Matatabi's ability, Soul Bomb!

Legend has it that during the ancient battle of the Nine Divine Beasts, the Two-Tails Matatabi, believing himself to be invincible, joined forces with Penghou to attack the Nine-Tails after defeating the Tanuki and Isobu. They suffered a crushing defeat and were saved by the Grim Shinigami at the last moment.

Legend has it that Matatabi lives in the Death Forest of Hokkaido in the far north, a black cat demon with Daikokuten wings.

Originally the pet of the Shinigami, it later secretly crossed the gate of the Three Realms and escaped to the human world, where it takes pleasure in consuming the souls of the dead.

Just as Tōka's bone rain was about to shoot into Yugito's body, the giant cat's body suddenly shrank into a ball.

Around the burning blue flames, hideous ghost faces appeared, and shrill screams echoed throughout the Forest.

The souls of the dead who come from the Netherworld Yugito.

The chakra condensed wildly as if it were a tangible substance, and the large blue-black cat's body suddenly grew larger, like a balloon being "blown" up by the enormous chakra.

An invisible pressure made the whole world feel heavy, and the air became stagnant and viscous.

Everyone felt as if time itself had stood still, and even moving a finger was extremely difficult.

"Soul Bomb!"

Immediately afterwards, a low, muffled sound rang out...

The shrill screams of the evil spirits grew even more frantic, their faces flashing countless times before everyone's eyes with terror, pain, and grotesque expressions.

Buzz!!

In an instant, the rain of bones was shattered by the powerful chakra.

The buzzing sound, coming from the depths of my soul, was like a giant bell being struck overhead, echoing continuously and making my head spin.

The screams of vengeful ghosts assaulted my ears, and their hideous faces kept flashing through my mind.

The world is distorted, and darkness descends.

Everyone felt a buzzing in their heads, and then without warning, their eyes rolled back and they collapsed to the ground.

With her powerful Mental Energy and the purest Sage Body, Tōka gritted her teeth and persevered until the screams from her very soul gradually faded away...

Although Tōka remained conscious, his legs were trembling slightly.

Tōka's condition was also not good. Although he appeared to be uninjured, his mental strength had actually been severely damaged.

With a thud, Yugito's Tailed Beast Transformation form dissipated, and she crashed heavily to the ground. It took her a while to catch her breath before she could stand up. Clearly, she had reached her limit after using Matatabi's Soul Bomb.

The two men stood about thirty paces apart, staring at each other with weary expressions.

"I have to give it a thumbs up, no wonder it's Shinigami's pet?" Tōka squinted at Yugito in the distance.

He felt a series of sharp pains in his brain, blood gushed from his ears and dripped down his earlobes, and even now his ears are still ringing.

Yugito stared at Tōka silently, panting, a strange light flickering in his dark pupils.

She wasn't very skilled at this move; she was keeping it as a last resort, using the Mental Energy of countless undead to attack. She never expected that someone would be able to stand up!

No, she never even considered that anyone could remain conscious!

"What? You've run out of chakra, and even speaking is difficult?"

Tōka felt the throbbing pain in her head wasn't so bad anymore, and gradually she perked up, trying to get Yugito words.

Now it's a race against time. Yugito is slowly recovering her chakra. With the Two-Tails Matatabi inside her, her chakra recovery speed is extremely fast.

Tōka, on the other hand, was secretly catching her breath. Her mental strength had been severely impacted and would not recover in a short time.

Tōka needed to do was to suppress the feeling that he would faint at any moment as quickly as possible, while simultaneously using his Mystical Palm Technique to heal his injured eardrums.

Yugito knew that once the little devil in front of her recovered, she would be the one to die, so she decided...

Make the first move!

With Yugito unleashed three sharp blades.

Whoosh whoosh whoosh!!

Three Shuriken shot out in a triangular formation, drawing a beautiful arc in the air before forming a straight line.

They shot towards Tōka's brow, throat, and heart respectively!

"In the phone?" Tōka curled his lip in disdain. Even if he stood Budong, he wouldn't be hurt by an ordinary Shuriken.

Crackling sounds...

The bones grew rapidly, instantly protecting Tōka's three vital points.

The Shuriken struck the hard bone as if it were hitting a steel plate, and bounced back with a clang.

"Not even blinking?" Yugito's pupils shrank sharply. Tōka's defense could ignore ordinary Shuriken, which wasn't mentioned in the intelligence!

"Now it's my turn!" Tōka shouted, clapping his hands together as chakra gathered.

The attack from the Matatabi still had some impact on Tōka. In order to prevent the Jutsu Formula from failing to activate, Tōka obediently chose to Hand Seals!

The ground beneath the Yugito churned and then cracked open with a snap, releasing a stench of decay.

The ashen gray bone broke through the soil and pierced straight towards the Yugito.

Yugito gritted her teeth, wanting to back away, but she felt strained even to move a finger, let alone be faster than Tōka's Earth Spear.

She took a step back with all her might, avoiding having her foot pierced by the Ash Bones.

Tōka's attack did not end there; Ash Bones continued to thrust upwards at an angle, aiming precisely at Yugito's abdomen!

"Oh no!"

There's no escaping it now...

Despair flickered in Yugito's eyes, and the aura of death enveloped her heart. She was well aware of Tōka's abilities.

It is precisely because we know this that we are even more afraid.

Just as the Ash Bones were about to pierce the Yugito's abdomen.

With a whoosh!

A dark shadow streaked through the air and pierced directly in front of Yugito, splitting the soil and driving the heavy object deep into the earth.

Clang!

A deep, metallic hum resounded, the earth trembled violently, Yugito figure was thrown away by a tremendous force.

Darui arrived just in time, swiftly landing in the path the Yugito had taken through the air, and caught her in his arms.

"Darui... did that big sword block the Ash Bones?" Tōka rubbed his temples, feeling extremely exhausted from the direct impact on his mental energy.

If she were in her prime, Yugito would never have been able to dodge the first attack, let alone after Darui rescued her.

At this moment, Shisui also arrived.

"What exactly happened here..." Shisui stared in shock at the fallen crowd, "What happened, Tōka?"

"The Two-Tails's ability." Tōka's face was pale, and she simply said that without wanting to explain further.

Although Tōka's physical strength and chakra were not depleted at all, the damage to his mental strength made him feel extremely uncomfortable.

Tōka closed his eyes briefly, then opened them again, frowning as he stared at Shisui and asked, "But what happened to you? How did you manage to let Darui rescue Yugito?"

"Didn't you confidently say that you'd take care of that black guy?"

"Uh..." Shisui choked, suddenly unsure how to respond. Could he say that the kid's Kekkei Genkai was difficult to deal with?

"Yugito? How are you?" Darui glanced briefly at the situation and knew that Yugito must have used that move.

"It's nothing, just a little tired." Although Yugito knew the dangers of using Soul Bomb, she had no choice but to use it while she was still in good condition.

If it drags on too long, and she gets injured or overexerted, she's unsure if she'll still be able to use it.

He intended to kill everyone in one fell swoop, but he didn't expect that brat to still be standing there, fully conscious.

"Where's Nozomi?" Yugito raised his eyes. The Battlefield Mei Terumī and Nozomi seemed to be quiet now. Had she been killed?

"Nozomi is alright. They were close enough that they were knocked unconscious." Darui arrived just in time to find Mei Terumī and Nozomi lying unconscious on the ground.

However, at that time, Darui was only thinking about getting to Yugito's side, so he left Hii behind.

"We have to leave quickly, the other ninja villages..." Yugito could finish speaking, Darui interrupted him.

"Don't worry, leave the rest to me!" Darui Yugito onto his shoulder, turned, and leaped toward where Xi was.

Seeing this, Tōka, who was not far away, shouted incoherently, "Shisui, we absolutely can't let them get away! That move... if it happens again, I'm afraid..."

"I'll go after them. You signal Kakashi and the Iwagakure team." A hint of seriousness flashed in Shisui's eyes. As soon as he finished speaking, he disappeared from the spot using a Body Flicker Technique.

Tōka didn't dare to delay. The person lying on the ground had only fainted, and he didn't know how long it would take for him to wake up.

Now, the most important thing is to notify Kakashi and the others who are blocking the westernmost intersection.

Glancing at the few Bee hidden under the shade of the trees, Tōka felt a sense of foreboding.

"Hopefully those guys won't cause any trouble..." Tōka licked his dry lips and quickly ran towards a high point to the west.

On the west side of the ambush area, Asuma was getting impatient. He glanced Budong at the three members of the Bee Squad not far away.

I have a feeling that these three guys aren't trustworthy.

However, at this point, Asuma knew that there was no evidence to support these claims, and that such statements would only create a rift in the cooperation between the two sides.

Asuma could only secretly be wary, realizing he had to be on guard against the Iwagakure Bee Squad.

"Did you find anything?" Kakashi noticed the whispers of the Bee Squad and asked loudly.

The two sides were only about twenty paces apart. The voices could be heard but not clearly, and the eyes could see but not clearly.

The two sides remained in a state between vague and clear feelings.

"Nothing, just feeling a bit bored," Black Bee replied loudly, clearly trying to avoid the topic.

Kakashi pursed his lips and remained silent, but deep suspicion was evident in his eyes.

Would a trained Elite Squad, while lying in ambush, whisper among themselves out of boredom?

Are you kidding me? Or do you think he's a fool?

"Kakashi, something's not right." Asuma squinted, though he was a bit clueless when it came to Kurenai.

But in other matters, Asuma is incredibly shrewd. He not only inherited the intelligence and composure of the Third Hokage, but he is also extremely meticulous.

"These three guys have been acting strange since the beginning, like they're hiding something." Kakashi nodded slightly. He was physically injured, but not mentally, so he could naturally tell that the Bee Squad's behavior was odd.

"Red, if we have to make a move later, use Genjutsu to control that female ninja first," Kakashi said decisively, a sharp glint in his eyes.

"Okay." Red immediately perked up and focused her attention on the Suzumebachi.

Call out!!

A Signal Flare shot through the air and exploded in the sky above the Forest.

Kakashi and his two companions, along with the Bee Squad from Iwagakure, noticed it at the same time; however, their reactions differed.

"Signal arrived!" Kakashi was taken aback for a moment, then immediately stood up. "Get ready, we're going to provide support!"

"Okay!" Asuma and Kurenai nodded in unison.

Just then, the Bee Squad from Iwagakure made their move. Black Bee and Yellow Bee stepped forward and stood in front, seemingly protecting Suzumebachi.

Meanwhile, Suzumebachi formed a peculiar hand seal, and the chakra within her body surged wildly.

Not long after...

A buzzing vibration filled the air—the sound of Bee's wings vibrating rapidly.

"It was definitely a trap!" Asuma, who had been on high alert regarding the Bee Squad, reacted immediately.

He took a deep breath, his chest swelled up like a balloon, and then put one hand to his mouth.

"Wind Release: Great Breakthrough!"

A whirlwind blew out of Asuma's mouth, sweeping directly towards the swarm of Bee summoned by the Bee Squad.

Seeing this, Kakashi also moved his hands swiftly, leaving a trail of afterimages in front of him.

The best way to deal with the Insect Master Clan is Fire Release!

The tiger seal is completed!

"Fire Release: Great Fireball Technique!" Kakashi aimed at Asuma's Wind Release and unleashed a massive fireball from his mouth.

The wind fanned the flames, and in an instant, the fireball doubled in size.

The towering flames blocked out a 180-degree field of vision, engulfing all the Bee within them as well.

"Red, stay hidden and be ready to reinforce us at any time!" Kakashi shouted in a low voice, glanced at Asuma, and leaped out first.

Hong Deling immediately dodged into the bushes, simultaneously forming hand Hand Seals, ready to unleash Genjutsu at any moment!

Asuma, seeing that Kurenai had hidden herself, immediately darted forward and followed Kakashi.

The two followed the giant fireball, rapidly approaching the Bee Squad of Iwagakure...

"What do we do? They seem to have realized what's happening!" Black Bee said in a muffled voice. He had originally planned to take advantage of the situation to wipe out this group of Konoha Ninja, and then go to the front Battlefield to finish off the group that had been fighting to the death.

Unexpectedly, the Signal Flare arrived so quickly! Their Bee had only just relayed the intelligence back!

"Don't worry, since someone has fired Signal Flare, it means the battle ahead is very intense and they urgently need our support," Suzumebachi calmly analyzed.

"If we can hold off this Konoha squad for now, the Kumogakure squad ahead will be weakened by the others, and then our opportunity will come!"

"Okay!" The Black Bee and the Yellow Bee exchanged a glance and nodded in agreement.

At that moment, Kakashi and Asuma appeared five steps away.

The atmosphere was tense; a major battle was imminent!

After releasing the Signal Flare on the high ground, Tōka immediately turned east, heading straight for the direction where Shisui and Darui had gone.