The Iwagakure shinobi revealed expressions of despair.
The Sun Disk's attack range was too great, its attacks too fast, and its destructive power too strong.
So strong that just one of them could directly alter the state of the battlefield.
One Sun Disk was equivalent to thousands of troops.
Even if the number of Sunagakure shinobi was inferior to that of Iwagakure, even if they were still being pursued by Konoha's army, retreating in panic and clearly unprepared for battle, while the Iwa army had rested and waited in full readiness—
The moment the Sun Disk stood there, the Iwa army instantly fell into an absolute disadvantage.
Countless beams of light poured down.
Orochimaru stared blankly in the direction of the Sun Disk.
"I knew it. My premonition wasn't wrong."
"I knew Sunagakure wouldn't be that simple."
"I never expected this so-called Sun Disk to be such a massive killing weapon. It can even distinguish friend from foe. Too abnormal. It has already far surpassed the scope of ninja tools."
"I'm afraid even the legendary Six Paths ninja tools could not reach this level."
"This thing can change the shinobi world!"
"How did Sunagakure obtain it?"
The Konoha shinobi felt a powerful lingering fear rise in their hearts.
"Too terrifying!"
"Thankfully, it wasn't us!"
"Thankfully, it was Iwagakure!"
Earlier, the Konoha shinobi had been indignant toward Iwagakure. They had felt that the Iwa shinobi were trying to seize the fruits of victory that should have belonged to them, when the Suna army had clearly been defeated by Konoha.
Now that feeling was gone.
Now the Konoha shinobi were grateful. Grateful that the Iwa shinobi had appeared. Otherwise, the ones being attacked by the Sun Disk right now would not have been Iwagakure, but them.
"No, we have Hyuga shinobi. We might not necessarily have fallen for it."
"This is a trap, but the Byakugan can see it."
Thinking of this, the lingering fear in the Konoha shinobi's hearts weakened slightly.
"Lord Orochimaru, what should we do?"
Orochimaru took a deep breath.
"Retreat for now. The current situation is no longer suitable for continuing the battle. Iwagakure has already collapsed. With that Sun Disk, Sunagakure holds an enormous advantage. We can no longer pursue."
"Arrange for a group of shinobi to observe that Sun Disk's situation from a distance. I need intelligence. The more intelligence we have, and the more detailed it is, the better."
The shinobi beside him nodded.
"Yes, Lord Orochimaru!"
Most of the Iwagakure shinobi had fallen.
They had either died under the Sun Disk's attacks or been killed by Sunagakure shinobi. The few who survived fled in all directions, utterly battered and miserable.
The Suna shinobi had already sounded the horn of counterattack.
"Kill them!"
"They dared to intercept and kill us? They're courting death!"
"Don't let a single one return!"
…
"Sunagakure will win!"
The Iwa army had been defeated—thoroughly defeated.
Countless shinobi had died or been wounded. Only a small portion escaped. The rest all became captives of Sunagakure.
When the battle report from the front line came back, and Rasa saw the figures written on it, a smile appeared on his face.
"There it is!"
"The funds to build the fifth Sun Disk are secured!"
"The Sun Disk really didn't disappoint me."
"Not only does it play an enormous role against individually powerful shinobi, it performs very well when facing massive numbers of enemies too."
"Its killing efficiency is not lower than that of an ordinary Kage-level shinobi."
"And not merely by a small margin."
Rasa placed the battle report into a drawer.
After that, he looked toward the system panel.
[Points: 1000.]
"The seventh rumor's point acquisition has been fully completed. That means I can carry out the final ten-pull and obtain this major guarantee."
"This will raise my Otsutsuki bloodline to thirty-five percent."
"Thirty-five percent. That's already more than one-third. I wonder if there will be any special change."
A trace of anticipation appeared in Rasa's eyes.
The next moment, his thoughts stirred.
[Congratulations, Host. You have completed your one-hundredth draw and triggered the guarantee. You have obtained an S-rank item: Otsutsuki Bloodline, 5%.]
"Use it!"
Rasa immediately felt that familiar power surge into his body.
His body was strengthened.
His chakra rose.
…
A faint stabbing pain appeared in his right eye.
Rasa vaguely felt that this eye was slowly absorbing his chakra. But not all of it. There seemed to be some kind of special selection, like a picky cat.
"This eye is evolving!"
"But I don't know how long it will take to complete the evolution."
Rasa removed his eyepatch and took out a mirror.
A faint golden thread appeared within his right eye.
Not long after, Rasa lowered the mirror and put the eyepatch back on.
"It is time to create the eighth rumor."
Rasa actually already had an idea.
That was the Hyuga clan.
To promote the claim that Hiruzen Sarutobi had sold out Jiraiya, Rasa had used a forged suicide note. And that suicide note had just so happened to become Hyuga Hizashi's suicide note. This gave Rasa the foundation needed to create the eighth rumor.
Rasa could completely make use of Hyuga Hizashi's death and that suicide note.
"Then let's do that!"
…
…
Iwagakure.
Onoki sat on a reclining chair on the balcony of his office, basking in the sun.
After growing old, Onoki had come to enjoy sunbathing, as if the sunlight could burn away some of that elderly scent from his body and make him appear younger, more energetic.
A gentle breeze blew over. Onoki narrowed his eyes.
"Comfortable!"
"I wonder how things are on the front line. But there shouldn't be any problems. After all, the main force is Konoha. My Iwagakure is only responsible for containment. Konoha contributes the effort, while our two villages split the harvest."
"As expected of me."
"That fellow Hiruzen Sarutobi calls himself the Professor, but in reality, he mainly relies on the people under him. Konoha has far too many talents."
"It is precisely by relying on those talents that Konoha has been able to remain strong."
"If they relied on Hiruzen Sarutobi alone, Konoha would have collapsed long ago."
"But Iwagakure depends entirely on my strength alone."
"Iwagakure truly has no real talent. Everything must be decided by me personally."
"But fortunately, most of my decisions are correct. That is why Iwagakure has been able to come this far."
"Among the many shinobi villages, we rank near the top."
"If Sunagakure is defeated this time, Iwagakure will be able to stabilize its position as one of the top two."
Onoki glanced eastward.
"Kumogakure has yet to join the war. I imagine they have no intention of supporting Sunagakure. More likely, they want to wait for an opportunity and obtain the greatest possible benefits from it, no matter who the target is."
"But it will either be Konoha or Sunagakure."
"That little brat, the Fourth Raikage, hates me deeply. But if he is rational, he will know that attacking Iwagakure would be the worst possible choice. I hope he won't be that foolish."
Just then, a figure hurriedly rushed in.
"Tsuchikage-sama, this is bad."
Onoki opened his eyes and frowned.
"What is it?"
"Tsuchikage-sama, we've been defeated! Over a thousand Iwagakure shinobi have died. Many were captured by Sunagakure. Even Lord Kitsuchi died at Sunagakure's hands!"
Onoki shot to his feet.
"What?"
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