Naruto: Building Insect Kingdom Chapter 10 10: Chaos in the Land of Grass

Just as he thought, Shisui Abura sighed inwardly. Shaking off a pursuit from a Great Village was never going to be easy.

His defection had been a sudden eruption—no preparation, no preditated sches, no long-term logistics.

In the haste of his flight, he was bound to leave loose ends. Specifically, his scouting Kikaichu. If those insects were killed, their tiny corpses would beco beacons.

The Leaf possessed elite trackers who could follow the residual chakra traces of his hive; that was simply a fact of ninja warfare. This realization reinforced his decision to recall every single insect into his Petri dish.

In hindsight, changing his identity and hiding his swarms was the only logical move. Paradoxically, it was the very lack of a plan that made his escape viable.

If he himself hadn't known where he was going until he got there, how could his pursuers predict his trajectory?

After breaking the hypnosis, Shisui ended the scarred Grass ninja's life with clinical efficiency.

He scavenged their gear, taking everything of value: food pills, explosive tags, basic tools, and a ager amount of currency.

This ti, he didn't use his bugs to erase the evidence. Instead, he dragged the three bodies deep into the forest and covered them with fallen leaves.

He wanted to create an illusion—to make it look like they had fallen to a Taijutsu specialist. If investigators found the bodies, they wouldn't imdiately link the kills to an Abura.

Adjusting his conical hat, Shisui maintained his heading toward the Land of Waterfall. The downpour intensified, washing away his tracks and the scent of blood.

Half a day later, near the eastern border of the Land of Grass.

Orochimaru stood by a waterfall basin, staring at several dead Kikaichu in his palm. ANBU trackers had reached this spot a day ago, but from here, the trail had gone cold.

Consequently, the search radius had exploded to a hundred-mile zone. Even with the forced cooperation of the Hidden Grass, it was like looking for a needle in a haystack.

"He's stopped using the insects. He's changed his identity. Clever," Orochimaru murmured, crushing the insect remains into dust. He saw through Shisui's intent instantly.

"Lord Orochimaru, we found a scorched stronghold nearby. It's likely our only lead," an ANBU agent reported, keeping his head low.

"However, we don't understand why he would attack a bandit camp or why he would set such a massive fire. It seems like a glaring mistake.

So of us suspect it might not be his doing."

"Don't bla yourselves. Our opponent is surprisingly shrewd."

Orochimaru's fascination was deepening. To be honest, based on his knowledge of the Abura clan, he hadn't initially thought much of Shisui.

The Abura's secret arts were unique but had glaring weaknesses: they were vulnerable to fire, struggled in direct high-intensity combat, and had poor stamina.

They were tools—reconnaissance scouts or supports.

But this boy was different. He was smart enough to lose the Leaf's best trackers.

Suddenly, three sharp whistles cut through the air from different directions.

Orochimaru reacted the instant the sound hit his ears. He leaned back until his hands touched the ground, his spine arching with serpentine flexibility as three shuriken hissed past his face.

"Enemy attack!" the Leaf ninja scread.

But they were already too late.

A Hidden Stone assassination squad erupted from the trees, the ground, and even the waterfall basin. Their camouflage was flawless; they had clearly been lying in wait for the Leaf's arrival.

Kunai, shuriken, and explosive tags fell like rain. Three Leaf pursuit ninjas were skewered before they could even finish a hand sign.

Orochimaru erged from the shadows, his hands already locked in a seal. "Summoning Jutsu!"

With a burst of white smoke, three giant snakes appeared, battering aside the lunging Stone ninja. However, the enemy held a massive nurical advantage: two elite squads and a full battalion—eight Jonin and thirty-two elite Chunin.

"By order of the Tsuchikage," the Stone captain said coldly, "capture Orochimaru alive, or kill him where he stands."

The battle turned white-hot in an instant. Orochimaru fought as one against many, his form flickering between his summons and lethal jutsu.

Wind Style tore through Earth Style, and dust billowed into the air only to be scattered by shockwaves. Of the Leaf pursuit team, only two remained alive, barely holding their own back-to-back.

But the Hidden Stone had prepared too well. They had studied Orochimaru's combat style; every strike was calculated to exploit his known habits.

Three minutes in, a giant snake's head was pulverized by an Earth Style: Rock Fist, sending it back to the summoning realm in a cloud of smoke.

Orochimaru clutched a wound on his arm, his face contorting with rare fury. Leaf intelligence had been compromised. This ambush was too specific, too targeted. Soone had leaked the details of this mission.

One na surged to the forefront of his mind: Danzo. No one else would be so brazenly treacherous.

"Retreat!" Orochimaru commanded the survivors.

The two Leaf ninja detonated every explosive tag they carried, creating a temporary wall of fire. Orochimaru took the opportunity to summon a burrowing snake, and the three of them vanished underground.

The Stone ninja didn't pursue. They stopped to clean the battlefield. Even with the advantage of a surprise attack, they had lost two Jonin and seven others.

"Clear the area," Captain Akano Sawa ordered. "Dispose of the Leaf bodies and erase the combat traces. We are too close to the border; we must be cautious."

"Captain, do we still go after the Leaf traitor?"

"It doesn't matter. Our primary objective was to intercept Orochimaru and prevent him from returning to the front lines. Better yet, to kill him here. As for the traitor, if we stumble upon him, we'll take him in."

"What about the Grass village, Captain?"

"Don't worry. Lord Onoki has already 'persuaded' them. They will cooperate in our ambushes and block any Leaf reinforcents trying to reach Orochimaru."

The Land of Grass was always a weathercock, shifting with the wind. With the Hidden Rain declaring war on the Five Nations, the Leaf was besieged.

Currently, it was Jiraiya and Orochimaru who led the defense against the Stone, and the Stone had suffered early losses under their brilliant command.

Now, a "generous benefactor" had leaked Orochimaru's location to draw the Stone's elite forces into the fray.

This move served two purposes: it prevented Orochimaru from finishing his mission, and it tied up dozens of Stone elites, weakening their presence on the main battlefield.

Who could have possibly orchestrated such a sche? Truly, a difficult mystery to solve.