บท 77: Escape

Contrary to everyone's expectations, the Jōnin didn't attack immediately. Instead, they pulled something out of their pockets: a flare.

The sudden flash of the flare briefly illuminated the tense faces of all present. The bright red light contrasted with the rainy afternoon, creating dancing shadows on the hotel walls.

Despite all this, Shikaku was the first to understand the implications of this act. "No, they want to call someone?"

The group watched helplessly as the flare ascended towards the cloudy sky. A small part of them harbored hope that the heavy rain might extinguish the signal before it fulfilled its purpose. However, this hope quickly vanished.

The enemy Jōnin, clearly familiar with Amegakure's conditions, had come prepared. The flare they used wasn't a common one; it was specifically designed to resist moisture and rain.

As the flare rose higher and higher in the gray sky, the group held their breath. Then, with a deafening burst that seemed to cut through the air itself, the flare exploded.

Boom!

In the sky, above everyone's heads, an image formed: a huge scarlet eagle head.

The silence that followed was brief and tense, abruptly broken by the cold and determined voice of the masked Jōnin:

"Do it. Eliminate everyone except the target."

Without further ado, the Jōnin lunged at Chen. However, he remained unfazed, a cold smile forming on his lips.

"You consider me a mere target?" Chen's mocking voice sounded. "You're making a grave mistake..."

The Jōnin, ignoring the warning, delivered a devastating blow that seemed to split Chen in half. However, the satisfaction in his eyes quickly faded, replaced by shock. What he had cut was nothing more than a residual image.

"Your speed..." Chen's voice resonated from behind the Jōnin. "Is pitifully slow."

Frightened, the Jōnin abruptly retreated.

Chen, without losing his composure, adopted a combat stance. His eyes gleaming with amusement. "You've made your move. It would be discourteous of me not to respond accordingly."

Without resorting to Chakra or any special technique, he raised his fist. The air around his arm seemed to distort. With a fluid and powerful movement, he launched his punch.

The force of the blow was such that it compressed the air in front of him, creating a visible vacuum that rushed towards the Jōnin with terrifying speed. The sound of displaced air was deafening, like the roar of nearby thunder.

Boom!

The impact was instantaneous and devastating. The Jōnin, unable to dodge or defend against an attack of such magnitude and speed, took the vacuum fist head-on.

The blow hit him with overwhelming force, disintegrating his defense and tearing through his body as if it were paper.

In an instant, the Jōnin who had represented a mortal threat to the group vanished, reduced to nothing more than a memory.

"Gulp!"

The sound of Nawaki and Inoichi swallowing resonated in the silence that followed Chen's devastating attack. Their eyes, wide open, reflected pure amazement and terror at this display of power they had just witnessed.

The violence and efficiency with which Chen had eliminated the Jōnin far exceeded anything they had imagined he would do.

Nawaki, with a trembling voice, muttered: "A... a single blow. He didn't even use chakra..."

Inoichi, unable to look away from where the Jōnin had been, nodded slowly.

For his part, Shikaku let out a nervous laugh.

"Now I understand why you were so calm. A few more Jōnin would be nothing more than a warm-up for you, right?"

Despite his sarcastic tone, the relief in his voice was evident. The presence of someone as powerful as Chen on their team meant that their chances of survival had increased exponentially.

However, while the others celebrated their apparent advantage, Shikaku's sharp mind couldn't stop analyzing what he had just witnessed. 'An effect equivalent to an A-level ninjutsu, at minimum... and without using a drop of chakra,' he muttered with amazement and a touch of unease. 'Chen... w-what kind of monster are you really?'

The second Jōnin, momentarily paralyzed by the shock of seeing his companion disintegrated in a matter of seconds, barely had time to process what was happening.

His eyes, visible through the slits of his mask, opened wide.

Swish!

Before he could even adopt a defensive posture, Chen appeared in front of him. In the palm of his hand, a sphere of Chakra began to form, crackling with such intense electrical energy that the air around it seemed to crackle.

"You die with him too!"

"Thunder-Rasengan!"

The Jōnin, realizing too late the danger he was in, could only let out a choked cry before Chen impacted the Thunder Rasengan directly into his chest.

The effect was instantaneous. The spinning Chakra sphere, empowered by electrical energy, tore through the Jōnin's armor as if it were paper, opening a huge hole in his flesh.

But the attack didn't end there.

In a fraction of a second, the energy of the Thunder Rasengan expanded, completely enveloping the Jōnin's body.

Lightning bolts of bright blue danced over his skin, instantly carbonizing it.

When the blinding light of the attack dissipated, all that remained of the once Jōnin was a charred, unrecognizable corpse that collapsed to the ground with a thud.

Puff!

It was all over in a matter of seconds. The two Jōnin, who moments before represented a mortal threat, now lay defeated, having barely uttered a few words before meeting their end.

The Thunder Rasengan, a technique developed by Chen himself, was a perfect fusion between the rotational power of the Rasengan and the devastating electrical force of the Goro Goro no Mi.

This combination not only exponentially increased the destructive power of the original Rasengan, but also gave it the ability to be launched as a projectile.

At its maximum power, the Thunder Rasengan was capable of cutting entire mountains, rivaling the destructive power of a Bijudama.

"....."

The silence that followed the demonstration of power was broken by Nawaki's trembling voice. His eyes, still wide open with amazement, fixed on Chen.

"Chen... how strong are you really?"

With a serene expression, Chen shrugged slightly, "Honestly, I don't know. So far, I've never encountered anyone who forced me to use all my power."

There was no boasting in his tone, just a simple statement of a fact that, for him, was as natural as breathing.

"You're... you're a real monster, Chen. It's hard to believe we're students of the same level. I've never heard of anyone capable of killing a Jōnin at ten years old... not even someone with Jōnin strength at that age." Inoichi, still trying to process what he had just witnessed, shook his head in disbelief.

While the others were still stunned, Konan broke free from Mikoto's arms and ran towards Chen. Her small eyes shone with pure adoration, "Big brother is so powerful!"

For Konan, Chen had become a divine figure, a savior in a world that until now had only shown her cruelty.

Shikaku was the first to regain his composure. With urgency in his voice, he suggested, "We have to get out of here, now. Before reinforcements arrive."

"But we haven't done anything! Why are they chasing us?" Claw complained with frustration.

However, Chen didn't respond. His gaze briefly rested on Tomo, the Jinchūriki, understanding the true reason behind the attack.

Without saying a word, he took Konan in his arms and jumped towards the roof of the nearest building.

"Let's go now!" he ordered.

Mikoto and Kushina, understanding the urgency of the situation, followed Chen without hesitation. The others, still stunned but aware of the danger, didn't take long to imitate them.

....

The group stopped atop a building, the incessant rain forming puddles at their feet. Shikaku, with his brow furrowed in concern, approached Chen, "Chen, what's the plan now? Do we go straight back to the village?"

With Konan still in his arms, he paused to consider the situation, "Yes, but we can't take the direct path. We'll have to take a detour to avoid the main battlefield."

With a movement, he placed Konan on the ground and pulled out a map from his clothes. He spread it out in front of the group, protecting it from the rain with his body.

Pointing to their current location, "We're here, in the southwest of the Rain Country. The shortest route to the Fire Country would take us directly through the battlefield. Mikoto, Kushina and I could handle it, but for the rest of you it would be too dangerous."

His eyes scanned the faces of his companions, "Even if I protected you, the risk would be too high. We need a safer route, even if it takes us longer."

Tracing a line on the map with his finger, he said "Our current position leaves us with few options. To return to the Fire Country without crossing the heart of the conflict, we only have to take a detour."

"You're right, Chen. The best option seems to be to detour towards the Country of Rivers." Shikaku leaned over the map, his sharp eyes analyzing the possible routes. After a moment of consideration, he nodded slowly.

He was aware of his team. Nawaki, Hizashi, Tomo and Minato barely reached Chūnin level, and the others were no more than Genin. Despite the presence of Chen and Kushina, who could face Chūnin without problems, crossing an active battlefield was a risk they couldn't afford.

"It's too dangerous to try to cross directly," Shikaku continued. "Even Jōnin fall on the battlefield. We can't risk it."

Chen nodded. "It's decided then. We'll head towards the Country of Rivers."

With that decision made, the group prepared to depart.

Chen took Konan in his arms again, the girl clinging to him with blind trust.

....

Ten minutes after Chen and his group's departure, a figure landed in front of the ruined hotel: the Blood Eagle.

Behind him, a group of Root ninjas deployed in silence. The Blood Eagle advanced, his steps resonating in the sepulchral silence that enveloped the place.

Upon reaching the hotel entrance, the scene that greeted them was desolate. The charred body of his subordinate lay on the ground, unrecognizable. The smell of burnt flesh still lingered in the air.

The Blood Eagle crouched in front of the bodies, his rigid posture betraying the anger that boiled inside him.

"Useless trash," he spat the words as if they were poison. "They couldn't even contain a group of freshly graduated Genin."

"They died like the scum they were."

Turning to his subordinates, he ordered, "Follow the tracks. I want you to find those rats before the ANBU. Don't fail me like these incompetents."

Despite the relentless rain, Chen's group, in their inexperience, had left a visible trail.

Just minutes after the Root team set off in pursuit, another group arrived at the scene: ANBU. Always a step behind, Konoha's elite quickly examined the area, catching details that others would have overlooked.

Without exchanging words, the ANBU team set in motion, following the same trail as the Blood Eagle and his men.

________

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