Naruto: The Scientific Ninja

The spiky-haired jōnin jumped to dodge, but the huge water dragon seemed to anticipate it. With an elegant movement, the dragon soared and struck the jōnin mid-air, sending him flying.

"Partial Expansion Jutsu!"

Just at that moment, a thick palm appeared and grew at an incredible speed. In an instant, it reached the size of a windmill and then closed around the jōnin, who was caught in the air with no chance to fight back. His entire body was trapped in the giant fist, with only his head exposed. The sound of cracking bones echoed. The hand's enormous force crushed his limbs and, likely, his internal organs. He spat out a large mouthful of blood and completely lost the ability to move. Akimichi Toribō, one of the support team members, had neutralized him in a single move.

On the other side, the last remaining Sand Village chūnin met no better fate. His body was covered by a large number of black parasite insects. It was obvious that the Aburame clan member of the support team had easily defeated him.

At that moment, Sasuke appeared stunned by the sudden appearance of the Water Dragon Bullet. He stood there, like a statue. But in reality, beneath that dazed appearance, his heart was pounding. The jutsu had grazed his body, and he had felt not fear, but pure, overwhelming excitement.

It was a near-zero contact, and he truly felt the amazing power of that technique, which was only B-rank. If it were an A-rank or S-rank ninjutsu, how terrifying would it be? Although this cruel ninja world was far less beautiful than his previous life, it also had its own beauty. Weren't these powerful ninjutsus what he had always longed for? 'After getting the merit points for this mission, I must exchange them for the knowledge to develop a second chakra attribute.'

"Great, we're safe!" Ye exclaimed, overflowing with joy seeing that the crisis was finally resolved.

"Huh? What's happening?" Sasuke asked, with a look of bewilderment, and turned to Ye to confirm, "Ye, are we dreaming?"

"Senpai, it's real, we're safe! The mobile patrol team's rescue has arrived!" Ye replied, hugging Sasuke with indescribable joy.

"Okay, okay! I know," Sasuke said, feeling rather uncomfortable being hugged by the boy. He tried to separate himself from the intimate embrace.

But at that moment... zip!

A senbon shot out from the mouth of the dying, spiky-haired jōnin. The target was Sasuke's head.

As expected of a Suna jōnin, even with his bones broken and on the verge of death, he could still launch one last, vengeful sneak attack. None of those who become jōnin are simple folk, and those trained in the harsh Land of Wind are the most tenacious.

With a final crushing sound, Toribō's giant hand finished the job, leaving only the head intact.

"Watch out!" several Konoha ninja shouted, but it was too late to react.

"Captain, move!" yelled Ryo, whose sense of smell and sight allowed him to detect the attack.

"Shit!" Sasuke's face changed drastically.

His sonar radar, being based on ultrasonic waves, didn't have the penetrating ability of the Byakugan, so he hadn't perceived the senbon hidden in the enemy's mouth. However, the moment it was spat out, he sensed it, which gave him a fraction of a second to dodge.

His first thought was, naturally, survival. 'Better you die than me.' He was ready to move aside. But upon further thought, if he dodged, he would sacrifice Ye, who was right behind him. The "Will of Fire" disguise he had cultivated for over half a year would be shattered. He would be classified as a disposable and unreliable ninja.

In that decisive moment, Sasuke's mind was clearer than ever.

'Got it!' he thought, devising a wonderful response plan in a split second.

"Ye, watch out!" he shouted, and without hesitation, he stood in front of him, as if he were going to use his own body to fulfill the Will of Fire and block the senbon.

A faint ding was heard.

The sudden senbon struck Sasuke's forehead protector dead center.

"No..." The spiky-haired jōnin died with his eyes wide open, an expression of heartbreaking despair on his face as he breathed his last. His desperate eyes revealed infinite reluctance and desolation. In his opinion, this was the ultimate injustice of fate. A sure-kill shot, and he had the incredible bad luck for it to hit the one piece of metal.

"Awesome!"

"The captain is fine! The senbon hit the forehead protector!"

"The captain is protected by the gods!"

Tekudō, Ryo, and Chōmi cheered and hugged each other. Ryo was enveloped by the chubby Chōmi, his face full of a blushing joy.

"Senpai, mmm..." Ye, saved again, was so emotional that he burst into tears and hugged Sasuke tightly once more.

'Hey, hey, hey! Don't get your snot on my vest. It's hard to wash,' Sasuke thought, wanting to push away the boy who was clinging to him like a limpet. But he understood that for a 13 or 14-year-old boy, escaping death was an overwhelming experience. Luckily, the exploding tags still stuck to his body were not trigger-activated.