The Shinobi Allied Forces from the Four Great Ninja Villages advanced at an astonishing speed.
Especially the Surprise Attack and Diversion Platoon led by Minato Namikaze and Little A—the son of the Third Raikage—comprising nearly five thousand elite ninja.
Thanks to the incredible speed of the steel warships, they reached the coastline defended by Kiri's hardliners as early as three o'clock in the morning on the second day.
Under the command of Nara Shikaku and others at the central command center,
nearly five thousand carefully selected ninja, mostly renowned for their exceptional speed, maximized their advantages,
launching a nighttime assault on Kiri's defensive camps!
If it weren't for the White Zetsus' inexhaustible stamina—which let them get by with almost no sleep—this surprise attack might have utterly shattered Kiri's frontline forces!
Immediately after the successful strike,
Minato Namikaze and Little A led everyone away without hesitation, launching another attack two hours later against the southern coastal defense line of the Land of Water!
After dealing heavy damage to the enemy, they vanished once again across the sea surface under the covering fire of Minato and Little A.
For nearly the entire day, every Kiri ninja remained tense and alert.
A large number of White Zetsus stationed in the rear were mobilized under Hikaku Uchiha's command and rushed to reinforce the front lines.
Yet that five-thousand-strong strike force did not attack any defensive line again.
Instead, as night fell, they repeatedly appeared near different defensive lines,
provoking the Kiri ninja into scrambling to prepare and charging out onto the water's surface, ready for direct confrontation—
only for the strike force to use its superior mobility to retreat quickly and continue harassing other defensive lines!
Over the course of two consecutive days, the Kiri ninja were driven to exhaustion by this constant harassment.
Thankfully, ninja possessed far more stamina than ordinary people. Otherwise, such harassment might have broken their morale long before the enemy even launched a serious attack.
After prolonged discussions among numerous Kiri hardliner leaders, they unanimously concluded that such harassment could very likely continue for several more days.
After repeatedly requesting reinforcements from Hikaku Uchiha,
they ordered nearly all jonin stationed along the defensive lines to take turns resting.
At the same time, they dispatched numerous ninja squads that had aquatic summoned beasts as scouts, continuously searching for that elusive "vanguard unit."
But before they could locate the enemy force,
a colossal turtle, massive enough to resemble a floating island, suddenly appeared right in the middle of the previously attacked camp!
Amidst terrifying rumbling sounds that shook heaven and earth,
the giant turtle crushed countless tents and killed nearly a thousand Kiri ninja and thousands more White Zetsu soldiers who had been resting nearby!
This number would've doubled if many White Zetsus hadn't immediately used their innate ability to dive underground!
Packed shoulder to shoulder on the giant turtle's back, over forty-five thousand allied shinobi unleashed a thunderous battle cry the moment it landed!
Led by Tsuchikage Kitsuchi and Third Hokage Hiruzen Sarutobi, they directly charged toward the Kiri ninja and White Zetsus now thrown into chaos!
"You actually used Flying Thunder God to teleport something this massive? What an idea!"
Kei Yamanaka inwardly fumed at Nara Shikaku's battle plan.
45,000 people and a colossal turtle so absurdly massive that even transporting it over less than fifty nautical miles drained an outrageous amount of chakra.
That's just how he is!
Even if Minato Namikaze or Tobirama Senju had tried it, they would have collapsed from exhaustion attempting such a massive space-time transfer!
Trouble, move Turtle Island back out to sea again. Maintaining something this massive is no easy feat—don't let White Zetsu and Mist destroy it. Minato, Master Tobirama, once Lord Hashirama and Lady Tsunade finish releasing their summoned beasts, immediately bring them back to headquarters. Fugaku and Tobi, assist Orochimaru...
Shikaku Nara completely ignored Kei Yamanaka's complaints while continuing to direct surprise attacks across various battlefields.
On both the northern and southern fronts, massive summoned beasts appeared directly within enemy camps, forcefully breaking open the battlefield before top-tier fighters followed up with coordinated assaults.
The results weren't as dramatic as the Turtle Island ambush, but especially considering their elite forces far surpassed the enemy's top fighters,
As long as Kushina's shadow clones held up and maintained sensor linkage,
And the Shinobi Allied Forces weren't deceived by White Zetsu's transformations, victory still seemed assured.
Kei Yamanaka placed a hand on Turtle Island's shell.
After all members of the Allied Shinobi Forces had departed from Turtle Island's back, he enveloped the entire island in a spatial formula, shifting it more than ten kilometers across the ocean.
He vanished in a flicker, reappearing on the expedition ship's deck.
Within less than two minutes, Minato Namikaze and Tobirama Senju brought Hashirama Senju—who had just finished releasing Katsuyu and Ibuse Poisoning—and Tsunade back to headquarters.
Minato returned to the frontlines while Tobirama remained aboard the expedition ship with the jinchuriki.
At this point, the expedition ship had reached the southeastern region of Kirigakure.
Over a mist-shrouded mountain!
Seven figures—Kei Yamanaka, Hashirama Senju, Madara Uchiha, Tsunade, A, the Third Raikage, Onoki, Izuna Uchiha—stood at the edge of the expedition ship's deck, gazing down at the fog-covered peak below.
Tobirama Senju, Kushina, B, Roshi, Han, Nii, and Bunpuku were positioned inside an elaborate barrier formation already set up in advance.
Although without five of their top warriors, the pressure on the frontlines would certainly increase.
But facing the sudden emergence of Jigen, extra caution never hurt.
The God Tree, created by the Otsutsuki Clan for harvesting planetary energy, had always been controlled by its members.
If another member of the Otsutsuki Clan had emerged,
Seizing Kaguya's White Zetsu before the God Tree's revival would have taken significant effort—but now, the very tree in the Ninja World had been planted by Isshiki himself.
Its body became the sacrifice for Kaguya's betrayal—the Ten-Tails' full transformation into the God Tree.
Now that this guy had emerged,
It meant Hikaku Uchiha had lost supreme command over White Zetsu. Even if Madara Uchiha showed up, using Rinnegan power to take control might prove extremely difficult!
The only reason he hasn't forcefully seized control is that this man sees Hikaku merely as a tool for now — and doesn't see the need for it yet!
"The Six-Tails is right beneath us, right?"
A, the Third Raikage, wore a grave expression as his gaze locked onto the mountain below.
Earlier, to calm the unrest caused by merging the villages and reduce unnecessary friction, they discussed among themselves and agreed upon a unified narrative.
First, they spread fear of the terrifying army of one hundred thousand White Zetsu clones.
Then, once external pressure swayed most ninjas' loyalties, they would reveal the plan to gather tailed beast chakra, activate it, and wipe out all the White Zetsus at once.
Under normal circumstances, this strategy was sound.
But who could've predicted that this news would draw out a member of the Otsutsuki Clan, hidden away for nearly a millennium?
"Mm."
Kei Yamanaka's eyes shimmered with a pale white glow as he casually tossed over a dozen kunai marked with Flying Thunder God seals downward.
Through secret intelligence relayed by Hikaku Uchiha, everyone already knew Jigen's plan.
According to his statement:
As long as they reactivated the God Tree—even using just a small amount of tailed beast chakra—Jigen would be able to instantly free Kaguya Otsutsuki from her prison before anyone could react.
And a weakened Kaguya Otsutsuki would make the perfect 'host' for Jigen!
Once she emerged, if Kaguya still possessed immense power,
they would let her clash first with them while he and Hikaku Uchiha secretly looked for an opportunity to strike a decisive blow against Kaguya, imprinting her with the Kāma and seizing her body.
But if Kaguya appeared significantly weakened,
then Jigen would personally step forward and take over her body directly.
With his strength combined with Kaguya's, even without the nine tailed beasts split off from the Ten-Tails, those so-called Shinobi Allied Forces would be nothing more than ants to him—easily crushed with a flick of his fingers!
The plan sounded rough, almost…
like an insult to their intelligence!
Kei Yamanaka figured it out halfway through listening. This plan was clearly just some excuse made up on the spot by Jigen.
Put simply, a Kāma is like a compressed package containing one's genes, bloodline, willpower, memories, abilities, and consciousness—all condensed together!
Genes, bloodlines, and willpower—these things have always followed the rule of "superior over inferior." There's no such thing as an inferior overcoming a superior!
Kaguya Otsutsuki (Kekkei Mora — Clan Bloodline Limit Overlapping) might not have matched Isshiki Otsutsuki (Kekkei Genkai — Advanced Clan Bloodline Limit) back in ancient times, but after consuming the fruit of the God Tree, her bloodline evolved into a Kekkei Mora.
Isshiki Otsutsuki was just a living sacrifice with a mere Kekkei Genkai.
How dare he aim to surpass someone with a Kekkei Mora?
Using the Kāma as an excuse too!
You'd think he'd at least put in some effort and make the lie convincing!
If this bastard had said he actually had the ability to forcibly absorb Kaguya Otsutsuki's chakra while she's weak,
Kei Yamanaka might've even believed it!
After all, in the canon storyline, Momo Otsutsuki actually transformed Kinshiki Otsutsuki into a Chakra Fruit and devoured it.
It wouldn't be unreasonable at all if Isshiki Otsutsuki had hidden abilities not shown in the original records.
Kei Yamanaka saw through it immediately — it was a fake plan.
Kei Yamanaka consulted Hebihime, who was well-versed in the core technology, and Shikaku, whose IQ was 190.
Both agreed:
Jigen's goal wasn't Kaguya Otsutsuki. Most likely, he had his eyes on a certain "vessel"!
Since possessing the Kāma of the Otsutsuki clan required extremely high physical strength and natural energy cultivation,
setting aside Hashirama Senju and Madara Uchiha, who had only just been revived,
there were only a handful left who met those requirements!
Tsunade, who possessed the Natural Sage Body; Kushina, who could transform into a Magic Girl; and... Kei Yamanaka!
Of the three, however, Kei was most likely to be targeted!
"How dare he."
Muttering under his breath, Kei gave a nod to the few people beside him.
Encased in the Flying Thunder God formula,
in an instant, the seven figures appeared before the cave that sealed Saiken, the Six-Tails!
"Aaaah～"
A long hum echoed from within the cave, accompanied by the clinking sound of dragging chains.
The Mist shinobi stationed there didn't hesitate at all—immediately launching an attack upon the sudden appearance of the seven intruders!
Crack～!
Thunder roared as A, the hot-tempered Third Raikage, struck first.
Shrieks pierced the air as the Mist ninja fell one after another!
Boom～～
With a wave of his hand, Kei summoned the Demonic Statue of the Outer Path from his Boundless Realm—the massive figure crashing down on the already hollowed-out mountain interior!
Madara Uchiha leaped onto the head of the Demonic Statue.
Forming hand seals, he sent chains shooting from the statue's mouth like lightning.
The chains wrapped around Saiken, pulling the stunned Six-Tails through the rubble of collapsed rocks and ceiling debris toward the Demonic Statue's gaping maw!
Raising his hand again, Kei hurled the Kohaku no Johei—containing chakra from other tailed beasts—toward the Demonic Statue.
After absorbing the full Six-Tails and Seven-Tails along with chakra from seven other tailed beasts,
the Demonic Statue's form rapidly began transforming!
It transformed into a colossal one-eyed beast, crouching low on the ground.
Behind it, tail-like appendages lashed wildly, wrecking everything around them!
Letting out a furious roar toward the heavens, it unleashed shockwaves that swept outward in all directions!
"Rooooar!"
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