**Chapter 22: I, Tsukasa Kaede, shall protect this precious intel!**
Tsukasa Kaede crouched low on the ground, his eyes scanning the changing environment. This was his first time using this jutsu in actual combat. It required him to cast the jutsu in conjunction with a zombie, linking them with chakra and the virus. Based on his sensory connection to the zombie, he deemed it a success.
"Although I can theoretically suppress the casting difficulty and cost to an extremely low level, no matter how low it gets, this is still an alternative form of Space-Time Ninjutsu. With my remaining chakra, it's best not to exceed two uses."
Tsukasa Kaede quickly assessed the situation, sighing inwardly. It was still the problem of too little chakra.
Fortunately, the primary consumption process of Corpse Release Jutsu was accelerating the transformation of zombies. To truly conserve chakra, he could simply let the zombies fight instinctually on their own while he hid far away and observed—although doing so wouldn't allow the zombie ninja to exert their maximum combat power, it was still an excellent method for conserving chakra.
But the Corpse Substitution Jutsu was different; instantaneous transfer was no illusion, the consumption was genuinely substantial.
"The farther the distance, the greater the consumption. The straight-line distance for swapping positions should ideally not exceed fifty meters. Any longer, and it will affect my body."
Tsukasa Kaede couldn't dedicate all his chakra to this jutsu. He also needed to use other ninjutsu from Corpse Release, which further limited the effectiveness of Corpse Substitution Jutsu.
However, for saving his life in critical moments, it was truly effective.
"Flying Thunder God?!"
"Is that the Flying Raijin Jutsu?"
Ninja from both sides looked over simultaneously, staring in disbelief at Tsukasa Kaede, who was now rising from his seemingly graceful crouch. They fell into momentary silence.
Araki of the Sand was utterly horrified, but he quickly regained his composure: "No, impossible. Space-Time Ninjutsu is incredibly difficult to learn. It's impossible for two young people in the same era in the Hidden Leaf Village to have learned the Flying Raijin Jutsu."
"Is that so? You should think carefully before drawing conclusions. What if what you least wish to see is precisely the truth?" Tsukasa Kaede stood up, a handful of shuriken in his hand, ready to attack.
Other Sunagakure ninja also hesitated briefly because of this scene, giving Konoha ninja an opportunity to kill a Genin and a Chunin.
Araki of the Sand didn't care about the deaths of his subordinates. He said coldly, "Every Ninja Village is researching Minato Namikaze and his Flying Raijin Jutsu, attempting to completely neutralize this Konoha genius, but they have never found a good method. Minato Namikaze's ninjutsu talent and combat abilities are visibly powerful. What about you? I don't believe you can master both the Soul Death Technique and the Flying Raijin Jutsu!"
His logical reasoning was very simple—if you, Tsukasa Kaede, had such talent, how could you only be emerging now at the age of 16?
Minato Namikaze gained worldwide attention at 13, stunning the Hidden Stone Village with his Flying Raijin Jutsu. Hidden Stone Village ninja tried every possible way to neutralize him but couldn't find a good method.
So what about Tsukasa Kaede? In the Ninja World, a place filled with madness and warfare, talented people are discovered early on, let alone those from a Great Ninja Village like Konoha, who can enjoy a relatively complete training system and talent screening mechanism! If it weren't for Tsukasa Kaede's Soul Death Technique being so unique and perfectly aligning with Sunagakure's human puppet path, Sunagakure wouldn't pay much attention to Tsukasa Kaede at all.
The human puppet path was the only method Sunagakure had found to close the gap with the Hidden Leaf Village. After all, Sunagakure had no Bloodline Limit Clans that shook the Ninja World. Occasionally, there were Magnet Release or Scorch Release ninja, but these were Kekkei Genkai pieced together by later fusion of chakra nature transformation, unable to be stably inherited through bloodlines.
"Ah, since you've already drawn your conclusions, there's nothing more to say."
Tsukasa Kaede abruptly threw the shuriken in his hand. Honestly, his throwing technique barely reached the normal level of a Genin. After all, his muscle mass, explosive power, and neural control were all subpar. Relying on throwing ninja tools would at most serve as minor harassment.
Araki of the Sand sneered, further confirming his judgment.
"Even if it really is the Flying Raijin Jutsu, what then? I hear that Minato Namikaze can precisely stab an enemy's head with a kunai the instant he switches positions, giving his enemies no time to defend! As for you, your terrible taijutsu and neural reflexes are simply insufficient to achieve that."
Flying Thunder God combined with perfect reaction ability, adequate taijutsu, and terrifying intuition and instinct is required to truly maximize combat power. Even the current Minato Namikaze isn't capable of this yet; he has only shown matching potential, far from reaching his peak.
And Tsukasa Kaede? He certainly changed his position, but he lacked the ability to launch a surprise attack the moment he shifted.
"However, casting hand signs with that corpse simultaneously to swap positions... the Flying Raijin Jutsu requires throwing a Flying Thunder God kunai as a spatial coordinate. What about this kid? No, his jutsu is more akin to a mutual summoning substitution..."
An elite Jonin's intelligence analysis capabilities are top-tier in the Ninja World. Araki of the Sand's brain worked rapidly, and the more he thought, the more absurd it seemed. How could such a preposterous jutsu exist? Moreover, this kid wasn't old; he perfected the Soul Death Technique, and could he further develop supporting ninjutsu for the Soul Death Technique? And Space-Time supporting ninjutsu at that? Does the Soul Death Technique have such heaven-defying potential? Never heard of it! Impossible, absolutely impossible, this goes against common sense; there must be something he's missing.
"Perhaps it's an incomplete Flying Raijin Jutsu? Or maybe some unknown, simplified Space-Time Ninjutsu, but that's unlikely. My initial judgment is that his movement distance is very short... I have too little intelligence; I need to probe for more information."
Boom! A fierce gale erupted from Araki of the Sand's hands, sweeping up countless grains of sand, sending a heap of shuriken flying, and rushing towards Tsukasa Kaede.
Araki of the Sand had a strong premonition that if he didn't seize this opportunity to take down Tsukasa Kaede, it would only become harder later! The price of focusing his attack on Tsukasa Kaede was Terai, an elite Jonin, seizing an opportunity.
"Don't think you're the only one who can use Wind Release. Your failure to stop me from getting close was your mistake." Terai swung his kunai fiercely.
Wind Release: Wind Cut!
A large amount of Wind Nature Transformation was unleashed through the kunai, transforming into Wind Blades that tore through the sandstorm, blocking Araki of the Sand's movement routes.
In an instant, the battlefield situation drastically changed. The numerically inferior Konoha ninja seemed to gain the upper hand, having already inflicted casualties on the enemy.
But everyone knew this was only temporary. Fighting on enemy land without a numerical advantage, they would surely lose if they continued.
Tsukasa Kaede summoned a zombie, commanding it to withstand the sandstorm in front of him. He then kicked the zombie hard, using the recoil to sharply change direction, his body falling onto the sand, carving a furrow, and reuniting with the heavily injured Nonō Yakushi.
"Madam Director, are you alright? However, I have no chakra left to heal you; you'll have to rely on yourself." Tsukasa Kaede gasped, looking at the priestess, whose face showed shock. "Please entrust the intelligence to me; I will risk my life to bring it back to the Hidden Leaf Village."
(end of chapter)