Who was it?!
Taiseki's heart tightened with sudden alarm.
He had just finished scouting the area—there should not have been a single Konoha shinobi left nearby.
Unless… someone had avoided his detection before he began probing.
But that kind of precise evasion… only a sensory–type shinobi could pull it off.
"A sensory shinobi, is it…?"
Taiseki's gaze swept across Kiyohara, Yuhi, and Genma, carefully evaluating which of them possessed such an ability.
"Kiyohara…"
Kakashi turned back, looking at Kiyohara who had appeared out of nowhere. A subtle breath of relief slipped from his chest.
As expected, compared to dead-last Obito, Kiyohara was considerably more reliable.
"So that's all… merely two chūnin and one genin?"
Taiseki formed a one-handed seal, continuing to refine chakra to maintain his invisibility.
Shinobi Art: Chameleon Jutsu!
The body shape that had just been outlined by Kiyohara's wind technique blurred once again and completely vanished into the air.
This technique could turn both body and clothing invisible. Naturally, it could also conceal the dust and dirt on one's surface.
"No, Kiyohara, you don't have as much chakra as he does."
Kakashi gripped his tanto tightly, brows deeply furrowed.
Even if Kiyohara used Wind Release: Great Breakthrough to reveal Taiseki's outline, it wouldn't last long.
Taiseki could also continuously recast his invisibility jutsu—and the number of times he could do so far exceeded Kiyohara.
"Hmph… the son of White Fang, is it? As long as it's not the White Fang himself, there's nothing to fear."
Taiseki's mouth twisted into a vicious smile as he glanced toward Kakashi, who was warning Kiyohara.
The White Fang of Konoha had slaughtered many of their comrades. Killing his son now could be considered a form of vengeance.
But before that…
Taiseki's gaze shifted toward Kiyohara.
This brat posed an even greater threat than Kakashi at the moment.
From observing their formation, he noticed that the female brat and the other male brat both stood half a step behind Kiyohara.
That meant Kiyohara held the authority here—he was the team leader.
And with that exceptional sensory ability, he deserved to be.
Taiseki's thoughts churned as he quickly analyzed everything he knew about Kiyohara.
The next moment—
A faint friction of air movement tore through the silence.
Taiseki moved!
"He completely erased his scent… The only way to detect him now is through the faintest shifts in air and sound,"
Kakashi's expression grew grim.
Suddenly, he shouted:
"Kiyohara, behind you!"
Clang!
At the same time, kunai clashed violently.
"Oh?"
Taiseki raised a brow with faint surprise.
Sensory shinobis tended to focus on support roles. He hadn't expected Kiyohara to block his sneak attack.
His first strike failed, so Taiseki instantly withdrew and faded back into the darkness.
"You guys go save Rin—leave him to me."
Kiyohara spoke.
Taiseki, in a certain sense, was even harder to deal with than the other Iwa jōnin, Kakkō. His invisibility ability was truly troublesome.
"Kiyohara…"
Kurenai wanted to protest, but Kiyohara shook his head slightly, signaling her not to worry about him.
"…Alright. Be careful."
Still worried, Kurenai nodded. She and Shiranui Genma quickly moved toward the rear.
Seeing this, Kakashi and Obito also pushed forward.
No matter what, reducing enemy numbers was the priority.
If they could kill even one enemy shinobi, they would be able to focus fully on the other.
Right now, everything hinged on which side could reduce the enemy's numbers first.
"Heh… letting your teammates pass first, are you?"
Taiseki felt a flicker of genuine admiration, respecting Kiyohara's resolve.
Enemy or not, this boy had the makings of a true shinobi.
Unfortunately, he need not worry about those brats in the back.
Kakkō was extremely strong in ninjutsu, taijutsu, and genjutsu—an elite among jōnin.
A handful of children wouldn't be able to defeat him.
The thought almost made Taiseki laugh—but he suppressed the urge.
Laughter would reveal his location.
"Lightning Release: Earth Walk!"
Kiyohara formed hand seals. Lightning spread in web-like arcs across the ground.
Taiseki leapt up instantly, flipping to the cave ceiling and hanging upside-down to avoid the lightning crawling across the earth.
"This brat's ninjutsu isn't simple at all…"
Taiseki frowned.
Kiyohara wore the gear of a mere genin, yet the ninjutsu he used was practiced and fluid—far beyond genin level.
Taiseki abandoned all underestimation, focusing fully on Kiyohara.
"So, you dodged… your invisibility is impressive, but if you rely too much on it… you'll die because of it."
Kiyohara reached into his shinobi pouch and grabbed a large handful of powder.
"Shinobi Art…!"
He shouted the words loudly—as if preparing to unleash a powerful technique.
Taiseki's focus sharpened instantly.
Kiyohara's Wind Release:Great Breakthrough and Lightning Release:Earth Walk had already shown considerable skill. His talent for ninjutsu was obvious.
Seeing him initiate another technique, Taiseki became alert.
He widened his eyes, attempting to catch Kiyohara's hand seal to predict what jutsu he was about to use.
This was a common tactic among jōnin battles—
Identify the technique from the seal, and react accordingly.
But one needed extensive knowledge for this.
Kiyohara pressed both hands together, palms overlapping, concealing the powder between them.
It was the seal of Monkey.
Taiseki recognized it immediately—one of the twelve basic hand seals.
"Water Release… Water Projectile? Or something else?"
Dozens of possible jutsu flashed through his mind.
Most of them were Water Release techniques.
But with only one seal to go by, there were too many possibilities.
Taiseki stared harder, determined to see what exactly the boy was planning—
"Scattering Lime Powder Technique!"
Kiyohara shouted as he hurled the powder forward with full force.
Immediately, he followed with—
Wind Release: Great Breakthrough!
"AAAH!"
The violent gust carried the lime dust straight into Taiseki's face.
Even with his quick reaction, he was caught completely off guard. Fine lime particles shot into his eyes, unleashing a burning agony that blurred his vision.
Taiseki never expected such a dirty trick from Kiyohara—
A moment ago, the boy had looked ready to sacrifice himself for his comrades.
The next second—he used a devious tactic like this.
"Damn brat, you—!"
Taiseki coughed roughly, instinctively trying to perform an Earth Release.
But the moment he opened his mouth—
Kiyohara threw another handful of lime straight into it.
"Ghh—! Cough cough cough!"
Taiseki choked violently, both throat and eyes burning.
"Do you even have a shinobi's spirit?!"
Taiseki rasped out, furious.
"My apologies—I'm an old-fashioned shinobi."
Kiyohara smiled.
Taiseki was ridiculous—a shinobi who specialized in sneaking and ambushing people complaining about spirit?
"Alright, but now I'm 'invisible' too. Let's have a fair battle."
Kiyohara said calmly.
After all—
If Taiseki couldn't see him…
Wasn't that essentially the same as being invisible?
(End of Chapter)