Kenji exploded from cover on the opposite side, chakra flooding his system as he launched himself at the nearest enemy. His students broke from their hiding spots simultaneously, charging toward the third Iwa ninja.
The target in front of Kenji reacted fast. Kunai already in hand, he twisted to meet the attack. Sparks flew as they exchanged blows at close range.
Kenji knew he couldn't afford a drawn-out fight. His students wouldn't last long against a chunin. So he pushed harder, channeling more chakra into his muscles to enhance his speed and strength. Each strike came faster and hit harder than the last.
The Iwa ninja was skilled, but he'd been caught off guard and was still recovering from watching his teammate die. After a brutal exchange of taijutsu, Kenji found his opening and drove a chakra-enhanced kick into the man's ribs.
The impact sent the Iwa ninja flying backward into a tree trunk hard enough to crack the bark. He hit the ground gasping, momentarily stunned.
On the other side of the clearing, things were going to hell.
The remaining Iwa ninja looked at the three kids rushing him and laughed.
"This is pathetic."
Battle-hardened killing intent radiated from him. The kind of aura you only developed after killing dozens of people and surviving just as many attempts on your own life.
All three students froze.
It wasn't a conscious decision. Their bodies just stopped responding, overwhelmed by pure survival instinct screaming at them that they were about to die. They'd trained for this scenario, and knew exactly what they were supposed to do. But none of that mattered when killing intent hit them for the first time.
The Iwa ninja moved before they could recover. He closed the distance in two steps and drove his boot into Haruto's chest.
Blood sprayed from his mouth as he flew backward and slammed into a tree trunk. He dropped to the ground and didn't move.
"Haruto!" Kaede screamed. The shock snapped him out of his paralysis. His hands blurred through seals, muscle memory taking over even though his brain was still trying to process what had just happened.
"Wind Release: Great Breakthrough!"
A powerful gust erupted from his mouth. But his execution was sloppy. Fear made his movements too obvious. The Iwa ninja sidestepped the attack and hurled a kunai at Kaede's face in the same motion.
Kaede had just finished his jutsu, and had no time to dodge or block. The kunai was going to hit him right between the eyes.
"Earth Release: Earth-Style Wall!"
Aoi slammed her palms to the ground. A wall of compacted earth shot up in front of Kaede, intercepting the kunai.
But the Iwa ninja was already moving. He'd used the Wind Release as cover to close the distance. Now he was right in front of them, and both Kaede and Aoi barely had time to draw their kunai.
They tried to hold their ground. But they were terrified children fighting an experienced killer, and it showed. Their movements were reactive, completely lacking any offensive intent.
The Iwa ninja could have ended them in seconds. He was just playing with them.
Kenji saw the whole thing develop. The moment Haruto went down, he knew his students were in serious trouble. The Iwa ninja he'd kicked away was already starting to recover, but there was no time to finish him properly.
He bit his thumb hard enough to draw blood, smeared it across his palm, and slammed his hand to the ground as he sprinted toward his students.
"Summoning Technique!"
White smoke exploded around him. His External Armor Puppet materialized in the clearing, its back already opening to receive him. He didn't break stride, and jumped into the cavity.
Drawing chakra from the sealed scrolls integrated into its frame, his figure vanished instantly.
The Iwa ninja's hardened hand had already batted aside Aoi's kunai. Now it was driving toward her chest, aiming for her heart.
Aoi's eyes were wide. She knew she was about to die. Kaede saw it too. Seeing that she was about to be killed right in front of him, something broke inside him. Chakra exploded around his body as he threw himself between Aoi and the attack.
The Iwa ninja's grin widened. His strike accelerated. Two kills for the price of one.
Then a hand clamped around his wrist, stopping it mere centimeters from Kaede.
"What?!"
The Iwa ninja's head snapped around. His free hand was already moving, kunai flashing toward Kenji's throat. But Kenji quickly blocked it with his own kunai. Then he formed the hand seals for Mind Body Switch while their blades were still locked together.
At point-blank range, the circular hand gesture wasn't necessary. That was just for aiming at distant targets. When you were literally face-to-face with your opponent, you couldn't miss.
"Mind Body Switch Technique!"
His consciousness slammed into the Iwa ninja's mind. The man's body seized up, eyes going blank as Kenji's will overwrote his own.
He immediately extended chakra threads from his fingertips and linked them to his own unconscious armored body, controlling it clumsily as he moved it toward the Iwa ninja he'd kicked earlier. Then he spun the captured ninja around to face his recovering teammate.
The Iwa ninja was back on his feet. When he saw his comrade charging toward him, he called out, "Kill this bastard!"
"On it!" Kenji shouted back in the captured ninja's voice.
He charged straight at his ally, kunai raised like he was about to engage the enemy. They closed the distance rapidly.
Three meters.
Two meters.
One meter.
The other Iwa ninja was grinning, already forming seals for a combination attack.
Kenji waited until they were shoulder-to-shoulder. Then he reversed his grip on the kunai and drove it up under the Iwa ninja's ribcage at an angle to pierce straight through his heart. The blade went through flesh and muscle, grated against bone, and found its target. Blood gushed over Kenji's hand.
The Iwa ninja's eyes went huge. His brain tried to process what had just happened. Then his eyes glazed over and he collapsed.
"What just happened?"
Behind him, Aoi and Kaede were still frozen in place, staring at the friendly fire.
"Don't just stand there!" Kenji barked at them. "Check on Haruto! Aoi, get ready to treat his injuries!"
"Right! Haruto!"
Both students sprinted to where Haruto lay crumpled against the tree trunk.
Kenji used the chakra threads to control his unconscious body, directing it to bind the surviving Iwa ninja whose mind he had taken over. He made sure the restraints were tight, checking multiple times that the man couldn't break free. Only after confirming the prisoner was completely secure did he release the Mind Body Switch completely, letting his consciousness settle back into his real body.
The Iwa ninja's eyes snapped open as his mind returned. His mouth opened to shout. But Kenji's palm slammed against his forehead before he could make a sound. Chakra flooded into the man's brain as he used one of the Yamanaka clan's secret techniques, forcibly shutting down his consciousness and sending him into a deep sleep.
A prisoner would be valuable. The Intelligence Division could extract information about Iwa's movements, troop positions, supply routes. If they pulled anything useful from the interrogation, his team would receive merit points as a reward. Not bad for a first fight.
Kenji hoisted the unconscious ninja over his shoulder and walked over to where his students were gathered around Haruto.
"How bad is it?"
Aoi had her hands pressed against Haruto's chest, green healing chakra flowing from her palms. She looked up at Kenji's question.
"He's stable. The enemy probably just wanted to split us up, not kill him immediately. Haruto took a kick to the chest. One rib is cracked, and there's some internal bleeding. But it's not life-threatening. I can handle it."
Kenji did his own quick assessment and confirmed her analysis was correct. He nodded approvingly.
"Good work. You've become an excellent medical-nin already."
Aoi's face flushed red. "I'm not that good yet..."
But she was. Kenji had watched her progress over the past months, and her development was remarkable. She'd gone from basic theory to practical application in record time. Her chakra control was precise, and she clearly had a strong natural affinity for yang chakra. Learning the Mystical Palm Technique this quickly indicated real talent. And yet this medic prodigy had never appeared in the original story. Which meant she'd probably died quietly somewhere on these battlefields during the Second War. She was likely another nameless casualty of Konoha's leadership pushing kids into combat before they were ready.
He didn't take over the treatment. Haruto wasn't in danger, and this was valuable experience for Aoi. This was a rare opportunity for some real experience. Letting her handle it would help both her and the team.
If Haruto knew his injury was helping his teammate improve, he'd probably be happy about it.
Probably.