[NTU] [ARC-06-WAR] Chapter : 91 (Patreon)

On the other side, the sensory ninja named Yoshio was crouched on the ground, sweating profusely as he focused on sensing the enemies within the stronghold. Using his sensing ninjutsu, he spread his chakra into the ground to detect the enemy’s movements through the feedback from the earth.

To locate the hidden genjutsu ninja, Yoshio concentrated all his energy and extended his senses. However, this made him more susceptible to the opponent's genjutsus. Despite his companions' assistance, he periodically fell into the genjutsu. Without their help to dispel the genjutsus, he wouldn't have been able to function normally.

The Bandana Jounin - Ishikawa and his assistant, who were with Yoshio—also looked solemn and extremely cautious. The opponent’s genjutsu skills were terrifyingly pervasive. The longer they stayed within the enemy's range, the easier it was to fall under the genjutsu’s sway.

"Found him!" After a prolonged effort, Yoshio finally detected something and pointed affirmatively in a direction within the stronghold. "The source of the sound is over there, no mistake!" Fearing disbelief from his companions, he added extra emphasis.

"Everyone, stay alert to our companions’ conditions and be ready to dispel the genjutsus!" instructed Ishikawa, leading his two subordinates in the direction Yoshio had indicated. The urgency was clear; the strength of the genjutsu ninja was unexpected, and if they didn’t disrupt the genjutsu quickly, their companions’ offensive would falter.

"Oh! Did you find me?" Toshiro, facing the three Iwa ninjas, was not surprised they had located his position. The sound-based genjutsu required a sound source, and the enemy, working in groups, could eventually trace it back to him. However, Toshiro had no intention of sitting idly by. Although maintaining the barrier restricted his movements, he was still capable of defending himself.

"Genjutsu Art: Mirage," he intoned, forming a seal and casting a long-prepared genjutsu. The entire stronghold's appearance changed drastically.

Ishikawa surveyed the altered scenery, his face growing increasingly grim as he recognized this as a red light district. "Well! Let’s play a game of hide and seek," Toshiro taunted, his figure dissolving into the bustling crowd.

"Release!" Using his chakra to dispel the genjutsu, Ishikawa found the scenery unchanged, his companions' expressions growing colder. "It’s a mirage-type genjutsu. Everything should be fake, but..." He had identified the type of genjutsu but could not easily see through it.

"Yoshio, have you found anything?" Ishikawa touched the nearby buildings, feeling their tangible texture, and sought Yoshio’s input. Their anti-genjutsu training focused on countering chakra-manipulating genjutsus, leaving them vulnerable to this type.

"Sorry! I can only sense the area filled with the opponent’s chakra," Yoshio admitted, his meaning clear.

"We can’t stay here; otherwise, the opponent’s genjutsu… it’s more than just a harmless trick!"

"Yoshio, be extra vigilant and report any changes immediately!"

"Yes..." Despite the genjutsu's cessation, the large-scale genjutsu forced them to proceed with extreme caution.

"Careful!" Yoshio suddenly pointed to an empty space ahead, his senses indicating danger. It was a familiar feeling, reminiscent of the recent exploding tag attack. "It's the exploding tag!" Yoshio identified the threat, his face paling.

BOOM!

Just as they dispersed, a familiar explosion occurred, followed by fire and thick smoke. Yoshio was reminded of their recent ordeal.

"Hmph," he muttered, noticing a companion rubbing his back in pain, having hit something while evading the blast. "We’re likely still in our original location, obscured by the enemy’s genjutsu. Watch your steps!" Ishikawa cautioned, glancing at the blast site.

"This is..." His eyes widened in surprise as he examined the site, realizing something unexpected.

—

**Iwa's 2nd group**

"Don’t panic, everyone!"

On another battlefield, the Iwa ninjas briefly panicked due to Toshiro’s genjutsu. However, being seasoned in team combat, they quickly followed the leading jounin's commands, using earth flow walls and other ninjutsu to create bunkers and obstacles or sinking themselves into the ground to evade potential threats.

"Phew! That was close! Fortunately, Toshiro's genjutsu was timely; otherwise, I would have been in real danger," Kirishima sighed in relief. He had just been under concentrated fire from the Iwa Ninja, and while his strength allowed him to endure, prolonged exposure would have been fatal without Toshiro’s intervention.

"Is everyone here? Any casualties?" Kirishima called out to his gathered companions.

"You’d better take care of yourself!" Asuka replied. "There’s no problem on my side, but Toshiro’s..." a slight concern in her voice for Toshiro.

Seeing his comrades uninjured eased Asuka's worry slightly, but Akane's voice interrupted, urging action. "Instead of worrying about him, let's start moving. Defeating the enemy here will make it easier for him to join us!"

"Agreed!" Kirishima affirmed. "Let's proceed with the plan."

Kirishima and his companions launched the next round of their offensive, following their pre-arranged strategy. Initially, they had bombarded the area with exploding tags, with Toshiro erecting a barrier to conceal their movements and trap the Iwa ninjas. Kirishima and others then targeted the wounded within the stronghold, while Toshiro used sound genjutsu to suppress the remaining enemies and reveal those hiding underground.

As the third phase of their plan commenced, Kirishima and Uchiha Ryuuka used their prepared ninjutsu. Kirishima employed the Mud wave jutsu to force underground ninjas to the surface, while Ryuuka used the Pheonix Flower Flame Bullet, developed by Toshiro, to bombard Iwa ninjas behind bunkers with fire-attributed chakra bombs, causing panic and chaos.

These fire-infused chakra bombs erupted upon contact, producing powerful explosions and large flames, driving the hiding Iwa ninjas out into the open, where they were swiftly killed by Asuka, and their companions.

The Iwa ninjas’ attempts to resist were hampered by the pervasive genjutsus. The Uchiha, with their Sharingan, had a clear advantage in navigating the battlefield, while Asuka manipulated the genjutsus to conceal their movements further, leaving the Iwa ninjas vulnerable.

Some Iwa ninjas tried to counterattack from underground, but they were intercepted and killed by Asuka using the Chidori Spear. Asuka, as a close friend of Toshiro with a talent for lightning chakra, had mastered the ninjutsu under Toshiro's guidance.

"What do we do?" Fear began to spread among the remaining Iwa ninjas. "If this drags on, we're doomed!"

"Don’t be foolish! Hiding here gives us a chance to survive. Once you step out, you’ll fall into the genjutsu and die without knowing how," an Iwa ninja retorted.

"But waiting here isn't an option either!" another countered. They faced a dire choice: stay hidden and hope, or risk exposure and likely death.

"Hasn’t Captain Ishikawa succeeded yet?" Someone asked, watching as another comrade was forced out of hiding and killed by unseen attacks.

"It’s not that simple. Our opponent’s genjutsu is advanced. We can’t rely solely on Captain Ishikawa," the jounin said, forming seals with his hands. "Earth Release: Earth Prison Barrier."

A huge, semicircular rock cage enveloped the surviving Iwa ninjas. "Quick! Let’s reinforce this defense together. If we hold on until Captain deals with the Genjutsu user, we’ll be saved!"

Reluctantly adopting a passive defense, they fortified the barrier, knowing their survival depended on enduring until their captain could neutralize the genjutsu caster.

"As expected!"

Ishikawa, just attacked by the exploding tag, observed his surroundings keenly, not anticipating that he would discover a flaw in the opponent's genjutsu. Under the cold moonlight, though the ground was dim, his jounin's eyesight allowed him to observe it clearly. He noticed that as his arm moved, the genjutsu on the ground subtly followed. This slight delay revealed the nature of the enemy's genjutsu.

"Captain! Have you found something?" a subordinate inquired.

"Yes! I’ve figured out the secret behind the opponent’s genjutsu!"

"Great! This means we can..."

Before he could express his joy, the captain interrupted, "Don’t celebrate yet. I still need to test it out."

Ishikawa then looked up at the bright moon. "Is this the medium through which the enemy casts genjutsus?"

His two subordinates followed suit, looking thoughtfully at the bright moon. No one who becomes a jounin is a fool, and with such an obvious hint, they quickly grasped the principle behind the genjutsu.

"Is it a projection genjutsu using the bright moon?" one suggested.

"Yes, that seems correct," the captain confirmed. "Let’s test it to be sure."

As he answered, Ishikawa's hands were already forming seals. "Earth Release: Rock Cannon."

A refined earth chakra ball transformed into a table-sized stone in mid-air, flying toward the bright moon. The stone hit the moon, causing it to sway before returning to its original state. The genjutsu of Konoha’s red light district rippled momentarily, revealing the stronghold beneath, before settling back into place.

"It’s bold of him to hide nearby!" the jounin noted. Though the genjutsu wasn’t completely broken, the disturbance allowed him to pinpoint Toshiro’s hiding place. However, once the genjutsu stabilized, Toshiro vanished again. But Ishikawa knew he could disrupt the genjutsu repeatedly to reveal him.

"Yoshio! If you can't find the enemy again, consider yourself done!" He barked at the sensory ninja, dissatisfied with his performance so far.

"Yes, Captain! I won't disappoint you again!" Yoshio, under immense pressure, had been hindered by the enemy's chakra interference but now felt more confident after glimpsing the enemy’s location. Meanwhile, his teammates launched more rock iron cannons to keep disrupting the genjutsu, aiding their efforts to locate the enemy.

Unbeknownst to them, the remaining Iwa ninjas, pressured by the Uchiha, had resorted to hiding within a large earth dome, hoping their captain could break through and rescue them.

"The opponent’s genjutsu is so troublesome! Even if we find the flaw, we can't dispel it! Damn it..." a subordinate complained as he attacked the sky. Though their captain identified the genjutsu's flaw, the enemy cunningly manipulated the medium, making it impossible to shatter the genjutsu in one strike.

"Finally, I found you!" Taking advantage of the genjutsu’s disruption, they located Toshiro and surrounded him, ready to strike.

"It seems this genjutsu has significant flaws if you found it so easily!" Toshiro remarked helplessly. Maintaining the barrier prevented him from engaging in direct combat. While he could cast genjutsus, a fierce battle would break the barrier.

Toshiro hadn’t expected his sophisticated genjutsu to be compromised due to an exploding tag disturbing the nearby chakra. His technique projected a realistic genjutsu using a moon-like light source, complete with real-life elements and chakra disguise, making it almost indistinguishable from reality. He also cast a misleading genjutsu to hide its secrets. Yet the enemy’s astute observation during the detonation revealed its vulnerability.

Had he been better covered by his teammates, the enemy wouldn't have easily seen through this fleeting flaw.