Astonishing Senju Clan

The wind howled, and yellow sand filled the sky. The scorching sun seemed ready to roast everyone alive, yet no one paid it any mind. Everyone's gaze was fixed on the faint cloud of dust rising in the distance.

Ninja moved with incredible speed. Just fifteen minutes after the horn sounded, every ninja had gathered in front of Steel Rock Valley under their squad leaders' command. A murderous air hung over the entire force!

Once everyone had assembled, the commander stood before them in Konoha combat gear, his hair snow-white. Hatake Sakumo addressed them in a commanding voice:

"Yellow sand surrounds Steel Rock Valley, and there are no suitable bases nearby. Even the closest one is a day's journey away. We've occupied the valley for some time now. The reason we haven't taken the fight to them is to make the exhausted enemy, after their long march, come to us instead. According to reports from our scouts, they have only four-fifths as many troops as we do. If we still lose, we'll bring shame on Konoha. Remember this..."

Hatake Sakumo's eyes gleamed with bloodlust as he stared at the Konoha Ninja:

"Disobey orders on the battlefield—and you die!

Flee from the battlefield—and you die!

I don't want you dying at the hands of the military police because you ran away. If you're going to die, then die charging at the enemy!"

"Yes!"

The Konoha Ninja roared in response. Hatake Sakumo's pre-battle speech had certainly fired them up. Their blood was boiling!

"Nara Chiharu, the battle command is yours!"

Seeing that morale had reached its peak, Hatake Sakumo nodded in satisfaction and pulled over the lethargic-looking middle-aged man beside him.

"Try to look a little more alert. Your sluggishness will rub off on the ninja under your command!"

"Ahh... Fine, fine!"

Nara Chiharu yawned and stretched, then pushed Hatake Sakumo away from the command position. It wasn't that Hatake Sakumo couldn't command the battle. He needed to focus all his attention on the enemy's top fighters!

At Hatake Sakumo's level, he knew that elite fighters could determine the outcome of a battle. If the enemy were allowed to charge into Konoha's ranks and slaughter their way through them, the result would be catastrophic!

Battles could change in an instant. The Sand Ninja's elite fighters could rush into the heart of Konoha's formation at any moment. If Hatake Sakumo were still commanding the battle then, even the briefest moment spent handing over command could lead to incalculable losses!

So Hatake Sakumo had given up command without hesitation. Directing the battle was less important than intercepting, holding back, or killing the enemy's elite fighters!

Of course, Nara Chiharu had his work cut out for him too. Since ninja existed in this world, tactics were used far less often on the battlefield. Aside from charging headlong at the enemy, there was hardly any need for other strategies.

But Nara Chiharu's main role was to gauge the losses among the elite fighters on both sides, oversee the battle as a whole, and continually signal Konoha's elite fighters to kill or take down their Sand Ninja counterparts!

It might seem unfair to the genin, who made up the bulk of the casualties, but victory ultimately depended on the battles between the Sand Ninja and Konoha's Jonin!

"The Sand Ninja have been regrouping at their nearest base to Steel Rock Valley—the Boulder Forest. I planted plenty of ninja along the route between the two. I ordered them to spare no expense: the moment the Sand Ninja stopped to rest, they were to bombard them with Explosive Tags. It seems the plan worked. According to the reports, the enemy tried to rest twice along the way, but both times they were interrupted and had no choice but to press on."

Nara Chiharu flashed to the command post hastily set up above the valley. He turned to Yamanaka Shizuma, who was ready to communicate with every squad leader on the battlefield.

"Get ready, Shizuma. I'm about to issue orders. Your job is crucial today!"

"Don't worry. I'm not as listless as you are. Leave communications to me!"

A special communication device, fitted with a headset, was strapped to the head of the middle-aged man with a scar across the bridge of his nose. Yamanaka Shizuma formed the Tiger hand seal. After confirming that he was connected to all the Jonin and squad leaders, he gave Nara Chiharu a thumbs-up.

Seeing Yamanaka Shizuma's signal, Nara Chiharu fixed his gaze on the approaching Sand Ninja and shouted:

"All ninja, prepare! After three volleys of ninjutsu, everyone charges! The assault team leads, and the main force follows close behind! First attack: all Earth Release users—Earth Release: Flying Stone Barrage!"

"Earth Release: Flying Stone Barrage!"

A chorus of shouts rang out as the Konoha Ninja spat countless fist-sized stones. The stones formed a dense curtain that rained down on the Sand Ninja!

Although they had marched for an entire day and were exhausted, the Sand Ninja were far stronger than ordinary people. Their vigilance hadn't slackened at all. They immediately dodged the attack from above. Some were killed or wounded, but compared with the size of their force, the losses were insignificant!

"Prepare the next volley!"

The situation unfolding before them was exactly what Nara Chiharu had expected. The first two large-scale ninjutsu attacks had merely been meant to harass the enemy.

"Fire Release attack—Phoenix Flower Jutsu!"

"Fire Release: Phoenix Flower Jutsu!"

The Konoha Ninja shouted again. They unleashed a barrage of fireballs that streaked through the air, trailing long flames as they hurtled toward the Sand Ninja!

"Wind Release: Great Tornado Jutsu!"

Seeing the fireballs sweep toward them, the Sand Ninja didn't dodge this time. Instead, they met the attack with ninjutsu. Large numbers of them used Wind Release, sending countless tornadoes of all sizes merging into a wall that collided with the incoming fireballs. The two attacks locked in a stalemate!

"Good! Hold them off!"

Nara Chiharu smiled, his plan working perfectly.

"Senju Clan veterans, it's your turn! Aim at the Sand Ninja using Wind Release and give them everything you've got!"

"Earth Release: Rockwood World!"

An immense forest of trees made of rock burst through the sandy ground beneath the Sand Ninja, rising up like a horde of evil man-eating treants and ruthlessly devouring their lives!

Seven ninja—just seven Elite Jonin from the Senju Clan—had used Earth Release to completely transform the battlefield. What had been a barren desert, with nearly thirty thousand ninja gathered across it, had become a forest of stone!

The Sand Ninja formation bore the brunt of the attack. Giant trunks pierced them, and towering trees crushed them. Their screams blended into a continuous roar that never stopped. Nara Chiharu didn't know the exact numbers, but he guessed there had to be at least a thousand dead or wounded!

He had seen it once before, but the seven of them still left Nara Chiharu deeply shaken. Their power could reshape the land itself. The destruction wrought by all the ninja in the two earlier attacks had been less than half of what the Wood World Arrival had done!

Nara Chiharu slowly turned around. Before he could praise the seven Elite Jonin, an even more shocking sight met his eyes!

The seven Senju Clan members lay sprawled across the ground, their eyes vacant. Exhausted as dogs, they panted desperately with their tongues lolling out. Nara Chiharu froze for a moment, then let out a thunderous roar:

"You seven morons! Who the hell told you to drain all your Chakra?!"

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