Team 10 had not anticipated this situation beforehand.
In the Shinobi World, ninjas with sensing abilities were rare. Now, not only did the enemy have a sensing ninja, but they could also suppress Ino. How low were the odds of that?
Shikamaru's plan was to lure the snake out of its hole.
What if it didn't come out, or there was no snake in the hole at all? Then they would simply return.
Ino added, "If we follow the river, even if we encounter enemies, I can hold off a few with my Water Release."
She was being quite modest. With her Water Release Ninja Technique, abundant Chakra, and the natural advantage of the river, she could easily handle four or five ordinary Genin or Chunin.
Asuma remained silent, tacitly approving this approach. Choji had no objections to their unanimous decision.
To make the act convincing, they spent half an hour investigating in the village before hastily leaving.
On the mountainside near the mine, a man clad entirely in black robes with a hood stood, his vantage point allowing him to see the four figures exiting the village.
"Raiga, those guys have run off. They're moving fast and don't seem like they'll be coming back," a rather youthful voice spoke from within the man's robes.
A light rain fell from the sky, and through the hood, the man's thick eyebrows and dark circles under his eyes were visible.
The man looked up at the sky like a philosopher, his tone laced with madness: "We are as close as family with the villagers, yet these outsider ninjas insist on disrupting our peace. Why must they force me? I'm so heartbroken! I really don't want to kill anymore!"
The youthful voice fell silent for a moment before saying, "Raiga, I am your eyes. I will definitely help you."
The man nodded in agreement: "That's right! Ranmaru, you are my eyes, and I am your hands and feet. Together, we will find our purpose in this chaotic world!"
"This is our home. We absolutely cannot allow these outsiders to destroy the harmony between us and the villagers. Chase them down! Kill them! Then we'll hold the most elaborate funeral for these ninjas who came from afar!"
At the man's command, seven black-robed figures emerged from the shadows. Agile and menacing, they moved like a net, pursuing the four who had fled the village.
Raiga was the fastest, his heart consumed by a surge of killing intent. Impatient to wait for his subordinates, he transformed into a bolt of lightning, rapidly closing the distance to Team 10.
The youthful voice seemed accustomed to his actions: "Raiga, if you run this fast, I won't be able to use my ability to conceal our tracks."
He laughed: "Just a bunch of nobodies who popped up out of nowhere. Watch me take them out in one go!"
On the other side, Ino, who was sprinting, also noticed the enemies chasing from behind.
"Shikamaru, it seems those guys have dropped their concealment and are chasing us. There's one, two, three... eight of them. One of them is incredibly fast—wow, his speed is almost on par with Asuma-sensei!"
Sensing ability wasn't the Byakugan; it couldn't accurately observe the opponent's Chakra, only estimate it.
Hearing that the enemy had pursued them, Shikamaru secretly breathed a sigh of relief. This was his first time formulating a strategy, and the complete trust from Asuma and his teammates had put a lot of pressure on him. He had been worried that he was just fighting an imaginary battle of wits.
At this moment, he couldn't help but glance back. Lightning was brewing in the clouds, and the rain was getting heavier, reducing visibility to a minimum. He asked Ino, "How much time do we have left?"
"If we maintain this speed, three minutes," Ino replied. "Asuma-sensei, let's set up traps ahead. Ino, you and Choji, head to the mountaintop and prepare an ambush," Shikamaru assigned tasks to the three of them.
Three minutes later, Raiga and Ranmaru, the duo, caught up to the base of a cliff. Without hesitation, Raiga used lightning to detonate the seven traps the Tenth Team had set up, then began climbing the mountain.
Ino and Asuma peeked out from the mountaintop.
Through the pitch-black night, Ino saw Raiga's wild eyes and the twin swords crackling with lightning in his hands.
Just as she was wondering who this guy was, Asuma immediately identified him.
"This is Raiga Kurosuki, a rogue ninja from the Hidden Mist Village and a former member of the Seven Ninja Swordsmen of the Mist."
Ino was stunned. "The Seven Ninja Swordsmen of the Mist? No way!"
It was unbelievable! In such a remote, desolate village, they had encountered Raiga Kurosuki, a former elite Jonin of the Seven Ninja Swordsmen of the Mist, who wielded the Thunder Swords.
Wow, she hadn't gone to the Land of Waves to fight Zabuza Momochi, but here in the Land of Rivers, she had run into another member of the Seven Swordsmen?
During the Third Great Ninja War, the Seven Ninja Swordsmen of the Mist had encountered a few young Chunin from the Hidden Leaf Village. All seven of them were elite Jonin-level fighters, and the Leaf's Chunin were no match for them. At the critical moment, Might Guy's father, Might Dai, arrived. He was also a legendary "Genin of the Hidden Leaf," but his strength was immense. He directly activated the Eight Gates Formation and kicked four of the seven elite Jonin to death. Only Juzo Biwa, Raiga Kurosuki, and Kisame Hoshigaki managed to escape in disgrace, reducing the Seven Swordsmen to just three.
Juzo Biwa later joined the Akatsuki and died fighting to protect Uchiha Itachi. His Executioner's Blade fell into the hands of Zabuza Momochi, who became the second generation of the Seven Ninja Swordsmen.
Kisame Hoshigaki was the tallest man in the entire Shinobi World, standing at 2.49 meters! It's unclear how this "melon" mutated to such a height. With that stature, he could've even made a name for himself in the neighboring One Piece world. Despite his height and strength, his character was terrible. Kisame Hoshigaki was eventually killed by a younger generation from his village, and his sword ended up in the hands of the famous dam-building fanatic, Fuguki Suikazan.
Of the first generation of the Seven Ninja Swordsmen, only Raiga Kurosuki's whereabouts were unknown. And now, the Tenth Team had run into him.
Ino looked at Asuma.
Asuma began forming hand seals. "The enemy is stronger than we anticipated. Execute Plan B."
"Got it," Ino replied, also starting to form seals.
Water Release counters Fire Release, but conversely, if Fire Release is fully utilized, it can also enhance the power of Water Release.
In the original timeline, Naruto and Sasuke's "Scorch Release: Light Speed Gale Black Arrow Zero Style" was a combination of Naruto's "Wind Release: Rasenshuriken" and Sasuke's "Blaze Release: Kagutsuchi." The name of this technique was casually coined and had no relation whatsoever to Pakura's Scorch Release. It was simply a composite ninja technique that utilized the principle of "fire overcomes wind, while wind also enhances the power of fire."
The representative figure of the contemporary era skilled in using composite ninja techniques is the Third Hokage. Jiraiya's Sage Art: Goemon surpassed its predecessor, standing as a composite Sage Art. Asuma, though not as powerful as Jiraiya, was well-versed in the methods of composite ninja techniques. At this moment, he combined his Fire Release with Ino's Water Release.
He meticulously followed Ino's hand seal rhythm.
When the Water Dragon Bullet surged into the sky, Asuma also completed his hand seals and unleashed a scorching flame towards the water dragon.
"Composite Ninja Art: Water Dragon Flame Torrent!"