Luring Me Into the Trap? Eat My Classic Base-Swapping Tactic!
The battlefield had descended into pure chaos.
"Kill! Kill! Kill!"
"Crush the Akatsuki soldiers!"
"Push forward! Don't let them regroup!"
Sparks burst across the snow-covered ground as Ninjutsu collided in violent flashes of light. Explosions rolled like waves, and the thick smell of burning earth mixed with cries of pain. The battlefield had become an ocean of fire, smoke, and screams—a place where every second meant life or death.
The Akatsuki's main flank force, tasked with holding the left side of the battlefield, was now being struck head-on by an elite Cloud squad led by the First Raikage himself.
The Raikage moved like a living thunderbolt.
Lightning Release wrapped around his entire body, forming an armor of crackling purple-white light. The ground shattered beneath every step he took. Explosive tags detonated all around him, but the shockwaves washed through his Lightning Armor without leaving even a scratch.
This was the secret pride of the Kumogakure lineage—the ultimate evolution of Lightning Release: defense and speed blended perfectly.
In a world where most Shinobi specialized in high offense but low durability—glass cannons who burned bright but fell fast—the Raikage clan stood alone. Their bodies were weapons. Their muscles were shields. Their Lightning Armor was unbreakable.
Even Naruto's Rasenshuriken couldn't pierce the Third Raikage.
Even Sasuke's Chidori couldn't tear through the Fourth Raikage.
And the First Raikage?
He was the original monster who created this path.
"Take this elbow strike!"
"Second elbow strike!"
"Third—consecutive elbow strikes!"
He roared as he plunged into the enemy ranks. His elbow, reinforced by Lightning Armor, tore through Akatsuki Jonin like a blade slicing through paper. Every strike sent another enemy flying, their bodies dropping lifeless onto the blood-stained snow.
Simple. Brutal. Unstoppable.
The Cloud Ninja behind him let out excited shouts. Seeing their Raikage tear apart the Akatsuki formation single-handedly ignited their morale.
"Lord Raikage has opened a path!"
"Advance! Don't stop!"
"Akatsuki won't withstand this!"
With their spirits boosted, the Cloud Jonin unleashed their strongest jutsu, charging behind the Raikage and carving through the disoriented enemy lines. The Akatsuki flank began to collapse. Their squad leaders were quickly overwhelmed by the Raikage's assault—one after another fell under his elbow strikes.
But the Akatsuki were not cowards.
Even though they were fighting a losing battle…
Even though the Raikage was a walking natural disaster…
Even though their comrades were cut down like grass…
They did not retreat.
"For Lord Kage!"
"For our village!"
"We will not falter!"
Their voices were hoarse but unwavering. Genin, Chunin, and Jonin alike stepped forward. Some were barely older than children, yet their eyes held a determined fire. A group of more than a dozen Genin strapped themselves with hundreds of explosive tags, transforming into human bombs.
"Charge!"
"For our honored leader!"
They sprinted straight toward the Raikage with suicidal resolve.
Then—
BOOM! BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!
Mushroom-shaped bursts of fire erupted across the battlefield, throwing clouds of snow and debris skyward. The air trembled with the roar of consecutive explosions. Even at a distance, the heatwave forced Cloud Ninja to shield their faces.
Although the blasts couldn't penetrate the Raikage's Lightning Armor, the Cloud elites around him weren't as fortunate. Many were engulfed by flames, blown backward with bones breaking and blood spraying.
"They're crazy!"
"Are they even human?!"
"This Uchiha Makoto… he's a demon! And these Akatsuki Ninja are all lunatics!"
A Cloud Jonin stumbled out of the smoke, half his armor melted, his eyes filled with terror. The enemy's fighting spirit was too fierce. Even under crushing disadvantage, they still counter-charged with explosive suicide attacks. Their willpower was monstrous.
Minutes passed.
Bodies piled high.
The snow was stained red.
The Raikage still stood tall—barely hurt.
But the Cloud elite squad around him had suffered heavy injuries.
Their speed slowed.
Their Ninjutsu output weakened.
Their breaths grew ragged.
Even the strongest Shinobi had limits.
Even Hashirama and Madara eventually ran out of chakra.
A Cloud Jonin limped toward the Raikage. "L-Lord Raikage… we can't stay entangled like this. If we keep fighting in their formation, even you might fall."
Just then—
The Akatsuki suddenly began withdrawing.
"Lord Raikage! They're retreating!"
"We did it! We pushed them back!"
The Cloud Ninja brightened, relief washing over their exhausted faces as the enemy began to rapidly pull back.
But the Raikage narrowed his eyes.
"That's… too easy."
Something felt off.
If the enemy was truly willing to die this recklessly…
Why withdraw now?
Earlier, the Raikage had launched this assault to draw the attention of Uchiha Makoto, intending to lure him into a trap. If Makoto took the bait and came here to fight, the Cloud main force could spring their ambush and kill him.
With Makoto dead, the Akatsuki collapse would be swift.
That was the plan.
But now—
Something felt wrong.
Uchiha Makoto hadn't appeared.
The Akatsuki flank had retreated.
And Kumogakure's main force remained tied to this side of the battlefield.
The Raikage's pulse quickened.
"With all this noise, Uchiha Makoto surely knows what's happening here. There's no way he didn't notice…"
He suddenly turned pale.
"…unless…"
He whipped his head around.
"The third line of defense!"
His stomach dropped.
It hit him like a thunderbolt—
a horrifying realization.
"What if the Akatsuki were only delaying us? What if their main force already slipped past and struck the third line of defense?!"
The more he thought about it, the more terrified he became.
Almost all of Kumogakure's combat strength was here.
The third line of defense had almost no protection.
If the Akatsuki seized it—
Kumogakure's supply line would be cut off.
No food.
No provisions.
No reinforcements.
Cloud Ninja would be starving within a day.
Not even legendary Shinobi could fight on empty stomachs.
He began sweating profusely.
"Quick! Quickly—! Someone return at once! Warn the main force! Reinforce the third line of defense immediately!"
Before the messenger could even run—
A voice echoed from above, dripping with mockery.
"Trying to leave? Where exactly do you think you're going?"
The Akatsuki Ninja froze.
Cloud Ninja stiffened.
Uchiha Makoto appeared at the edge of the battlefield, standing atop a shattered tree trunk. His cloak fluttered in the rising steam, and his Sharingan gleamed with cold amusement.
"Your third line of defense…"
He smirked.
"…won't survive today."
The Raikage's face turned ashen.
Makoto continued rambling nonsense as he walked toward them—lists of bizarre training regimens, strange drugs, and incomprehensible "muscle-building secrets" that made absolutely no sense.
But one sentence cut deeper than any jutsu.
"My main force is already moving toward your undefended back line."
The Raikage's pupils shrank.
"You—your forces are really attacking our third line of defense?!"
He could barely steady his voice.
Makoto tilted his head. "Why wouldn't they?"
He took another step.
"Today decides who wins this war. I'll crush your supply line… and while I'm at it, I'll take your head too."
His killing intent surged.
Cloud Ninja felt their knees weaken.
The Raikage finally realized—
This was no longer a battle.
This was checkmate.
Makoto advanced with a calm smile.
"Let's end it here, Raikage."
Advance Chapters avilable on patreon (Obito_uchiha)