Grayish-white clouds blocked the sunlight, casting a heavy atmosphere across the land.
Aozora, Junping, and Guy quickly exited the dense forest and dashed rapidly across the wasteland, heading toward Konoha.
Aozora ran swiftly, his mind racing as he desperately thought of ways to clear his name.
Suddenly, something felt off. He frowned and stopped in his tracks.
"Careful!"
He activated his Sharingan and swept the area with a sharp gaze.
They had passed through this area earlier, but now on their return trip, he sensed something had changed.
Junping also activated his Sharingan and scanned the surroundings before asking Aozora, "It looks exactly the same as before!"
Aozora couldn't find anything either, so he closed his left eye and focused his perception.
An instant later, he realized what was wrong—the surrounding natural energy had shifted slightly.
Ever since perfecting the Tai Hua Yi Xing technique, Aozora had been practicing the Tian Xin Meditation Method and Embryonic Breathing daily.
Though he hadn't seen any real progress yet, the long hours of practice gave him a faint sense of environmental balance and subtle shifts in natural energy.
Although the outward appearance of the environment seemed unchanged, Aozora sensed its discordance and slight changes in ambient natural energy.
Aozora backflipped rapidly away while shouting, "Retreat!"
Junping and Guy immediately obeyed.
No sooner had all three leapt backward than the ground where they'd stood moments before erupted violently.
From the cracked earth rose a massive earthen platform, atop which stood an Azure Dragon Statue.
"What a shame~ If you'd hesitated just half a second longer, you would've received my special brand of... affection!"
A stunning woman stepped forward at the platform's edge, gazing down at them with disdain.
Seeing the woman's long, bare white legs, Guy and Junping broke into a cold sweat.
The jutsu barrier was eerily unpredictable—even Kage-level shinobi could only dismantle it by brute-forcing through with ninjutsu, draining the caster's chakra.
"Exceptional observation skills indeed—you truly deserve being elite jonin of Konoha!"
Amidst the dust, a middle-aged silver-haired ninja emerged, stepping onto the center of the raised platform. Soon after, three more figures materialized atop it.
Aozora's left eye remained locked in Sharingan mode as he quickly surveyed everyone present, coldly remarking, "Judging by their chakra reserves, they're all jonin-level experts."
Upon hearing this, Junping and Guy grew serious-faced and assumed combat-ready stances.
There wasn't much difference between an elite jonin and regular jonin regarding chakra capacity, meaning these five might be opponents of equal standing.
Guy threatened, "Who are you people? How dare you attack us Leaf ninja? Don't you fear retaliation from Konoha?"
"Retaliation?"
A ninja wearing a red forehead protector and white facial paint stepped forward, glaring coldly at the trio. "Your Konoha shinobi don't just massacre bounty hunters without question—you slaughter innocent civilians too. Do you even respect the Daimyo anymore?"
Recognizing the man's outfit, Aozora recognized the uniform and demanded, "You're the speaker—dare give us your name?"
"Who wants to know?"
Maketu proudly pointed at the "fire" emblem on his sash, saying, "I am Maketu, one of the Twelve Guardian Ninja serving under the Daimyo!"
Aozora's expression turned cold immediately — he knew they were about to be blamed for this.
Before Guy could finish explaining, he blurted out, "It wasn't us — someone else did it!"
He hadn't even finished speaking when Aozora had already completed the hand seals.
[Fire Release - Great Fire Annihilation Technique!]
Without using purely refined Homura Chakra, tempered fire-natured chakra spewed from Aozora's mouth, instantly transforming into a vast sea of flames.
The raging inferno surged rapidly toward the group.
Facing the approaching wall of fire, Maketu didn't attempt to dodge. He watched with interest as the flames crashed against the barrier.
They couldn't help but smirk — the Eight Gates Barrier possessed immense defensive strength, impossible for ordinary jutsu to break.
Boom! Boom! Boom!!
Wave after wave of flame crashed into the Eight Gates Barrier, slamming it like relentless ocean waves against rock, each impact sending shockwaves rippling through the shield, making it thinner with every strike.
After a while, the force of the fiery onslaught finally subsided, though the barrier now appeared as fragile as glass.
Nyun looked pale and exhausted; her chakra was nearly depleted from maintaining the barrier.
Looking down through the barrier, Maketu and the others realized that Aozora's group had already disappeared. The dried branches and grasses across the wasteland had been reduced to ash. Everything surrounding the barrier lay scorched and barren, leaving the entire wasteland bald and blackened.
Surveying the charred wasteland and feeling the scorching air, the five fell silent.
Fudo said in alarm, "Is this really the power of an Elite Jonin from Konoha? Truly monstrous!"
Maketu snorted without a word — the sheer power of that Fire Release technique really did surpass his expectations.
After replenishing what little chakra remained, Nyun promptly released the Eight Gates Barrier.
As the barrier vanished, she regained some of her strength. She reached underground and pulled out a map etched with mountains and rivers, panting, "Why was his Fire Release so powerful?"
Honji wore a serious expression. "This individual must be no nobody — his Fire Release Ninjutsu surpassed even normal A-ranked techniques.
Also, you're still new to the Eight Gates Barrier. You couldn't spread the force of his attack evenly across the entire shield, which is why he almost shattered it."
Hearing Honji's explanation, Nyun still couldn't shake off her unease. She questioned, "That guy looks younger than us yet has such formidable strength. If even a single Jonin from Konoha — the Hidden Leaf Village — has this kind of power, can we truly destroy it and take its place?"
Honji glanced back at the four who looked somewhat lost, then consoled them, "Konoha does have many prodigies, but its leadership has grown corrupt and weak! Prominent figures like Orochimaru and Danzo defecting show how dark things have become inside Konoha.
Besides, we possess the ultimate Earth Release ability. As long as we collect enough corpses, we will eventually dominate the ninja world."
Upon hearing those words, a spark returned to their eyes.
Eagerly stepping forward, Maketu asked, "Uncle, shall we continue pursuing them?"
When Honji heard that, he couldn't help rolling his eyes inwardly.
Without the advantage of terrain from barriers, how could five jonin defeat three elite jonin in the wilderness?
Yet he kept a calm expression and said composedly, "Don't pursue them."
Maketu frowned with anger. "Just like that? They destroyed many of our outposts and left us with countless casualties!"
Honji replied calmly, "We only need to report this to the Daimyo. I believe the Hokage of Konoha will give the Daimyo a satisfactory explanation."
Maketu frowned again. "Will the Hokage really give us an explanation?"
"Yes!" Honji said confidently.
He knew the truth behind the White Fang's choice to take his own life.
If even the legendary White Fang was willing to sacrifice himself for Konoha,
then there's no doubt the Third Hokage wouldn't hesitate over just three elite jonin.
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