Chapter 158 – The Wilderness Survival Master, Maruboshi Kōsuke (2)
The scene that had just unfolded left the Uchiha Genin momentarily in disbelief.
The three Iwa-nin who had trapped him in a dangerous situation had been taken down so easily.
As he was still doubting what his Sharingan had just witnessed, more than twenty figures wearing Iwagakure forehead protectors suddenly dropped from the sky, crashing down around him.
Already stunned, he now couldn't believe his eyes at all. Am I hallucinating from overusing my eyes lately...?
But hallucination or not—this was real.
Given Jiriku's strength, which was already nearing top-tier Jōnin level, forget about twenty-odd Genin—even two dozen Chūnin wouldn't have made a difference.
As the Uchiha Genin stood there, lost in thought, Jiriku's voice reached his ears:
"Hey, kid—time to move."
Snapping back to reality, the Uchiha quickly crawled out of the swamp and leapt nimbly through the trees, landing behind Jiriku and rejoining the group.
He then noticed that his two fellow Uchiha were staring at Jiriku with visible awe.
Only now did he realize who was responsible for the barrage of punches just now—that monk-looking man. No, that powerhouse.
After surviving the Iwa-nin ambush, the three prideful Uchiha Genin—though they said nothing—had already accepted Jiriku's strength in their hearts, bowing in silent admiration to his might.
Such was the Uchiha clan—believers in the law of the jungle, where only the strong earned respect.
They pressed on quickly, and since the island wasn't particularly large, they soon reached the base of the towering cliff face.
Maruboshi Kōsuke stood at the front of the group. Looking at the nearly vertical cliff, he turned to the others and said:
"We don't know what dangers we'll face on this island, so we must conserve chakra. That means we'll need to make good use of the vines hanging down from above."
"Let me demonstrate how to use them to climb."
He tugged on several vines to check their strength. Once he was sure they were sturdy, he tied one around his waist, grabbed another with both hands, and began to climb.
As he ascended, he pointed out cracks and footholds in the rock, explaining which ones were safe to step on and which would collapse under pressure.
But just as he was getting into his lecture, the vine around his waist suddenly began to tremble—and then yanked him upward.
What the—did the vine come alive?
Although surprised, Kōsuke was experienced and bold. He didn't resist, curious to see who—or what—was pulling the vine.
He was quickly hoisted all the way to the cliff's summit—the highest point on the island.
Looking up at the top, he found a bald, muscular man holding the vine. The corners of Kōsuke's mouth twitched slightly as he realized what had happened.
But he was still amazed. This was a steep peak, and he'd only been climbing a few minutes. How had Jiriku reached the top so quickly?
Still, Kōsuke didn't ask. Everyone had their secrets.
To Jiriku, scaling this cliff in minutes was nothing special.
He had long trained alongside powerhouses like Kazane and Might Duy, and under Kazane's brutal regimen, cliff climbing was just another daily routine.
In Jiriku's eyes, this "mountain" was a mere bump—he could scale it in moments.
After pulling Kōsuke up, Jiriku lowered the vine again. Down below, Might Guy guided the Uchiha trio to grab hold, and Jiriku pulled them up one after another.
Though the Uchiha Genin were surprised by Jiriku's sheer strength, after witnessing his
"Welcome Approach: Thousand Armed Murder" obliterate more than ten Iwa-nin in seconds, they forced down their shock and acted like it was normal.
Their response only deepened Jiriku's belief that Konoha shinobi were all monsters.
Jiriku had always considered himself strong, but every time he met someone from Konoha, they were inhumanly powerful.
Whether it was Kazane, Might Duy, or even Tsunade—a woman whose raw strength still surpassed his.
At one point, Jiriku wondered if his encounters had just been bad luck—outliers.
But seeing how these three Uchiha barely reacted to his strength, as if it were routine, he finally accepted it:
"Yep… Konoha shinobi are just freaks."
His thoughts were interrupted by a voice nearby.
Kōsuke, seeing that everyone had reached the summit, began explaining the island's geography.
Pointing to a winding river below, he said:
"See that small river? It may not seem like much, but it's the island's lifeline. All the animals on the island rely on it for survival, so their activity is centered around it. And over there—see that valley? That's the best place for us to set up camp."
"It's perfectly situated between the river and the beach, which means it'll have the highest concentration of resources."
"If we take that valley, we'll have access to both fresh water and food from the sea."
The Uchiha Genin, having studied survival tactics at the ninja academy, nodded in agreement.
Might Guy and Jiriku only half-understood the explanation, but seeing the others nod, they followed suit for the sake of saving face.
Kōsuke, seeing their unified response, was pleased.
"If there are no objections, let's head out now and try to reach the valley before sunset."
With that, the group set off under Kōsuke's guidance.
---
Meanwhile, in the valley...
Tensions were running high as Kirigakure and Kumogakure Genin faced off.
Just like how Mist-nin were raised on islands and familiar with coastal survival, Cloud-nin also grew up in similar environments and understood the strategic value of the terrain.
Both groups had gathered their full teams—more than twenty Genin each—locked in a standoff over control of the valley.
The island's resources were far too limited to support everyone for a week.
Sure, their mission was to eliminate Konoha's six Genin—but six kids posed no real threat.
After they were dealt with, the four great villages would still be rivals.
Any retreat now would mean weakness—and future suffering.
Neither side was willing to back down.
Either one side conceded...
Or there'd be a fight.
What neither side realized was that the island's greatest threat…
…was already closing in on them.