Chapter 155: Futile Effort

Words : 1349 Updated : Oct 2nd, 2025

Boom! A violent explosion echoed. Immediately afterward, a crimson fireball appeared, dispelling the surrounding darkness. Suddenly, frequent shouts came from the Iwagakure defensive line ahead. Judging by the direction of the sounds, it seemed they were all rushing towards the explosion site. Seimei's team didn't make a move, and the other two teams remained quiet as well. This was an expected surprise. The plan included measures for the other teams to take if one team was exposed. If Seimei remembered correctly, the exposed team would go all out to attract the enemy's firepower. Then, the teams that hadn't been exposed, like theirs, would strike, creating chaos within the Iwagakure outpost. Ultimately, they aimed to complete the mission with minimal casualties and maximum speed. Time passed by, and the sounds of fighting and explosions grew louder. Just by hearing the sounds, one could tell how intense the battle was. Five minutes later, Seimei's 100-man squad started to move, charging straight towards the Iwagakure outpost. At the same time, the other two unexposed 100-man squads also began their advance, approaching the outpost from two different directions. Since they made no attempt to conceal their movements, the Iwa-nin quickly detected them. In response, the Iwa-nin hastily mobilized their forces to intercept them. They even revealed some of their hidden tactics. It was only then that Seimei realized the Iwagakure outpost had more personnel than anticipated. Generally, each Konoha outpost on the front line had a standard complement of 100 to 120 people. Usually, three to five Jonin (including Tokubetsu Jonin) were in command, with two-thirds of the team being Chunin and one-third Genin. However, due to Iwagakure having the most ninjas in the ninja world, they typically deployed 150 to 180 people. The number of Jonin was similar to Konoha's, also three to five, but among the team members, Chunin and Genin each accounted for half. According to prior reconnaissance, Onoki should have withdrawn 100 people from this outpost, leaving only 50 to 80. But now, there were nearly 50 more Iwa-nin present than the intelligence suggested. Clearly, they had returned in secret. The enemy's likely motive was to prevent Konoha from taking advantage of the situation and, if possible, to ambush them. It had to be said that the Iwagakure commander was truly cunning. If other Iwagakure outposts had similar arrangements, then their feint attack outposts might have already fallen into the trap. However, there was no need to worry about suffering heavy losses. Even with these hidden forces, the Iwagakure outpost's strength was only comparable to theirs. Moreover, the average strength of the Iwa-nin was weaker than Konoha's, so at most, their attack would be hindered, not devastatingly defeated. Fortunately, their mission was only a feint, not requiring them to achieve victory, but merely to tie down the enemy's forces and prevent them from providing support. The final decider of the battlefield would be their battle here. These thoughts flashed through his mind, and Seimei charged ahead of the team, directly confronting an Iwagakure Jonin leading the charge. Seeing Seimei rushing towards him, the Iwagakure Jonin didn't hesitate, immediately waving his hand and shouting, ordering the Iwa-nin behind him to attack Seimei. In an instant, kunai shot towards him like raindrops. This dense attack would have made even an ordinary Jonin retreat. However, Seimei was different. His footsteps didn't pause, and before the kunai reached him, he abruptly activated his three-tomoe Sharingan. In the next moment, the kunai seemed to slow down countless times, becoming clearly visible in his eyes. Seimei dodged some of the kunai, then drew the short sword from his waist, swinging it a few times to deflect several kunai back. *Puchi~ puchi~* The sound of blades piercing flesh rang out. Those deflected kunai spun and flew back, accurately piercing the chests of several Iwagakure Genin. Seimei's Sharingan clearly captured the shock on their faces, followed by deep fear and unwillingness. However, Seimei remained indifferent. Once on the battlefield, everyone had to be responsible for their own lives. This applied to him, and it applied to those Iwa-nin as well. Looking away, Seimei no longer paid attention to them. He had already reached the Iwagakure Jonin, and the tomoe in his Sharingan spun rapidly, fully activating his hypnotic ability. "Sharingan?!" It had to be said that this Iwagakure Jonin reacted incredibly fast. The moment he saw Seimei's Sharingan, he exclaimed in surprise and immediately closed his eyes. Not only that, but he also dodged and hid within the Iwa-nin ranks. Left with no choice, Seimei could only target the Iwagakure Chunin and Genin who hadn't reacted in time with his Sharingan. Subsequently, a series of "thumping" sounds were heard as those Iwa-nin were hypnotized by Seimei and collapsed to the ground. It was only because the Iwa-nin behind them reacted quickly that they weren't trampled to death. However, falling to the ground in this situation wouldn't lead to a pleasant outcome. After all, Seimei wasn't fighting alone; he had over a hundred Konoha ninja behind him. Seeing the Iwa-nin ranks disrupted, they immediately charged forward and engaged in combat with the Iwa-nin. Meanwhile, Seimei once again targeted the Iwagakure Jonin. However, the Jonin had now gathered a few Iwagakure Chunin, attempting to join forces to deal with Seimei. Clearly, he was also aware of the 'drawback' of the Sharingan. However, this was of no use. To restrict his Sharingan, at least one ninja of the same level was needed to cooperate. A mere few Chunin... "Hehe~" Chuckling softly, Seimei used the Body Flicker Technique, his figure vanishing instantly. "Ichimoku, on the right!" The Iwagakure Jonin's voice suddenly rang out. Hearing this, the Iwagakure Chunin, who had been somewhat dazed, immediately looked to the right vigilantly, raising his kunai, ready to face Seimei's attack at any moment. However, the expected attack didn't come. The Iwagakure Chunin named Ichimoku only saw a blurry afterimage. *Whoosh~* A shuriken flew towards him, passing through the afterimage left by Seimei. "Ishihana, on the left!" The Iwagakure Jonin's voice sounded again, this time warning another Iwagakure Chunin. The Chunin named Ishihana nervously looked to the left, also only seeing Seimei's afterimage. Then, this afterimage was pierced by a kunai thrown by the Iwagakure Jonin. And this was just the beginning. Seimei repeatedly used the Body Flicker Technique. The Iwagakure Chunin, preoccupied with guarding against the Sharingan's genjutsu, couldn't react at all, relying entirely on the Iwagakure Jonin's commands. But how many times could this indirect response method evade Seimei? The truth was, it couldn't evade him many times. Just like now, Seimei once again used Body Flicker to appear beside an Iwagakure Chunin. Although the Iwagakure Jonin issued instructions in time, there was a slight discrepancy in their coordination. Seimei seized the opportunity, activating the Sharingan's hypnotic ability, instantly taking down the Chunin. Then, he swung his short sword, blocking the attack from the Iwagakure Jonin. This was why at least one ninja of the same level was needed to cooperate to somewhat restrict Seimei's Sharingan. If someone constantly needed to give commands, sooner or later, flaws would appear, like now. And once Seimei seized an opportunity, what followed was simple. Seimei continued to target the remaining Iwagakure Chunin in the same way. With one less person, Seimei's movements became even more fluid. In less than five minutes, all the Iwagakure Chunin that the Jonin had brought to deal with Seimei were lying on the ground. Looking at the remaining Iwagakure Jonin, Seimei deliberately feigned excitement, grinning broadly and saying, "Now it's just the two of us. The real battle begins!" With that, he didn't give the Iwagakure Jonin a chance to speak, pushing off the ground with his feet, his entire body shooting out like a cannonball. Seeing Seimei suddenly appear before him, Ishida Shinsuke hurriedly raised his kunai, preparing to block Seimei's attack. (End of Chapter)

Chapter 155: Futile Effort

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