The clash between Rasa and Minato Namikaze practically defined the absolute pinnacle of shinobi combat on this battlefield.
For the surrounding Mist, Sand, and even Leaf ninja, joining the fray was completely out of the question. All they could do was watch from the sidelines.
Watch this absolute visual feast.
"They're too strong!"
"This completely surpasses what a ninja should be capable of."
"They aren't even on the same plane of existence as the rest of us."
Even just watching required extreme caution. The sheer shockwaves of their clashes—or a single stray strike—could easily be lethal to anyone standing too close.
The Mist ninja were having a hard time swallowing this reality.
As one of the Five Great Shinobi Villages, facing off against the Hidden Sand, they were actually forced to rely on an outsider to hold off the Sand's strongest fighter. And even worse, their own leader, Yagura, didn't even have the upper hand against Pakura.
It wasn't that Yagura was weak.
With his signature Water Mirror Jutsu, he could fight pretty much any ninja to a standstill in the short term. But defending against Rasa earlier had already drained a massive chunk of his chakra.
Now, facing Pakura, he needed just as much chakra to keep his defenses up.
And it wasn't just because of the chameleon. The regular Mist shinobi could at least help keep the invisible beast busy.
The real problem was the legendary blade, Hiramekarei.
The actual Hiramekarei could store its own chakra. But for the replica Yagura created with his Water Mirror, any chakra needed to boost the blade's power had to come directly from his own reserves.
Right at that moment—
The chameleon, having slipped out of the Mist ninja's encirclement, crept back under the cover of perfect invisibility. It positioned itself just behind Yagura.
It lowered its body and took aim.
A highly elastic, bright pink tongue shot out like a bullet.
Yagura abruptly sensed the danger.
Bam!
By a hair's breadth, Yagura dodged the chameleon's strike. A massive tree nearby was instantly snapped in half by the sheer force of the blow.
But this gave Pakura the perfect opening.
Pakura was on the left, her Water Mirror replica was on the right, and Yagura was caught dead in the middle.
This meant that even if the replica matched Pakura's attack perfectly to intercept it, the epicenter of that collision would be right where Yagura was standing. He would bear the brunt of the devastating crossfire.
Realizing this, Yagura immediately canceled the Water Mirror Jutsu, pulling his chakra back.
But in that exact instant, Pakura's attack arrived.
"Hiramekarei, Release!"
A massive chakra sphere, radiating the intense, dehydrating heat of her Scorch Release, blasted straight at Yagura.
Yagura's expression turned grim.
"Water Style: Clear Mirror, Still Water!"
It looked similar to the Water Mirror Jutsu, but the effect was completely different. While Water Mirror was geared for counter-attacks, Clear Mirror, Still Water was pure defense.
BOOM!
A deafening explosion echoed across the battlefield as the terrifying power of the Scorch Release erupted outward from the point of impact.
The grass on the ground and the insects hiding within it were instantly drained of all moisture, turning into dried husks of charcoal.
And Yagura took a heavy hit.
Fighting two top-tier shinobi like Rasa and Pakura back-to-back was simply pushing past his current limits. Yagura wasn't the Three-Tails' Jinchuriki yet. His ninjutsu was undoubtedly top-notch, but his chakra reserves were heavily restricted. Without enough chakra, everything else was just talk.
Yagura gritted his teeth.
"Fall back! Retreat toward Konoha's position!"
At his command, the entire Mist army began to pull back.
They retreated; the Sand pursued.
They paused; the Sand slaughtered.
The entire battlefield shifted toward the Leaf's lines in a grueling, bloody tug-of-war. The Sand army pressed their advantage relentlessly.
A creeping sense of despair began to infect the Mist ranks.
"Are we really going to lose?"
"We had the upper hand when this started!"
"How did it turn into this?"
"It's all the Ninja Swordsmen's fault! Fuguki Suikazan defected! Jinin Akebino practically threw his life away!"
"And the Kaguya clan!"
"The Sand Village is just taking advantage of our internal messes. They're just opportunistic scum!"
One Mist ninja glared furiously at the advancing Sand forces, screaming out his frustration.
In stark contrast, the Sand shinobi were riding a massive high. They could taste the prelude to victory. Some of them started shouting in sheer exhilaration.
"Today! Victory is ours today!"
"Crush the Mist Village! Capture Yagura Karatachi alive!"
Some were already fantasizing about what kind of reparations they would extort from the Mist once they were completely broken.
One Sand ninja called out, "Let's throw the exact same terms they gave us right back in their faces! Make them pay double! No—ten times as much!"
"Damn right!"
"Bleed them dry with economic reparations!"
"Make them hand over Yagura and Jinpachi Munashi!"
High above, standing on a floating platform of gold dust, Rasa looked down upon the entire battlefield. Compared to the manic excitement of his troops, Rasa remained calm.
Because he knew that a Sand Village victory had always been inevitable.
Honestly, he thought this day would have come the moment he killed Jinin Akebino and the other three swordsmen. He hadn't expected the Mist to forcibly extend their lifespan by allying with Konoha.
But this time, not even the Leaf could save them.
Under the Hidden Stone's relentless offensive, Konoha was too busy putting out its own fires. How many ninja could they realistically spare to reinforce the Mist? The Leaf would never prioritize the Mist over their own survival.
Just by reading the panicked expression of the Konoha messenger who came for Minato earlier, Rasa could easily deduce that the Leaf's situation was grim.
And it wasn't just the Stone Village they had to worry about.
There was also the Hidden Cloud—sitting on the sidelines, watching and waiting. The Cloud Village wouldn't pass up an opportunity to claim massive spoils.
On top of that, there was the Uchiha clan and the Kaguya clan. The Uchiha's hatred for the Leaf and the Kaguya's hatred for the Mist was common knowledge across the entire ninja world. The moment they saw an opening, they would pour everything they had into a brutal revenge.
It's a lock this time, Rasa thought.
My plan was perfect. Using the chameleon to sneak into the massive lake and blow the dam caught the Mist completely off guard. That single move sealed our momentum and triggered a ripple effect across the entire global battlefield.
Plus, the sheer intensity of this war has accelerated my Emotion Point generation significantly.
Rasa made a quick guess. In the heat of battle, the Sand and Stone shinobi were definitely using those Hyuga rumors to taunt and provoke the Hyuga ninja, playing devastating psychological warfare.
He shifted his gaze to his system interface.
At this rate, I'll hit 3,000 points today. That's enough for my third batch of thirty consecutive draws!
Evening arrived.
Rasa checked the system panel one more time.
Hit it!
His eyes lit up. Without a second of hesitation—
Thirty consecutive draws! Start!