Emik01
patreon
Chapter 364: Surprise Attack
🕑 Added 2024-11-15 11:02:01 +0000 UTC"You want to test it, huh? Why not test it on Takuya, who's just sitting there?"
Instead, you come after me, completely off guard!
This is simply dishonorable!
I tell you to drink some "rat tail juice!"
Nawaki silently pulled out a new kunai and lunged at Minato.
Minato, already prepared, just chuckled and raised his arm to block, and soon enough, the two were sparring in earnest.
Thankfully, they were both sensible enough that, while play-fighting was acceptable, tampering with food was not.
Especially messing with Takuya—it could easily lead to an impromptu dance session right where they stood.
By now, Takuya was used to Nawaki and Minato throwing hands at the drop of a hat.
He drew a kunai, cleaned it thoroughly, and continued slicing the meat.
By the time the meat was fully cooked, the sparring match was all but over.
Sure enough, as the aroma of the roasting meat spread, the two battling in the forest ended their match in perfect harmony.
With the delicious roasted meat in hand, Nawaki muttered, "Sensei Orochimaru seems to be in a bad mood."
"Probably because of the pressure. After all, we did just lose a battle. Jiraiya-sensei has also been running himself ragged these past few days," Minato replied, carefully blowing on his portion, his eating habits far more refined than Nawaki's.
"It'd be a miracle if he were in a good mood. I think he'll be stuck like this for a while."
Serves him right for acting like this! Takuya thought with a mischievous smile.
Not because of the lost battle, or because of all the stress?
Minato and Nawaki exchanged a glance, their eyes gleaming with curiosity.
Growing up together, Takuya knew exactly what these two idiots were thinking and explained, "It's because of the defeat that Orochimaru is being extra cautious. He's worried that Mist Village might seize this opportunity to attack us. This is their golden chance, so Orochimaru is on high alert. Too bad Mist Village hasn't played along—nothing's happened for days."
"Imagine all the preparations, all the fortifications, waiting for an enemy attack, eager to wipe out the stain of our defeat... only for the enemy to just not show up. How would you feel?"
Frustrated? Ready to cough up blood?
Nawaki and Minato shook their heads in unison—they realized that Orochimaru was indeed in a pitiful state.
"What is Mist Village planning?"
"They've been so quiet for days now. It doesn't seem like them."
"Exactly. It's strange. Yagura doesn't seem like the type to let such an opportunity pass, yet Mist Village remains inactive."
"Just eat your food and don't worry about it. Mist Village has its reasons for lying low—maybe even a scheme. We should just focus on our tasks and leave the rest to others."
If Mist Village wasn't up to something behind the scenes, Takuya would eat his own name backward.
As for what exactly they were plotting, Takuya had no clue. He wasn't omniscient.
The storyline from the original had already diverged when Mist Village inexplicably declared war on Konoha, and any reference points from there were minimal.
Luckily, Takuya wasn't the type to lose sleep over these things. If the sky was falling, there were taller people to hold it up—he didn't need to fret over every little detail.
In just a few days, Sunagakure had made all the necessary preparations for war. Personnel had been mobilized, and supplies had been gathered.
Under orders from the Third Kazekage, Rasa led the vanguard, heading directly for the borders of the Fire Country, aiming at the outposts stationed there.
If a sneak attack wasn't feasible, then Sunagakure would attack openly, letting Konoha know as soon as possible that war had arrived.
With Mist Village on one side and Sunagakure on the other, Konoha would be caught between two formidable foes. This wasn't going to be like fighting against Amegakure.
With two Great Shinobi Villages pressing in on them, the Third Kazekage had no doubt that victory would slip from Konoha's grasp.
So what if Konoha had powerful shinobi? So what if their reserves were deep? Two Great Villages attacking together was more than enough for them.
"What's that?"
On the watchtower of the outpost, a lookout suddenly noticed a group of small black dots rapidly approaching the border of the Fire Country—more accurately, heading straight for the outpost.
As the dots grew closer, the lookout gasped, "Enemy attack! Launch the signal flare! Request reinforcements from the village—Sunagakure's forces are attacking!!"
These weren't just small dots—they were a full assault force of Suna shinobi!
The Sand ninja had lost their minds!
Were they really intending to go to war with Konoha?
The alarms blared, and the outpost descended into chaos. Some shinobi readied themselves for battle, while others sent out communications.
"Prepare for battle!"
As the Konoha shinobi at the outpost barely readied themselves, the sky suddenly darkened. Looking up, they saw a golden layer of sand descending like an enormous dome, engulfing the entire outpost.
"Magnet Release: Gold Sand Burial!!"
Countless grains of golden sand blanketed the outpost, crushing it beneath their weight. Rasa clenched his fist, and amidst screams of agony, the Konoha shinobi were crushed to death.
"Aren't you afraid of a counterattack?"
This reckless expenditure of chakra was something that Pakura couldn't stand.
Rasa, possessing Magnet Release and command over Gold Sand, always liked using high-consumption techniques in battle.
As another shinobi with a Kekkei Genkai, Pakura found Rasa's behavior distasteful.
"Hmph."
After annihilating all the enemies, Rasa raised his hand, summoning the Gold Sand back to him, and scoffed, "If it means defeating the enemy quickly, any price is worth paying."
Just keep being smug—let's see how you fare against Konoha's elite.
The mere thought of the Third Kazekage's orders left Pakura bitter.
Both of them were elite Jonin of the village, both possessing Kekkei Genkai, and yet Pakura believed her strength was no less than Rasa's.
So why was the village always favoring Rasa, always supporting him?
Was it just because he was the Kazekage's disciple, just because he possessed the same Magnet Release as the Kazekage?
It left Pakura deeply unsatisfied.
With the outpost completely destroyed, the Konoha shinobi crushed under the relentless Gold Sand, the message still managed to get out. A messenger hawk had taken flight just before the battle began, heading towards Konoha.
In less than two hours, Konoha would be aware of Sunagakure's declaration of war and the destruction of the border outpost.
"Destroy the surrounding outposts, eliminate all the hidden observation posts Konoha has set up, and build a camp with available resources while we wait for the main forces to arrive."
Though he wanted to lead his men straight into the Fire Country and teach Konoha a lesson, Rasa couldn't disobey the orders of the Third Kazekage. He had to obediently remain at the border, building a camp and waiting for reinforcements.
After being deceived once and suffering a painful setback, the Third Kazekage had learned his lesson.
He had no interest in terrorizing the civilians of the Fire Country—what he wanted was to gather his forces, defeat Konoha head-on, and carve up their rich territory.
