A heavy, four-edged arrow tore through the air, beginning its brief yet deadly journey.
It spun at high speed, the heat generated by the friction between the arrowhead and the air slightly distorting the surrounding scenery.
The flight would take several seconds, but for the target, this period was absolute vacuum.
Tokijin, the current leader of Kumogakure, felt his heart-pounding dread suddenly intensify!
Mere milliseconds before the arrow arrived, a tremor originating deep within his soul made his hair stand on end.
He frantically wanted to turn back, to form hand signs, but... it was too late!
"Ene—!"
The word had just barely escaped his mouth.
Screech!
An extremely sharp, yet low-pitched, bizarre whistling sound suddenly ripped through the air!
The sound was not metallic; instead, it resembled the death shriek of an enraged Steel Giant Eagle diving straight down from the sky, rapidly amplifying from far away until it instantly overwhelmed everyone's hearing!
"Pwoom!!"
Almost simultaneously with the sound's arrival, a terrifying noise—a mix of penetration, tearing, and explosion—burst open in front of his chest.
A coin-sized hole with extremely smooth edges appeared on his lower back.
The Four-Edged Heavy Arrow was so fast that the wound didn't even bleed immediately.
The terrifying kinetic energy carried by the arrow was completely released the moment it entered his body.
It wasn't like a needle, but like a high-speed rotating meat grinder.
Bones, internal organs, and muscles, upon contact, were not pushed aside but vaporized, shredded, and ground into fragments.
His front chest violently burst open into a gruesome cavity the size of a large bowl!
Fragments of bone, lung tissue, and heart, mixed with blood mist that had been instantly vaporized and then condensed, sprayed violently forward in a radial pattern!
His body was even propelled forward a step by the arrow's remaining kinetic energy before his eyes instantly dimmed and he pitched straight forward.
Killed instantly with a single strike, without pain, because the nerves hadn't had time to transmit the signal.
But, it wasn't enough!
After tearing through the first target without delay, the Four-Edged Heavy Arrow continued flying along its original trajectory with almost no reduction in speed.
Worui had just heard the dreadful thud coming from Tokijin's body, and the corner of his eye caught the spraying blood mist.
But just as horror took over his face, a black shadow filled his entire vision.
"Pfft—!"
The chest, again.
The same horrific penetrating wound.
However, due to the buffering provided by the first target, the arrow's kinetic energy had diminished slightly.
Although the entry point was still a clean, small hole, the exit point only burst open into a fist-sized tear.
Blood and bone fragments sprayed out. He let out a short, despairing "Ugh!"
His body was thrown backward by the immense impact and crashed heavily onto the ground, clearly beyond saving.
After piercing two people, the arrow's kinetic energy and stability had dropped significantly.
But it still possessed tremendous lethality.
The Four-Edged Heavy Arrow dipped its angle after penetrating the two men and struck the front of the thigh of the third Kumogakure ninja, Totsui.
The moment of impact was marked first by the crisp sound of bone being instantly pulverized, followed by the dull thud of muscle and blood vessels being shredded.
The lower half of his thigh, along with his calf and foot, was completely ripped apart, broken off, and carried away, leaving behind only a mangled, violently spurting stump.
Instantaneous amputation!
He was sent spinning outwards by the remaining kinetic energy, and the blood spurting from the severed limb traced a blinding crimson arc in the air.
Totsui let out a miserable, inhuman shriek. The intense pain and massive trauma instantly incapacitated him, leaving him rolling and wailing in agony on the ground.
"Ugh! Ah! Ah! Ah! Ambush! We're under attack!"
The battlefield fell into a momentary, absolute silence, which was broken by the wailing of Totsui.
The Kumogakure ninja couldn't see the enemy, and the moment they heard the arrow's whistle,
their comrades were instantly destroyed in the most horrific and unbelievable manner.
Accompanied by his shrieks, the Kumogakure ninja finally reacted and quickly searched for cover.
Totsui was dragged by Kai Gai behind a rock.
He pulled out bandages to apply pressure and stop the bleeding.
Totsui's entire lower right leg was gone, and his main artery was severed higher up, causing an alarming rate of blood loss.
In just a few seconds, a crimson halo had spread on the ground.
Totsui's brain was spinning, and his vision kept fading to black.
He squeezed his thigh with all his strength and roared:
"Don't worry about me! I won't die! The enemy is attacking from long range, lead the others and charge over—"
"Whoosh—Boom!!"
Everyone heard it: first, an extremely sharp, cloth-tearing long sound, but it lasted only an instant before abruptly transforming into a dull yet highly penetrating thunderclap!
Bang!
A Kumogakure ninja hiding near Totsui, behind a tree trunk, suddenly convulsed, and a cavity appeared in his chest.
He collapsed onto the ground with a thud.
The enemy's arrowhead stuck into the ground, emitting a dull thud.
"Everyone scatter! Move quickly while advancing. The enemy's position is to the southwest."
After forcefully bandaging Totsui to stop the bleeding, Kai Gai immediately issued the command.
After scattering, the Kumogakure ninja, all highly tense, rapidly darted toward the direction of the Owl.
Like startled birds, they searched forward, constantly hiding and seeking cover.
One kilometer, two kilometers, three kilometers... It wasn't until they searched three kilometers away that they finally discovered traces.
"Kai Gai, there are tracks here!"
On the cliff face here, there were two footprints: one very shallow, and the other completely pressed into the ground.
Kai Gai touched them twice, then followed the line of sight from that spot to their current location, made a quick estimation, and his face filled with horror.
"A distance of three kilometers!"
"Hyuga Clan!! Damn it! Don't let me catch you!"
Kai Gai roared, instantly guessing who the attackers were.
After all, the only ones with long-range vision who dared to attack Kumogakure were the Hyuga Clan.
At this moment, the perpetrators, Owl and Hayato, were already two kilometers away in the forest below.
Hayato's face was filled with ecstasy; he had never imagined that Owl's archery skill could reach such a level.
To hit targets effortlessly from three kilometers away, and to pierce two, even three people!
The Kumogakure ninja's current mix of shock and fury was a stark contrast to their previous smug satisfaction!
[Hahaha, Kumogakure, it's time for repayment!]
Owl was now nocking his arrow for the third time. He had previously stood on the cliff face to minimize obstructions and prevent the arrow's power from being reduced by being blocked.
But now, with the Kumogakure ninja standing on the cliff face, they were the perfect targets!
Once again! Four-Edged Heavy Arrow, full draw!
Owl, pulling back the bowstring, felt the immense pressure on his body as his gaze quickly locked onto the target.
"Release!"
A streak of black, carrying rotating, tearing power, suddenly plunged into the sky...