five Chunin, happily watching his coin reserves rise to 764!

After a moment's hesitation, Hyuga Soushu directly purchased the Radiance component "luminescent dust" from the shop, spending -250 coins, leaving him with 514 remaining.

Then, he spent another 350 coins combining the Boots of Speed with the Magic-Resistant Cloak to create Mercury's Treads—one of the legendary Six Mythic Items!

Though the stats of this mythic item were modest, its +45 movement speed and +30 tenacity were very useful in the current battle conditions.

With 164 coins left, Soushu hesitated for a moment before deciding to save them—he still had two Life Potions, which would have to do for now.

Beyond coin rewards, there was also an experience gain.

After killing seven Sunagakure ninjas in this round, Hyuga Soushu successfully advanced to level 8, earning one skill point. After a moment's thought, he allocated the point into his E ability, reducing [Counter Storm]'s cooldown to under 11 seconds.

Considering that [Counter Storm], combined with his magic resistance awakening, had practically granted immunity against mid-level and lower Ninjutsu already, shortening its cooldown would further help him push aggressively through these complex battlefields while enduring attacks under Wind Barriers!

"Captain Soushu, shall we advance further?"

After quickly clearing the battlefield, the Chunin members of the Reinforcement Unit approached respectfully; Yechame Hamako politely addressed Soushu, who had been momentarily distracted.

"Yes!"

Hyuga Soushu snapped back to focus, stomped the ground, and shot forward toward the heart of the Land of Rivers.

However, when approaching another suspected ambush zone reported by intelligence regarding enemy Sunagakure forces, Hyuga Soushu discovered that the Sunagakure ninja previously stationed here were nowhere to be seen.

The ambush zone only left behind several unfinished sand pits—probably hastily abandoned traces left behind as those Sunagakure ninja evacuated quickly.

"This might be suspicious!"

Instantly landing behind a cluster of rocks, Hyuga Soushu activated enhanced vision scanning around urgently, but found not a single soul within a five-kilometer radius!

"What's wrong?"

Yechame Hamako and the others immediately took cover along with their Reinforcement Unit ninjas, whispering cautiously, "Was our intelligence faulty?"

"There are only abandoned sand pits ahead where hidden enemies should have been—but everyone is gone."

Soushu replied while maintaining Byakugan surveillance.

"Huh..."

Yechame Hamako and the rest frowned.

This was definitely not a good sign.

The purpose of Sunagakure ninja infiltrating deep into the Land of Rivers' territory was to specifically target the fleeing remnants of the Advancing Unit. Now that these ambushers had vanished unexpectedly, it meant they must have already found their prey!

"Quick! Deploy the Ninja hawk!"

Maki Hamako didn't care about exposing their position. She immediately issued orders to a Jonin responsible for managing the ninja hawks.

"Yes, ma'am!"

A ninja hawk was summoned and shot into the sky like an arrow from a bowstring. It circled once and then flew straight ahead.

"The ninja hawk has found something!"

Maki Hamako's expression turned grim at once.

Generally speaking, although aerial ninja hawks had decent scouting capabilities, it was extremely unusual for them to locate a target so quickly!

Though the high vantage point did offer better visibility, the fact that the hawk had flown directly toward something meant signs of abnormal targets were present!

Furthermore, since shinobi typically maintained a high level of caution against ninja hawks—widely used scout summons—they often took great care to conceal themselves while marching or lying in ambush, making it nearly impossible for the hawk to detect them so easily.

This could only mean the enemy had abandoned all attempts at concealment—a move usually made only in full-scale combat.

Yet earlier, when deciding on the tactic to eliminate isolated positions, the Reinforcement Unit had already sent another ninja hawk to contact the Advancing Unit, which had fallen out of communication.

"What about the ninja hawk we previously sent to link up with the Advancing Unit?"

Another Jonin reached the same conclusion in an instant.

But before Maki Hamako and others could make a judgment, three piercing cries suddenly echoed through the sky!

Three much larger vultures suddenly appeared above and plunged toward the ninja hawk in a deadly strike!

Under normal circumstances, ordinary birds of prey would never dare provoke a ninja hawk infused with chakra.

Therefore, these vultures must have been specially bred by Sunagakure as interceptors designed specifically to hunt down reconnaissance hawks!

"Cancel the hawk summoning."

Maki Hamako unsheathed her ninja blade, though her serious face also showed hesitation.

Enemy location unknown. Friendly status unknown. Battle progress unknown. Distance to engagement unknown. Enemy defenses unknown.

This could only mean one thing—the Advancing Unit had already been surrounded and was in an extremely disadvantageous situation. Otherwise, their hidden units wouldn't have abandoned stealth sniping tactics, let alone deployed specialized interceptor birds capable of hunting ninja hawks!

Cut off from intelligence, they were completely shrouded in the fog of war—an environment all shinobi hated most.

"We need to make a decision now."

Hyuga Soushu spoke flatly, but his unconscious act of stomping the torch pole into the ground revealed his tension.

With Mercury's Treads boosting his speed by 45, unless trapped in a tight encirclement, Soushu could generally outrun the Konoha ninjas of the Reinforcement Unit.

"Hmph."

Hamako slowly exhaled.

Without saying more, she simply raised her right hand and waved forward—and leapt ahead first!

This time, Soushu did not race ahead of her; instead, he followed closely behind. The rest of the Reinforcement Unit's ninja surged forward one after another, instinctively forming a spearhead formation as they advanced.

No more words needed.

Although many among Maki Hamako and the others had personal concerns, under current circumstances, the Reinforcement Unit had no other options left.

"Sand ninja tracks spotted five kilometers ahead!"

Three minutes of full-speed riding, and Hyuga Soushu finally spotted the enemy Sunagakure Ninja with his Byakugan.

"They're not hiding! Six hostiles—looks like one of them is a puppeteer!" 

Yechame Hamako slightly accelerated without giving a response. 

These six Sunagure Ninja were probably just part of the outer perimeter unit. Their main purpose was to intercept Konoha Ninja attempting to break through, aside from targeting possible scout units.

Both Yechame Hamako and Hyuga Soushu were seasoned veterans experienced in battlefield tactics. Naturally, they understood this deployment strategy.

"They've spotted us!" 

Hyuga Soushu called out again. 

That wasn't surprising at all. After all, there were three vultures watching from the sky. For thirty-two Konoha Ninja charging forward so openly, it would have been strange if they hadn't been detected!

"Thirty-three Sunagakure Ninja!" 

Hyuga Soushu shouted once more. "Another group of thirty-three Sand Ninja appeared!" 

Combined with those initial six visible Sand Ninja, that made thirty-nine enemies in total!

"Break through their lines and keep pushing forward at full speed!" 

Yechame Hamako's expression turned fierce. 

No matter the current state of the Advancing Unit, he had no choice but to try!

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