The group quietly left Niigata Town.
Even if those rogue Hidden Mist Ninja had spies in the town, they wouldn't have noticed their departure.
After leaving, they traveled at an extremely fast pace. They quickly covered the initial 30 kilometers.
The Ninja who had underestimated the children now wore grim expressions, finding it difficult to keep up. This was a significant blow to their pride.
Renjiro looked at their expressions and chuckled secretly. In his experience, actions always spoke louder than words.
For the last 10 kilometers, they proceeded cautiously.
Hodaka and Mieko used their ocular jutsu to check for traps and enemies.
Feng Zheng did not use his Chakra Field. If there were Sensor Ninja among the enemies, they would sense Feng Zheng's Chakra Field, thus exposing their whereabouts and preventing a surprise attack.
Hodaka's Byakugan, however, did not have such a flaw.
When they were about one kilometer from their designated location, Hodaka whispered.
"Stop!"
Everyone stopped and looked at him. Hodaka moved to the left, and the others followed him.
After traveling about a hundred meters, he stopped. The others also stopped behind him. The area in front of Hodaka was stained red with blood!
Takeshita Toshiaki asked.
"Did they fight here?"
Takeshita Tokuhei bent down and picked up a strand of hair from the bloodstain. He examined it and said.
"Unlikely, they might have just been hunting wild animals. It seems they hunted a bear."
Feng Zheng observed De Ping, thinking.
"He can guess the animal from bloody hair?"
Mieko activated her Sharingan, observing the surroundings. After a while, she said.
"Found tracks!"
Renjiro said.
"Good job, lead the way. Also, watch out for traps. Hodaka, you also need to watch out for traps and keep an eye out for their base. Everyone else, don't make unnecessary sounds or movements."
Everyone nodded. De Ping commented.
"Having a Byakugan and a Sharingan in the same squad is very useful."
Renjiro nodded. They cautiously moved forward.
Mieko's Sharingan carefully observed every detail of the surroundings. She captured the most subtle clues, perfectly tracking their trail.
Surprisingly, they did not encounter any traps.
They continued forward, out of the forest, and onto the beach! Mieko frowned. She said.
"The tracks extend into the sea!"
Renjiro and De Ping both frowned. If the base of these rogue Ninja was in the sea, fighting them would become very tricky.
Toshiaki said.
"I don't think their base would be in the sea. The nearest island from here is about thirty-two kilometers away, and it would take a lot of time to travel from that island."
As he spoke, everyone looked at Toshiaki. Toshiaki continued.
"So, either their base is nearby, or they are all powerful Jonin, moving at twice the speed of a Chunin!"
De Ping immediately shook his head and said.
"It's impossible for all of them to be Jonin. If so many Jonin defected, the foundation of Hidden Mist would be shaken."
Renjiro said.
"There are two possibilities. One is that they have a temporary base here and a permanent base on an island. Or, they are simply moving in shallow water instead of traversing the forest, to avoid leaving any tracks."
De Ping nodded and said.
"Yes, I think the second is more likely. After all, they are rogue Ninja and would be afraid of being hunted down."
Renjiro nodded. He also thought so. He said.
"Let's go back into the woods. We'll move along the coast while Hodaka checks for any possible hidden bases."
De Ping agreed, thinking at the same time.
"The Hyuga Clan's observation range can reach 1000 meters. From the forest edge, he can check the sea hundreds of meters away. If their base is indeed not here, then we can only ambush and wait for them to appear."
The group returned to the forest. Seeing the initial tracks, the group decided to walk in the same direction.
After walking a little over a kilometer, Hodaka stopped. He said.
"Found it! They are hiding in a cave on a mountain about one kilometer ahead."
Toshiaki laughed.
"They think they're so smart."
Feng Zheng wondered.
"If they are all hiding in the cave, will Renjiro kill them all?"
Hodaka said.
"There are two Ninja guarding the entrance to the cave."
Renjiro said.
"Keep going forward, I'll kill both of them. Feng Zheng, don't attack."
Feng Zheng nodded, thinking.
"My Wind Release: Vacuum Bullet is suitable for assassination, but once it hits, even a sleeping person would be alerted by the damage it leaves."
They continued forward, and Hodaka said.
"Besides the two guards, there are fourteen more Ninja inside. Three of them seem to be Jonin-level, and the rest are Chunin-level. They are all sleeping."
Renjiro said.
"Stop observing them."
Hodaka didn't understand. He was about to avert his gaze from them when he suddenly noticed one of them suddenly stood up. He said.
"One of the Jonin-level Ninja just woke up."
Renjiro frowned. He said.
"Some Ninja instinctively sense when someone is watching them. Although they can't perceive the Byakugan, they can feel that something is wrong. Remember this."
After speaking, he suddenly flashed forward! In an instant, Hodaka, Feng Zheng, and Mieko also flashed to follow.
The nearby Yugakure Ninja were all stunned!
Seo Shusaku exclaimed.
"What the hell is this?"
De Ping's face showed a worried expression. He said.
"Keep up."
He made a few Hand Seals and also flashed away. The others quickly followed him.
Inside the cave, Kubota Mitsutsuka was sleeping. But when Hodaka observed him, his eyes suddenly opened.
He immediately got up and checked his surroundings.
Seeing no one around, he thought.
"What the hell is going on? I'm sure someone was watching me just now!"
Thoughts raced through his mind at light speed! He immediately came to a conclusion.
"Damn it, the Hyuga Clan! Damn it, those cowards must have sent a mission to Konoha!"
He got up, gathered Chakra in his right foot, and then stomped on the ground.
An earth wave passed through the ground. Although harmless, everyone in the cave felt it. All thirteen rogue Ninja woke up.
Mitsutsuka flashed beside one of the Jonin. Upon arrival, he yelled.
"Fumimaro, damn it! Quickly check our surroundings!"
At the same time, the other rogue Ninja also rushed over.
Kubota Mitsutsuka's movements were very fast. However, there was one person whose movements were even faster!
Renjiro flashed three times in a row, arriving about one hundred and fifty meters from the guards.
Upon arriving, he noticed that some traps had been set near the cave.
However, he ignored these traps. He stepped on the ground and disappeared underground.
The next second, eight Earth Release spears condensed from beneath the two unsuspecting guards, piercing them!
The guards were shocked! However, before they could even let out a scream, Renjiro emerged from underground and, with a fluid motion, cut them down.
As he cut them down, Hodaka, Mieko, and Feng Zheng appeared behind him.
While running, Hodaka noticed the traps. Mieko led the way, avoiding the traps, and the other two followed her.
Upon arriving, they noticed the cave. It was a small hill, about three stories high. There was a huge opening at the bottom, which split into several passages.
This small hill was about 200 meters from the beach. The rogue Ninja chose this location to avoid being detected by those scouting from the sea, and also to escape to the sea if needed.
As soon as they stepped there, they felt an earth wave pass beneath their feet.
Hodaka checked the interior of the cave. He frowned and said.
"They are all up."
Renjiro made a Hand Seal and said.
"I have an idea."
Feng Zheng, Hodaka, and Mieko watched as their sensei gathered a large amount of Chakra!
Behind Renjiro's team, the Yugakure Ninja followed closely. However, without the Byakugan and Sharingan, they could not identify all the traps.
De Ping was the first to discover the traps. He yelled.
"Wait! There are traps ahead!"
However, they flashed too quickly. Three of their Ninja triggered the traps. Immediately, hundreds of needles rained down on them!
De Ping frowned and made a few Hand Seals.
Inside the cave, Fumimaro unleashed his Chakra Field. Feng Zheng felt his Chakra Field continuously expanding outside the cave. He quickly said.
"They've sensed us!"
Fumimaro immediately sensed the immense Chakra Renjiro was gathering. He shouted.
"Damn it! They are right outside the cave and are about to attack us!"
Immediately, the faces of all the rogue Hidden Mist Ninja became grim.
Since they became rogue Ninja, they had never engaged in combat with a regular Ninja squad.
The Mizukage Faction was busy fighting the rebels and had no time to deal with them.
Renjiro pressed his palm against the cave wall and performed Earth Release: Mountain Collapse.