“Your subordinates or yourself—I’d love to see how you choose!” The dark-faced Special Jonin wore an expression of triumphant malice, snickering endlessly in his mind.
Even if the man wanted to use his subordinates’ bodies to shield himself from the Senbon, it would be utterly futile.
These were mechanism Senbon that could easily pierce even a Crow puppet.
How could mere flesh and blood withstand them?
Having plotted and brewed this for so long, he had finally found his opening.
Even if he had to sacrifice a subordinate to secure this sneak attack, it was a price well worth paying.
The dark-faced Special Jonin’s eyes were filled with sheer cruelty and malice.
To maximize the effectiveness of the ambush, he had used a blind spot in their vision, blanket-bombing even his own subordinate in the attack.
Ganro’s death was worth it.
All for the sake of the Sand Village!
“Captain, you actually—Ah!” Before the words could fully leave his mouth, a blood-curdling scream rang out.
*Pfft!
Pfft!
Pfft!* The Senbon Shower burst from Sasuke Umino’s blind spot, skewering the bald Chunin without losing momentum as it swept toward Sasuke Umino and the other three.
“To think he could be so ruthless.” Sasuke Umino’s eyes flared with murderous intent.
To pull off a sneak attack, the man had actually used his own subordinate as bait.
How utterly despicable.
Ruthless and stop-at-nothing—as expected of a Sand ninja raised in the harsh desert.
His methods were practically on par with the Blood Mist.
*Too bad.
Did you really think I didn’t see the sneak attack coming?* Sasuke Umino sneered contemptuously in his mind.
Under the perception of his Acoustic Radar Jutsu, all covert movements were nothing more than futile struggles.
He had known the moment the dark-faced Special Jonin channeled his Chakra threads to covertly seize control of his deceased subordinate’s puppet.
If not for his wariness toward that Black Ant puppet, why would he have ordered a retreat, and why would he have repositioned to Tekudo and the others’ side?
The only thing he hadn’t anticipated was that this dark-faced Special Jonin would be so venomous as to use his own subordinate as bait to execute a blanket attack.
“Captain, leave us!
Run!” Tekudo’s face was etched with absolute despair.
Countless Senbon reflected in his pupils, leaving no room for escape.
How could they possibly dodge such a dense shower?
Their captain was powerful; he might still have a fighting chance of survival.
If he chose to save the three of them, they would only drag him down and they would all die together.
*Captain, please don’t do something foolish!
Just run!* “Ah…” Faced with such a terrifying ambush, Koshino froze in place, utterly paralyzed by fear.
“Koshino, I love you!” Seeing Koshino in such unavoidable, mortal danger, Inuzuka Ryo stepped forward instinctively, spreading his arms to shield Koshino and face the oncoming Senbon Shower.
Unfortunately, given Inuzuka Ryo’s build, there was no way he could fully cover Koshino’s spherical, massive frame; he could only hope to shield her vital spots.
Yet with the penetrating force of the Senbon Shower, such a sacrifice would likely prove entirely in vain.
Still, being able to confess his feelings right before death—feelings he had never dared voice before—left Inuzuka Ryo with no regrets.
*Running away alone is hardly my style.* Sasuke Umino had moved over to the three Genin’s side precisely to guard against this Black Ant puppet.
Now that the danger had manifested, how could he possibly abandon them and flee on his own?
Furthermore, the blanket attack radius of this [Puppet Mechanism: Senbon Shower] exceeded ten meters, which was well beyond the maximum displacement range of a Substitution.
Performing a Substitution would be completely useless.
Only by executing an advanced Body Flicker Jutsu would there be any hope of dodging it.
Unfortunately, he only knew the most basic Body Flicker Jutsu, which was even less practical than Substitution.
The mission contribution points required to exchange for an advanced Body Flicker Jutsu were no less than those for a C-rank ninjutsu.
His merit points had already been drained after exchanging for a C-rank Water Style jutsu and a beginner summoning scroll, leaving him with no means to obtain the training method.
Yet at this moment, he showed no panic.
He clearly had another card up his sleeve.
“[Water Style: Water Prison Jutsu]!” Sasuke Umino’s fingers blurred—forming five seals a second—as afterimages flashed.
In an instant, he completed the seven seals: Snake, Ram, Horse, Hare, Ram, Horse, Hare.
Instantly…
*Whoosh!* A Water Dragon Vortex erupted into the air, transforming into a hollow sphere of water that perfectly enveloped Sasuke Umino and the three Genin inside.
“Watch out!” Yoru Gekko swung his blade to force the spiky-haired Jonin back.
Upon seeing Sasuke Umino and the others attempting to defend against the sudden ambush with a [Water Style: Water Prison Jutsu], his face paled in horror.
He knew all too well that the C-rank [Water Style: Water Prison Jutsu] was merely a low-level binding technique.
How could it possibly withstand a Senbon Shower with such terrifying piercing power?
Shouldn’t he have used the [Water Style: Water Encampment Wall] to defend instead?
Could this patrol Chunin have panicked in his desperation and cast the wrong ninjutsu?
Or did he simply not know any other defensive Water Style techniques?
*It’s over.
We’re finished.* Once there was no one left to keep that Special Jonin puppet master in check, how could he possibly face all these Sand ninjas alone?
“To think a measly binding Water Prison could stop a Senbon Shower—sheer delusion!” The dark-faced Special Jonin was smug, his mind overflowing with mockery.
This puppet mechanism was personally designed by Elder Chiyo.
When used for a close-range ambush, its power was practically equivalent to a B-rank offensive ninjutsu.
Both its area of coverage and its piercing power were absolutely terrifying.
Trying to block this attack with a minor C-rank binding Water Style—did he really think he was Konoha’s Water God, Tobirama Senju?
Even if this binding Water Prison looked slightly larger than normal, how much defensive power could it possibly add?
It might deflect a few ordinary Kunai or Shuriken, but blocking a puppet mechanism personally designed by Elder Chiyo?
Absolutely impossible!
Just as the Senbon Shower tore through the bald Chunin and swept forward, about to slam violently into the Water Prison…
“Spin!” “Rotating Water Prison!” Sasuke Umino slammed his hands together in the Tiger seal.
The Chakra within him surged, rapidly accelerating the rotation of the Water Prison.
Under the force of centrifugal motion, the massive volume of water that would have flooded inward was spun outward toward the periphery.
This prevented suffocation on the inside while drastically increasing the rotational force of the prison.
*Whoosh!
Whoosh!* The Water Prison spun faster and faster, even drawing in the surrounding air to form a miniature whirlwind.
“What?
An advanced shape transformation of the water element?!” The dark-faced Special Jonin’s heart tightened violently at the sight.
*To think someone could refine a C-rank Water Prison Jutsu to such a degree!* Judging by this momentum, could this be a modified version of the [Water Style: Water Encampment Wall]?
No, this wasn’t [Water Style: Water Prison Jutsu] at all.
This was clearly a perfectly weakened version of the [Water Style: Water Encampment Wall], with a simplified hand seal count of only three!
This man had to be a master of Water Style.
“Despicable!
Another tactical deception!” The dark-faced Special Jonin completed his quick analysis, once again realizing the sheer deviousness of the ninja before him.
The man was practicing tactical deception at every turn—not a single thing about him was genuine.
Had it not been for those tiny clues exposed during the fight, every piece of apparent information would have been a lie—nothing but tactical deceptions meant to mislead him.