The trip had been eventless so far, which was a great thing, though you could tell otherwise from the look on Genta's face. Still, he knew better than to complain that things were going smoothly. After a while, the convoy stopped for a short rest, and Shizuru and Genta joined me.
Shizuru noticed how my eyes kept darting around the perimeter. "What is wrong?" she asked.
My chakra senses were stretched to their absolute limit, scanning a large area around the convoy. "When we were departing the court of the Land of Grass Daimyo, I sensed killing intent," I said quietly, keeping my focus outward. "And for a brief second, a very powerful chakra. However, the moment I turned and focused my senses, I noticed no one who possessed either."
Genta narrowed his eyes. "I trust your instinct. What did you notice that was out of order?"
I hesitated. "There was a..." Pausing, I visualized the court again before continuing. "A traveling priestess holding a lute. I felt like the killing intent originated from her. It was as if she planned to assassinate me right then if I had not noticed her."
Shizuru's eyes widened. "You? And not the Daimyo?"
I nodded, feeling more uncertain now. "Yes. Yet, I did not pick up any chakra coming from her on the dangerous level that had initially grabbed my attention."
Shizuru shifted, her tone now a bit on edge. "Could she hide her signature like you do?"
I shook my head. "I was trained by the Yamanaka in sensory techniques. Masking your presence isn't an easy thing to master without guidance. It is not impossible, but it means her chakra control is beyond amazing to be able to hide from my senses so completely."
Genta spoke, his voice sharp and tactical. "If she attacks, what is our plan?"
I was still not entirely sure that she was the source of danger, but being prepared is never a bad thing. "Judging from the control, volume, and strength of that momentary burst, it would be better if I dealt with her alone while you two protect yourselves and the convoy."
Almost instantly, both of my teammates wore downcast expressions. Shizuru did not say anything, but the quiet sadness in her eyes was clear.
Genta, however, spoke up. "Do not underestimate us, Noa."
I nodded. "I know your strength. But with someone who might be that dangerous, I would rather make sure our ward is fully protected to ensure the mission's success. That way, I can fight without worry on my mind. I feel like I will need absolutely all of my focus if she is indeed on that level, assuming I am not just being paranoid."
We all exchanged glances before standing up to do a full circle inspection around the campsite. Finding nothing, we remained on edge, constantly scanning the area, and I kept my senses on high alert as the carts resumed moving.
The journey continued to be uneventful, which grated on our nerves as we neared the Land of Fire borders. I knew that the moment we let our guard down, an attack would strike to exploit that gap in our focus. Sure enough, not long after, I finally sensed something. I made a quick hand sign, and my teammates joined me immediately.
"What is it?" Genta asked, already taking out his kunai.
"Multiple weak signatures, approaching from the right." I pointed toward the nearby cave system. "Likely bandits, though there is a low Jonin level presence behind them. Probably their leader."
Genta rolled his shoulders. "About time."
A small smile appeared on my face as I gave the orders. "Shizuru, you support Genta since you both are extremely familiar with coordinating your fighting styles. I will support you both from the back, just in case that enemy from before decides to utilize the chaos."
I pulsed chakra through my storage seal, and a wooden puppet materialized next to me in a puff of smoke.
"Since they are just normal humans and not shinobi, I should be able to handle them with my current level of puppetry," I said softly as I attached my chakra threads to its joints.
The construct stood unnervingly tall due to its strange proportions. It possessed two long legs and four elongated, spindly arms that hung loosely at its sides. The head was a twisted piece of craftsmanship featuring multiple wooden faces carved into the skull, each staring in a different direction with dead, painted eyes. A heavy, dark cape draped over its shoulders, intentionally designed to hide whatever deadly mechanisms were concealed under the chest.
I sensed a line of combatants standing far away, refusing to move while the rest charged.
"Careful," I warned. "They have archers."
Shizuru rapidly wove through hand signs. My eyes widened as her shadow stretched and separated into countless long, dark threads, covering the area in front of us in a wide half circle. The terrain to our right was just thick vegetation that would not allow anyone to maneuver. Her threads darkened the earth, making it look as though night covered the ground even though no clouds were in the sky.
Multiple arrows whizzed through the air in a high arc, heading straight toward the convoy. To my amazement, the moment the shadows of the projectiles touched that pitch-black area of the ground, Shizuru's jutsu tugged at them. Her reach was not powerful enough to outright stop the attack, but that was not the goal. The arrows rapidly lost momentum and speed the deeper they dove into the shadowed territory, falling harmlessly to the dirt before they could ever reach the carts.
The attacking bandits had weird looks on their faces. It seemed like they did not actually want to be here. Then, as if remembering something terrifying, they bit their lips, screamed, and charged all at once.
The archers desperately tried to load another round, but my puppet moved terrifyingly fast across the ground to close the distance. One of the men tried to draw a sword and swing at the approaching monstrosity. Instead, one of its elongated hands snapped open and shifted into a concealed blade, slashing deep across his chest. He fell to the dirt screaming in pain.
The remaining attackers tried to fire directly at the puppet. The wooden construct immediately dropped flat, using its long limbs to crawl unnervingly along the ground like a massive spider. It dodged beneath the incoming arrows and skittered rapidly toward them.
The terrified group recoiled and tried to escape, but the mechanism's chest cavity suddenly snapped open. Multiple storage seals activated within the hollow space, firing out a massive barrage of needles that struck the men all over their bodies. The fast-acting sedative that I had paid Sena a huge amount of money for worked like magic. They all collapsed, bleeding from minor wounds but completely unconscious.
The main force of bandits was entirely focused on the convoy. They were blissfully unaware that their backline had already been decimated by the time Genta flickered into their midst. Their eyes went wide as they hastily tried to swing their swords, but Genta was vastly faster. He punched the earth with a massive surge of chakra. The entire area shattered on impact, and the ground shifted violently beneath the ambushers. They lost their balance, unable to follow through with their attacks.
Shizuru used the opening to jump high into the air. With incredible aim, she threw several shuriken toward the staggered foes, burying the blades deep into their necks. Genta moved without hesitation, slashing with his kunai and taking out multiple bandits in one brutal motion.
The surviving enemies tried to regain their footing, but to their absolute horror, they found they could not move a single muscle. They had no idea what was happening to them, but Genta had already noticed Shizuru's split shadows latching onto their forms. He mercilessly slashed at their exposed throats.
The entire sequence of events lasted only moments. The ambush had been thwarted with ruthless efficiency.
However, at that exact moment, my instincts flared to life. Every nerve in my body was practically screaming at me. The Jonin level signature had started moving toward our position, but that was not the source of the dread pooling in my stomach.
A far more sinister threat was closing in. Danger of an entirely different magnitude was inbound.