Rustle, rustle, rustle~~~
The mountainous body of Shukaku, like snow under a blazing sun, visibly disintegrated, scattering into fine sand that billowed across the arena! In an instant, only a lonely sand dune remained in the center of the stadium.
The top of the sand dune 'popped' open. Gaara stumbled out, his heavy eyelids rising to reveal a bewildered expression. "Woke up?" He had certainly enjoyed a good sleep, never having slept so comfortably before. But the terrifying phantom punches that shook mountains and split the earth in his dream, and the despairing roars of the sandbag Shukaku, felt so real? This left him wondering if anyone truly possessed such terrifying strength. The monster within his body had actually chosen to hide inside him out of fear of that person. He had never encountered such a thing before!
Hey! Weren't you constantly nagging and demanding to come out, keeping me from sleeping well? Now you're scared? Coward!
Suddenly, he snapped his head up, his gaze fixated on the blond figure. This guy, this... guy! The destructive power contained within his tiny form completely subverted his understanding of the world! If... if...
"Release Formation!" Genma Shiranui's hand gesture pressed down.
Oooommm—
The purple flame barrier, which had covered the sky, silently dissipated. The azure light of the sky returned to the world, reflecting a chilling, almost frozen silence.
Naruto surveyed his surroundings. Where were the cheers? Where were the shouts? Thousands of people filled the arena, yet there was a suffocating, absolute silence, so profound that a pin drop could be heard!
Genma Shiranui's eyes instantly sharpened like an eagle's, vigilantly scanning the surroundings. It turned out that in those crucial seconds before the battle ended, in the audience stands, Kabuto Yakushi had activated the Temple of Nirvana Jutsu, plunging almost everyone in the arena into slumber!
The Konoha Crush Plan had officially begun!
Witnessing this, Baki, stunned by the Nine-Tails Jinchuriki's terrifying monstrous strength, clenched his knuckles until they turned white. But the poisonous arrow had been loosed from the bowstring! There was no turning back! He squeezed a command through gritted teeth: "Signal: Execute Plan A! Immediately!!"
"Also..." He looked at the messenger ninja: "'Fox Hunt Squad' assemble at once!"
The messenger ninja was about to Shunshin away. "Wait!" Baki's Adam's apple bobbed, his voice suddenly deepening: "Fox Hunt unit... expand to five times its base size! Fill the gaps from the 'Shadow Sever' and 'Mad Sand' squads! Now! Immediately!!"
"Cap-captain! This deployment..." The thin, masked ninja gasped in horror. Drawing almost all elite combat squads was unprecedented!
Baki roared, cutting him off, leaving no room for doubt: "Execute it immediately! Otherwise, both you and I will be corpses on the battlefield!"
Watching the fearful Shunshin disappear, he sharply turned his head, his gaze fixed on the arena below like a brand. In the center of the arena, the blond boy casually brushed off sand, looking relaxed.
Overestimated?
No!
Even the previous 'highest estimate' now seemed like a joke! The One-Tail Jinchuriki, who was supposed to be the Sand Hidden Village's "sharpest blade," was now beaten into a broken sandbag! Even Shukaku was cowering back into its shell, not daring to show its head. Their original 'Fox Hunt' personnel... to encircle this monster? They probably wouldn't even be enough to fill his teeth. It would be purely lining up to sacrifice themselves!
But, a morbid flame of greed suddenly flared in Baki's eyes! Although this Nine-Tails Jinchuriki's power was terrifying, if they succeeded, this monster would become the main force in their destruction of Konoha. Think back to the Nine-Tails attack twelve years ago; Konoha lost thousands of people, and even the Fourth Hokage died because of it. If they could turn the Nine-Tails' spearhead to stab Konoha...
What a sight that would be!
Thinking of the impending destruction, his breathing couldn't help but grow heavier. Moreover, they had also spent a fortune to invite a helper. Thinking of this, he glanced towards a corner of the arena. Sure enough, the masked guy was already in position!
A stone dropped in Baki's heart: That guy has a deep-seated grudge against Konoha; he was the one who instigated the Nine-Tails attack twelve years ago. Doing it again would surely be familiar to him, and with the support of Sand Hidden and Sound Hidden, there's no possibility of failure.
Easy money plus a chance for revenge, this guy couldn't possibly bail out at the last minute, could he?
The scene returns to the arena.
The 'dessert' was finished, time for the next 'main course'. Naruto clapped his hands and turned to leave. At that moment,
"Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh—"
Dozens of dark figures, like ghostly bat swarms, descended from above the audience stands, from the shadows of the arena, and even from blind spots high in the sky, layered and overwhelming, as if sealing the heavens and locking the earth! In an instant, they surrounded him, making it impossible to escape!
"Move out! Control Naruto Uzumaki! At all costs!!" The shrill command pierced the lingering silence!
"Yes!" The assent roared like thunder!
Dozens of ninjas showed no hesitation: sword light, shuriken, fire, wind, lightning, water... various ninjutsu mixed with piercing shrieks that tore through the air, weaving a gigantic net of death with no gaps, covering the golden figure in the center!
Naruto's body remained still. Only at the instant when the pervasive killing intent reached him,
Ooommm!!!
A crystal-clear chakra light wall suddenly expanded, instantly transforming into a flawless "Absolute Defense Sphere." All ninja tools and ninjutsu that touched this azure sphere, no matter how tricky or explosive, silently melted away like snowflakes hitting a hot iron! Not a single ripple appeared!
In the audience stands.
Hiashi Hyuga violently crushed the wooden armrest. His Byakugan, usually as calm as an ancient well, was now shaking like an earthquake. "He actually knows that move too!" His throat convulsed violently, and he tightly gripped his trembling wrist: "This is not just 'Gentle Fist'! The flow of chakra, the control—this surpasses the limits of the Hyuga's 'Eight Trigrams Palms Revolving Heaven'!"
After performing the Revolving Heaven, Naruto's lips curved into a smile, indicating "warm-up complete." Passive defense? That wasn't his style!
"Body Flicker: Shadow Glide!"
Before his words finished,
In the center of the arena, the golden figure suddenly blurred, stretched, and burst apart! In an instant, dozens of substantive afterimage clones, like the golden rays of a blooming sun, simultaneously pierced towards every attacking 'Fox Hunter'!
Puff! Puff, puff, puff!!!
Fast!
Faster than the retina could capture! Dozens of Sand Hidden elites... couldn't even manage a surprised cry! They only felt as if their throats or chests had been struck by a giant battering ram, their figures sent flying back even faster than they had arrived, like tattered ragdolls swept away by an invisible storm!
"Ugh—"
"Captain... help...!"
Muffled groans, sounds of bone shattering, and ninja tools clattering to the ground instantly replaced the previous deathly symphony! In just one breath! The surging crowd of the deadly hunt was reduced to a ground littered with groaning, tumbling 'rag bags' and the golden grim reaper standing alone and proud in the center!
On the ground, Baki coughed up blood foam mixed with organ fragments, but the sharp pain in his chest far surpassed his physical injuries. He stared intently at the figure whose clothes were untouched by dust, his gums almost ground to powder. Despair gnawed at him madly.
But then, the straw named 'hope' suddenly emerged. Good, that 'person' hasn't made a move yet! That person is a tough character who can go head-to-head with the Fourth Hokage, and any attack is ineffective against him! He licked his dry, bloodied lips, then suddenly turned his head as if grasping a lifesaver, his gaze fixed on the predetermined position.
Quickly, summon Obito Uchiha!
But, that corner, where so much hope was placed—it was utterly empty! Baki's pupils instantly constricted to pinpricks!
Obito Uchiha, where are you?!
Cough, cough,
In response, "Obito Uchiha" indicated: Too many acquaintances in Konoha, I'm out, I'm out.
The one who arrived, of course, was Obito Uchiha Unit 2—Uzumaki God Egg! He didn't show his face mainly because Konoha was full of acquaintances. His way of speaking, his walking posture, and even unconscious small movements could easily expose him to old acquaintances if he wasn't careful! For safety's sake, retreat quickly!
The core purpose of playing 'Obito' was very clear:
Firstly: To instill confidence in the Sand Hidden and Sound Hidden alliance that "strong reinforcements have arrived," ensuring the Konoha Crush Plan launched as expected.
Secondly: To direct Sand Hidden's attention more towards him, reducing Konoha's losses.
Now that all objectives were achieved, this actor was no longer needed; it was better for him to exit early! As for the bad reputation Obito Uchiha bore in Sand Hidden and with Orochimaru... What did that have to do with Naruto? It was all Obito Uchiha's doing!
In any case, Baki closed his eyes unwillingly! Don't misunderstand, everyone lying on the ground is just heavily injured. These are living, breathing, 'human gold mines' that can be exchanged for real money on the negotiating table in the future! For every person lying here, don't even think about getting them back without a few million ryo!
Whoosh—
Kakashi's figure was like lightning, finally breaking through the entanglement of several Sand Hidden ninjas, shooting into the arena! Earlier, seeing Naruto surrounded by dozens of Sand Hidden ninjas, he was so anxious his Mangekyo almost popped out! But the sight before him made him instantly freeze... Where was the expected bitter battle scene?
He saw Naruto looking as relaxed as ever, while around him, Sand Hidden elites lay sprawled on the ground. It ended... even faster than he broke through the resistance! Kakashi's eye beneath his headband twitched violently: "This kid's movements are too quick, aren't they?"
"Kakashi-sensei, you came at just the right time!"
Naruto smiled brightly, casually pulling something from his pocket and placing it in Kakashi's palm: "Yesterday, when you brought Hana-chan back, didn't you ask me when I learned the Flying Thunder God?"
"Here! Graduation gift!"
Kakashi instinctively caught it, feeling a cold sensation in his hand. He looked down! It was a familiar three-pronged kunai!