Chapter 201
2-in-1-chapter
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Still, Fugaku never forgot that ocular power was limited. The use of Huangkonzun consumed his ocular energy. The more changes he imposed, the greater the drain. So he learned to find a balance between power and efficiency.
This time, he erased only Troy's fear of the Sharingan, making no other modifications.
And it proved to be the right choice.
Without fear, Troy was easily controlled by genjutsu and turned against his own ally. Working alongside Fugaku, he launched a combined assault on the Fourth Raikage, leaving Ai so furious he nearly wanted to break a table again. Even though Ai understood Troy had likely fallen under an illusion, the situation was still intolerable.
What made him angrier was the arrival of Konoha's reinforcements.
Earlier, C had sensed a massive surge of chakra approaching rapidly and had issued a warning in advance. Now the reinforcements had reached the battlefield. It was Hyūga Hiashi who had intervened, disrupting Ai and Troy's coordinated attack, allowing Fugaku to escape and then counterattack in a way that defied belief.
Ai's face, usually vibrant with energy, now looked dark and drained.
To be fair, the situation was not entirely disastrous. The Konoha reinforcements were limited in number, and fewer than a hundred Jōnin had joined the battle. Even so, Kumogakure still held the numerical advantage. Although the individual strength of Konoha's Jōnin was slightly superior, their smaller force meant that Kumogakure would not be easily driven back.
Earlier, Konoha's Jōnin had been struggling to hold their ground. Now that reinforcements had arrived, they had only managed to recover from disadvantage to rough parity.
However, for Ai, the outcome was already clear.
Failing to annihilate Konoha's troops before their reinforcements arrived meant defeat.
A knot of frustration coiled in his chest once more. Though the situation was now evenly matched—perhaps even leaning slightly in Kumogakure's favor—it was undeniable that despite their earlier overwhelming advantage, they had been unable to crush that small contingent of Konoha shinobi. Now that Konoha's backup had arrived, whether he wished to admit it or not, their chances of victory were rapidly diminishing.
If the battle continued like this, the most likely result would be a pyrrhic victory for one side. Kumogakure's odds of winning were marginally higher, but Konoha could just as easily ensure that the Cloud suffered catastrophic losses. For example, if Uchiha Fugaku were to manifest a Susanoo like Uchiha Shisui had, the scale of destruction would be immense—and Kumogakure's own Two-Tails jinchūriki was not even present.
In that case, the Cloud would inevitably sustain grievous damage.
After weighing the situation, Ai's thoughts turned toward withdrawal.
As the Raikage, he could not afford to behave like a reckless brute. The ability to assess the situation and act accordingly was essential to his station. Continuing this struggle offered little benefit; rather than fighting Konoha to mutual ruin, it would be better to retreat for now.
This campaign had been launched without the Two-Tails jinchūriki accompanying them, and their lack of coordination between the jinchūriki and the main force had prevented them from fully exploiting their numerical advantage. They could learn from these shortcomings and strike again another time.
Just then, Ai sensed the shadow above him grow darker.
He turned his head, carefully avoiding the nearby Uchiha shinobi. Lifting his gaze, he saw it—a deep crimson Susanoo rising like a mountain, grasping an enormous katana. It towered over the land like a giant carved from the earth itself, its size equal to that of the other emerald-green Susanoo locked in combat with the Eight-Tails.
The crimson Susanoo swung its massive blade, stepped forward, and charged toward the Eight-Tails engaged with its green counterpart. The sword's edge, gleaming like a lightning flash across the heavens, cleaved through one of the Eight-Tails' tentacle-like tails and split the ground beneath, carving a deep ravine across the battlefield.
That shockwave, mingled with both terror and awe, spread clearly through every Konoha and Kumogakure shinobi standing upon the trembling earth.
The sky was buried beneath a mass of black clouds, and the wind and snow were growing heavier.
It was only just past midday, yet the dim light made it seem as if night were already falling. Dodai reached up and touched his face; the skin felt as cold as iron. When he looked up at the second Susanoo that now loomed over the land like a mountain, his insides seemed to ignite. His chest burned as though he had swallowed magma, and emotion surged to the point of near explosion.
What was going on? What was this?
One Susanoo alone had been enough to keep the Eight-Tails' jinchūriki completely occupied, and now there was another one. How were they supposed to fight a battle like this?
They couldn't.
Since fighting was no longer possible, the only choice was a temporary retreat. Dodai grasped the situation instantly and drew his conclusion. The balance of power had shifted decisively toward Konoha's side. The appearance of two Susanoo had shattered the equilibrium.
The Cloud's forces had come on this expedition with only the Eight-Tails' jinchūriki; the Two-Tails had not been brought along.
Ordinary shinobi were not completely helpless against a creature like Susanoo—otherwise, the great nations would never have managed to seal tailed beasts and create jinchūriki time and again. But those same experiences, the many times a jinchūriki had lost control and a tailed beast had gone on a rampage, had taught Dodai one thing clearly: without a top-level leader such as the Third Raikage, engaging a tailed beast—or a Susanoo—meant catastrophic losses.
And unlike the tailed beasts, against which they had years of combat experience, the Cloud shinobi had almost no experience dealing with Susanoo.
When Dodai had been gathering intelligence on the Uchiha clan, he had requisitioned a collection of old records from the village archives—notes left by the First and Second Raikage sixty years ago. They described the encounters and observations they had made in battle with that cold and merciless Shura from Konoha.
Yes, there were only impressions.
Nowhere in those notes was there any advice on how to fight against Susanoo. Or rather, there was one piece of advice: if you ever see a Susanoo or the Wood Release, run as far as you can. If you cannot run, surrender. And if you cannot bring yourself to kneel and surrender—then throw everything you have into one final fight to the death.
That short piece of advice gave Dodai a headache, yet it also let him feel deeply just how terrifying the legendary Senju Hashirama and Uchiha Madara had been.
And now, they were facing not one but two Susanoo.
Therefore—
"Pass the order: full retreat!"
Dodai roared the command, leaving the surrounding Cloud shinobi stunned.
"Retreat? But… Lord Raikage is still over there…"
"Enough talking! Begin organizing the army for immediate withdrawal! Anyone who delays, I'll kill myself!"
The Dodai who normally appeared calm, reliable, and unflappable, the man who spoke with measured words, had no concern now for maintaining any image. "The matter of Lord Raikage is not for you to worry about. Form the ranks and retreat, now!"
Spittle mixed with snow sprayed across the faces of the Jōnin around him. Looking at the single eye in Dodai's face, which burned like fire, they swallowed their doubts and dared not respond. Even being showered with his spit was no reason to oppose him. A few of the older Jōnin, veterans about his age, remembered the last time they had seen such an expression—it had been when they learned that the Third Raikage had fallen in battle.
Then, they had lost the Third Raikage.
Now, what had they lost this time—or what were they about to lose?