At that moment, the main forces of Iwagakure, Sunagakure, and Kumogakure arrived and surrounded the fourteen Rain Ninja and more than thirty samurai.
Iwagakure had fifteen men, Sunagakure thirteen, and Kumogakure nine. Each group was led by an elite Jonin!
The three elite Jonin had arrived first. They had already noticed the sandalwood box in the Rain Ninja's hands and spotted the Daimyo Ginseng inside.
"Hand over the Daimyo Ginseng, and I'll spare your lives!" the elite Jonin leading the Iwa Ninja said sternly. He had the largest force, so naturally he was confident.
"Hand over the Daimyo Ginseng, and you can leave!" the leader of Sunagakure's group shot back without backing down.
The elite Jonin from Kumogakure said nothing, only letting his eyes dart around.
Kuiling Hefan's face was so dark it looked ready to drip. He knew he had no chance. His few men stood no chance against the forces of the Three Great Shinobi Villages. The other side had three elite Jonin!
But he couldn't accept it. "Who am I supposed to hand it over to?"
The leaders of Iwagakure, Sunagakure, and Kumogakure exchanged glances. At last, the Kumo captain said, "I have a suggestion. We wipe out these Rain Ninja first, then settle this among ourselves. Whoever gets it keeps it."
The other two nodded in agreement.
Why let a bystander profit from a fight between tigers? This was practically an unspoken rule of the Five Great Shinobi Villages. We could fight among ourselves, but we couldn't let some smaller village seize the chance to rise. That had always been the way of the Five Great Shinobi Villages.
"No! I'll hand it over!" Seeing this, Kuiling Hefan abandoned any thought of sowing discord and shouted.
"Hmph, too late. We'll take out the Rain Ninja first. Iwa, what do you say?" A fierce glint flashed in the Sunagakure captain's eyes.
"Attack!" The Iwa captain was a man of few words. As soon as he spoke, he launched an attack at the Rain Ninja. "Earth Style: Rock Lodging Collapse!"
The Kumo captain formed Hand Seals, then pressed both hands to the ground. "Lightning Style: Earth Flash!"
The Suna Ninja released one puppet after another. Poisoned needles and Shuriken came spraying out of their mouths and hands.
In that instant, even though the Rain Ninja did their best to defend themselves, seven of them were badly injured. Nearly half of the thirty samurai were crushed to death by rocks tumbling from the surrounding cliffs.
"No! We're willing to hand over the Daimyo Ginseng!" Kuiling Hefan nearly broke down as he struggled to withstand the attack. This was too much. He snatched the sandalwood box from one of his subordinates and hurled it into the air.
Sure enough, as soon as the Daimyo Ginseng flew into the air, the shinobi from the Three Great Shinobi Villages stopped attacking, afraid of damaging it.
The three elite Jonin were the first to reach for it.
Kuiling Hefan's move worked better than anything he could have said. The pressure on the Rain Ninja eased at once, while the Three Great Shinobi Villages, who had just agreed to join forces against them, began attacking one another instead.
Amid the chaos, with all four sides fighting, nobody noticed the small figure hiding behind a jutting rock on the sheer cliff.
The cliff face beside him was covered in densely packed Explosive Tags!
A closer look would have revealed the same on the opposite cliff. This stretch of Great Warm Valley had become a terrifying graveyard!
Seeing the Three Great Shinobi Villages turn on one another, Kuiling Hefan couldn't bear to let this opportunity pass.
The next moment, he joined the scramble for the Daimyo Ginseng. Now all four elite Jonin were locked in an even fiercer battle. Rocks and earth crumbled around them; poisoned needles and sand came flying at them; flashes of lightning and thunderclaps punctuated the fight.
Suddenly, Kuiling Hefan spotted an opening. As the other three exchanged blows, he snatched the Daimyo Ginseng.
The other three immediately ganged up on him!
A fist wrapped in lightning slammed into his chest, leaving it charred and mangled. As he was knocked to the ground, spikes suddenly shot up from the earth: Earth Style: Rock Pillar Spear! Kuiling Hefan's heart clenched. At this critical moment, he was about to use a defensive jutsu when he felt his body go numb. He had been struck in the waist by several poisoned needles without noticing. Then the spikes from the ground pierced one of his arms.
In an instant, Kuiling Hefan, the elite Jonin of Amegakure, was gravely injured by the combined attack of the three.
The Jonin from the other forces were fighting just as brutally, and many of the Chunin were badly wounded as well.
"About time..." A small figure crouched behind a jutting rock on the cliff, wearing a sinister smile. "Art is an explosion!"
Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom! As the Explosive Tags went off, a deafening series of blasts shook the valley!
By the time the four sides in the battle realized what was happening, it was as if the sky and earth had collapsed. Huge masses of rock tumbled down both cliffs, burying the entire area.
Meanwhile, at the edge of Great Warm Valley, Xian Yu had taken Shinozaki Ayumi on a roundabout route. He had just picked up a Black Iron Treasure Chest when a series of notifications rang in his ears.
"Congratulations, host. You obtained Black Iron Treasure Chest x1." "Host killed one Iwagakure Chunin. Killing Points +100." "Host killed one Kumogakure Genin. Killing Points +10." "Host killed one Kumogakure Chunin. Killing Points +100." "Host killed one Iwagakure Genin. Killing Points +10." "Host killed one Sunagakure Genin. Killing Points +10." "Host killed one Sunagakure Chunin. Killing Points +100." "Host killed one Amegakure Chunin. Killing Points +100." "Host killed one Iwagakure Genin. Killing Points +10." "Host killed one Iwagakure Genin. Killing Points +10." "Host killed one Amegakure Genin. Killing Points +10." "Host killed one Iwagakure Jonin. Killing Points +1000." "Host killed one Sunagakure Chunin. Killing Points +100." "Host killed one Amegakure Genin. Killing Points +10." "Host killed one Amegakure elite Jonin. Killing Points +2000." "Host killed..."
Xian Yu's hand froze in midair... His Shadow Clone had also been blown up by the Explosive Tags, and when a Shadow Clone dispersed without using Hand Seals, it couldn't send back any memories. Even so, he learned from the system that all three Great Shinobi Villages had joined the battle. He immediately opened the Slaughter Shop.
Spirit Rice x1, Price: 10 Killing Points. Note: Unit (grain) Spirit Rice Seed x1, Price: 300 Killing Points. Note: Yield: 30–40 grains; maturation time: three months. Eternal Spirit Blade x1, Price: 500,000 Killing Points. Note: Must be bonded by blood to use its abilities. Can be recalled with a thought, no matter the distance. Three-Tailed Fox x1, Price: 500,000 Killing Points. Note: A growing demon beast that can never betray its master once bonded. Has the strength of a Chunin from birth. Daimyo Ginseng x1, Price: 1,000 Killing Points. Note: A spiritual ginseng rich in powerful vitality. Increases lifespan by 20 years when consumed. Due to resistance to its medicinal effects, a second dose has no effect. Limited-Time Sale: Mystical Palm Technique Infusion, Price: 10,000 Killing Points. Note: Instantly learn the Mystical Palm Technique. Current Killing Points balance: 3,870.
¯_(ツ)_/¯ Still can't afford it...
"Speaking of which, that old bastard Danzo really went too far. I told him to notify Sunagakure, but the bastard even drew in Iwagakure and Kumogakure... If Kirigakure weren't so far away that they couldn't make it in time, this would've turned into a four-village battle..." Xian Yu wiped the cold sweat from his forehead. Good thing he'd gotten away quickly.
"I think I'm starting to understand this Slaughter Shop. It seems that once I obtain a treasure valuable enough, it gets added to the shop as an item I can buy with Killing Points."
That was why Xian Yu had given up on the Daimyo Ginseng and used it as bait instead. He had spent 200 diamonds on a thousand Refined Explosive Tags to set up the ambush.
He had started with 439 diamonds, spent 150 to open a Bronze Treasure Chest, then another 200 to buy the Explosive Tags. Now he had only 89 diamonds left.
Here was a summary of what he'd gained on this trip: 1. Xiao Qi had evolved into a Six-Tailed Fox. 2. The Bronze Treasure Chest contained a bottle of Super God Water. 3. He'd gained 3,870 Killing Points. 4. The Daimyo Ginseng had been added to the Slaughter Shop. 5. He'd gained a bodyguard, Ya Midie.
And what he'd lost:
1. He'd spent 1,361 diamonds, 1,000 of which the system had forcibly swindled from him.
2. The Eternal Spirit Blade had run out of vitality, and replenishing it would take half a month to a month.
3. He'd gained and lost a pile of gems worth more than fifty million ryō. The emotional damage was enormous...
"Xiao Qi can't be summoned for a month, so staying out here is too dangerous... I'd better buy some Spirit Rice Seeds and go back to the village to farm. I wonder if Hiruko has managed to get the tech tree going... I really want to go back to being an internet café manager." Xian Yu couldn't wait to get home.
Before you continue