Entrustment

A little earlier, at the main camp of Konoha's forces, Shuichi's Shadow Clone, who had been sitting quietly nearby, suddenly sensed something. "The main body has news!"

He took out a vial of blood from the Scroll. "With the blood and my chakra, I can complete a Shadow Clone Summoning."

"Summoning Jutsu!"

After the White Snake appeared, Shuichi immediately took out the intelligence report and looked at it. Then, his expression turned serious. "The main body has encountered Ōnoki. Uncle Jiraiya, you'd better make a decision quickly!"

"I will launch a large-scale offensive immediately. Be careful." Jiraiya's tone was firm. Hesitation would only lead to more trouble. Going to provide support now would be the most foolish thing to do. As a commander, one must have a strategic vision.

On the Iwagakure battlefield, which was facing off against Konoha, many Stone Ninja were on high alert. Tsuchikage Ōnoki had temporarily left the area, so for the time being, they could only hold their ground to prevent Konoha from finding any openings.

"Boom..."

Just as feared, a giant red Toad suddenly appeared on the battlefield, with a white-haired figure standing on its head. With each hop, it was as if the sky was collapsing and the earth was splitting apart, causing the ground to tremble continuously.

"Damn it, how did the Konoha Ninja find out?" Kitsuchi said through gritted teeth. Jiraiya, one of the Sannin, had summoned his Summoning Beast so decisively; clearly, Ōnoki's whereabouts had been discovered. "We must hold on until the Lord Tsuchikage returns!"

The appearance of Gama Bunta was like a signal to launch an attack. Many Konoha Ninja formed their strongest attack formation and followed closely behind, charging straight towards the Iwagakure position with an indomitable momentum.

Fire Release: Toad Oil Flame Bullet!

A large amount of Toad Oil was spat out from Gamabunta's mouth, so wide that ordinary Earth Release Ninjutsu could not stop it. When the oil was poured onto the Stone Ninja, Jiraiya's Fire Release followed closely behind.

"Ugh..."

Many weaker ninjas were trapped in the inferno. Before many Earth Release to block the Stone Ninja could even feel relieved, a giant longsword came from the side and swept away all the earthen walls and trees.

"Boom boom..."

"Damn it, don't be so arrogant!" Kitsuchi channeled all his chakra, his face turning red, "Earth Release: Mountain Earth Technique!"

Two enormous hemispheres converged on the giant Toad, but with Jiraiya's help, it became exceptionally agile. "Gamabunta, jump!"

Leaping into the air to dodge the attacking rocks, in just one leap, a large number of Stone Ninja were once again crushed by Gamabunta's mountain-like body, and the seemingly solid defense line was thrown into chaos.

Seeing this, the Konoha Ninja were greatly encouraged. In order to shake off their previous frustration, each of them launched an attack with great fighting spirit.

The battlefield was in utter chaos. A figure as fast as lightning moved swiftly through the various battle points, leaving only a glimmer of yellow light in its wake. Countless Stone Ninja were instantly killed in the process.

"It's Namikaze Minato! Stop him!"

A large number of ninjas rushed towards Minato's location, with many others providing support from the sidelines. Various Ninjutsu were used in turn on the Trident Kunai on the ground, "Once his Kunai is destroyed, he will no longer be able to move quickly!"

"Ding ding ding..."

In the rapid exchange of blows, two Stone Ninja reacted too slowly and had their throats slit. The others, seeing that they were struggling to keep up with Minato's movements, immediately retreated back to their allies.

"No problem, we can hold him off!" The Iwagakure Jonin encouraging his teammates, "Keep disrupting those special Kunai, he definitely won't dare to move around..."

"Sizzle!"

Seizing the moment when the man was distracted, Minato charged into the crowd using the spell he had left during their close-quarters combat, killing him instantly. "A smart move, but you didn't notice the spell I set up during our fight, so goodbye."

The Stone Ninja next to him was stunned. "What? Wasn't it supposed to be moving using Kunai?"

After dealing with the Jonin, he showed no sign of stopping. With Kunai, he struck the enemy's vital points, causing blood to splatter everywhere.

"Ahhh..."

With Jiraiya's wide-range attacks disrupting the defenses, Minato officially became the Grim Reaper of the battlefield, and the slower-reacting Stone Ninja were no match for him.

Less than a few minutes later, news of the heavy casualties reached Kitsuchi's ears, leaving him no choice but to issue a retreat signal.

As the Iwagakure took turns providing cover and retreating, most of the Konoha Ninja could only take down the enemy's blocking personnel. Only one yellow figure relentlessly pursued the fleeing Stone Ninja, leaving those who lagged behind with nowhere to escape.

When the front line began its counterattack, Shuichi moved forward by sensing the location of his own chakra.

After escaping a certain distance, he stopped burrowing underground, because Ōnoki would definitely return to the front line, so he was safe now.

"Whoosh..."

He leaped to a clearing in the woods and saw several Konoha Ninja gathered in a circle. Startled, they turned around and, upon seeing Shuichi, breathed a sigh of relief.

"Is that Shuichi?" a soft voice asked.

Shuichi approached and saw that Mitarashi Kiyohi's face was extremely pale, his eyes were unfocused, and there was a horrifying smooth wound on his left shoulder. The blood had completely stained the temporary bandage, but it still showed no signs of stopping.

"A senior from the Seinichi!"

His face turned as somber as the surrounding Konoha Ninja'; the injury was almost incurable, and he would soon die from excessive blood loss.

Of the six Konoha Ninja who arrived here, two Jonin survived, in addition to Mitarashi Kiyohi. Shuichi deserves much credit for escaping half of them from the encirclement personally led by Ōnoki.

Upon arriving at Mitarashi Kiyohi's side, he immediately began using Healing Technique, but found that the effect was minimal, only temporarily stopping the massive blood loss.

"No... don't strain yourself, my internal organs have ruptured..."

Mimura Hamaki explained, "When we broke through earlier, he was injured in the abdomen by Stone Ninja. Because he didn't receive timely treatment, his injury worsened significantly, and in addition, his left hand was hit by Dust Release..."

Shuichi moment, Mitarashi Kiyohi the last of her strength, said, "I have one last small request, and I hope you can help me Shuichi."

"You say."

"My daughter, Anko, has always admired Lord Orochimaru. Although she is far less talented than you, she is still considered outstanding among her peers at the Ninja Academy. If the Lord Hokage could agree to let her become Lord Orochimaru's disciple..."

"Alright, I'll speak to the Lord Hokage." Shuichi said solemnly, "I'll express my support, Teacher Orochimaru shouldn't object."

"Now I can rest assured!" Mitarashi Kiyohi smiled. "I entrust my daughter to you..."

Shuichi was somewhat amused and exasperated; these words sounded rather strange, but seeing the man's lifeless body, he couldn't help but feel a pang of sorrow.

In the original story, Mitarashi Kiyohi may have died in the early stages of the war, or perhaps in the next few years, and this death was indeed influenced by his time travel.

There are also several Konoha Ninja have completely disappeared. Perhaps in the original story they survived the Third Shinobi War in another place or even lived to the end, but this time they don't even have a chance to be resurrected.

Shuichi reflected on his years as a ninja and realized that none of his teammates had ever died before.

Everyone would think he had done a perfect job this time, and the other surviving Konoha Ninja were filled with gratitude. However, he himself was still somewhat conflicted, after all, it involved the lives of several innocent people.