The Hidden Rain Jonin was not caught by the explosive tags. He dodged every blast cleanly and immediately unleashed a Water Release technique. Two water snakes coiled around his feet as his body twisted through the air.
But his body only burst into a puddle of water.
A Water Clone.
The real Hidden Rain Jonin was startled an instant later. Just as he began to turn around, the masked man had already appeared behind him. His arm became a blur, his fingertips striking pressure points across the Jonin's body in rapid succession.
The Hidden Rain Jonin's pupils trembled with shock. This ability was the Hyuga clan's Gentle Fist pressure point technique. Was this person from the Hyuga clan? But a member of the Hyuga clan, how could this be...
The thought flashed through his mind for barely a second before a sharp blade-like object pierced his throat from behind.
Even before the Hidden Rain corpse had finished falling to the ground, the eyes beneath the mask were already sweeping toward the remaining Hidden Rain soldiers.
The elite troops scattered from their positions in an instant.
Meanwhile, on the other side of the battlefield, Konan had led a group of members back toward the base from the front lines. They spotted something in the distant sky.
A smoke signal was drifting up.
This meant the retreating logistics group had encountered an ambush. It was clear that the Hidden Rain Village had dispatched a reconnaissance unit and a vanguard force to bypass the main battlefield and execute a decapitation strike from the rear.
Konan's expression tightened. Yahiko and Nagato had already led the others into direct battle with the Hidden Rain soldiers and could not break away. She could only take seven or eight people and move quickly. But she did not know how strong the attacking force was.
Konan's brow furrowed, her eyes filled with worry.
If the logistics personnel suffered heavy casualties, even if they relocated the base after the battle, the manpower shortage would prevent them from continuing to operate in this part of the Land of Rain.
They might even be driven out entirely by the Hidden Rain forces. This would also mean that this region of the Land of Rain could not be liberated. Large numbers of people would continue to wander or suffer under the ongoing chaos. That was something Yahiko absolutely could not accept.
Bang, bang, bang.
About a quarter of an hour later, Konan's group arrived at the outskirts of the abandoned village. Looking around, they saw the bodies of Hidden Rain soldiers scattered across the ground, as well as the remains of some of their fallen comrades. Their hearts sank. The number of enemies had far exceeded their expectations.
However, when they entered the village itself, they found the entire battlefield cleared of any remaining Hidden Rain soldiers. Only a small number of logistics personnel who had been forced into combat remained, along with the mysterious figure who had not left.
"Was it him?"
Konan's eyelashes trembled slightly.
From the traces left across the battlefield alone, it was clear that the Akatsuki and Hidden Rain soldiers had initially engaged in fierce combat throughout the outskirts, but after the fighting moved into the village, the situation had not escalated further.
The number of dead Hidden Rain soldiers numbered in the dozens. In terms of raw combat power, these Hidden Rain forces had been considerably stronger than the logistics group. Under normal circumstances, the logistics members would never have been able to hold out alone. Not only would they have faced the deaths of their comrades, they would also have had to accept the destruction of their supplies.
For the Hidden Rain forces to have been killed in such a short time, it could only have been one person.
The powerful mysterious figure.
"Konan."
Seeing Konan and the others return, the logistics squad leader immediately came forward and recounted everything that had happened. After listening, Konan's gaze settled on the masked figure sitting calmly on a rock.
"Thank you."
Konan stepped forward and bowed respectfully toward Yuji. The mysterious man could have left directly. There had been no obligation for him to help Akatsuki. Both logically and emotionally, Konan felt she had to express gratitude.
"You have backup bases in this area, correct?" Yuji asked.
"Yes," Konan nodded.
"How many?"
Konan hesitated. This was the organization's confidential operational information and was not something to be shared with outsiders. She thought for a moment.
"Three," she answered.
"That number is too small. Do not even think about relocating right now. The enemy was able to directly assess the approximate location of this stronghold and launch an immediate attack, which means they are certain that your entire organization is concentrated here rather than dispersed. They are attempting to eliminate everyone in a single decisive blow."
He continued.
"This also means your other three strongholds have already been exposed as well. The enemy must have gathered extensive intelligence before making this move. Otherwise, they would only have been alerting you rather than committing to a full elimination attempt."
Yuji picked up a branch and drew a rough map on the ground at his feet.
"You should organize your personnel to completely withdraw from this area. Otherwise, continuing to fight here will only result in greater casualties."
Konan and the others exchanged glances, feeling slightly shaken.
"There is another way to resolve this predicament," Yuji said with a light smile.
"What?" someone asked urgently.
"Your leader Yahiko, along with Konan and Nagato, are all extremely capable fighters. The Hidden Rain Village has clearly committed the bulk of its forces to this battlefield. Although a direct frontal confrontation is not viable, based on the current battlefield situation, it would be possible to send the three of them to strike the enemy's headquarters directly, conducting a surprise attack and sabotage operation, ideally eliminating the Hidden Rain commander in the process.
At this moment, the Hidden Rain headquarters must be severely depleted of troops and have minimal defensive capability."
"I will go with them."
"Yahiko does not negotiate in those terms," Konan said quietly before he could finish.
"Ah."
Yuji smiled and let the thought go unfinished.
Although the two sides were enemies, the Hidden Rain Village's goal was the complete elimination of every Akatsuki member.
But Akatsuki's goal was never to kill every Hidden Rain Village member. This was an inherently unequal war by its very nature. And looking at this Hidden Rain attack on their base, if Yahiko had been present, he would never have allowed the Akatsuki members to be this ruthless toward the Hidden Rain fighters.
He would have aimed simply to repel the enemy and drive them back.
Perhaps, even though Yuji had helped Akatsuki reduce their casualties today, the piles of Hidden Rain Village corpses scattered across the ground were not what Yahiko would have wanted to see. Because in this way, the conflict between Akatsuki and the Hidden Rain Village would only deepen further, confirming Hanzo's judgment of their organization as a genuine threat to be eliminated.
"As you wish. I am simply reminding you that naivety cannot escape the cruelty of war."
He rose slowly to his feet.
At that moment, several members of the group cried out. They had found a comrade who still had breath remaining and called quickly for someone to provide treatment.
"Could you please..."
Konan lowered her posture slightly and spoke to Yuji, her voice carrying a quiet plea.
"Leave it to me."
Yuji understood immediately what she was asking and agreed without hesitation, walking toward the injured person.
Gaining experience points. How could he pass up an opportunity like this? Entering Akatsuki had been entirely for the sake of accumulating experience. Every patient counted.
Afterward, under Konan's direction, the survivors of the battle began retreating from the stronghold. To prevent the Hidden Rain Village soldiers from tracking them down later, they could only find a concealed location to rest and wait for Yahiko and the others to return. The group moved deep into a mountainous area with complex terrain and simultaneously excavated a temporary cave in the mountainside to shelter in.
They could finally breathe.
The sky began to darken. It was not until evening that Yahiko and Nagato, along with the other members of the main force, followed the remaining signal markers and located the hidden position.
Nagato was uninjured. But Yahiko was not.
His injuries were quite serious.