Chapter 299:  Retreating With Enough Gains

"Tatsuma? You..."

Minato looked at the suddenly appearing Tatsuma, but quickly hesitated. Tatsuma's reaction wouldn't be this slow. However, the person who arrived had indeed used the Flying Thunder God technique to appear beside him. He asked, "Shadow Clone?"

"Yes."

Tatsuma's Shadow Clone nodded, then said, "You lead the others to retreat. I'm about to perform a technique."

Minato also nodded and instantly teleported Caterpillar and Bunta, who were in the same battle zone as him, away. When the rogue ninjas saw Minato and the others disappear, they all rushed toward the remaining Tatsuma Shadow Clone.

The Shadow Clone also began forming hand seals, and the sequence of seals was almost identical to the original.

"Flying Thunder God: Guiding Thunder!" 2

Both the original and the Shadow Clone completed the hand seals at the same time. In front of both of them, a massive technique net spread out, engulfing the head of the fire dragon. In Rasa and the others' eyes, the fire dragon's head seemed to instantly disappear, leaving only its body behind.

However, in the distance, the head of the fire dragon inexplicably appeared in front of the Shadow Clone's technique, with scorching flames immediately consuming several rogue ninjas who were closest to Tatsuma's Shadow Clone.

"Roar~"

The fire dragon roared, and more of its body emerged from the technique net. As it thrashed and swung its claws and fangs, several more rogue ninjas were engulfed by the flames.

"Boom~"

The moment the fire dragon was fully transferred, the Shadow Clone vanished, returning the remaining chakra to Tatsuma.

Though the fire dragon didn't break the stalemate between Tatsuma and Rasa, it did upset the balance in Minato's battle against the rogue ninjas, as the enemies facing Minato, Caterpillar, and Bunta were consumed by the fire dragon.

Minato immediately joined the battle on Tenko and Shokuyu's side. Bunta and Caterpillar, after regaining their focus, quickly followed. In an instant, the balance was broken, tipping in Minato's favor.

Karura and Rasa, seeing that Tatsuma was using their methods to eliminate the rogue ninjas, felt conflicted. Was this like making wedding clothes for someone else?

Yashamaru was shocked, but more so impressed by Tatsuma's tactics, so most of his attention remained on Tatsuma. At this moment, he pointed at Tatsuma and shouted:

"He's out of chakra!"

Even though he was discovered, Tatsuma didn't stop. The Military Rations Pill was still placed in his mouth, and he chewed and swallowed it.

The hidden talent brought by [Expand], which allows for rapid digestion, quickly converted the pill into stamina. Tatsuma was about to refine that stamina into chakra when Rasa and Karura's attacks arrived.

"Magnet Release! Gold Sand Arrows Rain!"

"Secret Jutsu! Sand Shuriken!"

The dense barrage of attacks nearly enveloped Tatsuma. Some had even circled behind and beneath him. Even though he stood on top of the extremely durable Triple Rashomon, it couldn't fully protect him.

Tatsuma's mind raced as he quickly analyzed the situation. The simplest solution was to use Flying Thunder God to reach Minato and avoid the attacks. However, doing so would mix the battlefields he had painstakingly separated.

Dodging? With such concentrated attacks, he would definitely be hit. If it weren't for the hidden risks from the Divine Tree Cells, Tatsuma would have chosen this route, as he had great confidence in his Medical Ninjutsu.

His other option was direct defense. Though he lacked ultimate defense techniques like Revolving Heaven or Shukaku's Shield, he still had some defensive methods, such as...

"Ninja Art! Wild Lion's Mane Jutsu!"

This technique, which Tatsuma hadn't used in battle for a long time, was unleashed once again. His wild, silver-white hair grew rapidly, wrapping tightly around him like cotton, providing him with solid protection.

At the same time, a shuriken slipped from behind him.

"Thud thud thud thud~"

The Gold Sand Arrows and Sand Shuriken were all absorbed into the thick mass of coiled hair. Tatsuma thought that his naturally curly hair, at least when using this technique, provided a significant defensive boost.

Seeing that his attacks were all buffered, Rasa frowned and prepared to launch another technique.

But just then, he felt some unusual vibrations from the gold sand beneath his feet.

"Watch out!"

Rasa shouted, but two arms had already emerged from the gold sand, grabbing Yashamaru's ankles and pulling him downward.

The yellow sand and gold sand surged simultaneously, as if to directly crush Tatsuma beneath the surface. And indeed, under the combined grinding force of the gold and yellow sands, Tatsuma was torn apart before he could even pull Yashamaru into the ground.

"Boom~"

However, another puff of smoke appeared, followed by a flash of silver light. Everyone's attention had been on Yashamaru and the underground, causing their reactions to be a split second too slow.

"Rasengan!"

Tatsuma gripped his Lake Toya in his left hand, while in his right, he held a chakra sphere, appearing amidst the eight enemies. He pressed the Rasengan against the chest of a Hidden Sand Village ANBU, while decapitating another ANBU with his Lake Toya kunai.

When Karura and Rasa realized what was happening and prepared to counterattack, the blinding silver light flashed again. Tatsuma had already vanished, leaving behind a kunai in free fall.

Their attempt to counter with yellow sand and gold sand failed, and in the chaotic moment, the falling kunai slipped into their blind spot. When Rasa and Karura shifted their focus to locate Tatsuma, that irritating silver light reappeared.

Once again, the familiar combination: a kunai slashing the throat, followed by a Rasengan to the chest. In just two seconds, the original team of eight had been reduced to four.

Now only Rasa, Karura, Yashamaru, and a startled ANBU remained.

Tatsuma chose not to attack the three because he knew they still held some trump cards.

Though Karura seemed to have exhausted a significant amount of chakra from using powerful Secret Jutsu in rapid succession, Tatsuma didn't trust that she was out of chakra. The protective force she wielded was far too overwhelming.

Moreover, Tatsuma's current condition was not good. Although he managed to ambush and kill four people in an instant, he had completely exhausted the bit of chakra he had painstakingly recovered.

Even though the Military Rations Pill inside his body was still slowly converting into stamina, which could then be refined into chakra, it took time. And in his current state, one or two Military Rations Pills could not restore a significant portion of his chakra.

It was like how one bowl of rice might satisfy a normal person, but for someone with a huge appetite, it would barely be enough to fill the gap between their teeth.

Compared to people like Senju Hashirama or Uzumaki Mito, Tatsuma's chakra reserves were like that of someone with anorexia. But in relation to the energy provided by a Military Rations Pill, he was undoubtedly a big eater.

Hiding behind Rashomon, Tatsuma regulated his breathing. He knew that this kind of hiding wouldn't fool Rasa and the others for long, but every extra second allowed him to recover just a bit more stamina. He needed to be patient and wait.

On Rasa's side, the group was momentarily tense, unsure if Tatsuma would launch another surprise attack. As a result, the four of them formed a defensive formation, back-to-back in a swastika pattern. Even if Tatsuma used Flying Thunder God, he wouldn't be able to appear behind them.

Yashamaru, with a slightly trembling voice, as if trying to convince himself, said, "That kind of Ninjutsu just now had such immense destructive power; it must have consumed a lot. There's no way that Sakamoto Tatsuma has any chakra left. He can't possibly have any more chakra."

Rasa frowned. Just moments earlier, Yashamaru had claimed that Tatsuma was out of chakra, yet soon after, Tatsuma reappeared with the Flying Thunder God and followed up with two unusual Ninjutsu.

Though Rasa usually took care to be mindful of Yashamaru, at this moment, he found Yashamaru's presence irritating.

Karura seemed to notice Rasa's discomfort and softly said, "Don't worry, I'm here."

Hearing this, Rasa's expression relaxed slightly. He took a deep breath and said, "Our reinforcements should be arriving soon. We just need to hold them here. Once our reinforcements arrive, after the intense battles, the Konoha ninjas will definitely be too exhausted to handle our Sand Ninja forces."

His words calmed Yashamaru and the other Hidden Sand Village ANBU. After all, Rasa was a disciple of the Third Kazekage, so they trusted he wouldn't deceive them.

However, Rasa's expression did not relax. He had gathered too much gold sand around him for the battle, making it difficult for him to sense the situation beyond his immediate surroundings. While Karura had some sensing abilities, she wasn't skilled at long-distance sensing.

Karura was a very gentle girl, but at the same time, she was well-suited to being a ninja. Her sensitivity to people's emotions was so acute that she could often sense the intent of an enemy's attack before anyone else even noticed.

Perhaps it was this keen awareness that made Karura naturally inclined towards defensive-type Ninjutsu. She felt it was the best way to protect her comrades.

But now, they needed more than just defense. They needed to sense the distant situation—whether new rogue ninjas were approaching or how far away their own reinforcements were. That was the urgent need.

The number of rogue ninjas had dwindled significantly. Originally, there had been nearly fifty rogue ninjas, but now fewer than ten remained.

Moreover, the remaining ten rogue ninjas were all more or less injured—two of them had even lost an arm. The few that were left wouldn't last long under the combined assault of Minato and his team.

Once all the rogue ninjas were eliminated, Tatsuma's Konoha ANBU team would be able to turn their focus and concentrate their efforts on Rasa's group.

Even though both sides consisted of four-man squads (not counting the summoned beasts), Rasa knew that his team was far inferior to Tatsuma's. Tatsuma alone had a variety of techniques that had already put them in a difficult situation. Even if his three teammates weren't as strong as him, they could still provide significant support.

And it wasn't just a little support—Tatsuma's teammates, particularly Minato Namikaze, were highly skilled. Minato, another master of the Flying Thunder God Jutsu, posed a serious threat. The impact of Tatsuma's recent Flying Thunder God attack still loomed over them.

While Rasa couldn't sense the situation in the distance, Tatsuma could. Rasa's expression was grim,

In Tatsuma's sensing, he detected thirteen ninjas approaching. Almost all of them had chakra levels reaching Jonin, with two still not quite there, but possibly just due to exhaustion.

This was definitely not something they could handle after their repeated battles. Tatsuma pressed his lips together and glanced over at Minato, who, using a somewhat disconnected Flying Thunder God: Second Step, killed the last rogue ninja.

Tatsuma made a decision: today's gains were already sufficient, even exceeding expectations. Not only had he killed over forty rogue ninjas, but also five Hidden Sand Village ANBU, and even captured one of their heads.

With this in mind, Tatsuma signaled Minato and Caterpillar from a distance with a tactical gesture indicating a retreat. Minato and Caterpillar nodded in acknowledgment, while Tenko was unfortunately out of view at the moment.

Even if Tenko had seen the signal, Tatsuma would likely have kept it from him, given Tenko's current instability.

Minato communicated with Bunta and Shokuyu, his voice masked by the howling wind, while Caterpillar hurriedly collected one head after another.

Of course, not every head was recovered. The ones Tenko fought using his Three Tomoe Sharingan were left behind, as who knows what they might have seen before their death.

Those, he decided, would just be a feast for his bugs. With more than half of them lost today, they needed feeding to ensure quick reproduction.

As Minato was preparing for the retreat, Tatsuma reached a kind of unspoken balance with Rasa's group. Watching Minato and the others quickly finish their cleanup, Tatsuma pulled out two bundles of scrolls.

"Enjoy this gift."

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