Meanwhile.
At the agreed-upon meeting spot in the woods, Yūhi Shinku and her father, Shinku Yuhi, were lying in wait.
Suddenly, they saw Uchiha Tetsubi sprinting toward them from the distance in a state of utter disarray.
Hot on his heels were two agile Sunagakure Ninjas wearing masks.
Their hearts tightened simultaneously, and they quickly ducked behind large trees on both sides of the road.
Shinku Yuhi's face was grim, his heart filled with both anxiety and anger.
He had happened to be nearby when Uchiha Tetsubi was exposed.
This kid didn't use a shred of technique when gathering intelligence, blatantly asking about prices.
That would have been one thing, but when the patrolmen questioned him later, he could have just run away if he couldn't fool them.
But no, this kid actually tried to use Genjutsu to control them.
That was as good as shouting to the world that foreign Ninjas had infiltrated.
Although he hadn't used the Sharingan to cast Genjutsu, he had still kicked a hornet's nest; the Sunagakure throughout the entire city were looking for them like madmen.
Fortunately, he and Kurenai had reacted in time and weren't implicated by him.
They had successfully escaped through the city gates.
He just didn't know what had happened to that kid, Aokawa.
His gaze swept over his daughter's tense little face behind the opposite tree trunk. He made a concise hand signal and whispered:
"Watch my signal for action later. When the distance is right, we'll use Genjutsu together to control them."
Kurenai Yuhi nodded solemnly, indicating she understood.
The final effectiveness of Genjutsu tests one's Yin Release, or rather, spiritual energy.
The Genjutsu of this father and daughter came from the same source, and they shared the same Bloodline.
Launching it together could stack the concentration of spiritual energy, achieving an effect where one plus one is greater than two.
Seeing Uchiha Tetsubi lead the pursuers into effective range, Shinku Yuhi suddenly waved his hand!
The father and daughter leaped out simultaneously as if they had practiced it countless times, their hands forming hand signs rapidly in synchronization.
"Ninjutsu: Demonic Illusion: Tree Binding Death!"
The powerful surge of Yin Release Chakra even caused Uchiha Tetsubi in front to feel a momentary lapse in mental clarity.
However!
The two masked pursuers seemed completely unaffected, their movements not slowing down for a single moment!
Even for powerhouses who are completely immune to Genjutsu, there should always be a moment of surprise or wariness when facing a sudden interception.
Uchiha Tetsubi snapped out of it and saw Shinku Yuhi and his daughter suddenly appear.
Far from being joyful, his face was filled with extreme terror!
He opened his mouth wide, wanting to shout.
But it was already too late!
Click!
With the faint sound of a mechanical mechanism, the arms of the two Sand Ninjas chasing behind Tetsubi, which had been poised to grab him, suddenly split open into black holes at the palms.
"They're Puppets!"
Shinku Yuhi felt a chill run from his spine straight to the top of his head; his heart nearly stopped beating!
When did Sunagakure acquire Puppets that could pass for real people with such lifelike movements?
At such close range... "Kurenai! Get down!"
Relying almost entirely on instinct, he didn't dodge backward but pounced toward his daughter like a tiger, also violently pressing the stumbling Uchiha Tetsubi to the ground in the process!
Yūhi Shinku hadn't even realized what was happening.
She was already tackled and shielded beneath Shinku Yuhi's broad frame.
Swoosh, swoosh, swoosh!
In the next instant, countless poisoned Senbon, like a dense swarm of locusts, shot out from the black holes in the Puppets' palms, covering the space where they had just been standing!
"Run, they're Puppets..." Uchiha Tetsubi, pinned to the ground, finally rasped out his unfinished warning.
He had sensed something was wrong long ago; the strength of these two Sand Ninjas was clearly superior to his, yet they always left him a narrow escape, letting him flee repeatedly.
He knew then that the enemy was fishing.
Although the toxins made his consciousness a bit hazy, he had still tried his best to run in other directions.
But for some reason, by the time he regained clarity...
He had unknowingly run to the meeting spot.
Shinku Yuhi felt that the two people beneath him were unharmed, and a flicker of relief appeared on his face, but it was immediately followed by the sensation of his strength receding like the tide.
Despite his lightning-fast reactions, his own back had not been spared in his effort to fully protect his daughter and Tetsubi.
Waves of numbness were rapidly spreading across his back; clearly, the toxins on the flying needles had begun to take effect.
Yūhi Shinku struggled to get up from beneath him and saw the dense cluster of flying needles embedded in Shinku Yuhi's back.
Her mouth hung open, and tears gushed out uncontrollably: "Dad... what happened to you?"
"I'm fine... Kurenai, run!" Shinku Yuhi's voice became weak and powerless.
"What a truly... touching display of father-daughter affection."
A shadow loomed over the weeping girl.
Kurenai Yuhi looked up; the two cold Puppets stood silently before her, their hollow eyes beneath the masks looking down at her.
Watching her panic-stricken and teary-eyed appearance.
The jaw of one slightly larger Puppet opened and closed mechanically, emitting a rasping, grinding sound:
"What a kawaii girl. I almost can't bear to strike."
The next moment.
That kawaii girl suddenly lunged, the Kunai in her hand swinging without warning toward the seemingly empty air behind it!
Hum!
A few nearly inaudible snapping sounds rang out as several slender Chakra Threads were severed! The Puppet's movements instantly stalled.
But only for a moment! The severed Chakra Threads were reconnected almost instantly.
The Puppet, having reacted, mercilessly kicked the abdomen of the Kurenai Yuhi who had just launched the surprise attack!
Bang!
The heavy force sent her flying back like a broken kite, slamming hard into a tree behind her. She groaned, unable to get up for a moment.
"Crying helplessly to lure us in, then suddenly lunging to cut the Chakra Threads."
"Your mind certainly isn't as cute as your face suggests," the Puppet commented without emotion.
It leisurely removed its mask, revealing an elaborately carved wooden face beneath, and introduced itself: "I am Fūga, and he is Fūshin."
"These are Puppets made using the secret techniques of Lord Monzaemon."
"It's only natural to be fooled by Puppets of such exquisite craftsmanship and lifelike detail..."
He spoke eloquently, as if wanting people to admire his masterpiece.
Only, no one present was in the mood to watch a Puppet's performance.
Seeing his daughter kicked away, Shinku Yuhi felt a wrenching pain in his heart.
That cute face was now filled with an expression of resolve as she leaned against the tree trunk, struggling to stand up.
"Kurenai, run..." he cried out to Kurenai Yuhi, tears streaming down his face.
Not far away, Kurenai Yuhi didn't speak, but her tears kept flowing.
Under the sunlight, she suddenly noticed that the Chakra Threads behind the two Puppets were quite conspicuous.
Dense and fine, they extended from the two Puppets all the way into the depths of the forest... Fūga talked for quite a while about the greatness of art.
But the three audience members weren't buying it.
Shinku Yuhi at his feet was even still struggling, which made him displeased.
He grimly put his mask back on, raised his foot, and stomped hard on Shinku Yuhi's back, which was riddled with poisoned Senbon!
"Argh!" The piercing pain forced a scream from Shinku Yuhi.
Fūga looked down at him from above:
"I didn't expect that the bait I laid out casually would actually reel in two fish, one big and one small."
"Old man, speak. How many more accomplices do you have?"
"I... I'll talk..." Shinku Yuhi seemed to have his will broken by the intense pain, his voice coming in fragments.
Fūga leaned down with satisfaction, moving closer to listen: "A wise man submits to circumstances. Speak!"
Shinku Yuhi's lips moved, but for a long time, he couldn't produce a clear syllable.
Just then, the silent Fūshin suddenly moved!
It rushed like a ghost toward Kurenai Yuhi, who was trying to bypass them, and kicked her away.
The massive force sent the girl tumbling several times after she hit the ground; this time, she struggled but could no longer get up.
Fūga, who was stepping on Shinku Yuhi, sneered at the sight.
"Hmph, trying to bypass us to attack the main body? You father and daughter really won't give up until you're at death's door."
He took heavy steps toward the slumped Kurenai Yuhi.
"Since you won't cooperate honestly, then we'll switch to a method that will make you open your mouths."
He stood beside Kurenai Yuhi and pinned her down with one foot.
Simultaneously, the faint sound of gears turning came from the Puppet's palm, and a short blade glinting with a cold light slowly extended from it.
The tip of the blade was pointed directly at Yūhi Shinku.
"No, don't..." Shinku Yuhi, lying on the ground, looked on with a face full of terror, his eyes pleading.
"Now, you can tell me properly..."
"How many people are left in your squad?"
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