My Techniques are a bit off

This look...

Link instantly thought of a very famous character from the original story:

Kurenai Yuhi.

It really seemed to be her, but where were the pursuers? Shouldn't they already be—

"Rustle, rustle."

Link snapped his head toward the swaying bushes in the distance.

Nara Ensui gripped a kunai tightly. "Stay on guard," he ordered. Before his words had fully settled, he flung the kunai forward.

"Thud, thud, thud!"

Three kunai flew in a triangular formation through the undergrowth, slicing leaves from branches before embedding deeply into tree trunks.

The confrontation had officially begun.

Someone had definitely followed them. Whoever it was had an extraordinary ability to mask their presence, disappearing instantly and hiding in the shadows.

Ensui didn't rush forward. Calm and composed, he stood protectively in front of his comrade, holding a kunai in one hand while carefully scanning their surroundings.

Link formed a hand seal, releasing a Clone Technique, and positioned himself in front of the female ninja, who he presumed to be Kurenai. Time passed slowly, and an invisible tension pressed on him, making it harder to breathe.

"Is this killing intent?" He gritted his teeth.

In real combat, there was no time to leisurely form hand seals or prepare jutsu. Ambushes, stealth, and assassination defined a true shinobi battle.

Should he summon his substitute now? If the enemy didn't appear, he'd just waste chakra. His clone's timer was steadily ticking down.

"If we keep stalling, she'll recover enough to fight. But why is the enemy delaying as well?"

"Swish!"

Out of nowhere, an umbrella shot from the undergrowth, not aimed at them but at the sky. It opened mid-air, releasing a flurry of needles that spun and rained down like a deadly storm.

[Ninja Art: Senbon Shower]

Ensui reacted instantly. With a single hand seal, he took a deep breath—

"Fwoosh!"

A gust of wind roared forth, scattering the needles in all directions. Trees snapped and splintered as the force of the wind cleared a path.

[Wind Release: Great Breakthrough]

"Swoosh!"

As Ensui cast the jutsu, a figure emerged from the ground beneath him. A kunai shimmering with an eerie light was thrust toward his thigh.

[Earth Release: Hiding Like a Mole Technique]

Link moved to assist, but before he could act, Ensui's body dissipated with a "poof!", replaced by mist. At the same time, the attacker also exploded into a splash of water.

Shadow clone. Water clone.

Even in that fleeting moment, Link caught a clear glimpse of the attacker's headband: the four vertical lines representing Amegakure.

The presence of a shinobi capable of engaging Ensui confirmed that the enemy was at least jonin-level.

The clash between the two jonin was far from flashy. Simple techniques were exchanged initially, followed by a blur of hand-to-hand combat so fast that Link could barely follow. Gradually, their battle moved farther and farther away.

"The power and speed of fully unleashed jonin… terrifying," Link thought. He quickly pushed aside his awe and focused entirely on maintaining vigilance.

As the two jonin distanced themselves, Link couldn't shake a sense of foreboding.

Ensui's plan was clear: stall until the female ninja could recover enough to contribute, ensuring either a successful defense or retreat. But why was the Rian jonin also delaying?

"Whoosh!"

A sharp sound of air splitting came from Link's rear right.

Surprisingly, Link's nerves calmed. When faced with a direct attack, his instinct was to steady himself. He barely moved, only tilting his head slightly to face the attacker.

"Bam!"

Link's body was sent flying, shattering mid-air into pieces—leaving his head behind.

The attacker, another Amegakure shinobi, froze momentarily upon seeing the severed head remain in place. Instinctively, they disrupted their chakra flow, trying to dispel a potential genjutsu.

"Poof!"

The clone dispersed, and Link took the opportunity. With the enemy distracted, he lunged with a kunai.

"Squelch!"

The kunai slashed across the enemy's arm, blood spraying. Before they could escape, their vision blurred. A pair of crimson eyes filled their field of view, growing larger and larger.

Their head drooped, body still.

The female ninja stood up, swiftly decapitating the immobilized enemy. With practiced precision, she unfurled a scroll, sealed the severed head within, and let the headless body collapse to the ground in a pool of blood.

"Well done," she said warmly.

Link, his face tense, glanced at the lifeless Rain shinobi before looking up at the calm, composed woman who had just executed her opponent. He dusted off the footprint left on his back and formed another Clone Technique.

"She must have recovered long ago—or perhaps she was never as exhausted as she let on," Link thought, grimacing internally. "Adult shinobi… no, veteran shinobi are unbelievably cunning."

He didn't rush to summon his substitute or assist his teacher. Intervening in a battle between jonin would only spell disaster for someone of his level.

"Don't worry about Ensui," the woman said, her tone oddly soothing, as if addressing a child.

Moments later, Ensui reappeared beside them with a soft "swish." Nodding, he simply said, "Let's go."

As for the enemy… they were most likely dead.

While Ensui might lack fame in the shinobi world, the jonin title from a major village like Konoha carried significant weight.

Smaller villages like Amegakure might have skilled individuals, but their jonin often fell short compared to the elites of the Five Great Shinobi Nations. Many were more akin to special jonin or elite chunin in ability.

For someone like Ensui, defeating a no-name Amegakure jonin wasn't particularly challenging. He didn't even need to use advanced techniques like Shadow Sewing Jutsu, likely to conserve energy and maintain secrecy.

Returning to Tanzaku Town, the female ninja visibly slowed, her exhaustion now evident. Yet, she still moved swiftly enough to match Link, who was doing his best to keep up.

Once back, Ensui finally allowed a faint smile to grace his usually stoic face. Ruffling Link's hair, he said, "Good job. Get some rest."

Then, with the female ninja in tow, he vanished with a "poof."