Hatake Kakashi Absolutely Will Not Be a Chakra Unit!

Chapter 76: Scorch Release (First Update)

Konoha, Year 48.

The Third Great Ninja War was still raging. A small nation to the southwest of the Hidden Sand was annihilated in a war, resulting in massive civilian casualties and heavy losses for the Sand. The leaking Ryūmyaku energy triggered a massive explosion.

The Queen of Rōran and the Sand jōnin Mei Terumi formed a resistance with the remaining people, fighting off probing forces from various factions as well as the Sand's continued offensive.

The Land of Lightning had intended to send a sealing team to investigate but was intercepted by a unit led by the "Yellow Flash," Minato Namikaze. The Third Raikage's son, A, and the Eight-Tails jinchuriki, Killer B, engaged him in a skirmish that ultimately ended in a draw.

It had been over a week since Hatake Kakashi disappeared into the Ryūmyaku.

The resistance was stationed at the entrance of the Third Ryūmyaku, relying on its leaking energy and supplies from an underground storage room. Another reason was to keep an eye on the Ryūmyaku's movements at all times, searching for clues about Hatake Kakashi.

Mei Terumi stood guard at the bombed-out entrance, waiting day after day. Sara came to her side with food and set it down.

"The Sand is still sending more people to Rōran to hunt us."

"Mm."

Answering Sara absentmindedly, the orange-haired girl squinted her eyes and looked up at the Queen of Rōran, as if drunk. The latter knew it wasn't because she had been drinking, but because of the mental exhaustion from days without sleep.

What can happen in a week?

A battle can be fought, a high-ranking official can be assassinated, an organization can be formed, or a missing person can be found.

Many things can happen in a week. What Mei and the Queen of Rōran didn't know was the extent of the losses the Hidden Sand had suffered because of this operation.

The genius boy Sasori had defected, and the Third Kazekage was missing. It seemed as if the village's high-level combat strength had been halved overnight, and it wasn't just a matter of losses. The disappearance of a Kage was a huge blow to the village's prestige. With no one coming to the Sand to post missions, it meant the economy couldn't develop, and the entire nation was at risk of being removed from the Five Great Shinobi Countries.

Against this backdrop, the disappearance of a Cloud jōnin was hardly worth paying attention to, except for this orange-haired girl and the Queen of Rōran, who had witnessed Kakashi sacrifice himself to seal the Ryūmyaku.

Sara's hasty response to the Sand's attack could only hold them off for a while. It wouldn't be long before their ninja breached their defenses, and by then, everything would be over.

Unwilling to tell Mei the fact that the silver-haired boy was already dead, the Queen of Rōran pretended to be relaxed for the time being, keeping her company.

"Get some rest first. Maybe he'll come back tonight."

The orange-haired girl didn't answer, slowly shaking her head. She picked up the food and began to eat slowly and deliberately. With only the last shred of clarity left in her mind, she was now running purely on willpower to keep from collapsing. Mental exhaustion was far more painful than physical fatigue. In the past two days, she had been observing the entrance while also helping the queen with various tasks, but now she could no longer focus on anything but waiting.

The constant drain on their energy had exhausted the entire resistance. In fact, they should have moved to another location long ago. It was because of Mei's insistence that they had waited here for so long. There were already complaints within the resistance. Some had suggested that Sara, as the Queen of Rōran, was relying too much on this orange-haired ninja, and if things continued this way, someone else should take over as the leader of the resistance.

Faced with this situation, Sara could only do her best to appease them and check on Mei's condition every day. After all, it was Mei and Kakashi who had saved her, and they had tirelessly helped her resist the Sand. She couldn't bring herself to burn the bridge after crossing it.

At the same time, a sliver of fantasy lingered in her heart. If that silver-haired boy really wasn't dead, could his powerful strength turn the tide in a situation like this?

"Boom, boom, boom!"

The violent explosions brought the Queen of Rōran back to her senses. She rushed towards the resistance camp, ordering everyone to prepare for withdrawal and combat.

Mei remained unmoved, still eating slowly. When she finished her food, her exhausted body recovered some chakra. She looked at a ninja charging at her with a kunai and, with seemingly slow but actually swift movements, formed a hand seal.

'Lava Release: Melting Blood Technique!'

Possessing two Kekkei Genkai, Mei was not helpless in the desert. With her "Fire, Water, and Earth" nature transformations, she could theoretically fight in any terrain. She usually used Water Release because it was less taxing on her chakra and she was more proficient with it. The Kekkei Genkai put a greater strain on her body, and because of her childhood experiences, she was afraid of others' strange looks, so she used it less often.

The Sand's attack had completely triggered the killing intent born from her anxiety, insomnia, and frustration.

The acidic liquid she spat out instantly corroded the Sand-nin, flesh and bone, to nothing. The strong acid that fell on the sand didn't even produce puffs of white smoke. The Sand-nin vanished before the eyes of his comrades without even a scream.

The two other Sand-nin in the same squad swallowed hard and slowly retreated. They were only chunin. The opponent was clearly a Kekkei Genkai user, not someone grunts like them could handle.

It was better to report to the leading jōnin and let a monster deal with a monster.

After making this decision, the two Sand-nin ignored their dead comrade and immediately disappeared from Mei's sight.

The orange-haired girl returned to her previous spot and sat down, continuing to stare at the Ryūmyaku entrance. Her gaze grew more and more unfocused. After expending her chakra, sleepiness became heavier and heavier. Willpower alone was no longer enough to keep her awake.

She picked up the water Sara had brought her and poured it over her head. It trickled down her hair and over her cheeks. The water, warmed by the sun, did little to wake her up.

The scorching sun in the desert could raise the ground temperature to seventy or eighty degrees Celsius. Even hiding in the shade, one could get heatstroke. In extreme heat, even the air could exceed fifty degrees.

After the Great Rōran Barrier disappeared, the surface of Rōran had indeed become a forbidden zone for humans, just like the rest of the desert.

Mei didn't realize that her drowsiness wasn't just from insomnia, but from heatstroke.

From behind her, a female Sand-nin with two-toned green and yellow hair, wearing a shoulder-baring black ninja outfit, was rapidly approaching.

"Are you the one who killed my subordinate?"

The woman, named Pakura, wielder of the "Scorch Release" Kekkei Genkai, asked Mei. She looked down and saw the subordinate who had been melted into a pool of blood, the sand still bubbling white.

"Yes."

Answering coldly, Mei didn't even turn around. This was extremely dangerous in a ninja confrontation. For any ninja other than a Hyuga, the back was a blind spot. If the opponent were to launch a sneak attack at this moment, there was a high probability of an instant kill.

"What a pitiful creature."

Pakura seemed to understand what the girl was waiting for, but a life for a life. On the battlefield, one had to be prepared to be killed.

'Scorch Release: Extremely Steaming Murder!'

This was a jutsu that evaporated all the moisture from an opponent's body in a single blow. It was cruel and painful. Those who died from this technique all ended up looking like mummies.

The sphere flew rapidly towards the orange-haired girl. Pakura could already foresee her scream of agony.

But as a gentle breeze blew by, space distorted slightly. A flash of purple lightning effortlessly blocked the Scorch Release. A silver-haired young man landed, and before Mei's suddenly widened eyes, he slung her over his shoulder.

"The future you is so much stronger than the you who gives up."

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