Chapter 203: Mirage

The sensory ninja named Ryo was squatting on the ground, sweating profusely, forming hand seals as he carefully sensed the enemies within the stronghold.

His sensory technique involved spreading his chakra into the ground beneath his feet, using the earth's feedback to sense the enemy's every move. At this moment, in order to locate the hidden genjutsu ninja, he had to concentrate fully, dispersing his senses widely. This led to a greater influence of the opponent's genjutsu on him. Even with his companions' help, he occasionally fell into the opponent's illusions. If not for his teammates constantly monitoring his condition and dispelling the genjutsu, he would have been unable to act normally by now.

Not just him, even the Jonin Tukyu and his assistant were looking serious and extremely cautious. The opponent's genjutsu skills were frighteningly profound, almost pervasive. The longer they stayed under the opponent's flute music, the easier it was to fall into the genjutsu.

"Found it!"

After a long effort, Ryo finally sensed something, pointing confidently in a direction within the stronghold.

"The source of the sound vibration is in that direction, no mistake!"

He added this to emphasize his confidence, fearing his companions might not believe him.

"Everyone, keep an eye on each other's conditions and be ready to help dispel genjutsu!"

Tukyu Jonin instructed as he led his two companions towards the direction Ryo pointed out. The situation was urgent; the opponent's genjutsu ninja's power had far exceeded his expectations. If they didn't quickly disrupt the opponent's genjutsu, their other teammates' assault wouldn't go smoothly either.

"Oh! You found me?"

Looking at the three approaching Rock Ninjas, Toshiro wasn't too surprised they found his location. Sound-based genjutsu always needed a sound source. The team of three could watch each other, making it only a matter of time before they found him. But he wouldn't just give up!

Despite needing to maintain the barrier, making it hard to move significantly, dealing with these few enemies wasn't too big of a problem for him. His Uchiha Barrier didn't immobilize the caster like the 'Four Violet Flames Formation' or 'Four Red Yang Formation'. However, sustaining chakra to maintain the barrier was necessary, preventing him from fully unleashing his potential. Even so, he wasn't entirely defenseless.

"Illusionary Magic: Mirage"

Putting away his emerald flute, Toshiro formed hand seals, casting a genjutsu he had prepared. As his technique completed, the entire stronghold underwent a significant transformation.

"..."

Looking around at the surrounding illusion, Tukyu Jonin's face turned grim. Surveying the three giant rock statues in the distance, observing the bustling night market full of people and the lively shops around, it was unmistakably the nightlife of Konoha!

"Let's play a game of hide and seek~"

As Toshiro spoke, his figure rippled like water and disappeared into the busy crowd. 

"Release!"

Their chakras disrupted and then regulated, the surrounding scenery remained unchanged, the faces of the three elite Rock Ninjas turned icy cold. 

"It seems to be a mirage-like illusion. Everything here should be false, but..."

The surroundings appeared to be illusions, but they couldn't immediately see through the opponent's genjutsu techniques.

"Ryo... any findings?"

Carefully touching surrounding structures, feeling the solid touch, Tukyu Jonin sought the sensory ninja's opinion. His anti-genjutsu training was for techniques manipulating one's chakra and was ineffective against illusionary environments.

"Sorry! I can only sense the surroundings saturated with the opponent's chakra, nothing more..."

Though not explicitly stated, his meaning was clear.

"We can't stay here, otherwise... The opponent's genjutsu won't be just simple illusions without lethality!"

"Ryo! Stay vigilant and watch for anything approaching us! Search for the opponent's location!"

"Understood..."

Despite the sound-based genjutsu stopping, the large illusion still forced them to tread carefully. Else, they'd all die!

"Careful!"

As they took their first steps, Ryo sensed something, pointing at the empty ground ahead and shouting loudly. In his senses, something dangerous was at that spot, triggering his alarm frantically. The danger felt akin to a recent experience...

"Explosive tags!"

In an instant, Ryo identified the source of danger, his face turning pale. One reason was the recent attack with explosive tags, unforgettable in its intensity. Another reason was the opponent's cunning tactic. In an illusionary environment, if traps with explosive tags were set everywhere, every grass and tree could be a trap, making their progress difficult.

Boom!!

As his voice fell, his companions barely dodged as an explosion rang out, followed by a flash of fire and thick smoke, reminiscent of their recent ordeal.

"Damn~"

Looking back, another companion seemed to have hit something while avoiding the explosive tags, rubbing his back in pain.

"We're likely still in the same area, just concealed by the enemy's genjutsu. Be cautious of our footing!"

As the team leader, Tukyu Jonin reminded his companions, looking towards the explosion site. 

"This is..."

A glance revealed something exciting, Tukyu Jonin's eyes lit up with joy, looking at the explosion site with delight.

End of Chapter