"Damn it, Konoha's reinforcements!"
The Kumogakure leader gritted his teeth and looked at Ren, as his arrival had broken the balance on the battlefield. Their chances of winning had been infinitely lowered.
"Retreat!"
He didn't hesitate and immediately ordered a retreat. Everyone with a clear mind could see that if they continued fighting, they would all be left there; only retreating was the best option at the moment.
"Retreat?"
Ren glanced at the Kumogakure ninja preparing to leave before turning his gaze to the Konoha squad.
"Let's keep them here. If we can capture a Cloud Jonin, we might get some useful intelligence."
After Ren finished speaking, he paid them no more mind and instead lifted his leg to chase after them, leaving the others standing there, looking at each other in dismay.
"Captain, what should we do?"
The young man who had defeated his opponent with Ren's help walked up to the Captain and asked.
"Chase!"
After this Jonin reacted, he didn't hesitate much. After speaking, he took the lead in chasing after Ren's disappearing figure. The remaining Genin also didn't hesitate after receiving the order, gripping their weapons and following suit.
"Running quite fast!"
Ren looked at the figures fleeing in the distance within the forest, a hint of mockery appearing on his face.
"But, can you escape?"
The next moment, three pairs of light yellow transparent wings suddenly appeared behind Ren, then began to flap rapidly. When the Kumogakure ninjas turned back to check for Ren behind them, they found no one.
"Phew, looks like we shook him off."
The Kumogakure leader slightly relaxed after noticing this situation. After all, if they were caught and entangled, their squad, apart from himself, would have no chance of escaping.
But when he turned his head, his heart, which had just settled, instantly rose again. The two Genin next to him also widened their eyes, looking ahead with disbelief.
Ren, who should have been chasing them from behind, had somehow appeared in front of them. It was truly seeing a ghost!
Just as the two Genin slowed their steps, preparing to stop and fight, the Cloud Jonin beside them showed no sign of slowing down. While moving at extreme speed, he shouted at the two.
"Don't stop, hurry up and go. I'll take care of that guy."
"Yes! X2"
The two didn't dally. After responding, they circled around Ren. In their opinion, with their Captain's Jonin strength, he would be able to deal with the opponent in a short time and then catch up.
"Hey, aren't you being too disrespectful?"
Seeing the Cloud Jonin charging towards him head-on and the two Cloud Genin preparing to run past him, Ren formed hand seals. As a puff of white smoke exploded, Shadow Clone Number One appeared beside him.
"Those two Genin are up to you, brother."
After Ren finished speaking, he kicked off a tree trunk, holding a Kunai, and charged towards the opponent.
"Get lost, Konoha brat!"
Noticing Ren approaching, the Cloud Jonin's face became ferocious. He gripped a long sword and brought it down on Ren's head!
"Is it a taijutsu battle right from the start…?"
Ren ignored the opponent's shouting. His Kunai changed direction, shifting from offense to defense, blocking in front.
After a clang of metal, Ren's Kunai successfully parried the opponent's long sword, and then both sides began to exert force, attempting to gain the upper hand in terms of strength.
This brat, what great strength!
The Cloud Jonin looked at Ren with some surprise. He had already used his full strength, but he hadn't overpowered the opponent, and as time passed, he slowly started to feel a bit strained.
"Yo, big brother, why are you getting weak? Didn't you tell me to get lost just now?"
Ren looked at the opponent gleefully, teasing him.
"Bastard!"
Upon hearing Ren's words, the Cloud Jonin immediately felt insulted. His free left hand clenched into a fist and then slammed towards Ren.
"Punching?"
Ren's eyes lit up. He also threw a punch to meet it, while Chakra circulated within his body.
"Bang!"
The two fists collided with a muffled thud. Before the opponent could exert force, the Chakra in Ren's hand erupted. The immense impact instantly caught the Cloud Jonin off guard, sending him flying backward with his long sword.
Ren didn't pursue but stood still, quietly waiting for the opponent to get up.
The Cloud Jonin slid several meters on the ground before hitting a tree trunk. The intense pain from his back and left arm instantly caused a thin layer of sweat to appear on his forehead.
"Such great strength."
He gritted his teeth as he got up, staring intently at Ren. His long sword was tightly gripped in his right hand, constantly vigilant and guarding against a sudden attack from Ren.
"I say, is there still a need to fight?"
Ren took two steps forward, and under the opponent's somewhat confused gaze, he gestured to the side.
"What?!"
The Cloud Jonin's face instantly changed after following the direction Ren pointed.
He saw that his two subordinates had already been defeated and were in an unconscious state. Shadow Clone Number One next to them had tied them up with a roll of steel wire, and had stuffed a torn piece of cloth from their own clothes into each of their mouths, making it impossible for them to commit suicide.
Just then, several figures suddenly flashed out from the trees around the Cloud Jonin. They wore Konoha headbands; it was the previous Konoha squad.
"Tsk, everyone's here. Are you still going to fight?"
Ren looked at the opponent with a light smile, while secretly forming hand seals behind his back.
"Don't think you can catch me!"
Although surrounded, the Cloud Jonin did not give up resisting. No matter what, he was a dignified Jonin. Even if he couldn't win, escaping was still not a problem.
Then, this way!
After scanning the surroundings, he decided on his breakthrough direction: east, where a Konoha Genin was standing. As long as he quickly flashed past the Genin, he would have a chance to retreat!
"Prepare to surrender…"
The Konoha Jonin stood on the tree trunk and said in a deep voice to the opponent. But before he could finish speaking, he saw the Cloud Jonin pull out two smoke bombs from his Pregnant and throw them hard onto the ground. Instantly, black smoke billowed in the forest, and everyone's vision was obscured.
"Everyone, be careful!"
The Konoha Jonin shouted a warning to everyone while forming hand seals. As Chakra rose to his throat, he let out a low roar.
"Wind Release: Great Breakthrough!"
A gust of strong wind surged from his mouth, and the surrounding black smoke immediately began to dissipate. In a few breaths, the black smoke in this area was completely cleared away.
"Captain, over here!"
The Genin standing to the east accidentally saw a figure flash by and, upon closer inspection, realized it was the Cloud Jonin trying to escape, and immediately shouted.
"Not good!"
The Konoha Jonin's face darkened slightly. He was about to go after him when someone held him back. He turned his head and found that Ren had appeared beside him at some point.
"No need to rush."
Under the opponent's confused gaze, Ren's mouth curved upward, and he said softly, looking at the Cloud Jonin who had already run dozens of meters away.
"Demonic Illusion: Hell Viewing Technique."