The sun was blazing.
The desert's extreme day and night temperature difference caused the heat to distort the air.
Baki held a water pouch, taking a gulp from time to time.
He was in a good mood.
Once they passed this stretch of road, they would be home.
He glanced back at Orochimaru, who was following behind him.
"Orochimaru."
Baki pointed ahead.
"That up ahead is Sunset Canyon. When do you plan to turn off?"
Orochimaru did not lift his head.
"Soon."
"Still going through the canyon?"
Baki frowned, a hint of impatience in his voice.
"You Konoha shinobi are too slow. Do not delay the march."
Orochimaru's lips curved into a faint smile, his tongue lightly licking his pale lips.
"I will make them speed up."
"They can rest once they return to Konoha."
Baki nodded slightly, his thoughts already on returning quickly to Sunagakure.
Along the way, they had indeed been observing Konoha closely. There were no unusual situations, and no one seemed to be following.
The team continued forward.
The surrounding scenery gradually became oppressive.
The open Gobi Desert vanished, replaced by land covered in reddish brown rock.
Sunset Canyon had arrived.
As they entered the canyon, the towering cliffs on both sides made the air feel stifling.
The wind howled strangely as it rushed through the narrow passage.
Baki's brows slowly knitted together.
Something was wrong.
It was too quiet.
Aside from the wind, there was not even the sound of a desert lizard moving.
As a seasoned jōnin, his instincts sent a chill through his body.
This kind of terrain, if both ends were sealed and someone used Earth Release from above, the people below would be trapped like filling inside a dumpling.
"Stop!"
Baki suddenly roared, his hand instantly moving to his waist.
"Everyone, stay alert."
"Send people to scout the cliffs ahead."
No one responded.
Orochimaru stood behind him, arms hanging loosely at his sides, his face filled with sinister coldness.
That was not the expression of an ally, but of a predator eyeing its prey.
"No need to scout."
Orochimaru raised his hand, long fingers gently rubbing together.
"It is a dead end anyway."
Snap.
A crisp snapping sound echoed through the canyon.
"Move."
Two simple words.
As his voice fell, the situation changed abruptly.
The Konoha wounded mixed within the formation, wrapped in bandages and leaning on crutches, instantly tore off their disguises.
Bandages ripped apart.
Crutches were flung aside.
Those who moments ago could barely walk now moved with ghostlike speed.
A nearby Sunagakure chūnin did not even have time to react before a kunai was viciously driven through his neck from behind.
Pfft.
Blood sprayed out, splashing directly onto the face of the shinobi beside him.
"Enemy attack."
"Konoha betrayed us."
"Ah."
Screams rang out one after another.
The sudden close range slaughter caused a large number of unprepared Sunagakure shinobi to fall instantly.
"Fire Release, Great Fireball."
"Wind Release, Great Breakthrough."
The narrow canyon instantly turned into purgatory.
Scorching fireballs exploded between the rock walls, and the heat mixed with the stench of blood rushed forward.
Baki could only watch as his subordinates were swallowed by flames, or pierced by shuriken like porcupines.
"Bastards."
Baki roared. Chakra threads shot out instantly as a puppet blocked in front of him, deflecting the incoming kunai.
"Orochimaru, what are you doing? We are allies. Are you breaking the alliance?"
"Breaking the alliance?"
Orochimaru's figure flickered as he dodged a kunai, his sinister voice echoing through the canyon.
"When did we ever truly form an alliance?"
"Retreat. Fall back. Regroup with Kazekage-sama."
Baki shouted his orders.
They had to break through.
As long as they escaped and regrouped with Kazekage-sama, there was still hope.
But the moment he turned around, his heart sank.
On the cliffs above the canyon entrance, countless figures had appeared at some unknown time.
They were Konoha elites who had been lying in ambush.
The leader's golden hair shone brilliantly in the sunlight.
Namikaze Minato.
Baki's eyes turned bloodshot.
They had been deceived, completely deceived.
Minato had never led his forces back at all. He had been waiting here.
"My apologies."
Minato held a specially made Flying Thunder God kunai, his tone calm.
The next instant, his figure vanished.
A golden flash streaked across the battlefield.
There were no flashy movements.
Where the golden light passed, only spurting blood and falling bodies remained.
Fast.
Far too fast.
The Sunagakure shinobi could not even complete their hand seals before their throats were cut.
"It is the Yellow Flash."
"Do not let him get close."
Fear spread rapidly.
"How could I miss out on something this lively."
On the opposite side, a tall figure crashed down.
Jiraiya shattered a massive rock underfoot, clapped his hands together, and wild chakra surged outward.
"Rasengan."
A blue sphere of chakra slammed into the center of a group of Sunagakure shinobi trying to form a formation.
Boom.
Several bodies were blasted away like rag dolls, smashing into the rock wall and turning into bloody pulp.
Orochimaru in front, Minato above, Jiraiya behind.
There was no way out.
"It is over…"
Baki's eyes were bloodshot, his hand gripping the kunai trembling uncontrollably.
The Sunagakure shinobi around him were rapidly dwindling, their bodies piling up and blocking the path.
Blood dyed the canyon red, flowing into small streams.
"I will kill you all."
Baki completely lost his rationality, abandoning all command as he controlled his puppet and charged straight at Orochimaru.
The puppet's mechanisms fully activated, several poisoned blades spinning wildly.
Orochimaru did not move at all.
Just as the blades were about to reach him, an Earth Release, Earth Style Wall rose from the ground, blocking every attack.
"Too slow, Baki-kun."
Orochimaru's voice sounded beside his ear.
Not in front of him, but behind.
Every hair on Baki's body stood on end as he desperately tried to turn around.
But a cold hand had already clamped onto his neck.
"Your little tricks cannot escape my eyes."
Pfft.
The Kusanagi Sword pierced through Baki's back and emerged from his chest.
The blade's tip dripped with blood.
Baki's eyes widened as bloody foam poured from his mouth.
He wanted to speak, to curse, to shout Rasa's name.
But his strength drained away along with his blood.
Orochimaru withdrew the sword.
Baki collapsed to the ground like mud, twitched a few times, and then lay still.
Only his lifeless eyes continued to stare toward the Land of Wind.
That direction, filled with dreams.
The battle ended even faster than expected.
In less than half an hour, there were no Sunagakure shinobi left standing in the canyon.
The stench of blood was suffocating.
Minato shook the blood from his kunai and walked over to Orochimaru.
"How many escaped?"
"Seven."
Jiraiya approached, his expression grave.
"A few slippery brats burrowed into the sand and ran."
"It is good that they escaped."
Orochimaru sheathed the Kusanagi Sword, not bothering to wipe the blood splattered across his face.
"If someone goes back to report, Rasa will be afraid."
"Fear is the best catalyst."
Minato nodded, took a deep breath, and calmed his surging chakra.
He turned to look at the Konoha shinobi behind him, all covered in blood, yet brimming with fighting spirit.
"Since we have already revealed our true colors," Minato's voice was not loud, yet clearly reached everyone present.
"There is no need to hide anymore."
He raised his hand and pointed toward the endless desert to the south.
That was the heart of the Land of Wind.
That was Sunagakure.
"The entire army will rest for ten minutes."
"Our target is Sunagakure."
(To be continued.)
◇◇◇
◇ One bonus chapter will be released for every 200 Power Stones.
◇ You can read the ahead chapter on Pat if you're interested: p-atreon.c-om/Blownleaves (Just remove the hyphen to access normally.)