125. Defeated

(100 Powerstones before this Sunday for a double release, TMHLU got a double release just yesterday, so try to grab it)

"Guys, should we explore this area a bit? Who knows how long ago Dorobou headed towards the Land of Waves? If we're going to kill some time, we might as well explore this area. Maybe we'll come across some interesting seals. What do you think?" Sora asked.

"I was going to suggest the same, even if it's highly unlikely that we'll find anything meaningful," Shikamaru affirmed.

"Well, maybe we'll find some secret recipes or something," Choji said, his eyes twinkling. He seemed to be the most excited person here.

"Well, I guess I agree too. It's not like my disagreeing will stop us from going. Maybe we'll find a handsome guy there," Ino joked.

"Hehe, I don't think that's going to happen," Shikamaru chuckled and tilted their 'cart' deeper into the Land of Whirlpools.

The coastal wind was refreshing. 

But, luckily or unluckily for them, it started raining.

"Jeez, I was thinking of getting out of the cart, but never mind," Shikamaru sighed.

"I guess I'll get some air. Anyone want to come?" Sora asked.

"My chips would get soggy."

"My hair would be a mess."

"I only like watching clouds when it's not raining."

"Fine. What about you, Sasera?"

The cat put her paw on Sora's nose from where she was lying on his head.

It seemed she was in the mood to get wet.

With that, Sora climbed to the top of their 'cart.'

"It's been a while since I've been soaked in the rain, huh."

"Meow," she said in agreement.

It seemed even royalty like her enjoyed getting soaked in the rain.

"Oh, we're finally on the outskirts. I can see the ruins of buildings and structures," he pointed at the area.

Soon, they got closer.

"I can still feel some seals on the ground. These are detection seals. Disabling them would be too much effort, even for me," Sora whistled in amazement that, even after so many years, the seals were still active.

Sora spread his Sensory Field.

He was just being cautious, despite Ino frequently checking.

His sensing ability was more accurate and detailed, though with a much smaller range than Ino's.

"Guys, I sensed two chakra signatures in different parts of the village, or what remains of it. They sensed me, so they hid their chakra signatures. What should we do?" Sora's voice made Shikamaru halt the cart.

"Go after one of them with your main body, and the other with a shadow clone. Leave a shadow clone here just in case," Shikamaru said with a frown.

"Are you sure?" Sora asked.

"It would be too troublesome to wait for them to attack us if they're hostile. We'd just wear ourselves down if they decided to play a long game."

"Fine," Sora agreed and formed two shadow clones.

He and one shadow clone jumped off, weaving hand seals for his trademark jutsu.

Two red-headed figures blurred into the distance.

"What do you think? Who could those guys be?" Ino asked, combat-ready alongside Choji.

"Maybe rogue ninjas? Or some ninjas just passing by. Hopefully, we won't have to engage," Shikamaru sighed. Maybe he should have searched for Dorobou instead of taking a detour. It was too troublesome.

Back with Sora.

"Neko-chan, I should have left you with them. Are you confident in your ability to escape if you're in danger?" Sora asked Sasera.

"MEOW!" Sasera seemed mad at him for doubting her abilities and implying she was weak.

She could escape anytime she wanted, without the enemy even touching a strand of her fur.

"Fine, if you say so," Sora chuckled. He had a habit of discerning various things from just one word.

After all, he had spent a lot of time with the likes of the Uchiha heir and a perverted sensei who enjoyed irritating people without giving away much information.

So just a simple "meow" was enough for him to understand what she was saying.

It seemed that if you could understand an Uchiha, you could understand cats and dogs too.

He soon spotted the guy he had sensed earlier.

It seemed the cloaked figure hadn't changed location. Arrogant or stupid?

Not that he minded. He loved those types of enemies, as they were the easiest to deal with.

Sora weaved hand seals for a shapeshifting jutsu again, this time on his hands.

He had learned this while 'thrashing' the Golem.

He summoned three kunai and threw one directly at the figure.

The cloaked guy tilted his head, easily dodging the kunai.

Meanwhile, Sora had already closed in on him, increasing his speed.

He aimed one kunai at the cloaked guy's neck and another at his gut.

The enemy would probably prioritize the kunai aimed at his neck, which would take most of his attention. 

That would give Sora the chance to manipulate the kunai aimed at his stomach, dealing some serious damage.

Metal clashed with metal.

Sora's eyes widened.

A sword and a kunai intercepted his weapons. But what shocked him was that the other party's weapons met his at the tip.

Now, Sora could replicate such a thing occasionally, but definitely not at the speed with which he had thrust.

In the next instant, lightning covered both of the enemy's weapons.

Much to Sora's horror, they passed through his weapons like a knife through butter.

Just before they could pierce his palms, he instinctively created a small Rasengan.

A sword and a kunai clashed with two Rasengans.

However, due to the momentum, Sora was thrown like a rag doll.

Fortunately, he was unharmed, thanks to the Rasengan acting as a shield.

While mid-air, he weaved hand seals and released a point-blank concentrated water bullet at the enemy, who had almost closed in due to Sora being in the air.

The cloaked figure deflected the water bullet with their sword, forcing them to stop. However, they coated their kunai with lightning and threw it at Sora, who was still in mid-air.

Due to the kunai's speed, Sora had to abruptly stop the hand seals for his next jutsu and form another Rasengan with one hand to block it. He continued weaving hand seals with his other hand.

Just before landing, the mysterious figure had closed the distance again, and a kick was aimed at Sora's gut.

Luckily, he completed his jutsu just in time.

The summoned water from his bracers immediately took the shape of a mirror.

It was the B-rank Water Mirror Technique, one of Sora's favourite techniques due to its ability to neutralize any jutsu below the A-rank of any element.

The mysterious figure's kick, just before impact, got covered in lightning.

From the water mirror, Sora saw a reflection of himself, whose legs were also covered in lightning.

Both attacks collided.

As Sora landed on the ground, he fled backwards.

The enemy was hot on his trail.

Multiple sword slashes were aimed at him. However, by altering just a few of his body parts, he was able to dodge the attacks.

'Heavenly Weeping.'

Water senbon rained down at the cloaked figure with such speed that the latter had to stop and swing their sword rapidly to deflect the attacks.

Sora formed another set of hand seals.

He spewed a gigantic amount of mist around him.

'D-rank: Hidden Mist Jutsu.'

The jutsu was a graduation requirement for Kiri ninjas.

He quickly changed his position in the mist.

'Okay, this guy hasn't even used a jutsu yet. Or is his lightning-covered weapon a type of jutsu?' Sora wondered as he continued weaving hand seals.

He stopped and weaved another set of hand seals quickly.

'Heavenly Weeping X Shadow Shuriken Jutsu!' Tens of senbon spewed from his mouth, multiplying into hundreds, all heading toward the enemy at deadly speed.

He could sense the enemy's location within the mist.

So, it was perfect for sneak attacks, especially with the rain.

'Wait, right, it's raining! I could use that to my advantage. I didn't even need to summon water from my bracers,' Sora berated himself for his oversight.

However, Sora could only see concentrated blue lightning coming from the enemy's location.

'Whoa, that neutralized all of them. That must be a defensive lightning jutsu,' Sora thought, already changing his position after releasing the attack.

'Wait! No way!' Sora noticed that the enemy had suddenly disappeared.

'It was a shadow clone,' Sora realized, as the tip of a lightning-covered sword aimed directly for his throat.

It was too close, and too late, for him to dodge.

Paws met the lightning-covered tip.

Both of them were startled when the cat was able to stop the sword with just her paw. 'Chakra enhancement? When did she learn that? Or was she always able to do it?' Sora was baffled, but he didn't waste the opportunity Sasera created and formed a Rasengan, aiming for the enemy's gut.

Sora finally managed to land a hit.

The enemy poofed.

'Damn!' Sora found himself with metal aimed at his neck.

"You haven't improved much. Slacking, are we?" A very familiar voice said.

---

A/N: Who is this guy or gal? 🤔 Any guesses?

---

***

Join my Patreon, up to 20 advanced chapters are available:

at p@treon.com/Desire96

Check out my other works too.