Chapter 106: Escape

Clang! After blocking Seimei's short sword attack once again, Sabaku no Kaze opened his three-star fan and skillfully intercepted the shuriken Seimei subsequently threw. Then, he infused wind-style chakra into it, swung it forcefully, and pushed back Seimei, who was approaching for the second time. Seizing this opportunity, he quickly formed hand seals and once again used his three-star fan to unleash a powerful wind-style technique, covering a large area where Seimei was located. At this point, Seimei usually had two choices. If the storm's power was average, he would directly charge through it, relying on the Sharingan's keen perception. But if the storm was too strong, he would temporarily avoid its edge and then look for other opportunities to attack. For the past fifteen minutes, he and Sabaku no Kaze had been engaged in this rapid exchange of offense and defense. Both of their tactics were practically laid out in the open, testing their grasp of timing and the depth of their reserves. In terms of combat experience, Sabaku no Kaze was indeed superior to Seimei. However, the existence of the Two Tomoe Sharingan and the fact that several of his skills had reached the perfected level evened out this gap. In fact, Seimei even had a slight advantage over the opponent. Because of this, Sabaku no Kaze had to frequently use some high-powered wind-style ninjutsu to create breathing room, which consumed a lot of chakra. In contrast, the various techniques Seimei used consumed very little chakra. Prolonging the fight was obviously advantageous for Seimei, and that's exactly what he was doing. He didn't even care when one of his subordinates was killed by the puppeteer who seemed to be from the same clan as Chiya. Furthermore, as the battle progressed, he also figured out the specialty of the female Suna-nin in her early twenties - she was a rare genjutsu-type ninja in Sunagakure. Her sound-based genjutsu was quite impressive, even forcing one of Seimei's subordinates to voluntarily damage his own hearing. But this also greatly reduced his combat effectiveness, and for a time, he was being suppressed by the female ninja who wasn't good at close combat, completely on the defensive. The only one with an advantage was probably Kamijo Yoichi. That's right, he was still his subordinate this time, and his opponent was the seventeen or eighteen-year-old, muscular Suna-nin. As Seimei had expected, the opponent was indeed skilled in taijutsu. However, it wasn't to an astonishing degree. Therefore, he was being suppressed throughout the fight by Kamijo Yoichi, who had more well-rounded abilities. However, this advantage instantly vanished with the puppeteer joining the fray. If Seimei couldn't provide assistance, it was foreseeable that his two remaining subordinates would likely be killed soon. However, Seimei only glanced at their predicament and then paid no further attention. The strongest Jonin on the enemy side was already being held back by him, and the remaining three, like them, were all Chunin. If they couldn't handle it under these circumstances, they could only blame their own lack of strength. Seimei wouldn't act like a babysitter, constantly looking after their safety. Moreover, although he seemed to have the upper hand here, any lapse in concentration could instantly turn the tide. After all, the enemy was a Jonin, and he couldn't afford to be careless. So, they could only rely on themselves. Of course, Seimei couldn't drag this on for too long either. If all his teammates died and those Suna Chunin surrounded him, it would also be troublesome. With a thought, Seimei once again increased the tempo of his attacks. At the same time, he no longer worried about chakra consumption and started frequently using ninjutsu, forcing Sabaku no Kaze to expend more chakra to cope. Furthermore, he was also actively looking for opportunities to use genjutsu. Unfortunately, Sabaku no Kaze would rather suffer some minor losses than give him such a chance, making it impossible for him to successfully cast genjutsu. Halfway through forming hand seals, after Sabaku no Kaze once again averted his gaze, Seimei sighed inwardly, "As expected, the levels of both genjutsu are still too low!" If his Genjutsu: Sharingan had already reached lv5, he could cast genjutsu effortlessly. In a one-on-one duel like this, he could easily control the opponent with a simple gesture. Why would it be so troublesome now? The saying circulating in the ninja world about dealing with the Sharingan - "One on one, flee without hesitation; two on one, attack from behind" - wasn't an exaggeration. That reputation was earned through real battles fought by Uchiha Jonin with Three Tomoe Sharingan. Unfortunately, he hadn't reached that level of mastery yet and couldn't achieve such feats, so he could only slowly wear down the opponent's chakra. However, while he found it troublesome, Sabaku no Kaze was already lamenting inwardly. Feeling that more than half of his chakra had been depleted, and seeing Seimei still looking calm and composed, Sabaku no Kaze felt that the hope of victory was slim. "Should I continue?" Sabaku no Kaze asked himself inwardly. The mission assigned by the village this time was to eliminate as many enemy forces as possible; there was no specific target. Therefore, retreating now wouldn't incur any responsibility. Seemingly convincing himself, Sabaku no Kaze no longer hesitated. After blocking Seimei's attack once again and pushing him back with a counterattack. Sabaku no Kaze seized the opportunity and immediately fled into the distance. Seeing this, Seimei's eyes lit up, and he thought to himself, "Finally, he's made a move!" That's right, he had been waiting for Sabaku no Kaze to take action. Whether it was attacking or retreating, as long as the opponent didn't stubbornly continue the battle of attrition with him, it was acceptable. As for why? Naturally, it was because only when the opponent moved would he have an opportunity. What opportunity? The opportunity to capture the opponent, of course! That's right, after realizing he could defeat the opponent, he had been thinking about how to capture them alive and turn them into his second "chakra battery." He definitely couldn't do it here! Although those Suna and Konoha ninjas had moved their battlefield to the outer perimeter due to the intensity of the fight here, they could still observe this area. Under the watchful eyes of everyone, he definitely couldn't beat the opponent half to death and then capture them. In that case, unless he silenced them, he would have to hand them over. Although Seimei's sense of belonging to Konoha was average, and he wouldn't act as a babysitter for his teammates, he also wouldn't slaughter them. One still had to have some principles; otherwise, they would eventually be consumed by power. Seimei didn't want to become a monster who only pursued strength. Therefore, the best way was to avoid the eyes of others. And to achieve this, Sabaku no Kaze had to leave this place and shift the final battlefield elsewhere. That way, no one else would know what he did behind the scenes, and he wouldn't have to consider killing to silence them. This was the reason he was waiting for the opponent to make a move. Therefore, seeing the opponent flee, Seimei didn't try to stop him but simply chased after him closely. And as the situation on their side changed, the two battlefields in the outer area also shifted. The two Konoha ninjas were clearly fighting more confidently, while the three Suna-nin started considering retreat. After all, the Jonin on their side had been defeated. If Seimei freed himself, they definitely wouldn't be a match for him. Therefore, escaping was the logical course of action. However, this decision wasn't easy to make. The outcome of the Jonin's battle was still unknown. If they retreated rashly, they might face punishment. Moreover, they still had the upper hand in the battlefield situation. They were reluctant to simply abandon the merits they were about to gain. And there was also the puppeteer. His goal wasn't just to earn merits but also to inquire about the situation of his clan's junior. Whether alive or dead, there had to be an outcome.