Sharingan Evolution: Proficiency's Path

At the same time, the other Konoha Jonin began to carry out their tasks.

Several of them suddenly withdrew from the battle and quickly spread out, organizing the remaining Konoha Chunin and Genin for retreat.

Yes, retreat.

Their mission was to stall Iwagakure's reinforcements, not to throw their lives away. Retreating while engaging the enemy was undoubtedly the best option.

Staying any longer would only result in being surrounded. There was no point in that, and everything had been planned in advance.

Therefore, the Konoha forces reorganized rapidly. Shortly after receiving the order, over a dozen teams formed, each led by a Jonin.

During this time, Iwagakure's Chunin and Genin tried to interfere, but since their Jonin were all tied up, they lacked the high-level support needed to deal with Konoha's various squads. Without effective command, they couldn't cause much disruption.

A few minutes later, the Konoha shinobi successfully disengaged from the battle.

Only then did the Konoha Jonin, who were previously locked in combat with the Iwagakure Jonin, begin to retreat one by one.

Most of them rejoined the main group, moving in formation. However, a few, like Seimei, dashed ahead of the main force.

They were part of the combat unit, responsible for clearing the path.

As for why they were heading back the way they came?

The reason was simple: once their allies broke through Iwagakure's defensive lines, they could regroup more quickly. This would also ensure their safety.

Watching the Konoha forces disappear into the distance, an Iwagakure Chunin turned to a Jonin and asked, "Captain, should we pursue them?"

The Iwagakure Jonin glared at him and barked, "Of course! Keep chasing!"

With that, he rallied the remaining Iwa-nin and launched a pursuit.

And so, one side chased while the other fled, and half an hour passed in the blink of an eye.

At the forefront of the group, Seimei, who was running at full speed, suddenly halted, then swiftly leaped backward.

In the next moment, several kunai flew from the front, embedding themselves in the tree branch where he had just stood.

A sharp sizzling sound followed, and Seimei noticed explosive tags attached to the kunai rapidly burning.

An instant later, a series of explosions rang out, and several fireballs erupted, setting the surrounding trees ablaze.

Seimei, having dodged in time, was unharmed.

Standing on a branch, he observed the dense crowd of enemies suddenly emerging in front of him. His heart sank as he realized their path had been blocked.

"I wonder if the flanks are also cut off?"

With that thought in mind, Seimei took out a whistle from his pouch and blew it in a specific rhythm.

This special whistle could be heard from far away. By using prearranged signals, simple information could be transmitted over a distance.

However, the sound of the whistle was distinctive, making it easy to detect. Therefore, it could only be used in situations like this, where secrecy was no longer an option.

After sending the signal, Seimei pocketed the whistle.

The Iwa-nin ahead of him didn't seem to care about what he had just done. They appeared confident, as if they had already cornered him, which made Seimei feel uneasy.

But he quickly pushed those thoughts aside and focused on the current situation.

Scanning the Iwa-nin, he counted twenty in total: two Jonin, eight Chunin, and ten Genin.

If it were only these twenty, he could still fight. However...

Seimei peered into the distance through the gaps in the crowd and trees, spotting more Iwa-nin approaching from behind.

Clearly, these twenty were just the vanguard, with the main force still on the way.

"In that case, I have to retreat now."

Without hesitation, Seimei turned to leave.

But at that moment, a sudden sense of danger gripped him, making his hair stand on end. Almost instinctively, he leaned backward.

In the next instant, a kunai gleamed as it slashed past his face, the sharp wind nearly slicing his skin.

'Wind Release?!'

The thought flashed through Seimei's mind as he caught sight of the kunai's wielder out of the corner of his eye.

In that brief moment, his expression froze.

It was him—the young Iwagakure Jonin, Shoji Kohara—the very man who had killed Mizutani Shizuko.

Months ago, Iwagakure and Sunagakure had launched a joint surprise attack on Konoha's main camp, dealing significant damage to the village.

In retaliation, Orochimaru had planned a raid on Iwagakure's supply center.

During that mission, Mizutani Shizuko had died saving Seimei, her throat pierced by a kunai thrown by Shoji Kohara.

Seimei could still vividly recall the look in her eyes—her desperate clinging to life in those final moments.

Back then, he had vowed to kill Shoji Kohara and avenge her death.

However, at the time, his Sharingan only had one tomoe, and his Konoha-ryu swordsmanship was only at level 3. His skills in genjutsu, particularly the "Demonic Illusion: Shackling Stakes Technique," and his fire-release jutsu were all at level 2, making them ineffective.

Shoji had easily overpowered him in close combat.

If it weren't for the fact that Seimei had risked injury to escape and seek help from a Konoha Jonin, he would likely be dead now.

Since then, Seimei had sworn to avenge her.

He had planned to track down Shoji after this mission, but unexpectedly, fate had brought them together today.

It truly was a case of bitter rivals meeting again.

As for how Shoji had gotten so close to him?

Seimei recalled the earlier sneak attack and realized it was eerily similar to their previous encounter.

It was clear that Shoji had once again used "Camouflage Concealment Technique," his expert stealth jutsu.

Luckily, Seimei's quick reflexes had saved him from being instantly killed.

All these thoughts raced through Seimei's mind in a flash as he stared coldly at Shoji, his eyes filled with deadly intent, as if he were looking at a corpse.

Shoji, for his part, showed no fear. In fact, he seemed slightly excited by the encounter.

From Shoji's gaze, Seimei could tell that he too had recognized him.

"Perfect," Seimei thought. "If he didn't remember who I was, killing him wouldn't feel nearly as satisfying."

At that moment, Shoji twirled his wrist, retracting the kunai, then slashed it horizontally toward Seimei's throat.

Had this been before, Seimei might not have been able to react in time.

But now...

With a swift activation of his Sharingan, Seimei simultaneously initiated a genjutsu while kicking off from the branch, leaping backward.

Upon seeing Seimei's blood-red Sharingan, Shoji quickly averted his gaze.

Although his hand continued its attack, without his vision to guide him, his movements inevitably slowed.

In that brief instant, Seimei dodged the attack, appearing on another tree branch.

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