Chapter 65

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Kyomu and Kakashi's strength were definitely top-notch among Chunin, not to mention the weapons they wielded.

Kyomu's prowess doesn't need much elaboration. Fighting one-on-one against special Jounin isn't just easy, but as long as it's not encountering renowned blood-stained ninja of the ninja world, winning isn't difficult.

Kakashi, relying on the unpredictability and variability of Yukihime and the Hatake Swordsmanship, doesn't back down even in one-on-one fights when catching opponents off guard.

But when the enemy outnumbers you, who cares about one-on-one? Mobbing is the best solution without any guilt.

At this moment, the first wave of surviving Iwa-nin, combined with the Iwa-nin team that came to support, surrounded Kyomu and Kakashi. The number of personnel attacking them once again reached twenty.

Half of them were Chunin-level Iwa-nin.

"Kill the lower-ranking ninjas first!" they said in unison.

Kyomu and Kakashi both made this choice.

Together, the Chunin-level Iwa-nin surrounding them were like chopping vegetables, easy to kill one by one.

But when attacking the lower-ranking ninjas, the Chunin-level Iwa-nin took advantage of any opportunity to use their ninjutsu one by one.

Chunin-level ninjas may not be ninjutsu powerhouses, but they couldn't resist their sheer numbers. Each of them, even if it was just one, brought about ten or more C-rank or higher ninjutsu.

One-handed seals.

Earth Style: Earth Land Return.

Kakashi heard the movement behind him, but he didn't bother, trusting Kyomu.

As expected, the surprise attack of the Earth Style ninjutsu was blocked, and Yukihime in Kakashi's hands pierced the heart of a Chunin-level Iwa-nin from a bizarre angle, simultaneously severely injuring another Chunin-level Iwa-nin.

At the same time, Kakashi's left hand swiftly reached for his ninja tool pouch, and with a flick, he knocked down a shuriken with an explosive tag attached.

"Kyomu!"

As Kakashi spoke, he threw Yukihime into the air and clapped his hands on the ground.

Earth Style: Earth Land Return.

It was still a C-rank Earth Style defensive ninjutsu, but it was quite effective, especially against frontal attacks.

The flames and shockwaves from the explosive tags were blocked, and the Yukihime that Kakashi had just thrown was precisely kicked back into his hand by a precise spinning kick from Kyomu.

Swish.~

Yukihime turned into a streak of light, and just as the lower-ranking Iwa-nin prepared to attack Kakashi, one suddenly fell clutching his throat, while Kakashi, who had stood up again, reached out, and the blade of Yukihime suddenly lengthened, and as he retreated, the returning handle was grasped in his hand.

The two of them cooperated seamlessly, and in a moment, they slaughtered all the lower-ranking Iwa-nin.

Honestly, the lower-ranking ninjas did have some competitiveness, but in many cases, they were just cannon fodder.

However, the deaths of the lower-ranking Iwa-nin also provided opportunities for the remaining Chunin-level Iwa-nin, resulting in Kyomu and Kakashi being injured to varying degrees.

Although it didn't affect their movement and combat, it was the first time they had been injured in battle since graduating from the ninja academy.

Lava Style: Melting Monster Technique!

Mei suddenly joined in, not by relying on being close to Kyomu and Kakashi but at a medium distance, spitting out a large mass of fiery red corrosive slime.

Even if it didn't cause casualties among the Chunin-level Iwa-nin, their successive ninjutsu attacks experienced a brief interruption.

Chance!

Kyomu's eyes lit up, wielding his sword and rushing forward, slashing three times, immediately killing another enemy.

With Mei's timely intervention, Kyomu and Kakashi regained the initiative in the battle.

Previously, they fell into the rhythm of the attacks from the Chunin-level Iwa-nin, forced to defend because of the excellent cooperation among the Iwa-nin and the continuous ninjutsu pressure without a break.

In addition to that, the deaths of the lower-ranking Iwa-nin, although seemingly meaningless, at least slowed down Kyomu and Kakashi's offensive rhythm to some extent.

Continuous and coordinated ninjutsu suppression, combined with the opportunities the lower-ranking Iwa-nin risked their lives to create, and the numerical advantage, could hold back a Jounin for a long time, let alone Kyomu and Kakashi now.

Although Kyomu's Yōei could cut through ninjutsu, he still needed to take care of and coordinate with Kakashi. He couldn't just charge ahead blindly.

But with Mei's joining, Kyomu finally freed up his hands.

At the same time, the pressure on Kakashi also greatly reduced.

The three faced the remaining Chunin-level Iwa-nin, not only much easier but also, after a dozen exchanges, they had achieved a reversal.

The balance of victory, with Mei's joining, tilted early in favor of Kyomu and Kakashi.

Swish!~

A circular bright white dragon danced around Kyomu, and the last Chunin-level Iwa-nin fell, becoming a soul under Kyomu's blade.

"Don't you thank me?" Mei asked.

"I thank your whole family!" Kyomu said coldly, "What took you so long? And even without you, we could have killed them all!"

"Hmph, you two were quite miserable just now."

"That was just a matter of time, there wouldn't have been any accidents." Kyomu sheathed his sword, "And there's no room for sentimentality between us, you can leave now."

Mei glanced back at another battlefield, where her three companions are fighting a Jounin, a Special Jounin and a few Chunin.

"I helped you just now," Mei said anxiously, not standing close to Kyomu and Kakashi but at a medium distance.

"We didn't need help." Kyomu said with annoyance.

Leaving these words behind, Kyomu and Kakashi sat down tacitly to recover their strength, consuming what they had expended before.

In terms of chakra, Kyomu had an energy storage ring, so he didn't have to worry for the time being.

Although it wasn't full yet, it was enough to sustain this battle.

Kakashi's consumption was great, as he had just used Lightning Style chakra to activate his body cells and to perform the Hatake swordsmanship.

"Ao-senpai is a Jounin. If he is surrounded and killed, not only will the mission fail, but you won't be able to escape!" Mei turned and ran, not forgetting to shout, "Aragami Kyomu, Hatake Kakashi, even if you abandon the mission and run away early, your reputation will spread by the time I die!"

Such words had almost no effect on Kyomu.

He didn't care about the mission or not; a ninja's professional ethics wasn't a reason for him to risk everything.

Fighting for oneself was fine, but risking one's life for a hired mission, Kyomu's life wasn't that cheap.

But Kakashi's face suddenly turned ugly.

"What are you going to do!" Kyomu grabbed him.

"Although those Kiri-nin are bastards, we can't give up on the mission!"

Kakashi was the son of Sakumo, who currently had a 100% mission completion rate in Konoha.

With Sakumo as his goal all along, Kakashi attached particular importance to missions. Kyomu naturally knew this, but still intended to stop him.

"That's the Kiri-nin's mission."

"Our mission is to safely escort the merchant caravan to the port. The mission isn't complete yet, I must go!"

"Even if it costs your life?"

"This is the fate of a ninja!"

Seeing that he couldn't persuade Kakashi, Kyomu could only change his words, "But we have to wait."

Mei had the intention to sit back and watch the show, did Kyomu have the same idea?

"If we join in and cooperate with the Kiri-nin team, led by Jounin Ao, we can indeed clean up the Iwa-nin, but what about afterwards?" Kyomu's words calmed Kakashi down, "Can you guarantee that the Kiri-nin won't turn on us? Don't forget, Terumi Mei just recognized both of us!"

"What about when Jounin Ao is heavily injured?" Kakashi wasn't stubborn, "I think it's possible, maybe we can take advantage of the opportunity..."

"Yes, that's it." Kyomu nodded, "There's no cooperation between ninja from different camps. Stabbing each other in the back is the norm."

Calm down, Kakashi sat down again and put two soldier pills in his mouth.

He had consumed a lot just now and could only recover quickly with this method.

As for Kyomu, he just sat there resting and regaining his strength, which made Kakashi quite envious.

Such physical fitness was really useful in a prolonged battle.

(End of Chapter)