Chapter 27: Chaos
The rotating paper shuriken was infused with the scorching power of the Great Fireball Technique, while Wind Release further amplified the flames and accelerated the spinning projectile.
Whoosh! Whoosh!
Wrapped in blazing fire, the paper shuriken tore across the ground in an instant, carving out a massive trench.
Its speed was astonishing.
Skitter, skitter, skitter!
At that moment, the rats summoned by Kyūsuke swarmed toward him once again, their sheer numbers rivaling the insects controlled by the Aburame clan.
Gōenji still had no idea how Kyūsuke was capable of summoning so many rats.
He wanted to use Rocket Propulsion to escape, but there was nowhere safe for him to go.
Rat. Horse... Tiger.
His hands moved rapidly through the seals until he completed the Tiger Seal for Fire Release.
Gōenji inhaled deeply.
Chakra gathered in his throat.
At that moment, he poured his mastery of chakra shape transformation and nature transformation into the technique.
A tremendous wave of flames erupted from his mouth.
"Fire Release: Majestic Destroyer Flame!"
This was one of the most powerful Fire Release techniques—the very technique Madara had used against the Allied Shinobi Forces in the original story.
Gōenji was giving it everything he had.
BOOM!
Whoosh!
On one side was the flaming paper shuriken created through the combined efforts of the three Akatsuki members.
On the other was Gōenji's overwhelming sea of flames.
The two techniques collided in an instant.
At the same time, rats from every direction lunged toward Gōenji.
Skitter! Skitter! Skitter!
Although countless rats were incinerated by the flames in front of him, Gōenji was quickly surrounded.
Rip!
Crunch. Crunch.
Squeak!
Sharp teeth sank into Gōenji's body.
The sound of rodents gnawing into him was almost unbearable.
The flames of Fire Release: Majestic Destroyer Flame gradually weakened under the assault.
Seeing an apparently defenseless opponent, the burning paper shuriken tore through the remaining flames and struck Gōenji directly, burying him beneath a thick mass of rats.
BOOM!
A violent explosion erupted.
Whoosh! Whoosh!
Yahiko and the others used Wind Release to blow away the smoke and dust.
A massive crater appeared before them.
They carefully examined the scene.
The traces of the paper shuriken were clearly visible.
Dead summoned rats covered the ground.
And one charred log.
Thinking back to Gōenji's calm expression just before the attack, it was obvious that he had prepared something in advance.
They simply had no idea when he had prepared it.
Yahiko sighed when he saw the scene.
"As expected of an Uchiha. Even with the four of us attacking together, you still managed to escape right in front of us."
They had long heard about the Uchiha clan's reputation.
But they had never expected someone to escape their encirclement so cleanly.
"What do we do now?" Nagato asked.
Konan raised her hand.
Paper cranes drifted toward her from every direction.
"They've been gone for quite some time. I'm afraid we can't catch up."
She carefully sensed the information being relayed through the paper cranes.
Kyūsuke spoke up.
"Let's report this to Hanzō-sama. At the very least, Amegakure will be able to prepare for what comes next."
"Let's do what Kyūsuke said. We're leaving."
Yahiko nodded.
…
Whoosh! Whoosh!
Gōenji leaped over the treetops, moving rapidly through the forest.
Because there might be traps ahead, he didn't use Rocket Propulsion to travel at full speed.
Instead, he relied on the standard Body Flicker Technique.
Even so, his speed remained astonishing.
His cloak had been torn to pieces by the rats, with countless tooth marks scattered across the fabric.
Rainwater seeped through the holes.
"Tch. Those things bite hard. Good thing I'm strong."
Gōenji had begun preparing the moment he realized enemies were approaching.
He didn't know exactly how strong Yahiko and the others were with their basic ninjutsu.
But he could make reasonable deductions from reality.
Anyone capable of organizing and leading a major organization had to possess jōnin-level strength.
After all, Yahiko and the others were Jiraiya's disciples.
There was no way they lacked jōnin-level combat ability.
Facing a jōnin was already dangerous.
Facing three or four of them at once?
Even if there had only been one jōnin among them, Gōenji would never have let his guard down.
That was why he had ultimately used the substitute he had prepared long ago, combining it with the Substitution Technique he had practiced extensively.
Only then had he managed to escape their attack.
"The Substitution Technique really is useful."
All it required was extremely fast hand seals and a substitute prepared in advance.
Thanks to the Sharingan's extraordinary dynamic vision, Gōenji had been able to execute the technique right under the noses of four jōnin without any of them noticing.
As one of the most commonly used techniques among shinobi, everyone was naturally wary of the Substitution Technique.
They knew its applications.
They understood its possibilities.
Without extremely fast movements and exceptional observational ability, however, it was impossible to use it without being noticed.
Timing was everything.
That was precisely why the Substitution Technique wasn't used casually in the original story.
Against an expert, failing to grasp the timing could easily get you killed.
The same principle applied to Clone Techniques.
This was the limitation of the Three Basic Ninjutsu.
It wasn't that they were useless.
The key was using the right technique at the right moment and combining it with other techniques appropriately.
…
The spies had already obtained a large amount of intelligence concerning Hanzō.
As a result, Danzō immediately launched the next phase of his operation.
And it wasn't just Gōenji's team that was gathering information.
Danzō had intelligence sources operating elsewhere as well.
Gōenji had no idea how extensive Danzō's intelligence network actually was.
But the man had managed to obtain information from both Amegakure, where Hanzō was based, and Iwagakure.
Danzō was stirring the entire Land of Rain into a storm that was on the verge of erupting.
Hanzō personally took action, intending to eliminate the organizations hiding in the shadows and causing chaos like Danzō.
Meanwhile, Iwagakure's forces, led by the Explosion Release user Gari, had even discovered Danzō's base through their own reconnaissance operations.
The two sides clashed.
This time, both sides were prepared.
A fierce battle erupted between Iwagakure and Konoha.
Gōenji also came to understand that Iwagakure's strength was nothing to underestimate.
Even with an old fox like Shimura Danzō leading their side, they could only retreat in the face of Iwagakure's overwhelming forces.
Or, more accurately, Danzō had no other choice.
There were no additional combat units available to support them.
Konoha's battlefronts were already stretched far too thin.
There were simply no more reinforcements.
All they could rely on was the shinobi's sacred art of transformation—the Transformation Technique—to continue disrupting the alliance between Amegakure and Iwagakure.
In the end, even though Hanzō and Iwagakure suspected that Konoha was behind the chaos, there was little they could do.
Who could say whether Iwagakure genuinely wanted an alliance, or whether they were simply using Konoha as an excuse while secretly doing the same thing themselves?
Boom! Boom!
Clang! Clang! Clang!
The entire Land of Rain had become a battlefield.
Danzō was like a troublemaker deliberately stirring up chaos everywhere, sending Gōenji and the others from one conflict to another.
And with every battle, Gōenji's combat skills improved rapidly.
He used the Sharingan to copy the techniques of numerous shinobi, then relied on his extraordinary intellect to integrate those techniques into his own combat system.
His performance became increasingly impressive as well.
In battle, he led teams alongside Fūjin and the others, making significant contributions to Konoha.
Tch. Danzō really is something.
That was all Gōenji could say about him.
With so many forces and interests entangled, Danzō was still capable of keeping the entire situation under control.
And he handled it almost perfectly.
There was only one problem.
Recently, Gōenji had begun to realize that Danzō seemed to be taking a particular interest in him.