"Lord Raikage."
"How could this be."
"Have we lost?"
The Third Raikage held immense prestige in the hearts of the Kumo shinobi, to the point that they had begun to follow him blindly.
With the Third Raikage's death and his final words, the surviving Kumo shinobi fell into despair and lost their will to fight.
Clang, clang. The sound of weapons falling to the ground echoed continuously. As if they had lost their backbone, they gave up resisting.
Seeing this, the Third Tsuchikage's expression became incomparably grim. Looking closely, a flash of fear could be seen in his eyes. "Damn it."
The Third Raikage had fallen in battle.
The Kumo shinobi had lost their will to resist, leaving only their side. Did they still have to continue dealing with the monster before them?
The two Jinchuriki also looked grim, their expressions equally solemn and terrified.
The strength displayed by Seiryū, was so overwhelming that even they felt a trace of despair. The thought of retreating had already risen in their hearts.
However, the Third Tsuchikage had not issued any orders, so they could not easily do anything that would shake the army's morale.
"Lord Raikage."
The supreme commander, the Third Raikage, was dead. As the person trusted by the Raikage and the highest-ranking official in Kumo now, Dodai gritted his teeth tightly.
His fists were clenched tight, his nails already digging into his palms, and blood dripped down drop by drop.
He took a deep breath and issued another command. "Everyone, listen up. Leave the battlefield!"
"Do not treat the opponent as an enemy. In this battle, we, Kumo, have lost."
They had lost.
There was no suspense in their defeat.
Even after mobilizing a large army, and even after being forced by the situation to join hands with their enemy, Iwa, they had still suffered a crushing defeat.
Even their last hope, their strongest warrior, the Third Raikage, had died tragically in battle.
As the person the Third Raikage trusted most and the one entrusted as battlefield commander, Dodai's judgment of the situation was no worse than the Third Raikage's.
He understood what the Third Raikage's final words represented.
Conceding, surrendering. Only by doing this could they avoid the fate of Kumo being wiped out.
Even if it meant becoming a vassal of Konoha, it was better than being completely destroyed and having Kumogakure suffer immense devastation.
Kumogakure was not only composed of shinobi. There were countless ordinary people living within Kumo. The Third Raikage's final words were meant to protect these people.
Shinobi who stepped onto the battlefield were prepared to die.
On the battlefield, there was no right or wrong, only different positions.
Shinobi who died on the battlefield were not worthy of sympathy. There was no one who did not have blood on their hands.
But most ordinary people were innocent.
The war had nothing to do with them, and even if it did, it was only because the positions of the different shinobi villages were different.
Not many civilians or ordinary people wanted to see war break out, but they were powerless to stop it. The concept of a "position" was something that could not be clearly explained.
It was normal for many shinobi to die on the battlefield, but civilians and ordinary people should not be slaughtered. Moreover, Konoha's Reaper had said more than once that as long as one accepted his ideology and followed his will, he would show mercy.
The Third Raikage must have considered these things before making such a decision.
This was the Third Raikage's final order and his last testament. Kumo naturally needed to obey!
This was the only way to avoid more casualties.
Swish.
Dodai also had some prestige. After the order was issued, the Kumo shinobi, who had lost their will to resist, began to retreat.
They no longer stood on the same side as the Iwa shinobi.
"We have lost this battle."
Dodai did not move. He remained standing where he was, looked at Seiryū, and said in a low voice, "From now on, we will acknowledge your ideology and follow your will."
"We only ask you to show mercy to the civilians and ordinary people of Kumo."
If you lose, you must pay the price!
'Rintō Kūkyō, it seems quite useful.'
Information about Bakudō #90 flooded into his mind. Seiryū noted it down and understood the principle.
Only then did he look at Dodai and grin. "Naturally. I am, after all, a good person. As long as you behave, I cannot be bothered to kill you."
He felt somewhat happy in his heart.
Kumo, one of the Five Great Shinobi Villages, had acknowledged his ideology and intended to follow his will.
This was a major breakthrough.
If Kumo could do it, so could the other shinobi villages.
This world would change because of his will, and his happiness would definitely be realized!
Next, Seiryū's gaze turned to the Third Tsuchikage. He grinned, revealing a ferocious smile. "What about you all? Are you still not going to be reasonable?"
"Retreat!"
The Third Tsuchikage narrowed his eyes. He had already intended to retreat, and he loudly ordered all the Iwa shinobi.
There was no need to continue fighting.
This guy's strength was too terrifying. They alone could not kill him.
They needed to plan carefully.
Leaving was the best choice!
"You want to come when you want and leave when you want? How could there be such a convenient thing?"
Seiryū laughed, his laughter wild and savage, and said in a vicious tone, "All of you, stay here!"
Swish!
Seiryū moved.
He charged into the crowd again, relying on his immense power and killing people as easily as slaughtering chickens.
With every attack, a life slipped away, like a Shinigami waving a scythe and harvesting life after life.
"Rōshi, Han, attack together! Buy time for the others to leave!"
The Third Tsuchikage shouted at the two Jinchuriki.
Only they could barely fight against him and hold back his slaughter.
"Dust Release: Detachment of the Primitive World Technique!"
Forming seals to unleash his Kekkei Tōta, the Third Tsuchikage aimed his hands forward, and the light of Dust Release swept out, forcing Seiryū to stop his slaughter!
Boom! Boom!
At the same time, the Tailed Beast Chakra on the two Jinchuriki, Rōshi and Han, boiled. The Tailed Beast cloak covered their bodies, and they entered a partial Tailed Beast Transformation state.
They charged at Seiryū.
In their partial Tailed Beast Transformation state, they also possessed Kage-level strength!
The powerful might of their two Kekkei Genkai, Boil Release and Lava Release, bloomed!
Boom, boom, boom.
Kekkei Genkai and Kekkei Tōta. Three Kage-level powerhouses struck in succession, forcing Seiryū to respond seriously.
The siege of three Kage-level fighters, who also coordinated very well, was not to be underestimated.
"Hehehe."
After dodging the attack, the ferocious smile on Seiryū's face did not diminish. Instead, it became even more intense.
They were truly reasonable fellows.
As expected, just like with Kumo, he had to kill all the strong ones.
Only then would they be afraid, become reasonable, and follow his will!
Forming seals with one hand, a cold aura surged from Seiryū's body, and his right hand swept out a bone-chilling current of ice crystals. "Hadō #66: Hyōga Seiran!"
Crackle, crackle!
The cold current swept across a large area in front of him. The cold air was harsh, ice crystals froze everything, the surrounding temperature dropped sharply, and snowflakes even began to fall through the air.
Sizzle, sizzle, sizzle.
Han's Boil Release and Rōshi's Lava Release were both related to heat and were naturally incompatible with the cold aura. Upon collision, clouds of steam rose into the sky.
"Tailed Beast Ball!!"
Steam filled the surroundings, obscuring their vision, but both of them knew sensory ninjutsu and could track Seiryū's position.
Tailed Beast Chakra surged within them.
Red and blue Chakra gathered at one point, and the two combined their efforts to unleash a Tailed Beast Ball.
Working together, the Tailed Beast Ball was larger and more powerful!
Boom, boom, boom.
The next moment, a massive Tailed Beast Ball, tens of meters in size, took shape and blasted forward like a cannonball.
Carrying a powerful, unrivaled force, everything in its path was destroyed, and the ground was plowed into a ravine. One could see how terrifying this attack was!
"It's perfect to use you to test my new technique."
Seeing this, Seiryū had no intention of dodging. Instead, he curled his lips.
The reward he had just received from killing the Third Raikage, Bakudō #90: Rintō Kūkyō, its principles, application, and effects had already appeared in his mind.
The effect of Bakudō #90: Rintō Kūkyō was to reflect attacks that did not exceed its defensive limit!
It was a defensive Kidō.
It was also a defensive Kidō that could counterattack!
"Bakudō #90: Rintō Kūkyō!"
Seiryū formed seals with one hand and pointed forward.
With a hum, the air in front of him suddenly fluctuated, and a translucent, circular empty mirror suddenly appeared, blocking the incoming Tailed Beast Ball.
Hum, hum, hum.
The humming continued. Even though the circular mirror was only a few meters high, when the Tailed Beast Ball collided with it, it was as if it had been swallowed by an invisible giant mouth.
The surrounding space seemed to twist and deform, and size became blurred at this moment!
Finally, with a pop, the Tailed Beast Ball, which was tens of meters wide, was actually swallowed by the circular mirror that was ten times smaller.
"Returning it to you!"
Seiryū grinned, and with a thought, a faint light flashed across the translucent mirror. It was the chaotic color of the Tailed Beast Ball.
Then, the Tailed Beast Ball that had been swallowed was spat back out.
It turned around and blasted forward.
Its speed was even faster than when it came, and the huge boom, boom, boom of it breaking through the air was full of momentum!
"Block it!"
The Third Tsuchikage's expression changed drastically. Behind them were the retreating Iwa shinobi. If this Tailed Beast Ball landed, they had to block it!
"Dust Release."
White light flickered in the Third Tsuchikage's palms as his Dust Release was being prepared. But just as the Dust Release was about to take shape, six beams of light sizzled and locked onto his body, interfering with the flow of Chakra within him. The nearly formed Dust Release instantly dissipated.
The Third Tsuchikage's pupils dilated, and he gritted his teeth and cursed, "Damn it!!"
"Han, change the trajectory of the Tailed Beast Ball. Push it from below!!"
"I know!!"
Rōshi and Han, the two Jinchuriki, acted simultaneously.
At such a short distance, they could not unleash another Tailed Beast Ball to block it. They could only use their powerful partial Tailed Beast Transformation bodies to resist it head-on!
"Block it for me!!"
The two roared, their Chakra surging and erupting as their legs stomped on the ground.
They pushed their hands forward, and the tails swinging behind them also transformed into arms, pushing against the incoming Tailed Beast Ball!
Boom!!
During the struggle, the ground beneath the two Jinchuriki cracked, and waves of air rolled out.
They were pushed back uncontrollably. After retreating dozens of meters, they barely managed to block the Tailed Beast Ball!
Boom!
The two combined their strength, erupting with fierce power once again.
The surging power erupted from bottom to top, enough to uproot a mountain. Under the eruption of this power, the trajectory of the Tailed Beast Ball was changed, sending it flying diagonally into the air.
It flew for an unknown distance before falling under the pull of gravity, tracing a graceful arc and landing on the desert in the distance.
Rumble!!
The explosion surged, fire soared into the sky over there, forming a circular explosion field on the ground, and then a black mushroom cloud slowly rose.
"You could block your Tailed Beast Ball, but what about my 'Tailed Beast Ball'?"
Seiryū licked his lips. His right hand reached forward, and red and blue Chakra gathered on his index finger, a deep purple light illuminating the world.
"Cero Oscuras."
He spat out the cold, grim words, and the purple light was like a spear piercing through the world.
It shot forward, encompassing all the Iwa shinobi in front within its attack range.
Sensing a massive threat of death, the Third Tsuchikage, who had already torn open the Rikujōkōrō, unleashed his Dust Release with all his might. "Dust Release: Detachment of the Limitless World Technique!"
"Tailed Beast Ball!!"
"Tailed Beast Ball!!"
The two Jinchuriki also unleashed Tailed Beast Balls again. Time was too short, so they could not combine their efforts into one Tailed Beast Ball!
Rumble!!
Upon collision, the roar once again resounded in all directions.
The structure of Cero Oscuras was stable, but the power contained within it was unstable.
As soon as it encountered resistance, it would explode directly. The roaring sound was the sound of Cero Oscuras and the Tailed Beast Balls exploding simultaneously.
Under such power, even the Kekkei Tōta Dust Release could not completely neutralize it, and after resisting for only a short while, it was defeated.
Although the power of Dust Release was strong and could separate many substances into atoms, its own structure was not strong. If its limit was exceeded, the structure of Dust Release would also be torn apart!
Boom, boom, boom.
A vast shockwave swept through, scouring in all directions and leaving the ground riddled with holes.
It not only affected the nearby Third Tsuchikage and the two Jinchuriki, but also swept over the large group of retreating Kumo shinobi in the rear.
Once again, who knew how many people were killed or injured.
In the moment before the explosion, Seiryū retreated into the distance using Flying Thunder God and looked at the commotion over there.
He could not help but curl his lips. "Even my perception has been interfered with? But they should not die so easily."
The chaotic torrent of Chakra filling that area interfered even with the perception of Vollständig: Heavenly Eye.
Many people must have died.
However, the Third Tsuchikage and the two Jinchuriki were all Kage-level powerhouses, and the life-saving methods of Kage-level powerhouses were still very strong. They should not die so easily.
"The Chakra consumption is also quite large. It seems I cannot support another Cero Oscuras. Fortunately, there is still Lightning Release: Kirin."
The successive battles had also exhausted Seiryū's Chakra significantly.
The Dragon Vein Chakra was almost drained, and for the first time in a long while, Seiryū felt a bit weak and was even panting slightly.
This was normal.
Maintaining Dragon Vein Chakra Mode required Chakra consumption, let alone this state that was close to a rampage.
It was true that the magnitude of the Dragon Vein Chakra was not inferior to a full Nine-Tails form, but it could not withstand such wasteful use.
Fortunately, Seiryū still had Kirin, an S-rank Lightning Release ninjutsu that consumed very little Chakra. A few more shots would be no problem!
Sizzle! Swish!
However, just as Seiryū wanted to continue, there was a sound of something cutting through the air from the distance.
It was a specially styled kunai.
Following the appearance of this kunai, several other people appeared.
Tsunade, Minato, Kushina, Jiraiya, Sakumo, and the Third Hokage, Hiruzen!
Konoha's high-level combat power had also arrived here at this moment!!
Seiryū's perception captured the people who had arrived at the first moment. He looked over and could not help but knit his brows. "Why are they here."
(To be continued.)