Under the shroud of Tianyuan's Wood Release: Nativity of a World of Trees, the thousand-plus trapped Iwa Ninja were forced to constantly resist the relentless assault of the rising timber. They even had to remain wary of the Konoha Ninja striking at them from the rear.
As their strength ebbed and the opposition's surged, the Iwa Ninja fell one by one. This offensive was meant to be Iwagakure's triumph; they had gambled the vast majority of their military might on this single strike.
But before such peerless, overwhelming power, all their efforts came to nothing. Schemes and superior numbers were utterly useless in this moment. Who could possibly stand against such terrifying strength?
Trapped within the wooden forest, the Iwa Ninja were filled with profound regret. Perhaps attacking Konoha had been a mistakea complete and utter mistake. They should never have come.
None of this mattered to Tianyuan or the Konoha Ninja. The battlefield was forever cruel, offering no mercy or comfort. War displaced the masses, and in its wake, the concepts of good and evil blurred. Perhaps war was simply that ugly.
Further away from the chaos...
"What on earth is that?" Kitsuchi stared blankly at the massive, boundaryless forest rising in the distance. He could not hide his shock. He had intended to provide support to the front lines, but the sight stopped him cold.
That sudden forest certainly wasn't the work of the Iwa Ninja. That left only Konoha.
"This... this is..." The other Iwa Ninja around him were equally stunned.
"Lord Kitsuchi, should we provide support?" one ninja asked. In truth, the forces remaining with them were not many. Was support even feasible?
"Support?" Kitsuchi murmured. "Konoha..."
"Do not go to their rescue." A familiar voice rang out, and a figure descended from the sky to land before Kitsuchi.
"Lord Tsuchikage!" Kitsuchi exclaimed. The man was Onoki, the Tsuchikage. Floating in the air allowed him to better survey the entire battlefield.
"Lord Tsuchikage, what exactly is that?" In front of the others, Kitsuchi addressed his father by his formal title.
"What is it?" Onoki said grimly. "If I am not mistaken, that is the First Hokage's Wood Release: Nativity of a World of Trees."
"The First Hokage's Wood Release? How is that possible? Wasn't it said that no one in the Senju Clan ever inherited that power again?" Kitsuchi blurted out.
"Has Konoha been hiding someone like this all this time?" another Iwa Ninja asked.
"The power of the Mangekyo and the power of Wood Release... how can both have returned to Konoha at the same time?" Kitsuchi could not help but wonder.
In the past, Madara Uchiha and Hashirama Senju were the legendary figures who suppressed the entire shinobi world. Now, both of those terrifying powers had reappeared within Konoha.
"Besides that Tianyuan, who exactly is this Wood Release user?" one ninja whispered.
"Retreat," Onoki ordered. "As for the identity of the Wood Release user, we will likely find out soon enough. We only need to wait."
"Lord Tsuchikage, what about Rōshi and Han?" Kitsuchi asked.
"The two of them were dealing with Tianyuan," Onoki replied. As he spoke, a terrible thought crossed his mind. It couldn't be... could it?
"Move. We are heading back." Onoki waved his hand.
"Yes, Lord Tsuchikage." The Iwa Ninja nodded. They had no choice but to retreat. Faced with such power, they were incapable of rescuing their comrades. They could only wait in the rear for any chance of relief. As for how the trapped ones would get out, it was up to them now.
The Iwa Ninja campaign to surround and annihilate the Konoha forces ended in a clumsy, broken failure. It was a truly crushing defeat. With nearly a thousand ninja dead, Iwa's military strength plummeted. They were now in an even more pathetic state than Sunagakure. Moreover, their two Tailed Beast Jinchuriki, Rōshi and Han, had been captured.
It was clear that for the short term, Iwagakure could do nothing more. They needed to lick their wounds and recover from this massive blow. Even though Konoha had suffered heavy casualties in the initial ambush, compared to the Hidden Stone Village, their losses paled into insignificance.
At the border of the Land of Earth...
Konoha established a more secluded location for their command headquarters and maximized their perimeter security. In truth, Konoha had detected the Hidden Stone's initial approach, but the sheer scale of Iwa's total mobilization had simply overwhelmed the scouts and sentries. Iwa had intended to manufacture victory through pure quantity.
However, all those numbers had been reduced to nothingness before Tianyuan's terrifying power.
The atmosphere at the camp was fiery and high-spirited. Every Konoha ninja was incredibly excited. Most were discussing Tianyuanhow he had captured the two Jinchuriki and his mastery of powerful Wood Release Ninjutsu. With that Wood Release, he had wiped out hundreds, nearly a thousand Iwa Ninja.
This was a true grand victory, seemingly even more impressive than the triumph at the Sunagakure front. The result was bone-deep damage to the Hidden Stone Village. Naturally, the intelligence regarding this victory was sent back to the village. Before long, all of Konoha would likely be shaken by Tianyuan once again.
"Lord Tianyuan is amazing. Not only does he possess the power of the Mangekyo, but he even has the First Hokage's Wood Release now."
"Yeah, wiping out nearly a thousand Iwa Ninja... Konoha has never seen a victory like this."
"Perhaps Lord Tianyuan really is a child of the gods, or maybe he is the reincarnation of the legendary Sage of Six Paths."
"Having Lord Tianyuan in Konoha is truly a blessing."
"With Lord Tianyuan here, I feel so much safer. He is our Guardian Deity."
The ninjas whispered among themselves around the camp. This victory would likely be the topic of conversation for a long, long time.
Inside the command tent...
"Tianyuan, you were truly incredible this time, using such a powerful Wood Release Ninjutsu," Hizashi Hyuga praised.
"I'm just glad you're a Konoha ninja," Shinko Yuuhi added.
"You all flatter me too much. I might get a bit too proud," Tianyuan joked.
"Then go ahead and be proud! We're going to have a proper celebration today," Shinko Yuuhi laughed.
"Tianyuan, you might just be the strongest in Konoha now," Kushina Uzumaki said with a smile.
"Is that so?" Tianyuan smiled back.
The celebration began.
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