"Hamaki, I have to go."
Namikaze Minato looked at a middle-aged man with a ring of stubble around his mouth.
Mimura Hamaki was the frontline commander of the defensive forces, a highly experienced Jonin.
"Did something go wrong with the mission to cut off Iwagakure?"
Mimura Hamaki panted heavily.
At his rank, he naturally knew that this operation had been divided into two fronts.
Most of their main forces were fighting the Iwagakure shinobi on the front lines, keeping them pinned down.
Then, a small team had been sent to launch a surprise attack and destroy the bridge.
"Yes."
Namikaze Minato nodded slightly, his expression grave.
He had already killed most of the Iwagakure shinobi, and the crisis on the front lines had been resolved.
He had to check on Kannabi Bridge.
Otherwise, as long as Kannabi Bridge remained, the enemy could still mobilize reinforcements from elsewhere at any time, allowing rear support to arrive without obstruction.
"I'll be right back."
With that, Namikaze Minato's figure flickered and vanished from where he stood.
"Is that the Flying Thunder God Technique, which was lost after the Second Hokage?"
Watching Namikaze Minato leave, Mimura Hamaki shook his head.
It was precisely because of this technique that Namikaze Minato had shone so brilliantly in this Shinobi World War.
After leaving, Namikaze Minato opened his eyes again just in time to see the cave collapsing.
The surroundings were filled with rubble that kept falling down, nearly striking him.
"?"
Namikaze Minato was somewhat puzzled.
No, where the hell had this brought him?
Was this still the Land of Grass?
He immediately threw a special kunai outside, embedding it in the ground.
Swoosh!
Namikaze Minato's figure flashed again, and he arrived outside. He pulled out the special kunai and held it in his hand.
"They're ahead..."
Namikaze Minato sensed a wave of chakra. It belonged to Kiyohara, Rin, and the others.
"It seems the special kunai I gave Kakashi fell inside. After they escaped the cave, they were surrounded by the enemy and had no time to retrieve the kunai, so they could only retreat outward."
Based on those simple clues, Namikaze Minato quickly deduced the likely situation and hurried outside.
"Wow, I never expected you to have killed Kakkō and the others too. Sneaking this deep behind enemy lines was already impressive, and you still have such fighting spirit. You're quite tenacious."
Sumashi looked at Kiyohara and the others.
Then, as if remembering something, his gaze shifted to Kiyohara.
"According to the portrait provided by the scouting shinobi, you're the brat who kept interfering with our senses and let those rats slip in, aren't you?!"
Sumashi stared at Kiyohara.
It was this guy's cooperation that had allowed the other Konoha shinobi to infiltrate so deeply into their territory.
If anything happened to Kannabi Bridge, they would surely face severe punishment from the village.
This bridge absolutely could not be lost.
That was why, after noticing the situation here, Sumashi had rushed over with a squad of Iwagakure shinobi without stopping.
Kakashi forced himself to stand, squeezing his one hundred and thirty trillion cells dry to refine a trace of chakra.
After converting all of that chakra into Lightning Release chakra, azure electric arcs burst from Kakashi's hand.
Lightning illuminated his face as a piercing sound filled the forest.
Unfortunately, after only three seconds, Kakashi's chakra was nearly depleted. His face was deathly pale, and he could no longer even maintain Chidori.
The electric arcs in his hand extinguished at once.
"Can't I even do this anymore?"
Bitterness filled Kakashi's face.
His chakra was still far too little.
Or rather, Chidori consumed too much. In his current state, he could not yet bear the burden of that ninjutsu.
After having the Sharingan implanted, Kakashi felt like a deflating ball, with chakra constantly leaking away.
Because he was not an Uchiha, the transplanted Sharingan could not be turned off.
Ordinary Uchiha only activated their Sharingan in battle and kept it closed normally, making its consumption practically nonexistent.
But he had to expend chakra twenty-four hours a day. From the moment of the transplant until now, Kakashi's already limited chakra had only become more strained.
"Kakashi..."
Nohara Rin noticed it as well.
She did not know whether implanting Obito's Sharingan had strengthened Kakashi or become a burden to him.
But it was Obito's final... keepsake.
It was also Obito's wish for Kakashi to keep watching this wonderful world in his place, leaving Nohara Rin unable to say anything.
"Let me handle this!"
Watching Kakashi become a three-second man, Genma Shiranui shouted.
In the next instant, the senbon in his mouth shot out. At the same time, his hands rapidly formed seals, and the senbon multiplied into a dense barrage that blanketed the space before Sumashi.
However, Sumashi was an experienced Special Jonin, particularly skilled in Earth Release ninjutsu, and he moved even faster!
"Earth Release: Rock Staff!"
He slapped the ground with one hand, and a hard, short stone staff suddenly burst from underground, disrupting the senbon formation.
At the same time, he moved like lightning and instantly closed in on Genma Shiranui. His other palm became covered in hardened rock as it chopped down!
"Bang!"
Genma Shiranui's hastily raised defense was easily shattered. He was sent flying and crashed heavily into the ground, unable to rise for the moment.
"Genma!"
Kurenai Yuhi cried out. Her hands immediately began forming seals as she prepared to use Genjutsu.
"Yuhi, wait. Don't act rashly."
But Kiyohara grabbed her and stopped her, his expression solemn.
"His mastery of Earth Release is extremely deep. It's too dangerous to rush in carelessly."
Kiyohara said.
Although Sumashi was only a Special Jonin, that did not mean he was weaker than a Jonin.
For example, if Obito took the Jonin exam, even with Jonin-level strength, he would probably only be rated as a Special Jonin.
That was because his "Wisdom" score was too low, even lower than some Genin who had just graduated from the academy.
A Jonin needed to be well-rounded, with no weaknesses in any area. Only those who possessed Jonin-level ability in every aspect could be evaluated as Jonin.
Therefore, Special Jonin could also be regarded as Jonin who excelled in certain areas but were lacking in others.
"But..."
Kurenai Yuhi looked at the advancing enemy, as well as the more than ten Iwagakure shinobi forming an encirclement around them, and felt that things were going badly.
"Don't be afraid. I'll take action."
Kiyohara said.
Namikaze Minato should be on his way now. He only needed to hold them off for a while.
With that in mind, Kiyohara stuffed a Military Ration Pill into his mouth, recovering a little of his strength.
"Future me, it's your turn to make an entrance. Let them see what the Blue Beast is... uh, no, what a beating from the future looks like!"
Kiyohara said.
At a time like this, he could only rely on his future self.
"It has been quite a while since I last stretched my limbs."
Renegade Kiyohara smiled faintly.
Previously, when he had possessed Kiyohara, the opponents had all been minor figures, so there had been no pressure.
Now that so many shinobi had come together, he truly needed to show some of his strength.
He would make them understand that even among Jonin, there were differences in power.
In the next instant, Kiyohara's temperament abruptly changed.
The youthfulness in his eyes was instantly replaced by the sharpness of someone tempered by war.
He slightly rolled his neck, producing a faint crack, then swept his gaze over Sumashi and the other Iwagakure shinobi. A barely perceptible curve rose at the corner of his mouth.
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