Shindai and the others had originally planned to take a detour when they were suddenly attacked by fireballs.
The fireballs crashed onto the ground, erupting in rapid succession with magma splattering everywhere—nowhere was entirely safe from the searing fragments.
Protected by Shindai's Magnet Release: Iron Sand Spinning Top, the magma splashed onto the rotating iron sand was either flung away or absorbed into it, sheltering Shindai and the others within the swirling defense.
Shindai activated his Third Eye, rose into the air to survey the area, and after confirming no more fireballs remained in the sky, he disbanded the Iron Sand Spinning Top.
Obito looked around at the magma-covered surroundings and frowned, "What exactly happened ahead? How could so many magma fireballs appear?"
Shindai stared grimly at the lava steaming upon contact with rain as he replied, "Regardless of what occurred, we definitely cannot go forward. We must leave immediately."
Kakashi's expression also turned serious—he agreed with Shindai's suggestion. With such destructive power from those magma fireballs, whatever battle lay ahead was certainly not something they could approach.
"Earth Release! Earth Spike Spears!"
Suddenly, tremors shook the ground beneath Shindai and the others' feet. The four quickly leapt upward just as sharp rocks erupted from the earth.
Turning their gaze forward, they saw two figures kneeling on the ground with both hands pressed against it.
Clearly, this Earth Release technique had come from them.
Shindai frowned. From their attire, these two were clearly the same as Tokujuku, the Jonin-level Rock ninja.
These two Jonin-level Rock ninjas hadn't been able to interfere in the battle between Roshi, Han versus Minato Namikaze and Jiraiya, so they had been keeping watch around the area, guarding against unexpected intrusions.
While maintaining vigilance, they sensed four approaching chakra signatures heading toward them, prompting the two Jonin Rock ninja to rush over and investigate—if these newcomers were Leaf ninjas, they'd planned to eliminate them immediately.
Upon identifying Shindai's group as Konoha ninja, the two Rock Jonin launched immediate attacks but were surprised that their enemies reacted so quickly, leaping up instantly to dodge the earthen spikes.
Still, judging by appearances, the opposing team only had one Chunin, two Genin, and another ninja whose level was unclear—but judging by age alone, he couldn't be above the rank of Chunin.
Previously, these two Rock Jonin had kept using Earth Release techniques to harass Minato Namikaze and Jiraiya, exhausting significant amounts of chakra and physical energy. Yet they still felt confident about handling several Chunin and Genin opponents.
Kakashi frowned at the sight of the two Rock Jonin and muttered, "Has the battle ahead already ended? This is going to be problematic."
He assumed those magma fireballs earlier had been released by these two Rock Jonin, especially since they appeared visibly dirty—as if freshly emerged from combat.
"Rin, hide yourself. Then Shindai and Obito, use that move immediately!"
Nohara Rin immediately retreated as Shindai started forming hand seals rapidly.
[Magnet Release: Magnetic Conversion!]
Shindai used Magnet Release: Magnetic Conversion on himself, then pressed both hands onto Kakashi's and Obito's shoulders, causing their bodies to become magnetized as well.
Obito quickly formed hand seals with both hands, then placed his right hand in front of his mouth.
[Fire Release: Great Fire Dragon Jutsu!]
Obito exhaled a massive fire dragon from his mouth toward two distant Rock ninja.
As the fire dragon surged toward the Rock ninjas, Shindai half-squatted and grabbed Kakashi's arms. Kakashi had his back facing him, standing on Shindai's legs.
Upon closer inspection, he appeared to be stepping on Shindai's legs, though in reality there was a small gap between Kakashi's feet and Shindai's legs.
The reason for this situation was due to the magnetism present in both Shindai and Kakashi's bodies.
Like poles of a magnet repel each other, while opposite poles attract.
Using Magnet Release: Magnetic Conversion, Shindai had assigned a positive pole to Kakashi's body, while his own body also carried a positive pole. As a result, the two repelled one another.
By grabbing Kakashi's arms and pulling him as close as possible, Shindai intended to use this repulsive force to launch Kakashi forward at high speed, increasing his velocity.
This idea had originally come to Shindai while he was working with Kannazuki's electrical systems.
He'd already tested it in battle—it worked extremely well.
However, there was an obvious drawback—movement was limited to a straight line. So they needed someone to provide cover and prevent the enemy from dodging, which naturally became Obito's responsibility.
The fire dragon rushed toward the two Rock ninja, who simultaneously dodged by moving left and right respectively.
The ninja on the left rolled away, while the one on the right jumped aside.
That determined their target—the Rock ninja who had chosen to jump.
Because everyone knows that in midair, without anything to push off from, it's impossible to dodge again.
Gritting his teeth, Shindai growled through gritted teeth, "How is it? Can I release now?"
"Just hold tighter!"
"At this speed, can you even see clearly?"
Knowing those two lava fireballs must have come from the Rock ninjas earlier, Kakashi replied cautiously, "These two Rock ninja are strong. We must find a way to eliminate one first!"
Shindai could only grip Kakashi's arms even harder, trying to bring Kakashi just a bit closer to intensify the repulsive force.
Straining hard enough that veins bulged visibly on his neck, Shindai snarled, "Now is definitely good enough, right?"
"Release!"
At the exact moment Kakashi said 'release', Shindai let go of both hands.
Kakashi shot forward like a bullet, moving too fast to track, hurtling straight toward the Rock ninja suspended midair.
Due to the extreme speed, Kakashi's vision blurred slightly, but he'd already lined up his position beforehand, blade held horizontally in hand, charging straight at the Rock ninja.
The Rock ninja noticed Kakashi charging toward him, but by the time he realized it, it was already too late.
Kakashi passed by the Rock ninja in a flash, and the blade in his hand sliced through the enemy's neck as easily as slicing through butter, instantly severing the head from the body.
However, Kakashi was moving too fast to stop immediately. After landing on the ground, he rolled quite a distance before finally crashing into a boulder and coming to a stop.
Kakashi grimaced in pain from the hard landing, but he felt thrilled—he had killed a Rock ninja with just one strike.
The other Rock ninja was utterly stunned to see his comrade taken down so effortlessly with just one strike.
Was this even normal for a Chunin? Come on! Could it be that beneath that Chunin disguise was actually a Jonin?
While the Rock ninja stood there still dazed, Obito had already formed hand seals again and released another ninjutsu.
[Fire Release: Dragon Fire Technique!]
Obito unleashed a high-speed stream of fire straight toward the distracted Rock ninja.
The Rock ninja snapped back to his senses and immediately dodged using the Body Flicker Technique.
"Shindai! Give me a push!"
Obito kicked both feet toward Shindai.
Shindai's face darkened. "What the hell are you messing with me for?!"
With no choice left, since Obito had already kicked out, Shindai could only protect himself by raising both arms.
Obito lightly pushed off from Shindai's forearms using the recoil from the impact, launching himself forward like a projectile straight at the Rock ninja, engaging him in battle.
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