Hiruzen Sarutobi and Jiraiya arrived first, being the closest to the location. They looked toward the horizon in confusion and even pulled out a map to double-check their bearings.
Jiraiya spoke first, "Old man, there should be a mountain over there, right?"
"Yeah, Mount Hakuto."
"It seems… gone?"
"Hurry, let's check what's going on." Inside, Hiruzen was shocked. An Ya had only mentioned using poison to turn this place into a death zone, halting the Allied Forces' advance—but she never said anything about Mount Hakuto disappearing entirely.
When the two arrived, they immediately took a sharp breath in horror. The air was filled with visible toxins, and countless poisonous insects crawled across the ground, some even charging directly at them. The stench of death and decay was everywhere.
[Fire Release: Great Fireball Art!]
[Toad Oil Bullet!]
The master and disciple's combined jutsu scorched the attacking insects into ashes, leaving behind a pungent, burning odor.
Both frowned and stepped back. Jiraiya, eyes wide in disbelief, said, "What exactly happened here? How did it become like this?"
Realizing the severity of the situation, Hiruzen stated grimly, "Quick, set up a Sealing Barrier. We can't let these insects and poison gas spread toward Konoha."
"Right."
A similar scene played out on the other side. When the Tsuchikage and Raikage arrived, they were met with the horrifying sight of living hell itself. As far as the eye could see, there was nothing but poison gas and insects, and the remains of bodies only partially devoured.
"Damn it!" The enraged Raikage activated his Lightning Armor and charged into the toxic mist, entering a killing frenzy.
The Tsuchikage's heart sank. Ignoring the Raikage's battle below, he turned to his Anbu escort and said, "Set up barriers to prevent the toxins from spreading. I'm going inside to investigate."
Floating into the air, protected by chakra, the Tsuchikage flew toward where Mount Hakuto used to be. Along the way, he saw no sign of life—only trampled ground and endless poison mist in every direction. There was no trace of any survivors.
At this point, he was certain—most of the Four-Nation Coalition must have been wiped out. His heart bled at the thought. He gritted his teeth in fury. Since the founding of Iwagakure, they had never suffered such devastating losses. Their number of ninja was even close to dropping out of the ranks of the Five Great Countries.
Flying further ahead, two figures finally came into view.
Both sides noticed each other almost instantly.
"Hiruzen Sarutobi."
"Onoki."
Furious, Onoki pointed at the old man and accused, "It was you, wasn't it? Such ruthless methods—you will be condemned by the entire Ninja World!"
Hiruzen coldly laughed, "I just arrived here myself. Take a good look at what I'm doing—once these poisons get out of control, Konoha will be the first to suffer."
Jiraiya backed him up, saying, "Tsuchikage, this isn't the time to assign blame. You clearly understand the consequences if we don't stop this toxin from spreading."
Just as Onoki was about to speak, a flock of crows appeared in the sky. Emitting sharp cries, they charged at the Tsuchikage in a wave of attacks.
[Dust Release: Outer Domain — Annihilation.]
Master Onoki eliminated the swarm of crows with Dust Release, finally realizing the severity of the situation. If even airborne creatures had been infected, once this place completely spiraled out of control, the disaster would affect more than just Konoha.
Without another word, Master Onoki flew away without looking back.
The Kiri team had also arrived, having been the farthest away originally. Upon discovering the area had become a dead zone, Master Gen—specialized in barrier techniques—immediately began setting up protective formations, while the Kiri Anbu members behind him joined in seamlessly.
Returning to his group, Master Onoki found the Raikage still locked in battle below. Toxic corpses had piled up extensively, yet their numbers showed no signs of decreasing. The black poisonous mist in the air had even begun corroding his Lightning Armor.
"Raikage, pull back. If this continues, you'll die in there," Master Onoki advised.
Realizing his outburst had accomplished little, the Raikage unleashed a Lightning Release: Thunder God Blast, reducing the attacking toxins to dust before retreating outside the barrier.
"Have a clue what's really happening? What the hell is going on?" The Raikage's eyes burned with fury.
"Now isn't the time to explain. Quickly set up the barrier, or the entire Ninja World will suffer," Master Onoki didn't bother elaborating further, immediately directing the Iwa ninja under his command to seal off the area.
Though impulsive, the Raikage understood this was currently their only option, waving his big hand to signal the Hidden Cloud ninja behind him to join the effort.
Watching this unfold, Sasori controlled the Third Kazekage and spoke to someone beside him, "Big Brother Kurotsuchi, you predicted accurately. They've all come, and they've already begun attempting to control the situation."
"Of course. With such high stakes, anyone not an idiot would know what choice to make." Anya casually removed the sealing tags from Tobirama Senju, freeing him.
Before the furious Tobirama could speak, Anya beat him to it, saying, "Sorry, Second, but how about I burn you some extra paper offerings when I get back?"
Anya actually had the nerve to apologize, and Tobirama's anger had already cooled somewhat, but when he heard that last sentence, his fury exploded from the top of his head straight outward: "You..."
Indeed, the legendary Second Hokage was now spittle flying with every word, fury pouring out uncontrollably.
"Hey, you're the Hokage, how can you swear like that?" Anya shut off his hearing temporarily, blocking out Tobirama's words.
Once he was done shouting, Tobirama returned to his usual self, coldly stating, "Kid, the battle is already over. Since you haven't removed this technique yet, you must have something else you want from me. Speak."
Through this period of interaction, Tobirama had come to understand Anya's personality pretty thoroughly. This was the most unscrupulous, calculating, ruthless, and cold-hearted Uchiha Anya had ever encountered. Had he been alive, Tobirama would have definitely kept Anya tightly under control, because otherwise, the future threat posed by him would rival none other than Madara Uchiha himself.
Anya chuckled, saying, "Second, I actually managed to save Konoha this time, so I just want to know one small thing—how to resolve the flaw in the Mangekyo Sharingan."
Tobirama's gaze sharpened, his eyes filled with deep meaning.
Meanwhile, Sasori directed the Third Kazekage to join the effort of sealing this place. With the combined might of the Five Great Countries, the complete containment was finally accomplished.
"You've finally appeared, Third Kazekage."
Onoki was the first to notice him.
Raikage A also wore a shocked expression. The Third Battle had dragged on so long — wasn't it all because of this man's disappearance in the first place? Who would have thought he was still alive? Then what about Rasa, one of the Allied Forces' commanding officers? And where had the Mizukage gone? The poisonous gas and toxins here were indeed formidable, but could they really have killed two Kage-level experts without a trace?
Hiruzen Sarutobi arrived with Jiraiya. Master Gen also brought his Kiri ninja to the location.
The Third Kazekage smiled slightly as he watched the representatives from the Five Great Countries arrive. "Now that everyone's here," he said, "let's begin the Second Five Kage Summit."
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