Shoo hoo…
Yagami surged forward.
Bullet time ignited in his eyes...
Everything slowed.
Every kunai's rotation, every trajectory, every glittering edge…
Captured.
And then...
He accelerated.
Puff! Puff! Puff!
Each shuriken sliced past him harmlessly, barely grazing the air around his clothes—
Before splashing uselessly into the lake.
"Captain Dashi!!"
Two Iwa-nin leapt to either side of their wounded leader, trying to shield him.
They were too slow.
Yagami was already there.
His grip tightened.
His stance sank.
His sword rose...
[Atomic Cut!]
CLANG! CLANG! CLANG!
A cascade of invisible sword flashes erupted.
The lake surface trembled...
But no one understood what happened.
Because in the next instant…
Yagami was already standing behind them.
Both hands on the hilt.
Blade lowered.
Body still.
Time seemed to freeze.
Every Rock Shinobi on the lake...
Even Kakashi...
Stopped breathing.
Behind Yagami, the three Iwa-nin stood stiff as statues.
Then...
A faint breeze stirred.
A single leaf drifted down…
Crack.
It split apart midair.
BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!
The three Rock Shinobi behind him exploded into chunks—
Diced into grotesque fragments by blades they never even saw.
Blood sprayed like mist.
Limbs and flesh spattered across the lake.
The water turned red.
"NOOOOO!!!"
The chicken-nest leader screamed, voice cracking.
Every Iwa-nin recoiled.
Yagami—drenched in blood—looked like a demon god born from carnage.
Their legs shook.
Their throats tightened.
None of them dared step forward.
Even Kakashi was frozen in shock.
[Ding! The master kills a Jōnin and gains 100 prestige points.]
[Ding! The master kills a Chūnin and gains 50 prestige points.]
[Ding! The master kills a Genin and gains 10 prestige points.]
[Ding! Twelve hostiles fear the owner and gain 12 points of prestige.]
"Go!!"
Yagami didn't wait for the system.
He grabbed the stunned Kakashi by the collar and dashed straight out of the terrified encirclement.
The Iwa-nin snapped out of their paralysis too late.
Should they chase?
Should they retreat?
The image of three comrades getting reduced to minced meat played in their minds.
"WHAT ARE YOU LOOKING AT?!"
The chicken-nest leader roared at them.
"He can't use that move again! He's exhausted!! Go after them!!"
…If only they knew.
If Kakashi weren't here—
Yagami could have massacred every last one of them.
Inside the dense jungle
Tekuno finished setting his trap formation just in time.
Holding a bow launcher with explosive tags loaded, he sprinted forward—
Only to freeze at the sight of his captain.
"C-Captain…?!"
Yagami was soaked in blood like a battlefield specter.
"Captain, are you hurt?!"
"Trap ready?"
"Y-Yes!"
Tekuno released a breath of pure relief.
Not his captain's blood, then.
"Earth Style • Rock Bullets!!"
A massive boulder—three to four meters wide—roared toward them.
TING—!!
Yagami's blade flashed.
A single clean slash split the rock in half.
BOOM!!
Dust exploded outward as the halves struck the ground.
"Move!"
Yagami barked.
One Kakashi was already a liability in a full-scale battle.
Add Tekuno and the difficulty doubled.
If they got surrounded again, the mission would definitely fail.
"Follow me!"
Tekuno fired two explosive crossbows back toward the treeline and bolted ahead.
The three sprinted deep into the trap zone.
"Step exactly where I step!!"
Tekuno warned urgently.
They zigzagged between trees, ducked under branches, stepped over buried triggers—
Even Yagami couldn't memorize the path with bullet time.
Behind them...
BOOM!!
BOOM BOOM BOOM BOOM!!
A chain of explosions erupted as Rock Shinobi barreled blindly into the trap field.
The entire forest floor lit up with fire and blasting tags—
A perfect welcoming party for their pursuers.
[Author Note]📢
Hey everyone! Merry Christmas ⛄
Just a quick update — I've started a new Naruto novel:
Naruto: Blackbeard Template
It's a fresh project with cleaner writing and a steadier release pace.
If you enjoyed my previous stories, feel free to check it out!
Thanks for the support 🗣️
— Arthorain