Traveling through Naruto with Heroes of Might and Magic

Chapter 32 Basic Earth Magic

flaw!

It was discovered far too easily.

Looking back now, even if he had suspicions from the very beginning.

But as a renowned spy in the ninja world—a walking shrine maiden—how could Yakushi Nonou let him discover her secrets so easily?

"As expected... truly worthy of being called the 'Guardian of Light in the Darkness'?"

Yakushi Nonou undoubtedly loves the village.

Besides her identity as a member of 'Root', her public identity is the director of the orphanage in Konoha Village.

Since the First Hokage, Konoha has seen the emergence of another "Wood Release ninja".

How could she possibly do anything to harm the village?

"so……"

Qingwu figured out the crux of the matter: "Did Nono deliberately expose a flaw in this operation as a final warning?"

"Danzo..." Qingwu's eyes narrowed slightly as he gazed at the dark forest.

He had always known about Shimura Danzo's ambitions.

That's why he had no choice but to align himself with the Third Hokage after "awakening Wood Release".

But Danzo's roots always weighed on his heart like a mountain.

"We'll move this mountain sooner or later!"

Qingwu made a silent vow to the night sky.

……

early morning.

Iruka seemed somewhat downcast after learning that Chino had left.

"She's a very good senior," Iruka said dejectedly. "Although she sometimes seems to have poor eyesight, her treatments are very professional."

"Yes!" Qingwu said meaningfully, "Very 'professional'."

"What urgent matter is it that you left overnight? Can't you come back with us?"

"After all, they're from the medical team; they probably have some kind of emergency medical mission."

"Didn't she tell you, Qingwu?"

"No, I was awake when she left, but she said goodbye in a hurry and left. Oh, and she asked me to say hello to you and apologize."

"Really? Senior has approved of me as a teammate."

"Yeah, but it seems we won't be able to team up together anymore."

"Huh? Why? We finally found a medical ninja."

"Well... um, Chino said it. She said she'll be very busy from now on."

"...That's such a shame."

Qingwu didn't tell Iruka the true identity of "Chino," nor was it necessary.

Seeing Iruka's dejected expression, Qingwu was about to offer a few words of comfort when...

【Ding! 】

[Trigger Mission: Drive Out the Invaders 3]

[Mission Description: Defend your territory and repel the invaders]

[Quest Reward: Slow Spell (Basic Earth Magic)]

"???" Qingwu was dumbfounded.

So it really is a "tower defense game" now, this is the third time!

What's even more frustrating this time is that he wasn't in the territory, and he took all the basic troops with him.

"Qingwu, what's wrong?"

Noticing Qingwu's anxious expression, Iruka asked.

Fortunately, a Tier 5 Deadwood Guardian was left in the territory this time, which put Qingwu at ease. "Iruka, how much longer will it take us to get back?"

"You also have something urgent to attend to?"

Iruka, who was in charge of looking at the map and planning the route, thought for a moment and said, "At a normal pace, we should be able to get back to the village by the afternoon."

...If it were Cloud Ninja, the Drywood Guardians should be sufficient to defend against it, but it cannot be ruled out that this was Root's action after Nonou sent a message in Tanabata yesterday.

Qingwu pondered, "The art of spirit communication!"

Two centaurs were summoned.

"A rope!" Qingwu reached out to Iruka.

Qingwu made two makeshift reins out of rope and said, "Take the main road and go back at full speed."

Iruka noticed Qingwu's anxiety and stopped talking.

It just felt a bit odd that the reins were around the centaur's waist.

Because the upper body of a centaur is "human-shaped".

Qingwu couldn't care less about that now; he tightened the reins and gave the order.

The centaur neighed and began to gallop forward at full speed.

"Waaaaah—" Behind him, Iruka was shouting loudly.

Iruka knew the centaurs were fast, but their relentless charge without slowing down still terrified him.

"Whoosh!"

Kakashi appeared in the middle of the road.

Watching the two speed away, he shook his head helplessly and chased after them...

……

at the same time.

The Forest of Death, on the edge of the territory.

Three figures emerged from the shadows of the trees like ghosts, without making a sound.

They were all wearing masks.

The leader was of medium build, and his mask had no extra lines, only two thin, knife-like slits around his eyes that barely revealed a pair of emotionless eyes.

Behind them were two people, one of whom was wearing a mask with red patterns.

The other one wore a simple, unpatterned white mask and was the shortest of the three.

Judging from the design of their masks, they are distinct from the animal masks worn by the Anbu, and are indeed ninjas from the Root.

"This is it."

The cold-faced ninja in the lead said, "Bing and I will hold off the Anbu members. Jia, you go inside and gather intelligence."

The man with the red mask warned, "Jia, use your Wood Release technique to infiltrate; do not force your way in."

"Yes!" the short ninja called "A" replied in a low voice, his voice still carrying the immaturity of a young boy.

The other two Root ninjas exchanged a glance, then shouted, "Disperse!"

A moment later, the sounds of battle could be heard in the distance.

A walked to the wall, raised his hands to form a mudra, and moved with practiced skill and precision.

"Wood Release: Thorns Technique!"

"Laughable" thickets of thorns sprouted behind and above him as he cautiously peeked out from behind the wall to investigate.

"No barrier, no alarm triggered!"

The territory was completely silent, and Jia immediately spotted the unique ancient tree in the center.

"despair!"

It landed gently.

Knowing his time was running out, A glanced over the strange buildings, including the Centaur Stable and the Dwarf Village.

Using the thorns as cover, he moved straight toward the ancient tree.

Their mission was to gather intelligence about the area while their "master" was away, and A's intuition told him that the secret lay in that ancient tree.

What puzzled Jia was that the closer he got to the ancient tree, the more active his Wood Release chakra became.

It even carried a strange sense of excitement.

He couldn't resist reaching out to touch the warm, smooth bark.

Just then—

"Buzz!"

A large tree next to the ancient tree "came back to life".

The withered tree guardian has moved.

Two beams of eerie green light suddenly lit up, instantly locking onto Jia, who was less than 3 meters away from the ancient tree.

"Snap!"

The ground beneath A's feet suddenly exploded, and several roots as thick as a wrist burst out of the soil, coiling around his legs like giant pythons!

Despite his young age, A's reflexes are incredibly fast.

The instant the roots touched him, he leaped backward, simultaneously forming hand seals: "Wood Release: Wood Wall!"

The wooden retaining wall rose up, slightly blocking the surging roots.

A took the opportunity to retreat several meters further.

He found that releasing Wood Release here seemed...very easy.

Not only does it consume less chakra, but it is also more powerful.

Suppressing his doubts, Jia skillfully dodged the attacks of the roots and moved closer to the ancient tree once again.

Since there are guards around the ancient tree, it proves that his guess was correct.

The thought of completing the task occupied his entire mind.

However, he underestimated the protective capabilities of the withered tree guardians...