Kirigakure.
On a beach near the coastline.
Yuto sat cross-legged atop a boulder, holding a fishing rod with its hook cast far out into the sea.
At that moment, a figure approached from behind.
"Lord Yuto, you're certainly taking it easy."
"I'm practically drowning in the battle reports from the front lines."
Terumi Mei's voice carried a note of frustration as she looked at Yuto, who was fishing with an air of total leisure.
A flicker of embarrassment crossed Yuto's eyes, but his expression remained earnest.
"Ahem, ahem — this is part of my recovery process. Keeping myself at peak condition."
Yuto gave a light cough and spoke with righteous conviction.
"Is that so?" Terumi Mei's green eyes held a skeptical glint, clearly unconvinced by his excuse.
Yuto realized that if he kept talking, his slacking off would become undeniable. He quickly straightened up and changed the subject.
"How are things on Iwagakure's side?"
Faced with Yuto's rather abrupt topic shift, Terumi Mei's pink lips curled slightly.
But she wasn't truly annoyed — this was the very reason she had come.
"Iwagakure has been rapidly reinforcing their numbers over the past few days. It looks like they're preparing for a full-scale offensive."
Terumi Mei spoke with a serious expression, her tone heavy.
"Oh?"
"So Uchiha Madara finally can't hold back anymore."
Yuto's eyebrow arched slightly, a sharp gleam flashing through his eyes.
The stalemate that had persisted for over half a month seemed poised to reach its true climax at last.
A hint of excitement flickered in Yuto's gaze. He straightened his posture, and a terrifying aura surged from within him, instantly saturating the surroundings.
But in the next instant, that fearsome presence was retracted. Yuto resumed his casual fishing posture as though nothing had happened.
Terumi Mei, standing to the side, was the first to feel the aura Yuto had just released. A trace of awe crossed her eyes.
No matter when it happened, whenever she personally experienced the terrifying power radiating from Lord Yuto —
She was profoundly reminded of the vast, unbridgeable gulf between their strengths.
This was a fundamental, qualitative gap!
Since the Shinobi World was established, only three individuals had ever possessed the power to suppress the entire world single-handedly: Uchiha Madara, Senju Hashirama, and Lord Yuto.
Sometimes Terumi Mei felt a deep sense of gratitude — gratitude that Kirigakure had produced such a peerless powerhouse.
Otherwise, the current situation would be like Sunagakure and Kumogakure — merely a one-sided show for Konoha.
No matter how hostile Uchiha Madara's relationship with Konoha might be, he was originally from Konoha. No one could deny that.
Terumi Mei snapped back to the present and looked at Yuto before her, a softness entering her gaze.
"Lord Yuto, I'm afraid you won't be catching any fish today."
Terumi Mei glanced at the calm sea ahead, an amused smile on her face.
The aura Yuto had released just now, though brief, had been enough to send every living creature in the surrounding waters fleeing.
In other words, for the time being, there wouldn't be a single fish — or even a shrimp — in this stretch of sea.
Hearing Terumi Mei's words, Yuto realized the same thing. A pang of regret hit him, and he was about to say something —
Then he paused and collected himself.
"I'm not here to fish. I told you — I'm recovering my condition."
Yuto coughed emphatically, turning to face Terumi Mei, who was watching him with a knowing smile. He spoke with absolute seriousness.
With that said —
Yuto reeled in his fishing rod and stood up. With no fish to catch, there was no reason to stay.
Besides, the main event was about to begin. He couldn't afford to miss it!
"Let's go. It's time for us to take the stage."
Yuto's eyes gleamed with sharp light as he spoke to Terumi Mei.
Terumi Mei blinked at his words, then her emerald eyes lit up with the same intensity. A smile played on her pink lips.
"I wonder if Konoha has any surprises in store for us?"
Her blue strapless dress swayed in the wind as an alluring yet dangerous aura radiated from her.
At this moment, across the Shinobi World —
Every shinobi village was watching the trajectory of this war.
The conflict had lasted roughly half a month.
From the initial probes and stalemate, to the fierce clashes between the three great shinobi villages' forces — many villages had marveled at Konoha's formidable reserves.
That a single village could simultaneously withstand the assault of two great shinobi villages was extraordinary.
Everyone had always known Konoha was the strongest of the Five Great Villages. But only now did many villages truly understand the weight of that strength.
In a short time, several smaller villages began entertaining ambitious thoughts.
Some started secretly courting Konoha's favor. Others even dispatched their own shinobi to provide covert support.
Compared to these scheming minor villages, Sunagakure and Kumogakure remained conspicuously silent.
Beyond dispatching shinobi to gather intelligence, the two great villages made no additional moves.
Sunagakure and Kumogakure understood better than anyone that this war was only halfway through.
As long as Uchiha Madara, Senju Hashirama, and Yuto hadn't entered the battlefield, no one could predict the war's outcome.
Under those circumstances, the smaller villages rushing to support Konoha were practically signing their own death warrants.
And sure enough —
What Sunagakure and Kumogakure had anticipated came even faster and more decisively than expected.
First —
Iwagakure's forces suddenly surged in number. Not a gradual increase, but an explosive one.
Although Konoha had anticipated this, the sheer scale of Iwagakure's reinforcement caught them off guard.
The previously stalemated front was shattered, and Konoha's positions were rapidly being suppressed.
It wasn't just Iwagakure's side either. Kirigakure's forces at the Land of Waves simultaneously received massive reinforcements.
Five of the Seven Ninja Swordsmen of the Mist had already appeared on that battlefield.
Faced with Iwagakure and Kirigakure both surging their forces and combat power simultaneously — if anyone claimed the two great villages hadn't coordinated their plans, no one on Konoha's side would believe it.
Nara Shikaku had anticipated this scenario to some degree, but even so, both fronts were teetering on the edge of collapse!
And while the two major battlefields raged —
Two figures had already arrived in the Land of Rivers.
Kakuzu and Sasori stood atop a sand dune, their expressions cold and indifferent as they gazed at Otogakure in the distance.
"If I remember correctly, Orochimaru established this Otogakure."
"I didn't expect him to cultivate this many shinobi in just a few years."
Kakuzu spoke with a hint of surprise.
"Looking at it this way, Orochimaru is actually helping Konoha. I can't figure out what he's thinking."
Sasori's cool voice rang out. He paused briefly before continuing.
"Whatever Orochimaru is thinking, our mission is to destroy Otogakure. Let's get moving."
Sasori turned and began walking toward Otogakure. Kakuzu followed close behind.
The Otogakure shinobi assisting Konoha had caused considerable trouble for Iwagakure's forces.
As Kakuzu and Sasori neared Otogakure —
Suddenly!
Forty to fifty emaciated figures in tattered clothing rushed at them from all directions, each face twisted with frenzied killing intent.
"These shinobi can barely be considered genin."
Kakuzu raised an eyebrow at the dozens of figures swarming around them.
"These aren't ordinary genin. They're roughly on par with the shinobi on the battlefield."
Sasori's gaze swept across the surroundings as he spoke softly.
Almost the moment his words fell —
The forty-odd rushing shinobi let out beast-like roars. Then their scrawny bodies began to rapidly expand, undergoing a grotesque grayish-black transformation.
Some sprouted wings. Others grew extra arms. A few transformed into outright monster-like creatures.
"Orochimaru's research has some utility on the battlefield, I'll admit."
Sasori remarked coolly, pulling out a scroll and tossing it into the air.
As a cloud of white smoke cleared, ten puppets appeared before him.
With a flick of his fingers, the puppets dissolved into blurs and surged toward the Cursed Seal-infected shinobi.
Screams and roars erupted across the area.
Under Sasori's masterful puppetry, these grotesque shinobi were slaughtered almost effortlessly.
Blood sprayed. Limbs flew.
The Cursed Seal shinobi put up virtually no resistance.
None of them even managed to get close to Sasori and Kakuzu!
In a matter of moments, the forty-odd Cursed Seal shinobi had been reduced to less than half their number.
But just then —
One of Sasori's puppets suddenly lost its connection.
Or more precisely — it was violently pulverized.
A figure similarly engulfed in black-gray transformation, resembling a monstrous beast, charged toward Sasori with a furious roar.
This Cursed Seal shinobi was clearly different from the cannon fodder that had come before. The chakra within his body was several times greater than the others.
This was Juugo — the guardian of Otogakure's northern outpost.
Juugo radiated an intense killing intent. Jets of air burst from his hardened arms, accelerating him even further.
With a dull boom, Juugo appeared before Sasori in an instant, his fist hurtling forward.
"Finally, a somewhat decent opponent."
Sasori's voice remained flat. His fingers twitched, and a puppet materialized between him and Juugo in the blink of an eye.
Juugo's fist slammed into the puppet, sending cracks spiderwebbing across its surface — but it held.
Simultaneously, the surrounding puppets converged.
Blades extended from each puppet's mouth, sealing off Juugo's escape routes and stabbing toward him.
BANG! BANG!
A series of dull impacts rang out. To Sasori's mild surprise, the blades failed to pierce Juugo's body.
The gray-black hardened substance covering his skin had deflected them.
"Tough hide."
Sasori murmured, channeling chakra through his strings for another assault.
Exploding Impact!
Juugo roared. Surges of air erupted from his arms again as he poured force into the fist already buried in the puppet.
CRACK!
The already fractured puppet shattered instantly. Juugo's massive fist filled Sasori's field of vision.
Even so, Sasori didn't flinch. He yanked hard on his chakra threads.
SWOOSH! SWOOSH!
Multiple sounds of splitting air rang out simultaneously!
Compartments on the chests of the surrounding puppets snapped open, and iron chains launched forth.
The chains wrapped around Juugo's arms, waist, and legs in near-unison — hoisting him into midair.
His fist was less than a few centimeters from Sasori's face.
But no matter how hard Juugo struggled, the chains held him pinned in place. He couldn't advance a single centimeter.
Sasori raised his wrist with cold indifference. A tube extended from his palm, aimed directly at the suspended Juugo.
"Looks like it's over."
Kakuzu stood to the side, watching the scene with obvious interest.
Crystal Release — Crystal Pentagonal Prison!
Crystalline spikes erupted from the ground, surging toward Kakuzu and Sasori.
Both men's expressions didn't change as they swiftly leapt backward.
The crystal spikes impaled the puppets Sasori had left behind, destroying them utterly.
As the two retreated, a figure appeared before Juugo — Guren.
Crystal Release — Crystal Blade!
A semi-circular blade of pure crystal formed along Guren's arm. She swung it down hard against the chains binding Juugo.
A piercing screech of metal on crystal rang out. The chains snapped and fell to the ground, and Juugo was finally free.
"Th-thank you."
Juugo looked at Guren, his voice hoarse.
"Otogakure won't hold. Lord Orochimaru ordered us to withdraw."
Guren's eyes remained fixed on Kakuzu and Sasori in the distance as she spoke swiftly to Juugo.
"You think you can just leave? I haven't agreed to that!!"
Kakuzu's cold voice echoed from afar.
Fire Release — Searing Migraine!
Scorching flames erupted like a surging tide from Kakuzu's mouth the instant they hit the ground, spreading rapidly in all directions as though intent on reducing everything to ash.
Crystal Release — Crystal Enclosure Pentagram!
Guren formed hand seals and slammed her palms against the earth.
Five crystalline pillars surged from the ground, enveloping both her and Juugo within their protection.
This jutsu could serve not only to imprison enemies, but as a defensive technique as well.
(End of Chapter)
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