https://novelcool.info/chapter/Chapter-557-The-Yang-Seal-is-Passed-Down-and-Sorua-Evolves/12558831/
Chapter 558: An Unexpected Twist on the Battlefield
Chapter 558: An Unexpected Twist on the Battlefield
In the western region of the Grass Country, near the border with the Earth Country, four Iwagakure ninjas were cautiously patrolling a forest. Despite emerging unscathed from their clashes with the Konohagakure ninja forces, their orders from the Iwa leadership were to retreat and lure the Konoha ninjas towards the Earth Country as much as possible.
As a result, the Iwa ninja forces had largely withdrawn to the western border, adopting a strategy of conserving their strength.
"I really don't understand what our leaders are thinking," one of the Iwa Jonin ninjas grumbled, taking advantage of the calm surroundings. "Our Iwa forces are strong and robust, yet we keep retreating in the face of Konoha."
He was displeased with Iwa's war strategy. Since the start of the conflict, Iwa had only committed a fraction of its strength, never revealing its full capabilities.
In his opinion, they could have easily conquered Konoha by deploying their full might—either by sending their entire army of ten thousand or taking advantage of the confusion caused by Kirigakure's invasion to dispatch a force of five thousand ninjas.
Yet, the higher-ups remained unmoved, allowing Kumogakure and Konoha to oppress them.
"Maybe they plan to lure the enemy into the Earth Country and then exploit the home-field advantage to eliminate them more easily," suggested one of the slightly plump Iwagakure ninjas beside him.
"They're being overly cautious," another chimed in. "Now is the perfect opportunity for Iwa to establish itself as the strongest ninja village, with all the countries locked in mutual conflict."
It was clear that they, too, had qualms about Iwa's war strategy. After all, constantly retreating despite having the capacity to counter-attack or even crush their opponents was frustrating.
"Let's not question our leaders too much," Sumashi said, attempting to calm them. "They have their reasons, and we should focus on executing our orders."
Unlike the other two Iwagakure ninjas who were voicing their discontent, Sumashi, a special Jonin and the squad leader, also felt frustrated. However, he trusted the judgment of the higher-ups.
It stood to reason that if Iwagakure benefited from a successful campaign, the village leaders would gain far more than the average Iwagakure ninja. Therefore, he believed that the leaders' desire for victory was even more urgent than their own.
After Sumashi spoke, the atmosphere within the team calmed down. Although they were all old friends, there was a clear hierarchy, with Sumashi occupying a higher rank as a special Jonin and the squad leader. While they could joke around casually, when it came to carrying out missions on the battlefield, maintaining the chain of command was crucial.
Suddenly, the sound of shuriken slicing through the air filled the air, and shuriken came flying at them from all directions. To their surprise, they realized that Konoha ninjas had somehow appeared all around them.
Sumashi was astonished. He had just conducted a thorough reconnaissance of the area and was certain that no one was present. Could these Konoha ninjas have been hiding nearby from the very beginning, using some highly advanced concealment jutsu?
Without time to ponder further, Sumashi quickly used chakra to enhance his body's reflexes and dodged the onslaught. The attack was so sudden that he didn't even have time to form hand seals to cast a ninjutsu defense.
Whoosh!
Although the three Iwagakure Jonin ninjas tried their best to evade the shuriken, there were too many, and soon they were pierced in multiple places, falling to the ground, unable to get up.
"We have no choice but to retreat," Sumashi gritted his teeth as he felt the pain from the wounds. He quickly formed hand seals to gather chakra, preparing a jutsu.
He, too, had been unable to completely avoid the Konoha ninjas' ambush and had sustained some injuries.
However, Sumashi had no intention of staying to avenge his fallen teammates. The enemy outnumbered them and was at full strength, so staying would only result in certain death.
"Earth Style: Rending Earth Turning Palm!"
Sumashi concentrated chakra into his palms and slammed them onto the ground.
Boom!
Under the influence of earth-style chakra, the ground rapidly cracked, and chunks of mud and stone went flying toward the Konoha ninjas. At the same time, the rupturing ground kicked up a cloud of dust, obscuring their vision.
Whoosh!
Taking advantage of the Konoha ninjas' distraction as they dodged the projectiles, Sumashi performed the Body Flicker Technique to create distance, not bothering to look back as he fled. He intended to bring back intelligence about the Konoha ninjas' movements.
However, in his haste to escape, Sumashi failed to notice that the "Konoha ninjas" who had ambushed them only pursued him for a short distance before stopping and letting him go.
Once Sumashi's figure had completely disappeared from sight, the "Konoha ninjas" merged into the underground and vanished into the forest.
This scenario wasn't unique to the western region of the Grass Country; it was also playing out in the southern region, where the Konoha ninjas were stationed. However, in the south, it was the Iwagakure ninjas who were being ambushed and assassinated by the Konoha ninjas.
The frequent small-scale ambushes were causing headaches for the leaders of both ninja forces, leading them to suspect that the other side was planning to initiate another major battle.
"Those Konoha ninjas are too cunning," Retsushi, the captain of the Iwa Explosive Squad, grumbled as he slammed his hand on the desk inside the camp tent. "They dare not enter the Earth Country, so they resort to assassinations near the border!"
As a prominent figure in Iwa, second to none, he felt angry as he witnessed unfavorable news about Iwa pouring in.
However, Retsushi didn't have a better solution. The Iwa leadership's strategy was to play defense, bide their time, and lure the enemy deeper into their territory.
"We should request new instructions from the higher-ups," Iwakura, a member of the Iwa Explosive Squad, suggested. "This situation isn't sustainable, and discontent is growing among the troops."
Retsushi nodded in agreement. He had already been considering this option.
They could either fully retreat back into the Earth Country and continue their passive strategy, losing face in the ninja world but suffering no other consequences. Or, they could engage the Konoha ninja forces directly, going all out in a bid for glory and fame. If they lost, they could continue their pretenses.
In Retsushi's opinion, either of these choices was better than their current stalemate at the border.
"For now, refrain from sending out ninjas from the Explosive Squad," Retsushi instructed, remembering something.
As he was also in charge of commanding the battlefield, Retsushi had delegated most of the authority over the Explosive Squad to his deputy, Iwakura.
While the death of any Iwa ninja was distressing, Retsushi would feel even more distressed if the casualties were members of his elite Explosive Squad. The squad's members were the true cream of the crop in Iwa, each one trained and cultivated with extensive resources.
Iwakura nodded in understanding.
On the other hand, Jiraiya had just returned to the battlefield from Amegakure and was soon faced with a headache-inducing situation.
"If it weren't for the forehead protectors, I would have thought we were fighting Kirigakure instead of Iwa," Jiraiya said, puzzled as he examined the latest battlefield intelligence.
While it made sense for Iwa to counter-attack and use small teams for harassment, the level of skill they were displaying was unfamiliar to Jiraiya.
After all, this wasn't his first encounter with Iwa on the Grass Country battlefield, and he was well aware of their usual assassination tactics and capabilities.
Compared to small-scale assassinations, Iwa was more adept at legion combat. Even a ninja of Jiraiya's caliber would find himself in grave danger if surrounded by an Iwa ninja force.
During the Second Great Ninja War, Jiraiya had nearly perished at the hands of an Iwa force, leaving him with a deep impression of their legion combat capabilities.
Minato's conjecture made sense; Earth Style jutsu had its unique advantages in ambushes and assassinations, especially with its ability to move underground.
"In that case, we must consider the possibility of a large-scale offensive from Iwagakure forces," Jiraiya said, setting down the intelligence report.
With the arrival of Iwagakure's reinforcements, their village's intentions were clear—they were committed to seeing this conflict with Konohagakure through to the end.
Following the standard strategy, a large-scale offensive would typically follow such harassment.
"I'll join the patrol squads to sweep through the invading Iwagakure forces," Minato volunteered.
With his Flying Thunder God Technique, he possessed exceptional mobility, and his strong sensory abilities made him the ideal candidate to address the harassment crisis, even if he didn't arrive in time to save the Konoha ninjas, he could still avenge them.
"We're counting on you, Minato," Jiraiya said, trusting in Minato's ability to resolve the issue.
Jiraiya quickly contacted the Konoha higher-ups, reporting the latest intelligence while requesting for sensory squads to be dispatched to the battlefield.
With the possibility of a major battle looming in the Grass Country, he wanted to be well-prepared.
…
In the early morning, in Konohagakure.
Itachi Uchiha started his day by preparing breakfast for himself and his Pokemon partner, Zoroark.
Due to its evolution, Zoroark's body had grown significantly, and Itachi worried that it might not be getting enough to eat, so he increased its portion size considerably.
After the duo finished their breakfast, they headed to Obito's house as usual, intending to invite him to join their training session in the Southern Forest.
Before arriving at Obito's house, Zoroark deliberately used its illusion abilities to maintain the appearance of its pre-evolved form, Zorua.
Neither Obito nor Charizard noticed anything amiss.
"Hey, old Char, how about you fly me there? I'm too full to walk," Zoroark requested cheekily.
"Your wings are so cool and stylish. I bet it feels amazing to fly," it added, complimenting Charizard.
Hearing Zoroark praise it, Charizard subconsciously puffed out its chest and lifted its head proudly, momentarily forgetting its intention to refuse.
Anyone who complimented it was obviously a discerning and good person, destined for a meaningful life.
"Char!"
Charizard stood in front of Zoroark, flapping its wings as it took flight. With a haughty expression, it gestured with its claw for Zoroark to hop on its back.
Zoroark leaped lightly and landed on Charizard's back.
The moment Zoroark jumped onto Charizard's back, the dragon's expression changed slightly, and even its flapping wings paused for a moment, nearly causing Zoroark to fall off.
Sensing the weight on its back, Charizard was filled with questions. How had little Zorua suddenly become so heavy?
"Charizard!"
Charizard took off with a mighty flap of its wings, indicating that Zoroark needed to lose some weight.
It had carried Zorua before, but back then, it had felt much lighter, completely unlike this.
Charizard felt that Zoroark must have gained at least seven or eight times its previous weight.
However, Charizard was curious about how Zoroark maintained its figure. Despite the weight gain, it didn't seem to have gotten rounder.
"Damn it, I wish I had a Pokemon partner like you!" Obito said enviously as he watched Charizard fly away with Zoroark on its back.
Soaring through the skies on Charizard's back was something he had longed to do for a while now.
But Charizard remained stubbornly unyielding, insisting that it wasn't the type of dragon one could ride. Obito had no choice but to temporarily give up on that dream.
After all, forcing Charizard to carry him could be dangerous; Obito suspected that Charizard might purposely fly to a great height and then drop him.
While it might catch him before he hit the ground to prevent serious injury, the experience would undoubtedly be unpleasant.
"Itachi, you're just spoiling Zoroark too much. You should use hypnosis or illusion techniques to make it train more," Obito said to Itachi, deliberately sharing his Pokemon training insights in front of Zoroark.
Obito knew that Itachi wouldn't do such a thing, but he wanted to get back at Zoroark for always playing pranks on him and riding on his Charizard when it knew Charizard wouldn't approve.
"No, I won't do that," Itachi refused gently, his gaze softening as he looked at Obito.
Zoroark wasn't the type of Pokemon that could handle such treatment, and Obito knew that his words would likely result in Zoroark playing a prank on him.
"Damn it, you, Obito Uchiha, with your innate evilness, are trying to corrupt the kind-hearted Itachi! Are you asking for a beating?!" Zoroark exclaimed, unable to hold back any longer.
If Obito's bad influence rubbed off on Itachi, that would be a disaster.
"And what are you going to do about it?" Obito retorted nonchalantly.
As long as he was serious, Zoroark's illusions had minimal effect on him.
Aside from its illusions, Zoroark didn't have any other notable abilities.
"And don't call Charizard to help you," Obito added.
If Zoroark invited it, his reverse-type Charizard might eagerly join in on the fun of teasing him.
"I don't need any help dealing with you," Zoroark replied confidently.
Zoroark's attitude piqued Obito's curiosity, and he began to suspect that something was amiss.
He was well aware of Zoroark's capabilities, so where did this newfound confidence come from?
"Could it have had a breakthrough in strength?" Obito wondered.
The cautious Obito activated his three-tomoe Sharingan to assess the situation.
If he were to be outplayed by a Pokemon that hadn't even evolved yet, it would be a huge loss of face.
Kakashi, who had just arrived, observed the exchange between Obito and Zoroark with a thoughtful expression.
While Zoroark could be a bit simple-minded at times, it generally had a good head on its shoulders and wouldn't pick a fight without reason.
"Obito's in for some trouble," Kakashi concluded.
With that in mind, Kakashi casually pulled out his camera, hoping to capture some interesting photos to use as blackmail material against Obito.
However, to Kakashi's disappointment, Zoroark's illusions were too strong, and its combination of high-speed movement and illusion techniques overwhelmed Obito in less than a minute, leaving him flat on the ground. There hadn't been any interesting developments worth photographing.
"Huh? What… how did this happen?" Obito stammered, clearly bewildered by the turn of events.
While he had been a bit careless, Zoroark's strength seemed abnormally high, far beyond what was normal for a Pokemon that hadn't evolved yet.
If it was this strong pre-evolution, it would surely be unstoppable after evolving.
Obito felt like reporting to Mu Yue that there was a cheating Pokemon among them!
"Stop teasing Obito," Itachi said with a helpless smile, signaling for Zoroark to stop.
"Who asked him to try and corrupt you?" Itachi added.
Zoroark dropped its illusions, revealing its evolved form.
Obito: …
Everyone who played with illusions had dirty minds, except for Itachi.
"As expected," Kakashi said, unsurprised by the revelation.
Zoroark's boldness in challenging Obito directly indicated that it must have evolved.
Additionally, given Zoroark's proficiency in illusions, Kakashi quickly deduced that it had been using its illusion abilities to disguise itself as its pre-evolved form, Zorua.
PS: There will be another chapter later, but it will be a bit later. It's recommended to read it tomorrow.
With the start of a new month, I'll strive to keep up the pace and deliver more chapters!
(End of Chapter)
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