Tens of miles from the border with the Land of Wind, where the mission would finally end, the Konoha group encountered enemies organized in a precise formation.
The terrain was flat, a strip of sand stretching as far as the eye could see. The desert wind carried dust and tension.
Kakashi stepped forward, his gaze attentive, his Sharingan partially uncovered.
"Do you want to start another great war?"
The man at the head of the enemy group let out a hoarse laugh. His face partially covered by a worn scarf, his voice laden with arrogance.
"Hehehe... I don't know what you're talking about. We're just a group of mercenaries trying to make a living."
Li Shang watched in silence. The enemy's tone was too provocative, their positions too strategic for a simple group of bounty hunters.
'As I thought... their plan from the beginning was to gauge our strength and exhaust our energy.'
He remembered the previous attacks — fast, precise, and always in calculated numbers. No suicides, no desperate advances. Everything orchestrated to push them to the limit before the final confrontation.
'They knew we would be the group sent for this escort. A mixed squad with promising youngsters, but without enough experience to handle open wars. This is the perfect type of team to be tested.'
Li Shang's eyes narrowed.
'If it were an elite group, these ambushes would be nothing short of suicide. The enemy villages wouldn't waste shinobis like that. There's something much bigger behind this.'
As the others took combat positions, Li Shang remained still, activating his Tenseigan. Waves of spiritual energy expanded through the area like an invisible radar. He felt the flow of chakra in each of the enemies and realized — all were balanced, controlled, and possessed the same pattern of chakra concentration.
'All are elites.'
He looked at Kakashi and Gai, who were already positioning themselves to contain the imminent attack.
'Indeed, there are many spies within the village.'
Kakashi made a hand signal.
"All of you, stay back."
Li Shang nodded, but his mind was elsewhere — on the causes behind it.
He didn't know it, but the current situation was a direct result of his own actions. Since the day he eliminated the Sound Four, the gears had begun to turn.
Orochimaru, consumed by rage and frustration at seeing another of his plans crumble, spread information about Konoha's state. In an impulse of revenge, he sold the village's secrets to Iwa and Kumo, who, confident, decided to act.
The goal was simple: create instability, separate Konoha and Suna, and test the power of the new Hokage.
"Puff!"
Three clones appeared around Li Shang, the air trembling with the dispersion of chakra. One of them glowed intense blue — the soul fragment he transferred reinforced the copy to an almost real level.
On the other side, Gai looked at Kakashi, who was approaching the Suna ninjas, still immobilized by the restriction seals.
"Kakashi, should we remove their seals?"
"Right."
Kakashi joined his hands, his fingers moving in a precise sequence. A soft glow ran through the bodies of the Suna shinobis, releasing the flow of chakra. Their energy reignited, so they could fight.
"You must have already understood," Kakashi said, without looking back, "that they want to kill all of us to start a dispute and weaken our villages."
The words were spoken directly, without emphasis — but the impact was immediate.
The leader of the enemy group stepped forward, trying to contain the tension that was building.
"Don't believe them. We are just mercenaries trying to get rid of Konoha's enemies."
The voice carried false tranquility.
The Suna jounin clenched his fists, his eyes full of rage.
"Don't take us for fools! Orochimaru impersonated the Kazekage, but we won't be used again!"
The chakra of the Suna ninjas fluctuated intensely — enough to show that they were ready to react to any provocation. The atmosphere was about to explode.
'This is how they act... destabilize the field and wait for chaos to do the work for them,' thought Li Shang, activating the Tenseigan. The world before him expanded into lines of energy and spiritual flows. Every step, every breath, everything was visible in detail.
He moved without hesitation, positioning his clones. One stayed beside Sakura, ready to protect her from long-range attacks. Another took position beside Tenten, who prepared her scrolls with trembling but steady hands. The third placed himself near Lee, Naruto, and Sasuke, reinforcing the front line.
'Their strategy is probably simple: use numbers and the element of surprise. While the strongest — Kakashi and Gai — are distracted, the rest of us will be annihilated.'
Li Shang raised his sword. His chakra began to flow in a controlled manner, forming an invisible pressure that made the air vibrate.
'They think I'm on the same level as the others... that's great.'
A slight smile appeared on his face.
'No one who has faced me so far has taken me seriously.'
The sand began to swirl around, lifted by the hot desert wind. Kakashi and Gai advanced together, cutting a path like two blades.
The sand rose with the force of the impact.
Clang!
The metallic sound of blades echoed, followed by an explosion of chakra that opened a crater between the two combatants. Li Shang slid to the side, his gaze fixed on the enemy in front of him — a tall shinobi with a black mask.
'His chakra is refined, his control is precise.'
The enemy advanced without hesitation, a sequence of rapid blows that mixed strength and precision. His kunai came at unpredictable angles, accompanied by explosive tags that detonated in sequence, forcing Li Shang to move constantly.
Boom! Boom!
The explosions raised columns of smoke and dust, but before it dissipated, Li Shang emerged from the gray curtain, his body flickering.
"Shunshin no Jutsu."
His opponent disappeared and reappeared at different points on the field. Every movement was calculated, every dodge, an opening for a counterattack.
Clang! Clang! Clang!
The enemy growled, realizing he was being pushed back, even so.
"You move as if you predict my blows."
Li Shang responded only with a calm gaze, dodging a kunai that passed a few centimeters from his face. In a fluid movement, he spun his body and hit the man in the chest with a kick that sent him a few meters back.
Thud!
"Is that all?" Li Shang asked with a slight smile.
The ninja wiped blood from his mouth, irritated.
"Don't underestimate an Iwa jounin."
"Tired of acting?" Li Shang asked, smiling.
His opponent began to make hand seals at high speed.
"Doton: Doryūheki!"
A stone wall rose between them, followed by more seals.
"Doton: Gansetsukon!"
The ground trembled as a spear made of solid rock formed and shot towards Li Shang.
He remained motionless for an instant, observing. When the weapon was about to hit him, he spun his body and struck with his fingertips — the impact shattered the spear as if it were glass.
'Ninjutsu... it was about time.'
Li Shang moved again, but this time, instead of retreating, he advanced. The pressure of his chakra increased and the enemy felt its weight. It was like facing an experienced predator.
The subsequent blows were dry and precise. Every block from the Iwa ninja was broken by the opponent's superior strength. Li Shang attacked with the serenity of someone who had fought a thousand battles and survived them all.
Clang! Boom! Crack!
The jounin was pushed until his back was against the stone wall he had created. His armor cracked in several places, and the chakra sustaining his defense faltered.
"Damn!" he spat blood and made another seal. "Doton: Moguragakure!"
He disappeared into the ground in an instant, trying to attack from below. But Li Shang had already predicted this.
'Underground movement. Useless against my vision.'
The Tenseigan shone, revealing the enemy's silhouette advancing under the earth. Li Shang concentrated chakra in his feet and, in a single movement, delivered a kick that made the entire ground tremble.
BOOOOM!
The ground exploded, and the enemy's body was thrown out, completely exposed. Before he could react, Li Shang grabbed him by the neck and threw him into the air.
With a jump, he followed. The blade cut through the air in a clean movement.
Shiiing!
The body fell heavily, the sand staining red.
Li Shang landed lightly, wiping blood from his sword with his thumb.
'Using that jutsu against me... irony.'