Compared to Ren, the Third Raikage's approach was much more direct and brutal; he simply charged forward, regardless of whether there were people or anything else in his path.
"Earth Release: Earth Wall!"
Seeing the two charging recklessly, an Iwagakure Ninja finally reacted, using Ninjutsu to try and stop them, but it was unfortunately useless.
"Boom!"
The earth wall had just risen when it instantly shattered into pieces, a flash of lightning streaking through the middle, its speed unaffected in the slightest.
Just as Ren, who had just sent an Iwagakure Ninja flying, was about to continue his actions, the ground beneath his feet trembled, followed by dozens of rock pillars erupting from the earth, forming a cage in the blink of an eye, trapping Ren within it.
"We've got him! Attack quickly!"
An Iwagakure Ninja, maintaining his hand seals, saw Ren trapped, and a look of joy immediately appeared on his face, then he quickly shouted to his companions nearby.
"Earth Release..."
Everyone quickly formed hand seals, but Ren, who was trapped, would not sit back and wait for death.
"Hmph."
Seeing the surrounding rock pillars, a hint of disdain appeared in Ren's eyes. He leaped towards a rock pillar, then suddenly turned, three long tails lashing out like whips!
"Crash!"
As the first tail lashed out, several cracks immediately appeared on the rock pillar. Just then, the second tail whistled in, and as the rock pillar swayed, the cracks spread to all its surfaces.
"Bang!"
When the final third tail struck, the already shaky rock pillar instantly shattered, sending fragments flying!
Ren also seized the opportunity to burst out. As soon as he emerged, the rock pillar cage behind him was blasted apart by Ninjutsu attacks coming from all directions.
Freed, Ren continued to charge into the crowd, resuming his slaughter. The chaos caused by the two successfully opened an escape route for the Kumogakure Ninja and the three youngsters.
At any rate, there were still a few Jonin among these Kumogakure Ninja. While they couldn't clear a path, leading a retreat was no problem for them.
The three youngsters, on the other hand, were protected by Shadow Clones One and Two. Escorted by Ren and the Third Raikage, who cleared a path on their left and right, they quickly broke out of the Iwagakure position.
"Lord Raikage!"
"Captain!"
Having broken through the encirclement, they did not leave but turned to look at the two figures fighting in the enemy lines, their faces filled with anxiety, attempting to help the two escape.
However, they were now heavily surrounded. With the coordinated efforts of a large number of Ninja, the two were successfully held back, and as the distant army continuously approached, the situation became less optimistic.
"Retreat quickly! Bring the information here back to Minato!"
At this moment, Ren had already released his Tailed Beast transformation, returning to human form to continue fighting. After striking down an opponent with his sword, he used this brief moment to sternly shout to the few people in the distance.
This was already within the Land of Waterfall. The approaching army of ten thousand behind them—neither Konoha nor Kumogakure had any information about them. If the enemy used this opportunity to launch a surprise attack, Konoha would undoubtedly suffer heavy losses if caught off guard.
The same applied to Kumogakure. The Third Raikage naturally understood the importance of this matter and also shouted loudly to the Kumogakure Ninja watching from afar.
"Kasai, return to camp quickly and report the situation to Ay and Bee, so they can prepare!"
"Lord Raikage!"
Gazing at his Raikage, who was being besieged, Kasai hesitated for a moment, then gritted his teeth and turned, shouting to his hesitant companions around him.
"Go quickly! Bring the information back!"
After all, compared to the Raikage's immense strength, they couldn't even buy time, so returning to camp immediately and leading the main army to rescue was the most correct choice.
The three youngsters hesitated for a moment, then turned and sped away, with Shadow Clones protecting their sides.
They also understood that if these ten thousand Iwagakure Ninja launched a full-scale surprise attack on Konoha, the Konoha army, caught completely unprepared, could very likely be routed by the enemy. At that point, the Iwagakure army would march unopposed into the Land of Fire, directly attacking Konoha!
If the other battlefields were affected, Konoha's war situation would directly collapse across the board, and no one wanted to see this series of chain reactions.
"Don't think you can escape!"
Seeing the Kumogakure Ninja and the three youngsters leave, the surrounding Iwagakure Ninja immediately reacted. Just as they were about to give chase, two figures charged out of the crowd and blocked their path.
"Where are you rushing off to?"
As Ren spoke, he raised his long sword and swung it forcefully at the ground.
"Crack!"
As the sound of electricity crackled, a long line appeared on the ground. The surrounding earth turned scorched black from the electrical discharge, emitting a faint burning smell.
Ren's Ninjutsu successfully stunned everyone. For a moment, no one dared to step forward, only gripping their weapons tightly, slowly shifting their feet, trying to re-encircle the two.
"Kid, your Lightning Release is pretty good."
The Raikage's gaze swept over the ground before moving to Ren, nodding slightly with an appreciative look on his face.
"It's just a simple nature transformation, Lord Raikage, you flatter me."
Ren nodded slightly to him, chuckling.
As for the encirclement that was forming again around them, the two paid it no mind, simply chatting amongst themselves.
"You are a Konoha Ninja."
"Oh, was I discovered that easily?"
Although Ren said this, there was no surprise on his face, as he had revealed too much information along the way.
Whether it was the Thunder God Sword or Ice Release Ninjutsu, currently there was only one person in the Ninja World who possessed both: Ren.
"Allow me to introduce myself, Konoha Jonin, Hoshimi Ren."
Ren did not hide it. Since the information was already mostly exposed, there was no need to conceal it. It was better to state it openly.
"Indeed. So Minato is that Ninja known as the 'Yellow Flash,' correct?"
The Third Raikage's gaze shifted slightly. After a moment of thought, he spoke.
Ren's identity, coupled with that shout, instinctively made him associate it with Minato Namikaze, the Commander of Konoha's battlefield here.
Recently, files on these two young men frequently appeared on his Raikage's desk. He never expected their first meeting to be in such a manner.
"These two guys!"
Watching the two completely ignore them and start chatting, the Iwagakure Ninja suddenly felt humiliated. To do this while surrounded and watched by thousands of them, it was too disrespectful!
And just then, the large army that had been held back earlier also arrived nearby. Noticing the arrival of their companions behind them, the Iwagakure Ninja's eyes lit up, and they instantly felt their confidence surge.
"Kill them! Avenge our fallen comrades!"
An Iwagakure Jonin raised the long blade in his hand, roaring to those around him, then led the charge towards the two!
"Kill!"
Led by him, the surrounding Iwagakure Ninja also followed suit, gripping various weapons tightly in their hands, charging from all directions towards the two in the center!
The situation was dire!