Whoosh!
Another flash of lightning streaked across the battlefield.
A White Zetsu collapsed on the spot.
Ahead lay countless White Zetsu fleeing in the opposite direction from Konoha's front lines.
"These guys are pretty decisive."
Ning Feng swung his blade again.
A massive sword wave infused with an enormous amount of Lightning Release chakra swept forward. The razor-sharp edge cut through large numbers of White Zetsu at the waist.
"Looks like Kabuto realized they don't stand a chance anymore."
A yellow flash appeared beside Ning Feng.
In an instant, Minato Namikaze materialized at his side.
"This retreat allowed quite a few White Zetsu and Edo Tensei shinobi to survive."
Ning Feng glanced helplessly at the severed White Zetsu on the ground.
Even cut in half, White Zetsu possessed extraordinary vitality thanks to the Hashirama Cells filling their bodies.
Being bisected wasn't enough to kill them.
Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!
Sword strikes too fast for even Minato to clearly follow sliced through the air.
With a few swift motions, Ning Feng reduced the White Zetsu corpses into multiple pieces.
This time, they were dead beyond any possibility of recovery.
"Feng, your swordsmanship seems to have improved again."
"It's alright."
Ning Feng slowly sheathed the Kusanagi Sword.
Smoke still lingered across the battlefield.
"This front can finally settle down for now."
"Then, just as you suggested, we can transfer all the defensive forces here."
Minato smiled knowingly.
The proposal for a nighttime offensive had been Ning Feng's idea.
Taking advantage of Kabuto's lack of information and catching him completely off guard.
Even if Konoha had fewer troops, the moment they saw Ning Feng, they would inevitably choose to retreat.
"This should also reduce pressure on the other battlefields."
After confirming all battlefield spoils had been collected, Ning Feng followed Minato back while speaking.
"Now let's see how Kabuto responds to this."
A sharp light flashed through Minato's blue eyes.
"And there's still Sunagakure..."
Ning Feng recalled his previous agreement with Chiyo.
He hadn't expected her to betray him.
Had she seen Konoha under siege and decided to kick them while they were down, hoping to claim a share of the spoils?
Then this time...
Sunagakure had made a terrible miscalculation.
Konoha–Sunagakure Battlefield
The battlefield had become a river of blood.
The fighting was unimaginably brutal.
Broken puppets littered the ground alongside the corpses of Konoha ninja that had not yet been recovered.
There were some Sunagakure casualties mixed in as well.
But compared to Konoha's losses, they were far fewer.
"Hmph... with Uchiha Feng dead, both Konoha and Amegakure are basically finished."
Standing atop a high vantage point overlooking the battlefield, a rare smile appeared on Chiyo's aged face.
Anyone with eyes could see it.
Since the death of the Third Hokage, Konoha's strength had declined significantly.
And with Ning Feng supposedly dead on the battlefield, both Konoha and Amegakure had fallen to their weakest point.
As long as Sunagakure aligned itself with Kumogakure and Iwagakure to attack Konoha, substantial gains were guaranteed.
Beyond that, Chiyo also hoped to solidify her position as the Fifth Kazekage.
After all, she had achieved little during her tenure.
If Iwagakure and Kumogakure finished off Konoha and then turned around to eliminate neighboring Sunagakure, she'd have nowhere to cry.
Attacking Konoha now was also a declaration of allegiance to the other two villages.
"Kazekage-sama! The Konoha forces have begun retreating!"
"Should we pursue?"
"Of course we pursue!"
Without even turning around, Chiyo watched the fleeing Konoha shinobi with a pleased smile.
"An opportunity like this only comes once in a lifetime. Why wouldn't we wipe them out completely?"
If they annihilated Konoha's army here, her position as Kazekage would be secure.
As for her agreement with Ning Feng...
Ning Feng was already dead.
Why would she still honor it?
"You've been sitting in that Kazekage seat so long you've forgotten that Konoha and Amegakure are allies, haven't you?"
Suddenly, something heavy hit the ground behind her.
Before Chiyo could turn around, a voice like a demon whispering in her ear nearly frightened her soul out of her body.
"What's wrong, Kazekage-sama? Why do you look so scared?"
Trembling, Chiyo slowly turned around.
The ANBU who had just reported to her was now lying in a pool of blood.
Beside the corpse stood a tall figure holding a blade.
The man slowly raised his head.
A pair of blood-red eyes stared directly at her.
A mocking smile curled on his lips.
"F-Feng... Lord Feng..."
Chiyo's face twisted.
She forced out a smile uglier than a cry.
Even her voice trembled.
Ning Feng was alive?!
Every report had claimed he died on Konoha's battlefield.
Then why was he standing right here in front of her?
"Since your time as Kazekage is over, as an old friend, I should send you on your way."
Ning Feng grinned viciously.
He flicked the blood from the Kusanagi Sword and watched Chiyo's face grow even paler.
Terrified by the ruthless killing intent in his eyes, Chiyo stumbled backward several steps.
"Lord Feng! Please give me another chance!"
"For the sake of all the supplies I've provided Amegakure, spare me this once!"
She dropped to her knees in panic.
She didn't even dare meet his gaze.
She knew exactly how terrifying Ning Feng's methods were.
There was no escaping him.
Sigh...
"It seems you still haven't learned one thing."
"Adding flowers to brocade is easy."
"Offering charcoal in the snow is difficult."
A sword flashed.
The razor-sharp Kusanagi Sword severed Chiyo's head in a single strike.
"Reflect on your mistakes in hell."
Stepping over her corpse, Ning Feng strode toward the position from which she had been observing the battlefield.
From there, the entire battlefield was visible.
Konoha's forces were steadily retreating.
Meanwhile, Chiyo's latest order had not yet been relayed.
As a result, the Sunagakure forces remained waiting in formation.
Only a handful of more aggressive shinobi had begun pursuing the Konoha retreat.
"Perfect..."
"These fence-sitters from Sunagakure are all gathered together."
Ning Feng leaped directly toward the battlefield.
The gleaming Kusanagi Sword radiated endless sharpness.
"Enemy attack!"
"Someone's coming!"
"AAAHHH!"
Alarm spread through the Sunagakure ranks.
A lone shinobi had descended from the sky straight into their formation.
Then he drew his sword—
And began slaughtering.
No one could survive a single exchange.
His crimson eyes seemed capable of reading every movement.
His lightning-wreathed blade appeared capable of cutting through anything.
Slash! Slash! Slash!
The once orderly Sunagakure formation was instantly torn open.
Sunagakure's greatest strength was puppet techniques.
Most puppet masters excelled at controlling puppets from a distance.
Close-quarters combat was their greatest weakness.
And Ning Feng had deliberately landed directly in their midst—
Practically face-to-face with the puppet masters themselves.
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