A Sage's Pursuit of Power

The sharp sound of slicing through the air was followed by dozens of kunai and shuriken of various forms.

Aoba suddenly accelerated, dodging the incoming attacks. However, three Grass ninjas had already passed his position, forming a pincer attack with another team.

"Leaf ninjas? Why did you kidnap our people? Are you trying to start a war?"

Hearing the accusation, Aoba found it somewhat absurd. To put it simply, the Grass ninjas were implying that if he didn't release their people, they might start a war.

But the reality was, even five Grass Village ninjas wouldn't be a match for Konoha. Even if Konoha was at its weakest point in history, it was certainly not something a single Grass Village could shake.

So, anyone with a brain would understand that even if he had indeed kidnapped their people, the Grass Village would not dare to start a war. At most, they would send a messenger to Konoha to complain.

In fact, the Grass Village was very skilled in diplomacy. Their alliance with Konoha was largely due to their excellent diplomatic skills. To put it simply, they knew how to flatter.

"War? You think you're worthy of that? Honestly, I have very legitimate and irrefutable reasons for taking those two.

But, facing you bunch of scum, I can't even be bothered to explain. As long as everyone who sees me dies, there won't be any issues. So, are you ready to die?"

With that, Aoba gently set Karin down and untied the rope from her mother. He then placed her mother on the ground.

"Karin, take care of your mother. It will be over soon."

"Okay."

"Good girl." Aoba patted Karin's head lightly, then stood up and drew the Grass Kusanagi Sword from his back.

This time, he didn't use the explosive tag trap he had used before.

One reason was that the trap had been used previously, so the enemy would already be wary of it. Another reason was that the enemy team likely had a sensory ninja. Such crude traps would be difficult to deceive them.

Seeing Aoba draw his sword, the Grass ninjas seemed to realize something.

"It's you, the Leaf Village's Wind-Tracking Sword, Aoba Kamikawa."

"Ha, to think that even you wasteful ninjas have heard of my useless reputation. How disappointing."

As soon as he finished speaking, Aoba vanished from the sight of the Grass ninjas.

Despite his mockery, Aoba never underestimated any opponent in real combat. So, he attacked with full force from the start. With the combination of Wind Release and Body Flicker Technique, he exceeded the Grass ninjas' perception.

In the next moment, one of the trio in front had his head sent flying. However, the other two, being relatively skilled, managed to react and evade the subsequent Void Slash.

But that was all they could do. The two quickly fell back, forming hand seals to release a certain jutsu.

Before they could complete their seals, Aoba had already appeared in front of one of them, swinging his Grass Kusanagi Sword and slicing open the ninja's throat.

"Wind Release: Great Breakthrough." Another Grass ninja finally completed his jutsu.

But Aoba didn't even glance at it. He charged straight at the jutsu. At the same time, a whirlwind of chakra surrounded him. When it collided with the Great Breakthrough, the two Wind Release techniques instantly canceled each other out.

A turbulent airflow was generated, scattering in all directions. In the midst of the opponent's incredulous gaze, Aoba passed through the chaos and appeared right in front of him.

Wind Release was his specialty. Unlike these small ninja village ninjas, who were obsessed with powerful jutsu, he had always focused on Wind Release itself. After refining Wind Release to a certain level, he could perform it with the precision of wind-based superpowers seen in movies.

With a mere thought, he could execute various simple forms of Wind Release. Though not very powerful, their practicality far exceeded that of high-power jutsu requiring hand seals. After all, ninjas are high-agility assassins. Jutsu was just an aid; he could use swordsmanship to deliver the final blow. At least at this time, this strategy was still extremely sharp.

After the second ninja died, the remaining team finally reacted and began to act. Their strategy was clear. They did not intend to confront Aoba directly but instead headed straight for Kōrin and her mother.

Aoba's body quickly changed direction, moving towards Karin and her mother.

However, visually, it was already too late. Another group of Grass ninjas was closer and had almost reached the two women.

Aoba threw two kunai from his left hand, but their aim was not precise. The kunai were easily avoided by the Grass ninjas and lodged into the trees in front of Karin and her mother.

It was a hit. The Grass ninjas thought to themselves. They had noticed the strength of the Leaf ninja before them, but they also saw his weakness. He was very concerned about these two women.

As long as they could capture the two women, they would at least ensure their own survival.

But then, the teammates behind them suddenly shouted.

"Watch out!"

Watch out? Watch out for what? The Leaf ninja was still some distance away, and the kunai hadn't even hit me.

The high-speed-moving Grass ninja could not stop in time and reached Karin and her mother. He reached out to grab Karin's mother, who was shielding her daughter.

At that moment, he suddenly felt something was wrong. His vision felt uncomfortable, and he uncontrollably looked towards the sky.

No, it wasn't uncontrollable. His head... had fallen off!!!

He desperately tried to turn around but couldn't. Instead, his head fell to the ground, and as it rolled, he saw the real culprit.

The tails of the kunai were connected by a very thin wire. Just when he thought the kunai had missed, they had set up a simple trap between the two trees.

Such a level of trap could be seen through by even a ninja school child. But in that fleeting moment, he was desperately trying to surpass the Leaf ninja and grab the women first.

Aoba simply took advantage of this desperate mindset with a trap that was simple beyond belief, costing him his life.

The foremost Grass ninja died. The ninjas behind him barely avoided it but suffered a hand injury. Only the last one, seemingly a sensory ninja, truly avoided the trap.

Aoba's move was enough to be included in a traditional ninja tactics textbook. In that brief moment, using the enemy's desire to win, he reversed the situation.

And this brief delay gave him enough time to regroup. By the time the surviving two Grass ninjas reorganized, Aoba had successfully mounted a counterattack.

In the blink of an eye, the offensive and defensive roles reversed.