Chapter 369: The Opening Act of the Tyrant

Chapter 369: Chapter 369: The Opening Act of the Tyrant

We broke camp and started moving again at dawn. To ensure our safety, I created four shadow clones and sent them out to take positions at the front, back, left, and right of our formation. Each stationed itself at the absolute limit of my augmented sensing range, and with their own detection radiuses actively flaring, my overall field of awareness expanded immensely.

Given her exquisite chakra control, Shizune could actually feel the technique working. She picked up on the subtle, almost muted sensation of chakra washing over her body, mixed with a faint static charge that ghosted over her skin. "What is that, exactly?" she asked, her voice tinged with genuine curiosity.

"It is a detection technique," I replied, glancing back at her. "It mixes traditional chakra sensing with a specialized application of my lightning nature."

Tsunade suddenly interjected, raising a skeptical eyebrow. "Can you even pick up anything useful with such a weak current?"

I flashed a confident smile. "I am highly sensitive to electricity, so yes, I can."

Shizune muttered in quiet awe. "Amazing."

Tsunade, however, was not as easily impressed. Her tone took on a grim edge. "Kid, do you know why truly powerful shinobi do not constantly spend massive amounts of chakra, even when they possess the reserves to do so?"

I shook my head, having always wondered about that exact contradiction. Realizing I genuinely did not know, and seeing it as the root cause of my liberal chakra usage, she elaborated. "It is because the hidden villages learned a long time ago the absolute best way to deal with overwhelmingly powerful targets." She stayed silent for a long moment, letting the tension build before her next word landed heavy. "Attrition."

She kept her eyes focused straight ahead on the forest path. "That is how my grandfather died. That is how my great-uncle died. That is how the Third Raikage died. It is a tried and tested strategy that trades a massive number of standard shinobi lives for a single person capable of shifting the scale of a war. It is the tactical sacrifice of the present at any cost to secure their future."

I swallowed hard as she continued. "You will easily survive the first and the second wave of enemies. But if they are smart and relentless, they will simply keep throwing bodies at you. Eventually, your reserves will dip, your focus will waver, and they will catch you the exact moment you make a mistake."

My eyes widened in sudden realization. That was exactly the tactic Danzo had employed when he ambushed Shisui and me. If it had not been for the timely reinforcements sent by Sena, we would have most likely died right there in the woods. Even with the extra help, we barely made it out alive.

Tsunade noticed the deeply troubled look crossing my face, her expression softening just a fraction. "You are not quite famous enough to warrant that kind of targeted assault yet. Or at least I do not think so, considering the Hokage did not send other shinobi to act as a rearguard and sacrifice their lives to ensure your escape. But sooner or later, you will face a scenario exactly like that. My advice is to preserve your chakra as much as possible at all times. You already possess the raw physical speed and reflexes to deal with any surprise attack, so be more confident in your natural strength."

"I will not ask you to abandon a very useful tool like sensing. However, using four shadow clones is excessive. Dismiss them and save your chakra for an actual emergency," she ordered with an air of finality.

I sighed and formed a single hand seal, dispelling the shadow clones. The majority of their unused chakra immediately rushed back into my system.

Time passed without any further incidents until we reached the borders of the Land of Rivers. As the sun dipped below the horizon and the forest canopy bled into a deep, oppressive twilight, a sharp tug at the edge of my senses brought me to a halt.

"Multiple shinobi approaching. One Jonin, two Chunin," I warned quietly, prompting both Tsunade and Shizune to stop.

Without hesitation, I rolled open a scroll on the forest floor between the thick trunks of two massive trees. I ushered the two women inside the seal’s perimeter. "Please stay inside. Try not to make a sound or use any chakra, and the barrier will hide you perfectly."

Tsunade opened her mouth to argue, but I had already formed the activation sign. The space around them shimmered, erasing them from existence and leaving behind only a vague visual distortion that vanished entirely into the darkening woods.

I created a single shadow clone to summon and control my puppet, affectionately named Tanngrisnir, sending the mechanical beast creeping silently through the high canopy to the far side. Meanwhile, I brought Gungnir from my seal and melted into the deep shadows below a massive tree. Masking my presence down to absolute nothingness, I placed myself directly along the squad’s predicted route as they rapidly closed in on my position.

Two Chunin flanked a powerfully built, bald Jonin with sharp green eyes and a heavy jaw. "Sensei, I cannot feel the target anymore," one of the subordinates whispered.

The Jonin scowled, his voice a low, angry rasp. "Konoha rats are resourceful. Keep your eyes peeled and your mouths shut. If this is an escort mission, we slaughter the clients first. Men, women, children, animals, it does not matter. Leave no survivors, and make a show of it. We are sending a message that their protection is completely worthless."

The Chunin nodded with grim determination.

Only a single word echoed in my mind. Monsters.

The veteran was highly experienced, his muscles coiled ready to snap at any moment. His instincts were terrifyingly sharp, his green eyes almost subconsciously flicking toward my hiding spot out of pure battlefield intuition. But I was concealed too well.

Time seemed to stop. Stormdrive roared to life suddenly, almost causing me to flinch at how seamless and instant the transition was, aggressively shifting my entire body from a resting state to maximum output without a single millisecond of delay.

The weapon detonated upward with apocalyptic force. The forest floor instantly shattered, kicking up a blinding cyclone of dirt and dead leaves as electricity scorched the air. The Jonin flinched to react, but I had not aimed at him. My target was the Chunin furthest away. The spear practically teleported across the trees. A deadly, blue-white glare illuminated the subordinate’s face. Because the attack was so impossibly fast, the man remained completely unaware of his certain demise. The spear connected, tearing through his chest before pinning him to a massive oak with enough sheer momentum to shatter part of the trunk. His corpse spasmed uncontrollably from the catastrophic electrical discharge right before the supercharged weapon went critical, obliterating both the man and the tree in a gruesome shower of gore and splintered wood.

"No!" the Jonin roared, spinning toward his remaining student. "Stay close!"

Before he could finish the frantic command, the second Chunin passed straight through an invisible threshold that briefly flashed with a crackling blue light from a residual charge. The veteran’s eyes widened in absolute horror as his student’s upper torso slowly slid off his waist, cleanly bisected by a specialized, ultra-fine razor wire deployed by Tanngrisnir.

The sickening wet thud of the severed halves hitting the earth echoed loudly in the sudden quiet. The Chunin’s eyes went completely hollow, and only a thick, bloody gurgle bubbled from his throat as he rapidly bled to death right in front of his helpless sensei.

Tanngrisnir emerged from the shadows, its hidden joints clicking as the puppet slowly approached the enemy from behind. I advanced from the front, closing the trap. Frantic arcs of lightning danced across my body, casting jagged blue flashes over the ruined forest floor and the butchered remains.

The veteran shinobi did not even glance at the mechanical threat at his back. He locked his sharp green eyes solely on me, his face twisting into a hateful death stare.

"I will not kill you fast," he promised, his voice dropping into a cold, murderous register. "You are going to beg for the quick deaths you gave my students."