Thoom
A whole mountain peak collapsed with a crash!
In the dust and smoke filling the sky, a figure crashed through everything; whether it was flying gravel or collapsing rock walls, this figure did not dodge or hide, but directly smashed through them. The hard stone was as fragile as a block of tofu in front of him.
Watching this figure gallop toward her, Ryuzetsu sighed faintly: "Is it over here..."
Undoubtedly, this figure attacking Ryuzetsu was the Fourth Raikage controlled by the Hegemon of Terror.
After Ryuzetsu and Chino abandoned Node 8, they used themselves as bait to lure the Fourth Raikage, who had attacked Node 8, into pursuit.
It was just that among all the members guarding the nodes, the two of them were the weakest, while the strength of the Fourth Raikage attacking Node 8 was a standout among all the puppet shinobi whose hearts were corrupted by the Hegemon of Terror. Thus, the gap in combat power between the two sides was enormous.
Therefore, it didn't take long for Chino to be heavily injured by the Fourth Raikage and fall unconscious.
The remaining Ryuzetsu had no choice but to use the complex terrain of the mountainous area to barely maneuver with the Fourth Raikage, delaying for time as much as possible.
The Fourth Raikage quickly lost his patience. Using his own terrifying physical strength, he smashed the mountain peaks along the way one by one, forcing Ryuzetsu, who was maneuvering with him by the help of the complex terrain, into a corner!
"Hmph!"
Seeing Ryuzetsu with a face of despair, the Fourth Raikage, his whole body shrouded in dark purple mist, showed a freezing killing intent on his face.
Swish
Just as the Fourth Raikage's fist was about to hit Ryuzetsu, a figure suddenly blocked the way in front of Ryuzetsu, meeting the Fourth Raikage with a punch.
Rumble
The two fists collided, instantly erupting in a deafening roar, raising a shockwave that felt substantial, instantly clearing the dust and smoke filling the surroundings.
Ryuzetsu was stunned for a moment: "You all..."
Neji said: "Sorry, we are late!"
Clearly, the ones who saved Ryuzetsu at the critical moment were none other than Neji and Kimimaro, who were originally guarding Node 9.
After fusion, their strength broke through to the Kekkei Mora level. Ordinary puppet shinobi controlled by the Hegemon of Terror posed no threat at all to them in their fusion state. Therefore, after clearing out all the enemies near Node 9, they came to support Ryuzetsu and Chino under the guidance of the Communication Unit.
The repelled Fourth Raikage looked down at his own arm.
The right arm that had clashed fists with Kimimaro was now twisted into a spiral shape. This was still under the circumstance where he was in Lightning Release Chakra Mode and had obtained the power of the Hegemon of Terror; otherwise, the price he paid would have been more than just this little bit.
Seeing this, Ryuzetsu hurriedly said to Neji and Kimimaro: "Be careful, he is very strong!"
Swish
However, before Ryuzetsu's voice had even fallen, Neji and Kimimaro's figures abruptly disappeared from in front of her.
In the next instant, Neji and Kimimaro appeared behind the Fourth Raikage.
The Fourth Raikage had a face of shock, and then a slanted crack appeared on his burly body. As the crack extended, his body broke into two pieces, falling dejectedly to the ground.
The Fourth Raikage who had obtained the Hegemon of Terror's power was indeed very strong; in basic aspects like speed and power alone, he could already rival the Six Paths level. Thus, he could easily crush Ryuzetsu and Chino, who had lost their environmental boost.
But facing Neji and Kimimaro, who had released the two Karma of Momoshiki and Kinshiki and entered a fusion state, he was not enough to look at.
So after Neji and Kimimaro activated Kinshiki's specialty move God Purge, they resolved this big trouble in an instant.
Ryuzetsu had a face of daze: "This..."
After confirming the Fourth Raikage was dealt with, Neji and Kimimaro came before Ryuzetsu: "Where is Chino? Is she alright?"
"She is injured, but she should be fine." Regaining her senses, Ryuzetsu followed up by asking: "How did you find me? What about your node?"
...
Neji said: "The Communication Unit guided us. As for the node we are guarding, there are no problems there for now."
Ryuzetsu breathed a sigh of relief: "Thank you for the trouble!"
Neji said: "It's good that you are alright."
Ryuzetsu had a face of guilt: "I am very sorry, our node was lost. By the way, how is everyone else doing?"
Neji shook his head, his face also full of concern.
At this time Momoshiki said: "Hey, are you very idle? If you don't want to die, get moving for me as quickly as possible!"
Being reminded by Momoshiki, Neji hurriedly said to Ryuzetsu: "Take good care of yourselves; we are going to support other places."
Ryuzetsu nodded heavily: "Please be absolutely careful!"
...
On the other side.
Under the guidance of the Communication Unit, Haku also met up with Yakumo, whose body was being controlled by Ido.
Landing on the ground, Ido, controlling Yakumo's body, pointed at the large group of puppet shinobi controlled by the Hegemon of Terror behind her, including the Fifth Mizukage Mei Terumi, who were pursuing her: "Haku, quick, lend a hand and help me deal with these bastards!"
Haku saw that it was Ido controlling Yakumo's body and asked: "Is Yakumo injured?"
Ido nodded: "The Mizukage's Bloodline Limit somewhat counters our Koryugan. She destroyed all the blood pools, making us lose the environmental boost. Yakumo refused to retreat, and almost cost both of us our lives in the Valley of Hell!"
Haku understood what had happened to Yakumo and Ido, and then exhaled lightly. While drawing his sword and walking toward the approaching puppet shinobi like Mei Terumi, he activated Sage Mode once again.
...
On a cliff.
Shinji, sitting at the edge of the cliff, rose slowly. He looked at the gloomy sky in the distance and those streaks of dark purple mist piercing the space barrier and falling into the shinobi world, the corners of his mouth curling up slightly.
"These guys..."
His expression was exceptionally relaxed, as if the doomsday scene before his eyes did not exist at all.
In his estimation, even with the Barrier Project, even with the Infinite Tsukuyomi, even with various backup plans laid out, the situation should have been worse.
But he didn't expect his companions to be so capable, that they didn't even need him to act to eliminate Otsutsuki Shibai and most of the puppet shinobi whose hearts were corrupted by the Hegemon of Terror.
"With you all acting like this, if I fail at my part, wouldn't I be letting everyone down?"
After a light laugh, Shinji looked toward the firmament above.
The reason he had never acted was not because he was afraid of battle, but because he was waiting for the right timing. Because his enemy from start to finish was only one: the Hegemon of Terror itself.
Repelling the Hegemon of Terror was not his true purpose, because that could not guarantee the long-term peace of the shinobi world. Everything he did was for only one purpose: to consume the Hegemon of Terror as much as possible, and then completely destroy it.
Swish
Without hesitation, without wavering, Shinji flew into the air with a leap, then turned into a golden light flowing upward, piercing through the space barrier of the shinobi world and charging into the deep universe.