While one of Fujin's clones had some success in killing, the other clone couldn't get rid of his opponents so easily and was stuck fighting. He realized the same too. He analyzed, 'Did Iwa know that I was coming here? Regardless, mid-ranged Wind jutsus isn't all I can do.'
Suddenly, a massive amount of wind was blasted behind him. He disappeared and appeared next to a ninja in the blink of an eye and slashed his sword at his neck. The ninja immediately raised his kunai while moving backwards and leaning backwards.
At the same time, his teammates attacked Fujin's clone with shurikens. The sword sliced through the kunai, but the ninja leaned back enough to avoid the sword and the wind chakra flowing along it. The clone couldn't keep attacking due to the incoming attacks.
Fujin's clone used Assassin's Rush again and tried attacking another ninja but the ninja dodged once again while the others attacked the clone. This time, the clone hardened his body with the Iron Skin jutsu to block the counterattacks. At the same time, wind flowed along his blade as his sword released a Wind slash along with the swing of his blade.
The Iwa ninjas quickly got out of the way of the slash and weaved the hand signs for the Iron Skin jutsu. All four of them saw their skins turning black and hard to defend against the accompanying wind slashes. However, dozens of slashes still appeared on their bodies, including a few cuts across their necks, killing them on the spot.
The clone looked at them coldly. The hand signs made him realize a crucial point. He thought, 'They are too familiar with my fighting style. If not for Susumu's Genjutsu, they would have managed to block all the accompanying slashes.'
Though the Iwa ninjas thought that they had used the jutsu, in reality, they hadn't. While Hiruzen had asked him to keep the technique a secret, the current circumstances didn't allow him to hold back much. That said, it was still difficult for the bystanders to figure out why the Iwa ninjas didn't use the jutsu to defend themselves.
Fujin's clone turned his eyes towards the two squads rushing towards him and analyzed, 'All of these guys are Jounins! Though their speed isn't as high as mine, they are able to anticipate my attacks, movements and react at the last moment to barely save themselves while the others distract me. Even though I will win eventually, I don't have the luxury of time. Once the remaining Iwa ninjas rush in, I will be the one at greater risk.'
Fujin himself felt the same issue. Despite having more chakra than his clones and his teammates to assist, his performance wasn't much better as they were facing two Elite Jounins along with multiple Jounins. Though he managed to kill 5 ninjas, he wasn't happy.
He analyzed, 'These guys never come too close to me so that they will have sufficient time to dodge. In addition, every one of them is aiding others in defense. And all their attacks come from my blindspots.
It is almost as if someone has properly studied my fighting style and trained these guys to fight most optimally against me. The only way I can overturn this situation and get a quick victory is by spamming Shadow Clone and eliminating their advantage of numbers.
But, in this situation, dividing my chakra that much is suicidal. Fifty clones fighting means the amount of chakra I use would be ten times higher than what I'm currently burning.'
He let out a sigh and thought, 'It would have been so much more convenient if I was here by myself. I could just run away like I did in the Land of Wind. Unfortunately, though these three are quick, they don't share my expertise in running away.'
Unknowingly, Fujin fell into a similar situation as his sensei had not too long ago. But it was unknown whether he would make the same choice as his sensei or think of any other way.
On the other side of the battlefield, separated by a Firestorm and a massive wall, Kitsuchi thought, 'I had to waste so much chakra. If it wasn't for his Wind Vacuum attacks, we could have just escaped underground and sneaked upon them unharmed from this attack. But I can't keep waiting. The more time I waste here, the more of my men will die at Fujin's hands. I can't afford to lose so many well-trained ninjas.'
He suddenly increased the amount of chakra he poured into the Wall. Thousands of spikes appeared on the outer surface of the wall. In an instant, all were launched at the Konoha ninjas!
The two clones saw the incoming attacks. They couldn't dodge as the attack would hit Fujin and the rest who were behind them. One clone slammed his hands on the ground while the other charged up his chakra.
'Wind Release: Vacuum Cannon jutsu'
'Earth Release: Earth Wall jutsu'
A clone shot a Vacuum Cannon at Kitsuchi. Immediately after, a wall rose from the ground. In terms of size and majesticness, it was far less impressive when compared to the wall raised by Kitsuchi. However, it did its job by blocking the earth spikes moving towards Fujin and his team.
At the same time, the Vacuum Cannon pierced through the gigantic wall and headed straight at Kitsuchi. A look of surprise appeared on Kitsuchi's face. He immediately dodged by moving underground. He thought, 'Roshi wasn't kidding. This kid is very dangerous.'
He concentrated chakra on his body.
'Earth Release: Earth Instantaneous Body jutsu'
Kitsuchi suddenly began moving towards Fujin's squad at a fast speed from underground. Fujin's clones sensed him and immediately shot Vacuum Bullets into the ground. To their surprise, Kitsuchi maneuvered around and dodged all the bullets and passed from under them. The clones thought, 'So fast while under the ground? Even Renjiro isn't this agile under the ground!'
Fujin immediately sensed the massive chakra moving towards him from under the ground. A frown formed on his face as chakra gathered on his fist. Just before Kitsuchi was about to reach his location, he punched the ground with all his might.
The punch instantly cracked the ground. The ground trembled as a strong shockwave moved towards Kitsuchi. The shaking caught the remaining Iwa ninjas off-guard and they immediately retreated momentarily in order to not give an opening to the Konoha ninjas.
Kitsuchi, who was about to launch a couple of jutsus, was shocked. He immediately hardened his skin. Due to the shockwave, he felt some impact of the punch. Sweat appeared on his face as he thought, 'Fortunately, I used the Iron Skin jutsu. Otherwise, I could have been injured. Roshi didn't mention this absurd strength. Did he manage to hide some cards while fighting Roshi?'
Unlike Kitsuchi, Fujin didn't bother thinking much. The punch had brought him a slight breather. He immediately shot a dozen Vacuum Bullets at Kitsuchi. Kitsuchi immediately moved. However, the Vacuum bullets fired by Fujin targeted all his escape routes as well. He could only move in one direction. By twisting his body far beyond what someone of his size should have been capable of, he barely managed to avoid the attack. The Vacuum bullet grazed his left arm, leaving a slight cut despite the Iron Skin jutsu protecting him.
Kitsuchi immediately appeared out of the ground. Before Fujin could attack, he said, "Suzuki Fujin. You are very impressive for your age."
Fujin's eyes widened. Seeing Kitsuchi facing them, the other Iwa ninjas quickly surrounded the Konoha ninjas in a couple of seconds. Fujin glanced and understood, 'Looks like escaping normally is not possible. But I guess that isn't my main concern right now.'
Since the Iwa ninjas weren't attacking, Fujin asked, "How do you know my identity? And why are you targeting the civilians?"
Fujin had understood by now that Roshi had leaked all his combat abilities and fighting style to Iwa. But he was surprised to know that Iwa managed to link the Spectral Swordsman's identity to his real identity. Of course, what disturbed him the most was that they had prepared an army of Jounins specifically to counter his style of combat!
Kitsuchi smirked and replied, "You gave us quite a scare with your fight against Roshi. Did you think that we can't see behind your mask?"
Fujin watched back without replying. Kitsuchi's statement gave no information. More importantly, he was building up a massive amount of chakra! Fujin understood why the remaining Iwa ninjas weren't jumping on them.
Of course, Kitsuchi won't give him the answer. When a secret gets leaked, a lot of suspicions arise. If Fujin suspected a Konoha higher-up, it could decrease his loyalty to the village. Kitsuchi looked at Fujin and thought, 'Six months of planning just to bait and trap him. It's time to deal the final blow.'
Six months ago, Iwagakure :
Kitsuchi walked into Onoki's office and put a few files on his desk and said in a tired voice, "It's too difficult to trap him, old man!"
Onoki looked at all the files on his desk. Every file had information on Suzuki Fujin. Unknown to Fujin and anyone in Konoha, Iwagakure had begun scheming against Fujin a few weeks after his clash against Roshi!
