Dense lightning, almost tangible, flooded the battlefield, sending terrifying fluctuations through the air.
Hatake Sakumo's astonishing chakra erupted from within him. His powerful aura merged seamlessly with the intent of his blade, threatening to spill over at any moment.
There were countless swordsmen in the ninja world, but very few had fused Lightning Release so completely with their swordsmanship.
Hatake Sakumo had already forged his own path.
At this moment, his confidence reached its peak. As long as the blade remained in his hand, he believed himself invincible.
Thunder roared in everyone's ears, stunning friend and foe alike. Sakumo charged straight into the raging Wind Release and swung his blade forward.
"White Fang, Lightning Fang!"
A crescent shaped beam of lightning shot forth from the blade, tearing open a massive gap in the Wind Release before slamming directly into the purple puppet.
Pa!
The violent crash echoed endlessly. Lightning wrapped around the puppet, and the surrounding sand was crushed flat as electricity discharged across a wide area.
However, when the lightning gradually faded, the puppet controlled by Iwakura was revealed once more. Its entire body was covered in a layer of complex runes.
Hiss hiss hiss hiss!
The Lightning Fang spread across the puppet like a dense net, but after penetrating halfway, it was forcibly dispersed by the runes.
The four fused puppets had actually endured the attack.
"So its defense has increased."
Sakumo spared it only a brief glance before refocusing. The Wind Release converging around him had reached its limit, emitting a sharp, grating hum as it shredded his chakra defense.
Unlike Lightning Release, this Wind Release produced little noise, yet its cutting power was terrifying. The vibrating wind blades grew faster and sharper, and before long, Sakumo's chakra shield could no longer endure it.
"White Fang, Lightning Shield!"
He swung his short sword again, and solid lightning chakra reformed around him, reinforcing his defense.
Even so, closing the distance to Iwakura remained extremely difficult.
Iwakura's technique resembled Chiyo's Three Treasures Suction Crushing, but the principles were different. The Three Treasures used suction to pull enemies inward, while Iwakura and Yin's coordination centered on repulsion, with the puppet acting as the core. Sakumo could not approach, while their attacks could be amplified through Wind Release.
As expected, he saw the purple puppet slowly open its mouth.
Dark red magma erupted forth. Enhanced by Wind Release, it exploded violently, scorching the sand into blackened glass. Its power had already reached S rank.
Sakumo let out a low shout. A chilling blade intent surged around him, sharp and overwhelming. The White Fang in his hand emitted a strained hum.
That sound grew increasingly intense, and the blade itself began to change.
Crimson chakra wrapped around the short sword, extending outward to form a chakra blade more than a meter long. The chakra continued to surge, shifting from red to purple, from pale violet to deep indigo, before finally condensing into black.
The chakra blade stretched to more than five meters in length.
Sakumo's face turned pale, his body swaying slightly, but he no longer cared.
Hiss hiss hiss hiss!
The massive chakra blade screamed as it cut through the air. Though the sound was not loud, the power it carried was terrifying.
At this moment, the scorching magma was already upon him.
For an instant, it felt as though the entire battlefield had fallen silent. All eyes were fixed on Hatake Sakumo, who seemed about to be swallowed whole.
Boom!
A colossal bolt of lightning descended from the sky like a divine sword, tearing open the heavens and carving cracks across the air itself. Lightning surged toward Sakumo from every direction.
His eyes were deep and cold, flashing with purple light. He brought his hands down in a single motion.
A beam of light more than twenty meters wide, shaped like an enormous version of the White Fang, cleaved through the magma as if lightning itself had pierced the sky.
Boom!
A massive fissure split open the ground, and the raging magma poured back into it.
The towering purple puppet was severed cleanly in two, crashing to the ground amid tearing sounds. Lightning invaded its interior, rampaging uncontrollably.
Iwakura stood frozen in shock.
Only now did he truly understand why Hatake Sakumo was known as Konoha's White Fang.
When the White Fang shone, it became the sharp tooth that devoured darkness.
"Run…"
Iwakura used both hands to shove Yin away. Before he could finish speaking, a second beam of light fell from the sky.
His arms were severed instantly. His left arm hit the ground, while his right hand, which had pushed Yin aside, remained hooked on the corner of her clothes.
Drip, drip, drip.
Blood fell steadily onto the sand. Yin stared blankly at Iwakura's broken body, her mind completely empty.
"Run… quickly…"
Iwakura struggled to speak.
Lightning and blade intent had already invaded his body. He knew he was dying.
"No!"
Yin frantically searched through the scrolls in her ninja pouch. Her hands trembled so badly that she could barely grasp anything.
"No…"
"You won't die…"
"You'll be fine, I won't let you die!"
She finally found the hemostatic pack, but with both arms severed and lightning raging within the wounds, the bleeding could not be stopped.
At this moment, she hated herself.
Why was she not a medical ninja?
"Iwakura… I beg you… don't die… please don't leave me…"
Blood flowed continuously from Iwakura's mouth. Too weak to speak, he could only look at her with pleading eyes, silently urging her to flee.
Because Hatake Sakumo was already walking toward them, his short sword in hand.
Yin continued her futile attempts to stop the bleeding, though she knew she was powerless against such injuries.
"That's right… the village…"
"If we go back to the village, you'll be saved…"
"As long as we get back to the village…"
As if grasping at a final hope, she turned around and knelt heavily on the ground, bowing repeatedly.
"I beg you, please let us leave," Yin pleaded desperately.
She slammed her head against the sand again and again. "Iwakura is dying. Let me take him away. As long as you agree, whatever you want, I can give it to you…"
"We won't be ninjas anymore. Even if you want me to join Konoha, I will. I beg you… please let me take him away…"
Hatake Sakumo sighed softly. Holding his short sword, he turned around and walked away.
He had already decided Iwakura and Yin's fate. He left not out of mercy, but because his own condition was deteriorating rapidly. If he forced another battle, he might not be able to withstand Yin's desperation.
Iwakura's death was inevitable. Sakumo was in no hurry. He needed to eliminate the remaining Sand shinobi, confirm that Uchiha Hayashi was safe, and regroup with the others. Yin would not escape.
An unspoken sigh echoed in his heart.
It had been nearly twenty years since he became a ninja. He could no longer remember the face of the first companion he lost, but the pain of that moment had never faded.
This heart of his had been tempered countless times, yet it still retained warmth.
He understood Yin's feelings completely. If it were him, he would do the same for his comrades, for the people he cherished.
But the longer he lived as a ninja, the more he understood that reality was filled with helplessness and suffering.
To protect meant to harm. Love inevitably bred hatred. They were bound together and could not be separated.
That was reality.
As a Konoha ninja, Hatake Sakumo chose to protect the village and the people he cherished. Even if his heart resisted, he still had to wield the White Fang.
A ninja could not afford even the slightest mercy.
"Ninja… huh…"
Sakumo let out a quiet sigh and continued walking into the distance.
_____
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