All-Killing Ash Bones: All Worlds Seal!

The commotion above Kikyo Mountain lasted from late night until dawn.

After a night of fierce fighting, not only the main battlefield but also the woods at its edges were filled with the scent of blood.

Konoha's elite squad had already withdrawn. This was one of the squads guarding Tsunade, and they returned to her side after Tōka recovered from his injuries.

"Slug, you can leave too," Tōka said expressionlessly, patting the dust off his clothes as he stood up.

After half a night of rest, his Chakra had almost fully recovered.

However, the anger in his heart had not diminished one bit.

"Tōka, what are you going to do?" The Slug noticed very keenly that Tōka's expression was a little off.

He seemed to have become a bit colder, which made it feel a trace of fear.

Tōka's eyes narrowed, and he reached out, pulling the Slug out and holding it before his eyes. "Help me give Tsunade a message."

"What does Tōka want to say?" The Slug asked, twisting its head, unaccustomed to being held by its tail.

"If you don't want Konoha to lose too many people, then retreat."

As soon as he finished speaking, without giving the Slug a chance to reply, Tōka casually flung it away.

Whoosh!

Tōka's body sank, Chakra gathered at the soles of his feet, and he leaped forward fiercely.

Watching the retreating figure gradually shrink into a black dot and disappear into the woods, the Slug finally chose to give up.

The shadows of the trees on either side flashed by rapidly, and the wind whistled incessantly.

Having gotten rid of the Slug, Tōka came alone to a hidden mountain hollow.

"The sounds of battle are getting further away. This should be the other side of Kikyo Mountain," Tōka observed his surroundings, and after confirming no one was following him, he took out a black sphere.

Crack!

Tōka squeezed the black sphere forcefully in his palm, crushing it directly!

This was a communication tool left by Black Zetsu. Crushing the black sphere meant Tōka was looking for him.

"I don't know where Black Zetsu is. It might take a while," Tōka muttered to himself, then found a large rock and sat down.

He began refining Chakra while waiting for Black Zetsu.

Just as he closed his eyes, a pitcher plant emerged from the ground not far away.

"What do you need me for?" Black Zetsu's hoarse voice sounded.

"So soon? I thought it would take a while!" Tōka's eyes snapped open, a flash of surprise in them.

"For such an important battle, I naturally have to record it properly," Black Zetsu said calmly.

He had been at the main battlefield all along and came over upon sensing Tōka's summons.

Black Zetsu was not only plotting how to release Kaguya, but he was also responsible for recording everything that happened in this world during her absence.

He would show her these events when Kaguya descended.

"Prepare four White Zetsu for me," Tōka stated directly, his tone leaving no room for refusal. "Make sure they have sufficient Chakra."

"What do you want to do?" Black Zetsu frowned slightly, his intuition telling him something bad was about to happen.

"I just want to try out a certain jutsu," Tōka's gaze was cold, and a deep chill flickered in his eyes.

Black Zetsu raised an eyebrow. It sounded like there was a murderous intent. Had someone offended his younger brother?

"You want White Zetsu for..."

"That's right, it's exactly what you're thinking!"

Tōka looked at Black Zetsu expressionlessly, not hiding his thoughts at all.

Hearing this, Black Zetsu's expression darkened. He was already pitch black, so no change could be seen.

"In such a short time, where can I get you four White Zetsu with sufficient Chakra?" Black Zetsu intended to refuse, but to avoid angering Tōka into acting rashly, he refused somewhat tactfully.

"Heh heh..." A cold smile played on Tōka's lips, his deep black eyes making Black Zetsu feel uneasy.

Even though Tōka couldn't sense it, it didn't mean he didn't know.

Black Zetsu had arranged for White Zetsu to monitor Tōka's body. As for the number, perhaps it was exactly four?

Looking at Tōka's half-smile, Black Zetsu's lips twitched slightly, and he finally chose to compromise. Since the monitoring White Zetsu had been discovered, there was no point in keeping them.

"Hoo... I really can't beat you."

Black Zetsu spread his hands, his tone filled with helplessness.

As Black Zetsu finished speaking, four white objects appeared on Tōka's body, wriggling as they emerged—they were four White Zetsu.

"I'm actually a bit curious about the jutsu you want to test!" Black Zetsu quickly regained his composure and asked with a smile.

"I won't disappoint you. If you want to watch, step back," Tōka glanced at Black Zetsu and formed hand seals, creating three Shadow Clones.

His Chakra instantly dropped to a quarter, but it was more than enough to control four White Zetsu.

"Eh? Are you worried about me?" Black Zetsu looked touched, his body wriggling like a noodle.

Tōka didn't even bother to look at him properly. "If you wish to believe that, then so be it."

Black Zetsu pouted and remained silent, his eyes wide as he stared at the four figures. He was genuinely curious about what kind of jutsu Tōka intended to use.

Before long, Tōka's expression turned serious.

"Preparation complete!"

"Disperse!"

One main body and three shadow clones controlled four White Zetsu, charging off in four different directions.

At the Sand Ninja encampment on Kikyo Mountain, Orochimaru and Jiraiya were fighting Rasa and Chiyo.

Two massive summoning beasts occupied nearly half the battlefield, creating a no-man's-land around them.

Compared to Gamabunta, Giant Snake was clearly more of a threat.

While fighting, Giant Snake never forgot to attack the Sand Ninja troops, burrowing wherever there were many of them.

With a single bite, Giant Snake swallowed more than ten Sand Ninja.

"Rasa, draw Orochimaru away!" Chiyo, controlling the White Secret Technique, forced Gamabunta to the edge of the battlefield. Jiraiya was also straightforward; fighting Chiyo alone meant he wouldn't attack other Sand Ninja.

However, Giant Snake and Orochimaru were different. Facing the attack of the Gold Sand, Giant Snake didn't retreat but became even more ferocious and violent.

Its massive body rolled through the Sand Ninja camp, and in an instant, more than ten Sand Ninja were dead!

Rasa's expression grew increasingly grim upon hearing Chiyo's words.

He wanted to draw Giant Snake and Orochimaru away, but that damned snake only had eyes for the Sand Ninja and completely ignored him.

Within a few breaths, Giant Snake took another massive bite, devouring more than ten Sand Ninja alive.

"Orochimaru! Aren't you going to run?!" Rasa roared in exasperation.

"Heh heh, what can you do even if I don't run?" Orochimaru licked his lips and sneered, his cold eyes filled with utter disdain.

As Orochimaru said, even in a head-on fight, Rasa couldn't do anything to him.

Furthermore, Giant Snake's combat power was not to be underestimated; ordinary ninjutsu attacks were useless against it!

From beginning to end, Orochimaru, who stood atop Giant Snake's head, had barely made any moves himself.

Compared to Orochimaru, Giant Snake was even more detestable!

Giant Snake never fought Rasa head-on. Whenever it had the chance, it would bite into the Sand Ninja camp.

Many Sand Ninja didn't even know what was happening; they only felt a dark curtain descending from the sky before losing consciousness.

"Bastard!" Rasa's eyes were bloodshot, and he roared, spitting with rage.

He raised his hands, and the Gold Sand behind him swirled like a storm.

"Magnet Release: Golden Sand Wave!"

Whoosh!~~

The extremely dense Gold Sand rolled continuously, transforming into a massive wave of sand that surged towards Giant Snake.

"Giant Snake, the target is you!" Orochimaru, showing no intention of attacking, said calmly with a smile from the top of Giant Snake's head.

"Hmph, it's just sand!" Giant Snake snorted disdainfully. Its massive tail swept out, stirring up a powerful hurricane that directly slammed back.

BANG!!

Terrifying air currents scattered in all directions, mixing with a large amount of Gold Sand to form a massive sandstorm!

"Quick, take cover!"

"The sandstorm is coming!"

Instantly, the battlefield descended into chaos. Everyone abandoned their opponents and retreated backward.

The sandstorm, like a roaring ferocious beast, swept across the entire land with its claws and teeth bared...

Tōka arrived halfway up the mountain, looking up at the summit of Kikyo Mountain. He saw the massive storm sweeping across the entire battlefield like a pillar supporting the heavens.

"It looks imposing, but for ninja, it doesn't have much killing power," Tōka analyzed calmly.

A sandstorm might not even be fatal to ordinary people; as long as they found a place to hide, they could weather it.

Moreover, ninja had far more means of escape than ordinary people.

"Where are the other clones?" Tōka glanced at Black Zetsu, who was following him like a tail, and asked.

"Are you asking me? I thought you knew!" Under Tōka's cold gaze, Black Zetsu's grumbling grew softer. He briefly sensed the White Zetsu's positions.

He continued, "Two are within a thousand meters, and the other is about two thousand meters away."

"Is that so?" Tōka grinned. It seemed they had reached their designated locations.

Clap!

Tōka brought his hands together and rapidly formed hand seals.

"Ooh ooh ooh!! Is it starting?"

"I'm so excited! ~"

Black Zetsu let out a strange cry of excitement, but it earned him a cold stare from Tōka, and he immediately shut up and covered his mouth.

"Now for the reward! Ebizo..."

Meanwhile, on the high ground where Konoha's command post was located.

Tsunade looked down at the battlefield, and although Konoha had a significant advantage, a very ominous premonition welled up in her heart.

"Something's wrong, I have a bad feeling about this."

As soon as the thought crossed her mind, a chakra fluctuation appeared nearby.

The eyes of the Ino-Shika-Cho and Tsunade all turned towards the source. They saw a Slug appear beside Tsunade, which was clearly the one that had been following Tōka earlier.

The Slug's body carried Tōka's aura, that decaying, deathly stillness was easy to recognize.

"A Slug?" Tsunade was slightly taken aback.

"Tōka-kun sent me away," the Slug explained.

"Huh?!" Tsunade looked utterly bewildered.

"Tōka-kun asked me to tell you that if you don't want Konoha to suffer heavy casualties, you should retreat," the Slug said, then quietly stood to the side.

Upon hearing this, Shikaku Nara and the others wore various expressions.

Tsunade pursed her lips, her brows furrowed into a deep frown.

"What do you think Tōka means by this?"

"This..."

Even Shikaku Nara, the strategist, couldn't figure it out. Tōka was just a Genin. While his abilities were terrifying, his chakra was insufficient...

Insufficient chakra? No, that's not right! Shikaku Nara remembered a piece of intelligence that had come in a few nights ago.

"Shikaku, did you find something?" Inoichi Yamanaka asked.

"Lady Tsunade, perhaps we really should retreat," Shikaku Nara said gravely.

"Hm? What do you mean?!" Tsunade's expression tightened. She had a feeling that what Shikaku Nara was about to say would shock her.

"Given Tōka's Kekkei Genkai, anyone hit by it will surely die," Shikaku Nara explained after a moment of thought. "According to the intelligence from the battle with Jūzō Biwa, the maximum range of All-Killing Ash Bones is only about a hundred meters in radius."

"And when the battle began, the scroll Tōka threw also only covered an area of about a hundred meters in radius."

Everyone fell silent. As important figures in the Hokage's lineage, Inoichi Yamanaka and Choza Akimichi had heard this intelligence.

After a brief recollection, they turned their gaze back to Shikaku Nara, knowing that his next words were the key.

"What if he possessed the chakra of a Jonin, or even a Kage?" Shikaku Nara's words were astonishing.

"What? How is that possible!!" Tsunade exclaimed.

The scene of a vast forest of bones covering the mountains flashed through their minds...

They all swallowed hard.

"Five nights ago, Tōka specifically went to find Lord Orochimaru," Shikaku Nara said in a deep voice.

"Orochimaru?" Tsunade gritted her teeth and cursed, "That bastard!"

Just a few days ago, she had been wondering why that scoundrel Orochimaru would be willing to part with something so important in exchange for the method to cultivate the Yin Seal!

Now, Tsunade finally understood. The Yin Seal was something Orochimaru had prepared for Tōka!

She had no idea what kind of secret deal the two of them had made.

"Should we retreat?" Shikaku Nara was only analyzing the possibilities based on the intelligence. The final decision still rested with Tsunade.

Tsunade remained silent with a cold expression, deeply hesitant.

The situation on the battlefield was overwhelmingly in Konoha's favor. Once the sandstorm passed, they would surely defeat the Sand Ninja before nightfall. Giving up now felt truly unbearable!

However, Tsunade also worried that the scene flashing in her mind might actually come to pass.

The Slug wouldn't lie to her. Since Tōka said it, he would definitely do something.

Moreover, the strong sense of unease in Tsunade's heart grew even more intense.

"Can you sense Tōka's location?"

As soon as Tsunade finished speaking.

Suddenly!!

Four sources of chakra, filled with a decaying aura, abruptly appeared on the mountainside...

Everyone's heart leaped, and they thought: It's really happening!

Hummm!!!

Four terrifying surges of Chakra shot into the sky in succession. On the mountainside of Kikyo Mountain, the Chakra from the four directions resonated, forming a quadrangular area.

A gray world filled with the aura of death descended upon the entire Sand Ninja camp on Kikyo Mountain at this moment.

Crack!

A gray bone as thick as a waist broke through the earth.

Crack! Crack!

Two more massive gray bones sprouted like bamboo shoots after a spring rain.

Crack, crack, crack...

The ground shattered, and countless gray bones poured out from the dark fissures, their decaying scent spreading like a thick fog.

The Konoha ninja went mad, desperately scrambling down the mountain with all their might.

The Sand Ninja, however, stood dumbfounded.

They were on the verge of collapse, so why...

Were these Konoha guys looking as if they had seen a ghost? It was as if some terrifying monster was about to appear in the Sand Ninja camp.

Puff, puff, puff...

Countless gray bones, filled with a dead, decaying aura, burst from the earth.

"All-Killing Ash Bones - All Worlds Seal!"

An ice-cold voice echoed deep within their souls, lingering long at the summit of Kikyo Mountain. (To be continued)