Hearing Qing's words, Uchiha En glanced at the ordinary people in the Land of Bears who were trembling in fear.
To be honest, Uchiha En didn't have the childish notion that 'I didn't kill Boren, but Boren died because of me,' nor did he have the capacity to worry about such things right now.
Uchiha En looked at those ordinary people because he sensed from Qing a desire to negotiate.
If Qing truly wanted a mutually destructive outcome, she wouldn't waste time talking; she would have simply used the Water Dragon Bullet combined with Demonic Mirroring Ice Crystals to trap the three of them, just like before.
Uchiha En could escape, but Asana and Yamanaka Teruzuki could not.
The final result would certainly be Uchiha En killing Qing's companions, while the lives of Asana and Yamanaka Teruzuki would be endangered.
However, it was clear that Qing didn't want to do this. Qing looked at Uchiha En, clearly waiting for him to state his position.
"In that case, let's talk!" Uchiha En ultimately chose to go along with the situation.
"Alright," Qing nodded and said.
"What are your demands?" Uchiha En asked.
"You release my companion, and we will leave immediately."
"Impossible. Your companion is in our hands right now. You don't actually think the lives of these ordinary people in the Land of Bears are worth exchanging for one Chunin, do you?" Asana refused without hesitation.
"Exactly, that deal would be a huge loss for us!" Yamanaka Teruzuki agreed.
"If you want to pull a fast one, there's no need to continue talking. By the way, guess whether my Body Flicker Technique can take people with me when I escape?"
"Taking people with you? That's impossible. Could your Body Flicker Technique possibly be a Space-Time Ninjutsu—" Qing stopped abruptly mid-sentence.
Because she realized Uchiha En's Body Flicker Technique really resembled Space-Time Ninjutsu!
Disappearing directly without shattering the Demonic Mirroring Ice Crystals—what else could this strange Body Flicker Technique be but Space-Time Ninjutsu?
Moreover, the essence of the Body Flicker Technique is to achieve high-speed movement by stimulating cells with Chakra, and high-speed movement requires running with one's feet.
The feet of this Uchiha Clan brat had just been frozen by her Freezing Snow; how could he possibly still use the Body Flicker Technique?
Therefore, the only explanation was that he used Space-Time Ninjutsu.
"You can use the Flying Thunder God Technique?" Qing asked with a serious expression.
"Do you think I would tell you?"
Upon hearing this, Qing immediately began checking herself and the surrounding area for any strange markings.
As is well known, the Flying Thunder God Technique requires a mark to be left in order to achieve spatial movement.
After a thorough inspection, Qing confirmed that there were no special seals around her, which allowed her to breathe a slight sigh of relief.
However, she still dared not be careless, as she might be facing a Ninja who had mastered the Flying Thunder God Technique, just like Minato Namikaze.
"You release my companion, and I will tell you our action plan and mission objective this time," Qing said after a moment of hesitation.
"Not enough! You must have a sealing scroll on you, right? Leave your sealing scroll behind!"
"Don't push your luck!"
"In that case, there's no need to talk! Kagetsu, take him; we're returning to the camp. As for the mission objective, just have your Yamanaka Clan senior read his memories directly." After speaking, Uchiha En placed his hands on Yamanaka Teruzuki and Asana, pretending he was about to take them away.
Seeing this, Qing grew anxious. She bit her lip and said coldly, "Wait! You win! I accept your terms!"
"Then first, tell us your action plan and mission objective!" Uchiha En said with a smile.
"Our mission objective is to destroy Konoha's water sources. Headquarters sent a total of three squads: two squads are responsible for Konoha's two main large water sources, and our squad is responsible for poisoning the smaller water sources."
"Where are those two squads now?" Yamanaka Teruzuki asked.
"One squad has lost contact—they were probably captured by Konoha's people. The other squad is still in hiding, but I don't know their exact location."
"Did you do anything to the other three small water sources?" Asana asked.
"No. We just managed to blend in with the ordinary people of the Land of Bears and were discovered by you before we could act."
After hearing Qing's words, Yamanaka Teruzuki used the Mind Transmission Technique to link the three people's consciousnesses, then asked in the mental space, "En, is what she said credible?"
"We just checked those three water sources and found no abnormalities. Combined with the information we already have, it should be credible," Asana said.
"I also find it mostly credible. The only thing that makes me unsure is her statement that Kirigakure dispatched three squads. If it were me, I definitely wouldn't reveal our entire plan.
"The intelligence provided at this point must be hard to distinguish between truth and falsehood; only then can it maximize the delay of the enemy's movements."
"Then is it possible she's lying about something else?" Asana asked.
"Not likely. Lord Orochimaru's mission scroll mentioned the enemy's action plan, and this point is no different from what she disclosed. Therefore, Lord Orochimaru must have indeed captured one Kirigakure squad."
"However, Lord Orochimaru didn't tell us how many Kirigakure Ninja infiltrated. Even with your Yamanaka Clan's Mind Secret Techniques, we couldn't confirm this, so there are only two possibilities.
"First, the squad captured by Lord Orochimaru and his people might just be cannon fodder and bait. They might not know the specific action plan or even the existence of the other two squads. Lord Orochimaru only sent us here to investigate out of caution.
"Second, the actions of these squads are independent of each other. The other squads don't know of the others' existence; they just know that several squads will be executing the same mission.
"If it's the first possibility, then her statement about three squads is true. If it's the second possibility..."
"...she is lying to us," Yamanaka Teruzuki finished.
"Exactly, but we have no way to confirm any more intelligence right now."
"En, do you really know Space-Time Ninjutsu?" Yamanaka Teruzuki asked.
"If En knew it, he would have already taken the two of us and the captured Kirigakure Ninja back to the camp by now," Asana replied.
"Then, is there any hope for the three of us to team up and defeat this woman? My Mind Body Switch Technique has improved greatly; if we catch her by surprise, I should be able to control her," Yamanaka Teruzuki continued to ask.
"If she were just a regular Jonin, the three of us could win. But she possesses the Ice Release Bloodline Limit. Both her Chakra level and the Jutsu she knows are stronger than an average Jonin, especially that Ice Wall that can appear out of thin air without needing hand signs to block attacks. With that Jutsu, even if you successfully ambush her, Kagetsu, our chances of winning are slim," Uchiha En said.
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