A gust of mountain wind rustled the leaves, and as if on cue, the attack began.
A dozen ninjas swarmed in, their swords drawn. They moved with seamless coordination, surrounding their targets and working to force the members of Team 7 apart. Their flawless teamwork immediately put Kakashi on high alert; these were no ordinary enemies.
Sparks flew as Kakashi's kunai intercepted the strikes of three or four swords. He was too busy defending to find an opening for a counterattack. Instead, his eyes darted back to his three students.
"Shadow Clone Jutsu!"
To his relief, the three genin were still holding their formation. Naruto and Sasuke guarded the flanks, keeping the client safe between them. Hundreds of Naruto's shadow clones provided a buffer, but it was clear the defense wouldn't last.
The enemies cut through the shadow clones with shocking speed; each clone fell after a single hit. Their relentless assault threatened to break the formation at any second. Kakashi had already assessed his own opponents: the four ninjas surrounding him were all Jonin-level.
"Sasuke, fall back! You can't hold them off!" Naruto yelled, gripping his kunai tightly. After blasting one enemy back with a Rasengan, he pulled Sasuke back from a desperate counterattack. "I'll take the lead. You support me!"
"Tch, got it!" Sasuke snapped. He gripped four shuriken and flung them to intercept the attack, but the enemy ninjas casually deflected them with their swords. The stray shuriken ended up taking out a few of Naruto's shadow clones by accident.
Seven or eight enemies quickly closed in again, completely ignoring the comrade Naruto had just defeated. They were a cold-blooded group. When one of Naruto's shadow clones charged forward with a Rasengan, another enemy simply cut it down without hesitation.
"Wind Style: Rasenshuriken!"
Naruto raised the Rasenshuriken in his hand and charged forward. The sheer force of the swirling air was enough to tell the enemies it was something their bodies could not withstand. A ninja dropped his sword, quickly formed hand seals, and shouted, "Earth Style: Earth Flow Wall!"
A tall earth wall rose from the ground. But he had never expected the Rasenshuriken to tear through it as if it were paper, instantly splitting his body in two.
Blood splattered.
After witnessing this, the other enemies turned their focus to Naruto. The blond-haired kid had already taken out two of their teammates. They couldn't afford to be careless anymore.
The ambush leader, Shimura Danzo's confidant Fu Yamanaka, frowned. He landed silently a short distance away, slowly bringing his hands together to form a small opening, through which he watched the boy. Of the three genin in Team 7, Naruto Uzumaki was clearly the biggest threat. Sasuke Uchiha barely looked like a ninja, and the pink-haired girl was no different from any other fresh academy graduate.
If they could control Naruto, the battle would be over. Then they could use their usual tactics to surround and kill Kakashi Hatake, and the mission would be complete.
Mind Body Switch Technique, activate!
However, when he used his clan's secret technique to invade Naruto's consciousness, he found himself in a dark, watery prison. A giant demon fox opened its eyes, staring down at him as if he were an insignificant insect that didn't know its place.
So this is the Nine-Tails?
Within the Jinchuriki's spiritual space, two consciousnesses were already fighting for control. They would never allow an outsider from the Yamanaka clan to join the fray. Fu understood that taking over Naruto's body was impossible. He wouldn't waste his time. He quickly withdrew from Naruto's spiritual space, knowing his will stood no chance against the strongest of the Tailed Beasts. A single glance was enough to make him afraid to look directly at it.
Monsters like Jinchuriki were the perfect counter to his clan's Mind Body Switch Technique.
Fu's actions were so fast that Naruto only felt a brief, strange sensation before it vanished. The battle was too intense for him to investigate what had just happened. His shadow clones were falling one by one under the enemy's blades.
"Hey, Sasuke..." Naruto said in a low voice as the enemies closed in. "In a moment, I'll use a very powerful jutsu. I'll give you a signal beforehand. You take Sakura and the client and escape immediately!"
"Got it."
Sasuke Uchiha knew how urgent the situation was. Their jonin instructor, Kakashi, was also being held back by several enemies and had even been wounded. Right now, their only option was to rely on Naruto's shadow clones, buying time and waiting for a chance to turn things around. The dead-last he always looked down on had just defeated two enemies. A sense of shame welled up in Sasuke's heart. He gripped the kunai in his hand tighter.
"Rasengan!"
Two Rasengans formed in Naruto's hands. He was about to use the same move he had used to defeat Ebisu. The chakra vortexes spun violently. The two spheres got closer and closer, about to merge into a chaotic and dangerous vortex of chakra…
A kunai stabbed out from an unexpected angle, sinking deep into Naruto's waist.
Haruno Sakura looked in shock at Sasuke Uchiha, who was standing in front of her. "Hey, Sasuke-kun, what are you doing?!" she said in a panic.
Sasuke didn't respond to Sakura. He violently ripped the kunai out of Naruto, looking as if he was about to strike again. The chakra vortexes dissipated into thin air. Caught off guard and injured, the chakra in Naruto's body fell into chaos.
He twisted away to avoid Sasuke's next attack, his eyes filled with surprise and confusion as he looked at his teammate. "...Sasuke, do you know what you're doing?"
What answered him was Sasuke's attacking kunai.
"Naruto, it's the Mind Body Switch Technique!"
From a distance, Kakashi had finally created a moment of breathing room, but all he could do was shout information to his student. "Someone used the Mind Body Switch Technique to control Sasuke! I know who they are!"
When Kakashi first saw Sasuke attack Naruto, his heart had clenched. It was obvious that if Team 7 fell into internal strife or if Naruto was injured, they would have no ability to resist the enemy. But when his gaze inadvertently noticed a ninja with a strange hand gesture, he immediately figured it all out.
That was a Yamanaka clan ninja.
Unfortunately, this knowledge was of no help to the battle. Besieged by four Jonin, Kakashi could barely fend for himself. Trying to rescue his subordinates was simply wishful thinking.
Team 7 could only save themselves.