Fox's instructions soon arrived:
"Target confirmed, prepare as planned. Wait for the convoy to enter that narrow area ahead. At my signal, attack simultaneously. Priority is to eliminate the escort ninja and destroy the supplies."
Sora took a deep breath, adjusting his condition to its peak, but a sense of unease lingered in his heart.
'Those sent by Orochimaru should all be elites. It seems he places great importance on this mission, or perhaps he highly anticipates the results that cutting the supply line can bring.'
'But... why is there always a faint sense of foreboding in my heart?'
This unease was not unfounded.
In Sora's memory, tactics like cutting supply lines, while effective, carried extremely high risks during execution, often accompanied by heavy casualties.
'The people of Sunagakure aren't fools. For such an important supply line, would they allow us to get so close so easily and only assign such limited escort forces?'
Lying in place, Sora pondered silently while pushing his sensory abilities to the limit.
Besides the chakra of the convoy below and the extremely well-hidden presences of the other two Konoha squads, he detected no other abnormalities.
'Am I overthinking this? It's wartime, forces are strained, Sunagakure's main forces are tied up on the front lines. It makes sense that their rear guard might be weak.'
Just as Sora began to doubt himself, Fox's signal finally arrived.
"Now."
Almost the instant the signal was given, the three Konoha squads erupted from their respective hiding spots like phantoms.
"Wind Release: Wind Cutter."
"Fire Release: Great Dragon Fire Technique."
"Earth Release: Rock Pillar Spears."
Instantly, multiple ninjutsu blasted towards the Sunagakure convoy on the road from different directions, catching them completely off guard.
Screams rang out immediately. Several Sunagakure chunin and disguised genin at the edges of the convoy were torn apart or severely wounded by the violent ninjutsu before they could even react.
"Ambush. Konoha ambush."
The Sunagakure jonin reacted extremely quickly, shouting a warning while forming hand seals.
"Wind Release: Great Breakthrough."
A strong gust of wind tried to disperse some of the ninjutsu, but Konoha held the initiative with multiple simultaneous attacks, rendering his technique pitifully ineffective.
"Prioritize eliminating the escorts. Grey Wolf, Night Owl, with me. Green Snake, provide support and prepare to handle the supplies."
Captain Fox, experienced and decisive, issued commands instantly. Swinging his short sword with his single arm, he charged at the Sunagakure jonin like a leopard.
Grey Wolf and Night Owl each engaged one of the enemy's special jonin.
The other two Konoha squads were weaker, with only their squad leaders possessing jonin-level strength, the rest being veteran chunin. Yet they too pounced on the panicked Sunagakure chunin and civilian laborers like tigers among sheep.
The battle was lopsided from the very beginning.
Sora did not rush into the fray. Following orders, he maneuvered at the edge of the battlefield, his gaze calmly observing the overall situation.
'Not right... this is too smooth.'
Sora felt something was off. The resistance from these Sunagakure ninja, while seemingly fierce, gave a sense of being... formulaic.
Especially that jonin. Facing Fox's fierce assault, he seemed to be defending tightly, but lacked the ferocity and decisiveness found in life-or-death struggles.
A thought flashed through Sora's mind.
'A trap. This is a trap targeting our infiltration units.'
His suspicion was soon confirmed.
Just as most of the Sunagakure escorts seemed on the verge of being wiped out, the counter-ambush was finally sprung.
The rock walls and ground exploded. More Sunagakure ninja swarmed out, instantly completing a counter-encirclement.
Their numbers far exceeded the original escort force. Over thirty of them.
Moreover, their chakra fluctuations were generally strong, with several reaching jonin level.
'As expected, it was a trap.'
Sora understood, feeling little surprise, instead a sense of "just as I thought."
"Bad. It's a trap. All units, retreat."
Fox reacted first, shouting sharply. He forced back the Sunagakure jonin with a slash, trying to lead the squad in a breakout.
But it was too late.
The newly appeared Sunagakure ninja were clearly prepared. Various ninjutsu and ninja tools rained down like a storm, instantly sealing off all escape routes for the three Konoha squads.
The tide of battle reversed instantly.
"Hahaha. Konoha rats, finally took the bait."
The Sunagakure jonin who had previously seemed to be struggling now laughed heartily, his face full of triumphant glee.
"You really thought we'd expose such an important supply line to you?"
Another Sunagakure jonin who had just appeared also sneered.
"To lure you out, we sacrificed several good subordinates. But trading the lives of a few low-level pawns for several elite Konoha squads is worth it."
Their conversation confirmed Sora's guess.
This was a lure from the start.
Using a seemingly important supply convoy as bait to attract Konoha infiltration units to attack, then encircling them with the pre-positioned main force, aiming for complete annihilation.
'As expected... war is no child's play. Sunagakure is one of the Five Great Shinobi Villages. How could they make such a basic mistake.'
While deflecting incoming shuriken with his fists, Sora quickly scanned the newly appeared enemies.
The Sunagakure ambushers were well-trained and coordinated, clearly all elites.
The Konoha side, while individually strong, were caught off guard and surrounded, instantly plunging into a desperate fight. Injuries were already appearing.
'Big trouble... in this situation, escaping unscathed is almost impossible.'
Sora's mind raced, searching for a way to break the deadlock.
Then his gaze suddenly fixed on a figure walking slowly towards the outskirts of the encirclement.
Dark short hair, light-colored robe, with blazing orange orbs floating around her.
'Pakura.'
'The hero of Sunagakure, user of the Scorch Release kekkei genkai.'
Sora's gaze sharpened as he recognized the newcomer. Fragments of memory about Pakura surfaced in his mind.
A powerful figure, tragically betrayed by Sunagakure to broker peace with Kirigakure, dying a rather ignoble death.
But now, in the mid-war period, she was one of Sunagakure's most prominent and powerful figures.
'Scorch Release: Superheated Steam, instantly evaporates moisture. It's indeed a troublesome ability. However, with my speed and the resistance from my Azure Dragon constitution, it won't be that easy for her to hit me.'
Sora quickly assessed Pakura's threat.
To him personally, Pakura's threat was limited. But her addition would undoubtedly greatly increase the risk of casualties for his teammates.
'Looks like I can't hold back anymore. Need to find a way to break this situation, at least to get Fox and the others out.'
Pakura walked slowly to the front of the battlefield. Her cold eyes swept across the scene, finally settling on Sora, the youngest present. A hint of scorn curled at the corner of her mouth.
"Oh. There's even a child? Is Konoha out of people, sending such a brat to his death?"
"However, dying under my Scorch Release can be considered an honor for you."
Hearing Pakura's words, Sora's heart remained unperturbed. Thinking of Pakura's eventual fate, he shook his head inwardly.
'Who's going to their death isn't certain yet.'
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