Land of Fire.
Canyon battlefield.
Smoke nearly blanketed the entire battlefield. The ground had cracked inch by inch, and the towering cliffs on both sides of the canyon had collapsed in great swaths!
"Damn it!"
The Third Tsuchikage, hovering in the air, looked utterly grim.
He had thought this would be an easy battle. After all, with Orochimaru's forces—who had agreed to cooperate—factored in, their side had an overwhelming advantage.
But after a fierce battle, they had failed to capture Itachi Uchiha, and their own losses had been severe.
The first to be injured was the Fourth Raikage. Relying on the speed and defensive power of his Lightning Release Chakra Mode, he had been the first of the Five Kage to attack Itachi Uchiha.
Not only had Itachi Uchiha's Susanoo swept him away, but the fist he'd thrown had also been struck by Amaterasu. If he hadn't cut off his arm in time, Amaterasu would likely have claimed its first victim by now.
Meanwhile, the Fifth Mizukage, Mei Terumi, and the Fifth Kazekage, Pakura, had both tried to launch surprise attacks, only to fall victim to Itachi Uchiha's Tsukuyomi. They'd lost their ability to fight after just one exchange.
If the Kirigakure and Sunagakure shinobi hadn't risked their lives to rescue them, they would probably have been smashed into pulp by Susanoo.
Orochimaru's side hadn't fared any better.
The trap he had carefully prepared in the canyon had accomplished nothing. After the fierce battle, his subordinates had suffered heavy losses as well.
Jugo had been flattened by Susanoo and punched into the cliffside.
Guren's Crystal Style had been as brittle as tofu before Susanoo and was crushed outright.
Tayuya had tried to use Demonic Flute: Phantom Sound Chains, a sound-based genjutsu, against Itachi Uchiha, but he had subdued her with