Seeing Blood

Such scenes were visible everywhere on the battlefield. With Tsunade providing long-range healing, the Konoha ninjas found that trading wounds for kills was the most perfect strategy.

While Tsunade still had sufficient chakra, they had to deplete the Sunagakure forces as quickly as possible.

This situation did not escape the notice of Ebizo, who had been monitoring the battlefield, and he realized something was wrong; the Konoha ninjas seemed excessively valiant.

For non-lethal ninjutsu, the Konoha ninjas didn't even bother to defend, choosing to take the hits head-on just to kill a Sunagakure ninja. They even ignored attacks from shuriken and kunai.

Though his heart was filled with hatred, it did not cloud Ebizo's judgment. After observing carefully for a moment, he immediately realized the anomaly.

With a Body Flicker, he entered the fray, strangled a Konoha chunin to death, and reached into the ninja's pocket.

Looking at the struggling Katsuyu in his hand, Ebizo's expression turned grim as he understood everything.

"Sunagakure First Division, retreat! Deploy the Puppet Corps!! Wind Release Squad, prepare!"

With a quick turn of his mind, Ebizo immediately devised a countermeasure. The Konoha ninjas could not maintain this style of fighting for long; in this situation, they had to swap in puppets to match them.

"We've been waiting for you. Seiichi, notify the Konoha Vanguard to pull back and regroup! Sakumo, I leave it to you."

Nara Rurin, who had been watching the battlefield, saw this and his eyes lit up. He immediately ordered the Yamanaka ninja beside him while speaking softly to the empty air in front of him.

"Understood."

On the right side of the battlefield, Hatake Sakumo, hidden within the wind and sand, nodded slightly upon hearing the voice.

"Anbu First Squad, Third Squad, Seventh Squad, follow me. The rest, follow the plan."

Hatake Sakumo stood up and gently drew the White Fang from his back, speaking coldly.

"Yes!"

Nearby, Uchiha Gen, who had been standing beside Tsunade, saw her cease the Creation Rebirth technique. He nodded to her and immediately used Body Flicker to head toward the battlefield.

Tsunade, feeling somewhat exhausted from the massive consumption of chakra, smiled as she watched Uchiha Gen disappear, then collapsed onto the ground to sleep.

"Kid, come back alive."

On the battlefield.

Uchiha Gen walked across the sand with Mingzun tied to his waist. Looking at the mangled corpses and the blood-stained ground around him, his heart remained remarkably calm.

"Just as expected, I seem to have grown accustomed to blood, though this sight is indeed a bit disgusting."

A scarlet hue flickered in his eyes as three tomoe spun gently, connecting before rapidly separating.

Whoosh!

A piercing sound rang out as an iron spike shot toward him from afar.

Clang!

Mingzun left its sheath, a flash of white light bloomed, and the incoming iron spike was instantly deflected.

"Look what I've found, a little brat! Hahahaha, is Konoha so desperate? They actually sent a wet-behind-the-ears kid to the battlefield.

Boys, it looks like our luck is pretty good. To be able to deflect my Ant Puppet's spike, this kid must be a genius ninja from Konoha, right?

Just thinking about killing such a ninja makes me excited!"

From the direction the spike came, a Sunagakure ninja with several threads attached to his hands looked at Uchiha Gen with a ferocious expression. Beside him, a pitch-black puppet stood with its mouth agape.

That iron spike had been fired by this very puppet.

Behind this puppet master followed several other Sunagakure ninjas, their heads wrapped in white cloth, revealing only their eyes—eyes that were currently bloodshot.

"Yeah, your luck is pretty good."

Uchiha Gen raised his head, smiling at the three Sunagakure ninjas before him.

"You're at death's door and you still wear that expression, brat! You've angered me! Puppet Technique—Ant! Wait! Those eyes! You've got to be kidding! No, don't look into his eyes!"

Seeing Uchiha Gen's smile, the Sunagakure ninja's rage flared, and he prepared to command his puppet to tear Uchiha Gen apart. However, the next moment, after clearly seeing the red glow within Uchiha Gen's eye sockets, the Sunagakure ninja's face filled with shock as he shouted.

Unfortunately, it was too late.

The eyes of an Uchiha were not something one could look at so easily.

Pfft!

The sound of iron piercing flesh rang out as the Sunagakure ninja commanded the Ant Puppet to pierce the abdomen of his own companion. At the same time, a flash of lightning bloomed across the necks of the other Sunagakure ninja and the puppet master controlled by the Sharingan.

"Thunder Breathing—First Form—Thunderclap Flash."

Blood sprayed onto the ground, staining the sand as it rolled slightly.

Uchiha Gen gently flicked the blood off Mingzun and sheathed the blade with a calm expression.

[Defeated D-rank target, obtained D-rank gacha pull: 1]

[Defeated C-rank target x2, obtained C-rank gacha pull: 2]

"As expected, the battlefield is where I truly belong."

Listening to the data notification in his ears, Uchiha Gen spoke softly.

Having killed for the first time, he felt no discomfort whatsoever; having spent so much time in the Medical Department performing countless surgeries, coupled with his constantly advancing cultivation, he seemed to have no aversion to death or blood.

He did not choose to draw a prize immediately, as a golden aura ignited around Uchiha Gen—a new opponent had arrived.

"Did you kill them?"

The Sunagakure Jonin looked at Uchiha Gen, who was wreathed in golden flames, with a grim expression; the three people Uchiha Gen had just killed were his subordinates.

"No, they died by killing each other. Look, it's quite obvious."

Facing the appearing Sunagakure Jonin, the smile on Uchiha Gen's face remained unchanged; he even pointed with a laugh toward the Ant Puppet that had pierced the abdomen of the Sunagakure ninja nearby.

"Brat, being able to defeat Fubei and the others shows your strength is indeed decent, but when facing a Jonin, or even an Elite Jonin, that is no capital for your arrogance."

Watching Uchiha Gen's provocative smile, the Suna ninja's expression turned icy, and with bone-chilling killing intent in his eyes, he declared his rank; he wanted Uchiha Gen to be tortured to death in despair to avenge his three disciples.

"So much nonsense."

Uchiha Gen's voice suddenly rang out from far to near, and a sense of lethal crisis instantly spread through the man's entire body.

Without a moment's hesitation, the Sunagakure Jonin decisively used Body Flicker to dodge.

BOOM!

Sand filled the air, and a massive crater instantly appeared where the Sunagakure Jonin had been standing just a moment before.

The Sunagakure Jonin, who had just flickered away, felt his heart sink as he watched the swirling sand; this brat from Konoha did not seem simple at all.

CRACKLE!!

Lightning pierced through the wind and sand, and a harsh, noisy sound erupted abruptly across the battlefield.

A streak of lightning arrived instantly before the Sunagakure Jonin.