Chapter 247: Comfort
Uchiha Sasuke didn't yet have a clear concept of the hierarchy of shinobi power. Like most others raised in the village, he believed that the Hokage represented the pinnacle of strength—especially with the legendary figure of the First Hokage, Senju Hashirama, deeply rooted in everyone's minds. The Third Hokage, Hiruzen Sarutobi, had also once been hailed as the strongest.
However, the image Sarutobi left on Sasuke was always one of old age and decline. Most of the new generation of genin had only encountered peers or average-strength chunin. In the preliminary tests before the Chūnin Exams, Sasuke had even managed to hold his own against Iruka, who wasn't even going all out.
As for jonin, his main exposure was his team leader Kakashi. But due to the limitations of most low-risk D-rank missions, it was rare for genin to see jonin fighting at full capacity. It wasn't until the mission in the Land of Waves months ago that Sasuke first witnessed what a true jonin battle looked like.
Everything that happened after the Chūnin Exams—the chaos, the death of the Third Hokage—shattered Sasuke's understanding of what strength meant. Naruto summoning Gamabunta to defeat Gaara, a One-Tail Jinchūriki, and Uchiha Itachi clashing with Jiraiya using the terrifying Susanoo—these moments completely rewrote his understanding of power levels.
And now, this battle was once again widening the gap in Sasuke's mind.
Even surrounded by enemies, Kakashi's smooth and efficient slaughter was awe-inspiring. He didn't use flashy jutsu, barely even relied on his Chidori. Instead, he used basic but refined taijutsu, substitution techniques, and perfect timing to dismantle his opponents.
Mizuki, another jonin, had a different style. Compared to Kakashi, he wasn't as agile or experienced in taijutsu, but his sheer power was overwhelming. His forceful, frontal fighting style, which might seem reckless in any other scenario, became incredibly effective when surrounded. His aggressive momentum created a sort of exhilarating intensity. Combined with Kakashi's precise cover and corrections, the two of them became an unstoppable force.
In the rear, Sakura was too focused to notice anything else. This was the first time she had taken on such a huge responsibility, and she wasn't capable of multitasking yet. Even though she didn't need to provide chakra for the barrier—Mizuki had handled that—it was still a great challenge to stabilize and maintain the chakra flow for such a large-scale structure. For a genin, this was exhausting.
Nearby, Hinata Hyuga kept a close eye on both Sakura and the barrier's condition. Whenever lightning struck or attacks collided with the barrier, Hinata tensed up, constantly checking for weak points or signs of instability. She knew even a moment's lapse could be disastrous.
The others, however, had become more relaxed. At first, everyone was on edge, but it gradually became clear that the enemy—despite their numbers—couldn't break through Mizuki and Kakashi's defenses. The barrier held under repeated lightning strikes, and even Sakura seemed to be doing well.
"This is too easy…" Naruto muttered, visibly itching to jump in. "Shouldn't we help them?"
"N-Naruto…" Hinata, standing closest to him, replied nervously, "We should stay here… It's better if we just protect ourselves…"
Due to the weather, it was hard for most to see what was happening clearly, but Hinata's Byakugan allowed her to see everything in detail. That level of combat—genin had no place in it.
"Huh? What did you say?" Naruto leaned in closer, having not caught her soft voice.
His sudden closeness turned Hinata beet red. Flustered, she lowered her head and couldn't say another word.
Sasuke walked over and gave Naruto a shove.
"Stop being a distraction."
"Tch, acting all superior again," Naruto grumbled. "You said we'd protect Sakura. And now we're doing nothing…"
"Idiot." Sasuke glanced toward Sakura, who remained calm and focused. "She's doing fine. Just follow orders during missions."
"Coward." Naruto walked off in frustration—and immediately ran into Kiba Inuzuka and Shino Aburame, both quietly observing the battle from a distance.
"Hey, you two—wanna help? The enemies aren't that strong. Mizuki and Kakashi are tearing through them."
Kiba replied bluntly, "No thanks. Akamaru and I hate stormy weather."
Shino didn't even look away from the battle. "They're winning not because the enemy is weak, but because Mizuki-sensei and Kakashi-sensei are too strong. If we joined now, we wouldn't help much. Best strategy is to stay together and defend ourselves."
"I don't see it…" Naruto muttered, glancing toward the three Mist shinobi, who were also watching silently. He gave up on talking to them.
Suddenly, a massive fireball rose in the middle of the battlefield, followed by a powerful explosion. Moments later, a wave of energy slammed into the ship, rocking it violently. Most of the Konoha genin, unused to seafaring, stumbled and fell.
Thankfully, Sakura, who had become somewhat used to this, maintained the barrier without faltering.
"Good thing this is a warship and not a civilian boat," the ANBU captain, "Ken," remarked to his two subordinates. "Otherwise, it wouldn't have held together in these conditions."
"Is it over?" Kanryu asked, staring at the firelight in the distance. "Using Fire Release in this storm… Impressive. I guess we won't need to step in."
"Don't get careless."
As expected, the fight wasn't over. The enemy forces were greater than they appeared.
Just as everyone was nervously watching the battle unfold, Hinata suddenly tensed and shouted:
"Careful! Someone's coming—fast!"
She hadn't even finished speaking when a massive explosion erupted nearby. This time, it wasn't a wave—the shockwave directly blasted toward them. Even with Sasuke and Hinata doing their best to shield Sakura, the blow still disrupted her control.
To be continued...
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