After flying several kiloters south, Seii finally spotted the Mist Ninja.
At this mont, they had just erged from a forest and were preparing to head toward the woods where Hyuga Maple and the others were hiding.
After crossing a valley, they would reach the outskirts of the Black Stone stronghold.
"A valley?"
Seii muttered to himself, thinking it was a good spot, perfect for an ambush.
However, the prerequisite was that Sanosuke and his team could arrive ahead of ti. Otherwise, no plan would be effective.
Suppressing the thought for now, Seii flapped his chakra wings gently and approached the Mist Ninja team.
Before long, so of the Mist Ninja spotted him.
With the help of his Sharingan, Seii could clearly see so of the Mist Ninja looking his way.
However, Seii wasn't too concerned.
It was broad daylight, and without the ability to conceal himself, getting spotted was almost inevitable.
Besides, he often undertook reconnaissance missions alone, so even if the Mist Ninja noticed him, they wouldn't imdiately suspect there was an ambush ahead.
Even if they did, it wouldn't make them retreat easily.
This ti, the Mist Ninja had mobilized a large number of people, clearly without any intent to hide their actions. Or perhaps they simply couldn't hide them.
This also indicated that they didn't fear their movents being exposed.
In essence, both sides were playing openly, and it was a matter of who would outsmart the other.
Of course, the Mist Ninja still conducted reconnaissance.
Scanning around the Mist Ninja formation, Seii spotted several scouting teams circling outward from the main force.
After observing for a while, Seii suddenly changed direction and flew toward the forest ahead.
Landing on a tree branch, he deactivated the 'Wind Release: Wind Wings,' then ford hand seals and used the 'Shadow Clone Technique.'
With a puff of chakra smoke, six shadow clones appeared.
Seii had one of the clones take over his reconnaissance duties.
After all, he wasn't planning on harassing the Mist Ninja this ti, and as long as he flew high enough, they couldn't do anything to him.
A single shadow clone was sufficient; there was no need to waste all his energy here.
For the remaining ti, Seii planned to use the other five shadow clones to grind his 'Earth Release: Hardening Technique' to level 4.
It wasn't impossible—just 300 proficiency points. With five tis the training speed, it would be easy to accumulate.
Although the level 4 'Earth Release: Hardening Technique' wouldn't be a ga-changer, it would be practical enough for most situations.
And if he succeeded, he'd have an extra layer of protection in future battles, even though he didn't believe the Mist Ninja could actually harm him.
But in preparation, he was serious!
With that in mind, Seii left the area with his five shadow clones.
...
On the other side.
The Mist Ninja had initially been relieved when they saw Seii fly away, but before long, he returned, making them uneasy again.
They knew that in the battle two days ago, Seii had harassed the support units.
Even though they had more people and were better prepared this ti, they didn't want to waste ti dealing with him.
Fortunately, Seii just hovered high above them and didn't approach.
So, following the orders of the lead Mist Ninja, the group maintained formation and continued moving forward.
Minutes ticked by.
About twenty minutes later, they reached the forest ahead.
By then, it was hard for 'Seii' to keep a clear view of them, and he didn't dare lower his altitude.
With the cover of the trees, lowering his altitude would make him vulnerable to surprise attacks.
However, he also couldn't let them stay out of sight for too long.
With that thought, 'Seii' used the 'Mind Transmission Technique' to contact Hyuga Maple and the others, relaying the Mist Ninja's general movents to them.
From that point on, the primary scouting task fell to them, while Seii provided support and oversight.
Receiving 'Seii's' instructions, Hyuga Maple and his team imdiately took action.
Each used their unique skills—whether it was the Byakugan's vision or insects' stealth—to monitor the Mist Ninja's every move, reporting information back to 'Seii.'
With this intel, 'Seii' would then lock onto the Mist Ninja's position and continue tracking them from above.
Thus, a perfect coordination was ford.
...
An hour passed in the blink of an eye.
On the other side of the forest, Seii suddenly received a ssage from a shadow clone, informing him that the Mist Ninja were nearing the valley and that he should head there imdiately.
Indeed, after coordinating with Sanosuke, they had chosen the valley as the site for their ambush.
Sanosuke and his team had managed to reach the valley ahead of the Mist Ninja.
Now that the Mist Ninja were about to enter the valley, the battle was imminent, and Seii needed to be there.
With that in mind, Seii deactivated the 'Shadow Clone Technique.'
In the next mont, the five remaining shadow clones dissolved into chakra, bringing back over an hour's worth of training experience and mories.
Seii closed his eyes, absorbing the experiences and converting them into proficiency points on his status panel.
Minutes passed.
When Seii opened his eyes again, a hint of joy flickered in them.
Thanks to the past hour's training, he had accumulated the 300 points needed to upgrade the 'Earth Release: Hardening Technique' to level 4.
Without rushing to leave, Seii ford a seal and activated the technique.
Instantly, his pale skin darkened, turning a rock-like gray-black color.
He tapped his arm, feeling its newfound toughness.
Thinking for a mont, he pulled out a kunai from his pouch and slashed it against his arm.
A sharp screeching sound echoed, but his arm only had a white mark, with no actual damage.
Based on the force he had applied, Seii felt that ordinary weapons would no longer harm him.
With a thought, he deactivated the 'Earth Release: Hardening Technique.'
As his body regained its flexibility, Seii frowned slightly.
While the level 4 'Hardening Technique' had greatly enhanced his defense, it inevitably reduced his agility.
Moreover, with his current proficiency, it still took him 2–3 seconds to cast the technique.
In other words, unless he anticipated an attack, it would be difficult to use in the heat of battle.
This left Seii feeling a bit disappointed.
But he quickly shrugged it off, telling himself, "An upgrade is better than none," before activating the 'Wind Release: Wind Wings' and flying toward the valley.
(End of Chapter)
User Comments
0 comments from readers