Inside the cave,
Rin Nohara was protected within [Iron Sand Sphere]. Hikaru tried to punch through it, only to get stabbed by spikes.
Looking at his right hand, now pierced with several bleeding holes, Hikaru angrily said, "Fine then, I'll use a jutsu to blow this thing open!"
Hikaru began forming hand seals, attempting to forcefully break through [Iron Sand Sphere].
Black Zetsu immediately stopped him. "Are you crazy? We need to extract intelligence about Konoha from her! If you accidentally kill her, what then? Do you plan to capture another one? The enemy will definitely be on guard now; it won't be easy to catch another one again!"
Black Zetsu intended to keep Rin Nohara as bait to lure Obito.
If she died because of Hikaru's recklessness, who would they use to tempt Obito? Would it be Taiseki, whose mind he had controlled, or this not particularly clever Hikaru here?
Furious, Hikaru asked, "Then what do we do now? That brat is hiding inside the sphere. We can't just blast through it. How are we supposed to get intel out of her?"
Thinking for a moment, Black Zetsu cunningly replied, "Perhaps her little friends might come to save her. Here's the plan—we'll set up some traps first. If those kids really show up, we'll try to catch them using the traps. Even if we fail, we still have the girl in the sphere as backup.
"If we manage to capture any one of those three brats, this girl becomes expendable—eliminate her.
"I suggest we target that brat wearing sunglasses with a pompadour hairstyle. He appears particularly unintelligent. Compared to the other two—who seem smarter—he probably has the highest chance of giving us useful intel under pressure."
The not-so-bright Hikaru nodded in agreement. "Makes sense. That guy with the pompadour hairstyle really does seem noticeably less intelligent compared to the masked guy and that sharp-looking black-haired kid. Okay, let's go with your plan."
...
"The necklaces we gave them serve as recognition devices. Once activated, they release a small summoning scroll. Because it's activated by chakra, it automatically summons sand-iron from the scroll. Responding to the necklace's activation, the summoned iron sand forms into [Iron Sand Shield] to protect whoever wears it.
"So as long as Rin activates the device embedded in the necklace, she will be protected by [Iron Sand Shield]. If the enemy attacks the shield, the iron sand will counterattack automatically.
"Since Rin is now safe from interrogation and torture, she should be fine for now. All we have to do during this window is rescue her."
Shindai explained the function of the necklaces to Kakashi and Obito.
Obito, feeling relieved after hearing this, raised his thumb at Shindai. "Shindai, you're amazing! Who knew you were so prepared!"
Kakashi frowned deeply, asking thoughtfully, "But what if they use a ninjutsu technique trying to blow through your Iron Sand Shield?"
The amount of Iron Sand contained within a Small Summoning Scroll must be limited, so its protective capacity should also be limited, don't you think?
Shindai replied seriously, "You're absolutely right, Kakashi…"
The weight that had just lifted from Obito's chest suddenly rose back up into his throat. He anxiously said, "Then what do we do?! What if they try to break through your Iron Sand Shield and accidentally injure Rin inside?
Shindai calmed Obito down, saying, "I know you're worried now, but don't panic yet. As you said, what if they accidentally hurt Rin? Don't those two Rock ninjas have the same concern? They want intelligence reports—they'll also worry about accidentally killing Rin because if she dies, they won't get any information. So they won't act recklessly.
Therefore, we need to carefully approach them. Once we get close enough, I can use my Third Eye remotely on Rin's Iron Sand Shield to confirm her condition and then formulate a battle plan!"
Kakashi agreed with Shindai's speculation. The Rock ninjas wanted intelligence and wouldn't act rashly before extracting it.
But Obito was still very worried, unable to let the stone in his throat settle back into his chest. He urged Shindai and Kakashi to hurry and rescue Rin together.
After traveling for some time,
Shindai, Obito, and Kakashi arrived at the tree trunk outside the cave where Taiseki, Hikaru, and Rin Nohara were located.
Obito and Kakashi both turned their gaze to Shindai.
Shindai performed several hand seals.
An eye appeared on the surface of the Iron Sand Sphere protecting Rin Nohara inside the cave.
While pressing his left eye and observing, Shindai said, "I see her. Rin is fine. She has activated my device and is now protected by the Iron Sand Shield. However, those two Rock ninjas are also inside the cave. It seems like… they're setting up traps."
Obito couldn't wait any longer. "Then let's go! Let's save Rin!"
Kakashi scolded him, "Idiot! Calm down! Didn't you hear what Shindai just said? They're setting traps inside. If we go in, we'll walk straight into their trap!
I understand how much you want to save Rin, and both Shindai and I also want to rescue her immediately—but precisely at times like this, we mustn't panic. We must rescue Rin with minimal losses, instead of having to rescue both Rin and you afterwards. Do you understand?"
Obito opened his mouth slightly, lowered his head, and quietly said, "Sorry, I'll stay calm."
Inside the cave, Black Zetsu had already noticed the eye on the Iron Sand Sphere. Immediately, he pulled out a kunai and threw it at the eye, hitting it directly.
Black Zetsu warned Hikaru, "They've arrived. Get ready! Our target is the boy with the pompadour hairstyle!"
Hikaru responded while fastening blades to both arms, "Yeah!"
Outside, Shindai removed his hand from his left eye and gravely said, "They discovered my Third Eye first. Let me try controlling the Iron Sand Sphere first."
Shindai formed hand seals and pressed his palms to the ground, trying to pull out the Iron Sand Sphere using magnetic force.
When Hikaru and Black Zetsu saw the Iron Sand Sphere move, Hikaru immediately used an Earth Release technique to fix it in place.
Black Zetsu said to Hikaru, "Hikaru, you try to lure them inside! I'll keep an eye on this Iron Sand Sphere!"
"Got it!"
Hikaru left the cave to lure Obito's group into the trap-filled cavern.
After Hikaru left, Black Zetsu slightly narrowed his eyes at the Iron Sand Sphere.
In Black Zetsu's eyes, Hikaru wasn't coming back, and Obito's group might not even enter this cave.
Black Zetsu placed both hands on the ground. Several roots burst forth from the earth and wrapped tightly around the Iron Sand Sphere.
After finishing, Black Zetsu formed hand seals.
[Ninjutsu: Camouflage Hiding Technique]
Black Zetsu vanished, turning transparent before quietly slipping out of the cave.
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