Inuzuka Tsume nodded at Shikaku and Choza, her face twisted with the same fury as she surveyed the Konoha corpses blanketing the ground.
"Damn it!"
Tsume stomped her foot hard against the ground, venting her frustration.
Like Shikaku and the others, she had rushed here without pause the moment she received word that this Konoha unit needed reinforcements.
But she too had arrived too late.
"Whine..."
A large gray Inuzuka ninken nudged Tsume's leg with its head, letting out a low growl.
It seemed to be telling her not to be sad.
"It's okay, Kuromaru. I'm fine."
Tsume looked down at her ninken partner and spoke softly.
While the Konoha side was conferring, Zabuza — having dodged Tsume's attack — reappeared beside the other Swordsmen.
The Seven Swordsmen regrouped, their eyes blazing with battle lust and provocation as they regarded Tsume and the Ino-Shika-Cho trio.
"Only four of you? That's not nearly enough to go around."
Zabuza hoisted the Executioner's Blade onto his shoulder, his tone amused and his eyes gleaming with interest.
"I'll pass on this kind of fun. You guys can handle it."
Suigetsu was the first to raise his hand, signaling that he had no interest in fighting alongside Zabuza's group.
If there was a chance to slack off, Suigetsu would never pass it up. Let someone else do the hard fighting.
"I'll take the fat one."
Ringo Ameyuri stepped forward first, pointing directly at Choza, eager to stake her claim before anyone else could.
With Ringo Ameyuri staking her claim, Kisame and the others hurried to pick their own opponents, afraid that if they hesitated, the best prey would be taken.
But before any of them could speak—
A sharp whistling sound cut through the air from the Konoha side.
A green blur came sprinting from the distant forest at terrifying speed.
Within a few breaths, the figure landed at Tsume's side.
"Konoha's Azure Beast has arrived!"
Might Gai planted his feet, spread his arms wide, and flashed a brilliant smile as he announced his presence with a booming voice.
At Gai's arrival, Shikaku and the other Konoha ninja breathed a quiet sigh of relief.
Their opponents outnumbered them by three. Once fighting broke out, the odds would have been heavily against them.
"You couldn't have timed this better."
Inoichi looked at Gai's exaggerated pose, a faint smile crossing his face.
Gai nodded. But the smile quickly faded from his face. Anyone who saw a battlefield littered with the corpses of their comrades would find it hard to remain cheerful.
When Gai appeared, Ringo Ameyuri and Ranmaru's expressions changed instantly.
They hadn't forgotten what had happened the last time they went to Konoha to retrieve Neji. They had nearly died at Gai's hands.
"Might Gai!!"
Both Ringo Ameyuri and Ranmaru spoke the name simultaneously.
Ranmaru's muscular, devil-like frame radiated a staggering aura.
Ringo Ameyuri's entire body crackled with flickering lightning.
Both of them clearly remembered that previous encounter, and both were determined to avenge their humiliation.
"We still have the numbers advantage right now."
Suigetsu, for his part, showed no particular reaction. He simply shrugged, his voice casual.
"That's not necessarily true."
"My apologies. We're late."
A commanding voice rang out from behind. Two figures in kimono came flying toward the Konoha forces at high speed.
They were Hyuga Hiashi, head of the Hyuga clan's main house, and Hyuga Koshiro, an elite jounin of the branch house.
Hiashi and Koshiro appeared at Gai's side, their gazes locking onto the Seven Swordsmen across from them.
Hiashi's gaze, in particular, fixed squarely on Hyuga Neji among the Swordsmen.
Hiashi's face was a complex mixture of emotions. But soon, his eyes hardened into cold resolve.
At this point, there was no use agonizing over who was right or wrong.
From the moment Neji became a missing-nin, the two of them had been on opposite sides.
And now, meeting on the battlefield, there was no need for words or mercy.
"The shame of the Hyuga clan!"
Unlike the composed Hiashi, Koshiro's eyes burned with fury as he glared at Neji.
At Koshiro's enraged shout, Neji's expression remained perfectly still. From start to finish, he showed no reaction whatsoever.
But when Neji's gaze shifted to Hiashi, there was the faintest flicker of emotion in his eyes.
Suigetsu watched as two more Hyuga ninja appeared the moment he finished speaking, instantly equalizing the numbers. He couldn't help but twitch his mouth.
"Tch, interesting."
Kisame glanced at Suigetsu with a mocking grin.
"One on one? That's fine by me."
Chojuro raised the twin blades Hiramekarei, his tone calm and measured.
His words naturally reached the ears of every Konoha ninja present.
Shikaku pulled a pocket watch from his coat, checked the time, and a thin smile crossed his lips.
"I'm afraid you'll be disappointed. The ones with the advantage right now... are us."
"You've penetrated deep into our territory. You should have been prepared to be surrounded."
Shikaku took a step forward, his gaze fixed on Ringo Ameyuri and the others, a cold edge to his voice.
The instant Shikaku finished speaking, the rustling of leaves erupted from the surrounding forest.
Shoo! Shoo! Shoo!
Dozens of afterimages burst from the trees. One after another, shinobi in black bodysuits and green flak jackets emerged into view.
Thirteen of them!
And every single one was a Konoha jounin.
They might not have been at the elite level of Shikaku or Tsume, but they were jounin nonetheless — their strength was nothing to dismiss.
Thirteen regular jounin plus seven elite jounin — a total of twenty Konoha jounin, all staring down the Seven Swordsmen with icy intent.
"My, my... three-to-one odds. That's a bit dangerous."
Kisame's smile remained, but his body had gone completely rigid with tension.
Almost simultaneously!
Kisame raised Samehada high!
Zabuza tightened his grip on the Executioner's Blade!
Ringo Ameyuri let her arms hang low, the Thunder Blades crackling in her hands!
Suigetsu's eye twitched as he lifted the blunt sword Kubikiribocho!
Neji activated his Byakugan, both hands clenched around the long sword Kabutowari!
Chojuro's face was grave as he raised the dual blades Hiramekarei!
Ranmaru's body radiated a violent aura as he crouched low like a coiled spring, one hand gripping the Explosive Blade Shibuki!
Seven figures erupted with terrifying auras simultaneously. In perfect unison, they stomped the ground and exploded forward as streaking afterimages, charging straight at the Konoha forces.
When outnumbered, striking first was the most direct solution!
Retreat?
Don't be ridiculous. They were the Seven Swordsmen of the Mist!
BOOM!
The two sides collided in an instant. Clashing auras spiraled above the battlefield as deafening explosions rocked the earth.
Meanwhile, on the other side of the battlefield.
Inside a command tent at the rear of the Kirigakure forces.
Terumi Mei, her face bright with excitement, pushed aside the tent flap and strode inside.
Inside the tent, Yuto sat looking rather bored, idly prodding with a finger at a peculiar-looking small turtle placed before him.
On either side of Yuto stood Haku and Kimimaro.
The moment they heard the tent flap rustle, Haku and Kimimaro both looked up sharply. When they saw it was Terumi Mei who had entered, they lowered their gazes again.
They both knew full well that Lord Yuto didn't actually need bodyguards. But neither Haku nor Kimimaro would ever neglect their duty to protect him.
Mei's eyes fell first on the small turtle Yuto was toying with, and she couldn't suppress a twitch of her mouth.
If she hadn't known better, no one would have guessed that this tiny creature being treated like a pet was none other than the Three-Tails, Isobu!
Mei quickly pulled her gaze from the Three-Tails and turned to Yuto, her face alight with excitement.
"Lord Yuto, we've received intelligence from the front lines. Uchiha Madara and Senju Hashirama have engaged each other in combat. Shall we intervene?"
Her voice brimmed with eagerness.
At Mei's words, Yuto stopped fidgeting with the turtle and looked up.
"Oh, so it's finally begun."
"There's no need to intervene. Let those two fight it out. I promised Uchiha Madara before the war started."
Yuto spoke casually. Then, after a brief pause, he continued.
"Since Senju Hashirama has been drawn into fighting Uchiha Madara, it's time for me to make my entrance as well."
The reason Yuto had held back from acting was precisely to wait for Madara to engage Hashirama.
Madara wanted another decisive showdown with Hashirama, and Yuto was happy to let events take their course.
There was no need for him to dirty his own hands.
Hearing that Yuto had no intention of intervening, Mei nodded, unsurprised.
She had only been making a suggestion. After all, if Yuto were to join forces with Madara against Hashirama, they could probably resolve the matter quickly.
That would make their victory in this war even more certain.
"Lord Yuto, for Senju Hashirama to engage Uchiha Madara so readily... Konoha must have some kind of backup plan."
Mei's expression shifted to one of concern as she voiced her caution.
At that moment, Yuto had already risen from his seat, stretching lazily.
Rather than concern, Yuto's face lit up with genuine interest at Mei's worried words.
"I hope it's exactly as you say. Otherwise, this would all be far too boring."
Yuto spoke with quiet confidence, his tone perfectly even.
As he spoke, Yuto gave the Three-Tails a light nudge with his foot.
Isobu instantly understood. In the blink of an eye, the massive tailed beast shrank into a streak of black shadow, reappearing perched on Yuto's shoulder.
"It's about time I got some exercise. I hope Konoha's preparations are enough to keep me entertained."
Yuto rolled his neck, his joints popping with a series of sharp cracks.
He strode toward the tent's exit, with Haku and Kimimaro falling into step behind him.
For a moment, the scene reminded Yuto of the Warring States Period.
Back then, two figures had followed behind him as well — one from the Kaguya clan and one from the Yuki clan.
One was Yuki Hakuren, and the other was Kaguya Yoru.
Now, it was Haku and Kimimaro who walked in their place.
Mei watched Yuto preparing to move and immediately turned to follow.
This was a battle she had been looking forward to for a long time. And more importantly, she would be fighting alongside Lord Yuto!
At the thought, a smile spread across her face.
But before she had taken more than a few steps, Yuto turned to look back at her.
"The Kirigakure forces will be under your command from now on."
Yuto handed command of all units directly to Mei.
Until now, the Kirigakure forces had been under Yuto's direct command, with Mei serving in a support role.
Of course, this authority hadn't been something Yuto asked for. It had been thrust upon him by Mei herself.
According to Mei's reasoning, she was worried that Yuto would slack off — just as he supposedly did back in Kirigakure — and dump all the heavy lifting onto her.
That was only her excuse, of course. The real reason was that Yuto — a shinobi who had fought across the battlefields of the Warring States Period — was, in Mei's estimation, far more capable than she was when it came to commanding troops and coordinating battlefield strategy.
And so, Mei had found a pretext to place supreme authority over all Kirigakure forces in Yuto's hands.
Now, Yuto was simply returning what was rightfully hers.
At Yuto's words, Mei froze. The smile that had been on her face vanished in an instant.
She far preferred fighting on the front lines over commanding troops. And more than anything, she wanted to be at Yuto's side.
But with Yuto heading to the front, someone had to command the Kirigakure forces. And besides Yuto himself, she was the only one qualified.
Mei pouted slightly, wanting to refuse, but unable to find a reasonable excuse.
Seeing this, Yuto gave a soft chuckle. He was about to leave when—
"Um... Lord Yuto..."
Mei spoke up hurriedly, but then hesitated, unsure of what to say next. A faint flush of embarrassment crossed her face.
Haku and Kimimaro, still standing at Yuto's side, exchanged a brief glance, a flicker of amusement in their eyes.
Quietly, the two of them slipped out of the tent, leaving Yuto and Mei alone.
"Those two..."
Yuto naturally noticed their little act and shook his head with a faint smile.
He turned back to Mei, who stood before him looking both worried and flustered.
Yuto stepped close to her, and then — reaching out — he gently lifted her chin with one hand.
[
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