Chapter 152: The Best Lie is Not One Spoken by Yourself, but the One the Other Party Thinks

"Truly worthy of the elite among Rain Ninjas, tracing the trail here solely through subtle changes in terrain."

Within the rainforest, a young man with a scarf covering half of his face landed on a large tree, glancing back at the hundreds of Rain Ninjas who were closely pursuing him, his voice tinged with a deep sense of wariness.

Leading the pursuing Rain Ninjas was none other than Jonin Zaren, who had repeatedly harassed the Konoha camp. At this moment, he scrutinized the young man before him, noting his clothing style and the scarf that could easily cover all exposed skin, reminiscent of a Sand Ninja.

Moreover, this person was not wearing the forehead protector of the Sand Ninjas, which only reinforced Zaren's suspicion that the individual before him was from the Hidden Sand Village. However, Zaren was unsure why this Sand Ninja had ventured so deeply into the Land of Rain.

After all, Sand Ninjas only had one camp in the Land of Rain, located in the southern part, far from the center of the Land of Rain. Additionally, the focus of Sand Ninjas had always been on Konoha's ninjas, adopting a defensive stance towards the Rain Ninjas.

However, this Sand Ninja had ventured deep into the heart of the Land of Rain, and was even not far from the Konoha camp. If he hadn't been discovered in time, perhaps in another day or two, this Sand Ninja could have infiltrated near the Konoha camp in the heart of the Land of Rain.

Although Zaren speculated that this Sand Ninja was most likely gathering intelligence on Konoha, he still spoke with great responsibility, "Who are you? What is your purpose in coming to the Land of Rain?!"

"Everyone, your target should be the ninjas of Konoha, not me. There's no need to keep staring at me. Just consider me a lost traveler. Is that not acceptable?"

After the young man spoke, he gently adjusted his scarf to cover more of his facial skin. However, Zaren's expression turned discontented as he said, "Sand Ninjas, your war with Konoha is not something the Land of Rain wishes to meddle in. However, when you act within the borders of the Land of Rain, you must face the consequences!"

"That means there's no room for negotiation, right?"

As the young man spoke, he reached into his ninja pouch at his waist. Seeing his movement, the Rain Ninjas became alert, wary of what the young man might pull out that could endanger them.

"Bang~"

But before the young man could retrieve anything from his pouch, a large cloud of smoke billowed from his body. Zaren furrowed his brow and warned, "It's a Poison Mist smoke bomb, don't touch it!"

With that, he skirted around the smoke and chased after the young man. As expected, the young man, who had been engulfed in the smoke, had once again escaped, moving faster than most Chunin. However, a hint of disdain appeared on Zaren's face.

His Body Flicker Jutsu had been personally instructed by Hanzo-sama himself. Chasing after such an excellent Sand Ninja Chunin was child's play for him.

"Swish~"

Zaren's figure flickered as he moved towards the young man. The distance between the two rapidly narrowed, but suddenly, the young man stopped and said, "Sir, do not come any closer."

Zaren stopped abruptly, looking around vigilantly, as he also sensed something amiss. The young man before him spoke again, "Squad Captain Rinsho, I've been spotted."

"Do you have teammates?"

Upon hearing the young man's words, Zaren became even more alert. Soon, a figure appeared in the rainforest, with white short hair and a large Tengu mask obscuring his face. In a deep voice, they said, "Katakuri! Why did you bring so many Rain Ninjas here?!"

"No choice, they have too many tracking methods. I'm not familiar with... Forget it. Is Kira Yoshikage back?"

The young man referred to as Katakuri stopped explaining halfway through, and with his question, another slender figure descended. Obviously, this person was the Kira Yoshikage he mentioned.

At this moment, Zaren's face also showed a hint of seriousness. The last person to appear, Kira Yoshikage, was faster than Katakuri, and Rinsho, as he was called, was even more dangerous.

As Rinsho concealed himself earlier, he felt the pressure. Now that Rinsho had appeared, he felt somewhat uneasy. This Ninja leading the team, Rinsho, was stronger than most Jonin.

Images of Sand Ninjas Jonins kept surfacing in his mind, trying to make a comparison. Unfortunately, Rinsho's face was hidden, and so was most of Katakuri's. Kira Yoshikage remained in the shadows without showing his face.

"Sand Ninja ANBU?"

This thought crossed Zaren's mind, causing him to purse his lips. In Ninja battles, lack of intelligence was the most dreaded scenario, especially when facing Ninjas stronger than oneself. Without intelligence, it was akin to being at the mercy of others.

Each of the Five Great Shinobi Villages harbored powerful Ninjas unknown to the public, either with dual identities or lurking in the shadows, like the ANBU, established by Senju Tobirama and later emulated by other villages.

If it was the Sand Ninja ANBU, the emergence of such a powerful Ninja like Rinsho wouldn't be surprising. Moreover, Rinsho, Katakuri, and Kira Yoshikage might be using aliases, especially Katakuri; who would seriously name themselves after a mushroom?!

And Zaren did indeed guess part of the truth. The three individuals were indeed using false names and identities, when in reality they were the trio of Jiraiya, Sakamoto Tatsuma, and Minato Namikaze.

However, Zaren had already prejudged them as Sand Ninja, even becoming somewhat convinced that they were part of the Sand Ninja's ANBU.

These powerful Ninjas lurking in the darkness were the most difficult to deal with. Zaren felt a slight numbness in his hands, as if they were lacking blood flow. Fortunately, at this moment, his companions began to arrive one by one, which eased his mind somewhat.

"Everyone, we just happened to stray into this place. How about we all step back a bit?"

Seeing more Rain Ninjas arriving, Jiraiya spoke, giving Zaren some confidence. If he were alone, he might have taken this opportunity to leave discreetly, pretending he hadn't encountered these individuals.

But that wasn't an option now with so many comrades around him. He gathered his courage and said, "You're Sand Ninjas, aren't you? State your purpose."

Seeing their identities "exposed," Jiraiya didn't deny it. He simply shrugged and said, "We're just here to gather some wild vegetables, replenish our supplies."

Everyone could tell that Jiraiya was lying. Zaren's face darkened, and he sternly demanded, "State your true purpose, or stay here!"

With that, he signaled, and the Rain Ninjas quickly changed formation, semi-encircling the trio, while Tatsuma took a step closer to Jiraiya, his right hand resting on a scroll.

However, Jiraiya immediately brushed his hand away and whispered, "Use Ninjutsu."

"Tch~"

Tatsuma clicked his tongue discontentedly. Though the exchange was not loud, Zaren still managed to catch it. He speculated that the one called Katakuri intended to use Puppet Jutsu, but it seemed their leader didn't want to leave behind concrete evidence.

The individual named Kira Yoshikage emerged from the shadow's cover, his golden slightly curled hair contrasting with a light pink cat mask, making him stand out in the surroundings. He resembled someone attending a masked ball, rather than blending in.

Zaren saw the three individuals gathering and ordered, "Attack!"

"Bam bam bam~"

In an instant, Kunai, Shuriken, Explosive Tags, and Ninjutsu flew continuously towards the trio. Zaren remained vigilant against their attempts to break through, but the three didn't make a move.

After a round of attacks, within the smoke, came the voice of Katakuri.

"Squad Captain Rinsho, can we kill them?"

"No, our purpose here is not to kill Rain Ninjas; it would hinder our subsequent actions. Use Chiyo-sama's new creation, but control the dosage."

The two of them whispered loudly, and Zaren's face darkened completely. However, he also gleaned some information: it seemed that the Sand Ninja didn't wish to engage in a full-scale war with the Rain Ninjas either. Upon realizing this, a hint of a smile tugged at Zaren's lips.

So, the Sand Ninja were as hesitant as Konoha, huh? Instead of the Five Great Nations, it should be the Five Great Cowards! In terms of strength and deterrence, one should look to their Land of Rain!

At this moment, as the smoke gradually dispersed, the three figures emerged unscathed. However, the surrounding land seemed to have undergone significant changes, which led Zaren to think of the Hidden Sand Village's Sand Control techniques.

His gaze subconsciously fell on the individual called Katakuri. After all, this person seemed the least like an ANBU and had led them Rain Ninjas to their companions without facing much reproach.

Could it be... there's some big background? Combining the traces of Sand Control techniques, this thought crossed Zaren's mind. After all, while Sand Control techniques and Puppet Jutsu were specialties of the Hidden Sand Village, not every Sand Ninja could master them.

"Continue!"

But no matter how high the Sand Ninja's status was, what did it matter to him, Zaren? His favorite pastime was tormenting these foreign Ninjas who dared not resist, watching them struggle helplessly, then perish.

At the thought of the recent battles with Konoha, a cruel smile appeared on Zaren's face. As he raised his hand, another command was issued, and more weapons and Ninjutsu were directed towards the three individuals.

Seeing this scene, the trio didn't resort to Sand Control techniques for defense, or rather, there was no Sand Control technique at all. They simply used the recent Explosive Tag's explosion, to disguise themselves with Earth Release, Jiraiya and Tatsuma working together.

This wave of attacks had fewer Explosive Tags but more Ninjutsu assaults. Repeating the same tactics would likely reveal their flaws.

The three swiftly used Body Flicker to evade the attacks while simultaneously employing Wind Release Ninjutsu to cover their tracks. Tatsuma even headed straight for Zaren, the leader of the squad. Upon seeing this, Zaren's eyes revealed a hint of disdain.

He had already grasped Katakuri's skill level quite well. His speed was inferior to that of his teammate Kira Yoshikage, let alone the Ninja called Rinsho. As for other aspects, the Ninjutsu he displayed just now was quite ordinary.

Perhaps he had a knack for Sand Control techniques and Puppet Jutsu, but couldn't use them. With both of them hovering in mid-air, Sand Control techniques weren't as flexible. Considering all these factors, Zaren didn't believe that Katakuri could exert any pressure on him whatsoever.

"Boom!"

Zaren even countered Tatsuma's kick with his arm, but Tatsuma deliberately didn't unleash all his power. Otherwise, even Zaren might have suffered, whether he was prepared or not.

After being blocked, Tatsuma was pushed back and sent flying, which suited his intentions. Unknown to others, he had already concealed several vials in his hands. As he plummeted, Tatsuma forcefully hurled the vials into the sky.

"Wind Release! Great Breakthrough!"

As Tatsuma descended, he formed hand seals, summoning a gust of wind. The vials shattered, and the venom rapidly transformed into Poison Mist, spreading outwards in all directions.

"Not good! Retreat from the Poison Mist area!"

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