Chapter 22: Land of Earth Daimyo

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Naruto discovered that when the two bodyguards were not home, the household was filled with ordinary people, making infiltration easy. 

However, entering their homes when the bodyguards were absent was of little value, as their presence was what mattered. 

Moreover, since this was the Land of Earth, no one would normally trouble the bodyguards. 

Assassins would likely target the Daimyo rather than his guards if they were involved.

Through careful observation, Naruto noticed that one of the bodyguards was protecting the Daimyo, meaning the house was occupied only by regular people. 

Seizing the opportunity, Naruto swiftly infiltrated the bodyguard's home and located the room where he frequently stayed. 

Naruto found many freshly cleaned clothes inside, but his target was the ceremonial outfit for the upcoming ritual. 

In the room, Naruto found a beautiful wardrobe filled with formal attire. 

As someone close to the Daimyo, the bodyguard had to maintain an immaculate appearance and placed great importance on his ceremonial robes.

Even though there were no shinobi around, Naruto remained cautious. 

He quickly marked each ceremonial outfit and restored everything to its original condition before silently leaving. 

When he returned to the inn where he was staying, he realized he had been overly tense and couldn't help but laugh at himself.

As the day of the ritual approached, Naruto wanted to ensure success. 

The next day, when the two bodyguards switched shifts, he infiltrated the other bodyguard's home, intending to repeat the process from the previous day. 

Perhaps because things had gone so smoothly the day before, Naruto was less cautious this time. 

He swiftly marked the robes and prepared to leave. Suddenly, footsteps echoed from outside, rapidly approaching. 

A voice shouted, "Who's in there?" followed by the sound of the door being kicked open.

Naruto quickly hid in the corner of the room and used the Flying Thunder God Technique to escape. 

He was drenched in cold sweat back in his room, realizing that a sensory-type shinobi had appeared. 

This ninja must have been a friend of the bodyguard, dropping by the house by chance. Naruto had been careless and was nearly discovered. 

The sensory ninja initially sensed someone inside but found nothing when they entered the room, dismissing it as a mistake.

With everything in place, only two days remained before the ritual. Naruto continuously refined his plan, mentally reviewing it countless times. 

However, he still lacked a complete understanding of the strength of Iwagakure's forces. 

There were many unknowns, but he only had one chance, and there was no turning back now.

Two days later, the ritual finally began. The town was bustling, filled with crowds celebrating the event and praying for continued peace and prosperity. 

Amidst the joyous atmosphere, only one person felt an overwhelming tension. 

Donning his signature black cloak and mask, Naruto hid inside a civilian house along the road. 

This street was the only path the Daimyo would take to the ritual site, and many people had gathered there to greet him. 

It was clear that the Daimyo was well-loved by his people.

Naruto had meticulously prepared for this moment, but the wait felt excruciatingly long. At last, the Daimyo's convoy appeared. 

First came many guards clearing the way, and the welcoming crowd instinctively made room for them to pass. 

Following the guards, the convoy of vehicles began to appear. 

In addition to the Daimyo, several other important figures had their carriages, each surrounded by many guards and shinobi.

Naruto's eyes scanned the convoy, searching for the Daimyo's carriage. 

As the convoy moved, Naruto focused on the most luxurious carriage, heavily guarded by numerous shinobi. 

If his guess was right, this was the Daimyo's vehicle. Naruto drew the Thunder God Sword, hiding in the shadows, holding his breath, preparing for his swift and deadly strike.

Just as Naruto was about to act, a voice shouted, "Assassin!" and Kunai came flying toward him. 

From the sound alone, Naruto could tell the kunai were aimed directly at him, with great force. 

He hadn't expected to be discovered so quickly by the Land of Earth's sensory ninjas. 

However, Naruto reacted instantly, channelling chakra into the Thunder God Sword, deflecting the kunai. 

Simultaneously, his body lit up with Lightning Release. 

The brief clash between the two created a shockwave, collapsing the house Naruto had been hiding in and kicking up a cloud of dust.

The loud crash and destruction caused panic among the nearby civilians. 

Disregarding his safety, the Daimyo shouted, "First, protect all the civilians! Ensure no harm comes to them!"

In witnessing this scene, Naruto is moved by Daimyo's concern for his people. 

However, a mission was a mission, and Naruto had no choice but to see it through. 

Nonetheless, he allowed the civilians to evacuate without making any moves. 

Standing silently, his Thunder God Sword crackling with lightning, his mask obscuring his face, and his black cloak billowing, he cut an imposing figure.

The shinobi of the Land of Earth, tense and wary, surrounded Naruto, unwilling to take any chances. 

Once all the civilians were safely evacuated, the Daimyo turned to Naruto, now cloaked in his black robe, and said, 

"I don't know who sent you, but I appreciate you not harming my people." 

"However, attempting to assassinate me during my ritual makes you guilty of treason, and you will be executed. Out of respect, I will give you a fair fight."

Sensing the Daimyo's extraordinary presence, Naruto raised the Thunder God Sword and said, "Out of respect for you, I will fight with all my strength."

The Daimyo raised his hand and commanded, "Shinobi of the Land of Earth, defeat this enemy!" 

The shinobi immediately tightened their formation around Naruto, leaving him no room to escape. 

One of the Daimyo's two elite bodyguards stood at the circle's perimeter, ready to act at any moment. 

They would not allow Naruto, the disruptor of the ritual, to escape.

Naruto had been watching the two bodyguards ever since the Daimyo appeared. 

He noticed that one of them was wearing a new ceremonial robe. This was the person tasked with protecting the Daimyo up close. 

The other bodyguard was stationed to prevent Naruto's escape. With things unfolding this way, Naruto's plan was in jeopardy.

While Naruto was deep in thought, the shinobi of the Land of Earth launched their attack. 

"Earth Release: Earth Flow Spears!" Several ninjas cast their jutsu in unison. 

Naruto would've been caught in their technique if he hadn't been exceptionally fast. 

However, the sheer number of attackers was overwhelming. Naruto had just dodged one wave when another came. 

"Earth Release: Earth Dragon Bullet!" Multiple earth dragons rose from the ground, chasing after Naruto as he tried to evade.

Suddenly, "Earth Release: Great Earth Flow River!" An enormous surge of earth flowed toward Naruto, leaving him no room to escape. 

Naruto increased his chakra output, and the lightning armour around him grew brighter as he swung the Thunder God Sword, protecting himself from the earth-based attacks.

Despite fending off these attacks, Naruto knew these were only probing strikes. The truly powerful shinobi hadn't even made their move yet. 

Originally, he planned to strike with a fatal blow and escape immediately, but now he was surrounded and locked in a fierce battle.

As expected, eight large figures leapt out from behind after that round of attacks. These were powerful close-combat ninjas. 

Without saying a word, they jumped forward to surround Naruto. 

Despite their bulky builds, they were surprisingly agile and coordinated in their attacks, making it difficult for Naruto to find an opening. 

After several exchanges, Naruto barely had any chance to strike back, constantly dodging and using his Flying Thunder God Sword for defence. 

Their fists were covered in chakra, and each time Naruto clashed with them, he could feel the immense power behind their blows. 

The eight of them, with sixteen fists, moved as if they were a single entity, leaving Naruto mostly on the receiving end of the attacks.

However, because they were fighting Naruto at close range, the other ninjas couldn't use wide-area jutsu without risking hitting their comrades. 

Realizing this was not sustainable, Naruto knew that more elite ninjas might soon arrive, worsening the situation. 

The speed of their punches was increasing, and Naruto was finding it harder and harder to keep up. 

He thought, "With this many attacks, I won't be able to dodge them all. If that's the case, I'll stop trying to dodge."

Naruto pushed his Lightning Armor to its maximum power. 

It thrust his Flying Thunder God Sword toward one of the eight, fully prepared to take a hit in return, adopting a mutual destruction strategy. 

However, as Naruto aimed his strike, he noticed that his opponents showed no fear of the threat from his sword and continued their assault. 

As a result, Naruto was hit by four powerful punches, their force piercing through his Lightning Armor. 

The impact caused internal injuries, and blood appeared in the corner of Naruto's mouth. 

At the same time, Naruto's sword pierced through one of the ninjas, and with the powerful destructive force of his lightning chakra, the opponent instantly lost his life.

Though it sounded complex, all of this happened in an instant. Their speed was incredibly fast, and their reactions were sharp. 

Naruto quickly pulled his sword out and aimed at another. Despite seeing one of their comrades fall, the remaining seven showed no fear. 

Several fists hammered toward Naruto again. 

Although he had suffered serious damage in the first exchange, Naruto's body had powerful regenerative abilities, and in just a short moment, he recovered around seventy to eighty percent. 

This minimized the overall effect of the blows on him. 

The second clash began again, with Naruto eliminating another opponent, though he took several more punches. 

Despite being heavily injured, Naruto's recovery meant that, on the outside, his injuries seemed minimal, with only a trace of blood in his mouth. 

His enemies couldn't fully gauge how hurt he was. Now, only six of the original eight remained. 

They showed no hesitation, nor did they seem afraid. Naruto mused that Iwagakure's ninjas were braver than he had initially thought. 

The two he encountered before must have been exceptions, as he felt fortunate to have gathered Iwagakure's intelligence this time.

Seeing that these attacks weren't working against Naruto, one of the personal guards protecting the Daimyo said to the six, 

"His lightning style is almost at the level of the Raikage. There's no point in wasting your lives. Fall back."

The six hesitated but then bowed their heads and retreated, carrying the bodies of their fallen comrades.

As they retreated, the guard turned to the other bodyguard and said, "He's using Wind-style jutsu, Kaze." 

"Your jutsu should be able to counter him. You can handle it from here." 

The one called Kaze was the bodyguard Naruto had been paying close attention to and whose outfit Naruto had marked earlier. 

Slowly, Kaze approached Naruto, saying, "Your strength is impressive. I didn't expect you'd push me to step in. But now, it's over."

The other guard, named Rock, stood by the Daimyo's side. Rock hadn't worn the marked outfit, and Naruto cursed his bad luck inwardly. 

This was when Naruto finally learned their names, although they could be codenames. 

Kaze drew a thin ninja sword. 

His build was light and nimble, and although his ceremonial attire seemed slightly heavy, there was an air of danger about him. 

When wind-style chakra ignited along his blade, it was as if he became one with the wind. He walked closer and said, "Don't disappoint me."

With that, Kaze formed hand seals. "Wind Style: Secret Technique!" 

When he finished the seals, Naruto stood ready, but Kaze seemed to vanish before his eyes. 

The next thing Naruto knew, he felt a heavy blow to his back. 

Before Naruto could even turn around, Kaze had already returned to his original position, as if he had never moved.

This was the first time Naruto had encountered someone who could suppress his speed so quickly. 

With the Lightning Style, Naruto's speed was already incredibly fast—this speed seemed unreal.

Luckily, Naruto's Lightning Armor had high defensive power, and Kaze's first strike couldn't penetrate it. 

However, Naruto still felt a powerful shock from the impact. Kaze sighed and said, "If it weren't for your build, I'd almost think you were the Raikage." 

"You have such a strong lightning style. But from here on, I'll have to get serious." He began forming seals again.

"Secret Technique: Wind Blade Slash." A sharp blade of wind flew towards Naruto. 

Naruto could sense the dense chakra within it, unlike ordinary wind blades, yet it made no sound at all.

Naruto quickly responded, raising his Flying Thunder God Sword, "Flying Thunder God Strike!" 

The two powerful chakras collided, but Naruto struggled because the wind style naturally had an advantage over the lightning style. 

Fortunately, his sword wasn't an ordinary blade, and he barely managed to block the attack. 

Kaze eyed Naruto's sword and said, "That's no ordinary ninja sword you're holding." 

"I didn't expect you to block my attack, but you won't be able to handle the next one."

"Secret Technique: Multi-Wind Blade Slash." With that, Kaze once again disappeared from Naruto's sight. 

Naruto turned, ready to counter, but Kaze didn't immediately attack. 

Instead, six invisible wind blades appeared out of nowhere, forcing Naruto to fortify his Lightning Armor to the fullest, hoping to block the attack. 

In an instant, Naruto felt immense pressure. 

His Lightning Armor started to crack under the assault, and the six wind blades left deep wounds on Naruto's body. 

His ribs were almost entirely shattered, and his leg bones were severely injured, causing him to collapse to the ground, barely clinging to life.

This outcome was beyond what Kaze had expected. 

Normally, anyone struck by that technique would be sliced to pieces, but Naruto was merely gravely wounded. 

Kaze's sword glowed with wind chakra as he slowly walked toward Naruto and said, 

"You're probably the strongest lightning-style user I've ever seen, aside from the Raikage. It's a shame—you're about to die here." 

Kaze raised his sword and prepared to deliver the final blow.

<End Chapter>

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