It's…too late.
The final ember of hope Onoki had of winning the battle, much less the entire war, shattered before him, as the Guardian brought the gargantuan Rasengan, that down onto the 4 Tails. Even as a Tailed Beast, Son Goku's pride as one was consumed by something he hadn't felt from the power of a human before.
Fear.
The Rasengan was far too big to avoid, and in the moment of shock and terror, the Jutsu crashed into the 4 Tails who was instantly crushed into the ground. Immediately, with less than a millisecond of delay, a massive shockwave blasted from the site from all around, deepening the crater further, pushing down the 4 Tails, and sweeping across the battlefield, sending shinobi flying across along with trees and rocks. Onoki was sent tumbling through the air and luckily managed to regain his balance.
The Tsuchikage was lost for words. As he looked around his body shook. The destruction caused by one Jutsu was unimaginable. The hole where the 4 Tails had been crushed had been expanded even further, almost triple the size of the Bijuu. The blast alone cleared the battlefield of any trees or nature, and the rest of the fighting came to a stop temporarily as the shimobi from both sides looked up in fear, astonishment and utter confusion, not knowing what to expect. Regardless, the fighting continued, but not at the intensity it had before. They were uneasy about the unimaginable force that had just appeared.
And the 4 tails were nowhere to be found, and instead inside the crater was Roshi completely battered and unconscious. It seemed like it had retreated back into the body of its host, like the 5 tails had also done.
This is hopeless…someone like me can't hope to beat him. Such power. Only the likes of Senju Hashirama or Uchiha Madara could hope to stand even with that monster! How was I so confident before? How did I not realise his true power beforehand? This still might not be his full potential…
Katsuro patted the Guardian on its leg and scoured the area. Suddenly, his eyes darkened. Onoki froze, realising he had been spotted. The Stormbreaker eyes set on him, and before anything else could happen, Onoki sped away at max velocity he could muster through the air. This wasn't cowardice however. There was truly nothing he could do. If anything, the Tsuchikage was playing the safest move. There was no point in him trying to die fighting an unstoppable force for absolutely nothing, only at the cost of his own life. The frustration and regret was boiling over.
I have no chance here. I'm sorry, Roshi, Han… BUT I'M THE TSUCHIKAGE GOD DAMMIT! How am I so weak? How disgraceful, I led my shinobi into a death trap. Not just mine, but also the Raikage… I guess that's a slight positive, if it weren't for all the losses we will suffer too… This era is over, it belongs to the Leaf.
This sight of him fleeing caught the sight of many, and demoralised those who still held onto hope. Unfortunately for Onoki, he wasn't thinking rationally. If he did, he would have realised Katsuro is definitely low on chakra and now might have been the best time to deal with him. Of course it would've failed, but nonetheless it was a chance. He could have tried to save both Roshi and Han, but with Katsuro's Flying Raijin and also calling over Shinobi to secure them, it would have been extremely difficult. It made sense for Onoki to cut his losses here.
In fact, Katsuro himself was admonishing himself slightly for how much chakra had been used up while his allies saluted him with sheer respect as they captured both Jinchuuriki. He even motioned for them to seal away the Raikage's body to be returned at a later date. The man deserved that at the very least. But with the massive rasengan, Guardian and all the Jutsu in between, Katsuro's reserves were almost naught. His effect on the battlefield won't be as great, but he hoped his calculations would be accurate.
Onoki looked down. He recognised his own Stone shinobi fighting endlessly, then looking up to see their Tsuchikage rapidly disappearing from his fight area. In all his own guilt, sorrow and agitated state, Onoki couldn't think straight. Confusion and fear filled them, seeing their leader leave them so hastily. He didn't want to fight a hopeless battle against Katsuro, but leaving like he did was abandoning his men. Some even felt as if their own leader had betrayed them.
Should I call them all to retreat? Or are they winning right now? Should I let them fight for as long as I can? Do I take responsibility of the Cloud Shinobi as well? Do we still have a chance to cut down the Leaf's numbers? Questions flooded the Tsuchikage's mind, not letting him make his decisions. The Cloud shinobi below him also looked anxious and alarmed, seeing that the Tsuchikage was fleeing from the fight that he had intended to fight alongside their Raikage with, as well as the fact that the Raikage was nowhere to be seen.
Our numbers are still greater… if it weren't for that man returning we could win this battle. Maybe we still can. Even if we can, is there a point? Konoha will not lose this war, that is certain. At the very least, I should save as many of my people as possible.
Suddenly, another force stood atop the hilltop. A small, hintful flame of hope burned in Onoki, at the slight possibility that there may be some unknown reinforcements to help. However, he was left shattered, realising who had arrived. This cruelty was something Onoki wouldn't recover from. He was plunged into despair, shown hope and plunged back again numerous times. It would be the reason the years down the line people would name for Onoki personality shifting, becoming more depressed and irritable than his earlier years.
Standing side by side, stood the White Fang of the Leaf, Hatake Sakumo, and Senju Tsunade, granddaughter of the God of Shinobi and one of the legendary Sannin. Behind them, stood an army of Leaf ninja and Medical nin, looking ready to fight.
This is…
Onoki's mind seemed to crumble even more than it already had.
Moments before…
A beautiful blonde woman spoke to a white haired middle aged man. "Since when was there a forest here?"
"Hmm, that's probably your husband's work, and that's most definitely him on that big wooden golem." Sakumo replied, glancing at her to his side as she blushed for seemingly no reason.
"That stupid idiot, hiding this from me. I'll give him a piece of my mind…" she muttered under her breath, but Sakumo heard everything chuckling lightly, reminiscing of good times with his own late wife.
"Let's hurry up, he told us to be there as quickly as we could. Our comrades were facing almost triple their number after all. And I have no doubt they would have poured all they could to kill him. Katsuro is not invincible no matter how it may seem."
"You're right, no matter how many tricks he, Minato and Orochimaru pulled, they'll need our help."
Sakumo turned to look back at the almost 2,500 Shinobi he commanded who had rushed to make it in time with no rest. Out of his original 3000, 500 had perished, a number that caused ache in his heart. But despite this, defeating a great village with such little casualties was a testament to both their strengths and to how weak Suna was. Tsunade's Iryo ninjutsu this time managed to completely deal with Chiyo unlike the last war. In the time between, she had grown immensely and had that experience, but Chiyo as an old lady only stagnated - the curse of age. As a result, Sunagakure who weren't ready for another war so soon easily fell under the White Fang and Princess.
Sakumo saw tired faces, but their eyes burned with resolve. They knew the odds their comrades faced, and this was nothing in comparison. He turned back towards the forest and resumed his march.
"Let's go." he said while lifting his iconic Tanto. And in response, the tired souls were invigorated and on cue shouted and screamed loudly raising their weapons in a war cry. A signal for their comrades that help was here.
AN: If you would like to view up to 20 more bonus chapters on all my fics so far including this one, and would also like to support me, please visit my P@TR30N, at pa tr eon.com / GhidorahWriter (remove the spaces).
Thanks for reading and make sure ADD to your COLLECTION and VOTE with POWER STONES! The target is 200 POWER STONES for the next BONUS CHAPTER!