Encirclement!!

Although Phantom Branch Village had achieved a shocking victory on the battlefield, problems regarding personnel configuration began to emerge. The village was newly founded, and its composition was complex: there were loyal orphans who had been rescued, former soldiers from the Land of Birds forced to join, rogue ninjas attracted by the pursuit of power, and even jinchuriki like Fu, who remained temporarily due to a complex shift in ideology. Loyalty was uneven, and the management system was far from perfect.

The terrifying power of Sakuya and Obito temporarily suppressed all dissent, but such obedience born of fear was not stable. Sakuya was severely overdrawn, busy recovering and mastering the power of the two newly acquired Tailed Beasts; Obito's mind was mostly on Rin; Orochimaru was obsessed with his research; and Haku was in a weakened state after the Three-Tails was extracted from her body. The cracks in management quietly appeared once the fervor of victory began to fade.

Konoha, Shikamaru's command room.

Smoke swirled as Shikamaru stared at the model of Phantom Branch Village on the sand table, his brows furrowed. As the brains of the Allied Forces, he never stopped thinking. Images and intelligence of the crushing defeat on the front lines were constantly being sent back; instead of falling into despair like others, he keenly captured the weakness of Phantom Branch Village from those fragmented pieces of information—it was not a monolithic entity.

Especially the intelligence regarding the Seven-Tails jinchuriki, Fu: she had not joined voluntarily, but was forced to stay after being shaken by Sakuya's act of rescuing orphans. This was a potential breakthrough.

"There is only one chance..." Shikamaru muttered to himself, his finger tracing a perilous route on the sand table, "Make a feint to the east while attacking in the west, create chaos, and tear it apart from within..."

An extremely risky plan, but one with massive potential gains if successful, took shape in his mind.

A few days later, on the outskirts of Phantom Branch Village.

Small units of the Allied Forces launched several feints. Their attack points were erratic, and the intensity was controlled just right—enough to attract the attention of the defenders without causing too much damage, as if they were testing something.

The "Branch" members patrolling inside the village were indeed mobilized, and the defensive lines experienced some unnecessary chaos and frantic scrambling.

Meanwhile, the real killing blow had already infiltrated the interior of the village through an extremely secret, abandoned mine shaft that even the "Branch" had not yet fully mastered. A surprise attack team composed of Konoha elites like Shino Aburame, Kiba Inuzuka, and Hinata Hyuga headed straight for the residence where Fu was located!

They moved swiftly with tacit coordination, using the insects of the Aburame clan and the Byakugan of the Hyuga clan to perfectly avoid most of the patrols.

However, just as they were about to approach their target, they were accidentally discovered by Uchiha Ren, who was patrolling nearby!

"Enemy attack!!" Ren immediately sounded the alarm, his Three-Tomoe Sharingan instantly activated, and he rushed forward without hesitation to attempt to intercept them!

The battle erupted instantly! Ren's strength was formidable, but facing the siege of multiple Konoha jonin, he was instantly forced onto the back foot, finding himself in a precarious situation!

But his alarm had served its purpose!

Nearby "Branch" members quickly arrived to provide support! Leading the charge were Tie Xin of the "Steel" branch and Zhua of the "Beast" branch!

"Stop them!" Tie Xin manipulated iron sand to form a barrier, while Zhua lunged at Kiba and Akamaru like a wild beast!

In the chaos, Ino Yamanaka of the surprise attack team seized the opportunity, formed hand seals, and activated the Mind Transfer Jutsu. Her spirit instantly took control of a civilian nearby who had been startled by the battle and had opened the door to look!

The controlled civilian happened to see Fu, who was rushing over from another street!

"Fu! Run! They are here to capture you!" The controlled civilian shouted this with their last bit of strength before collapsing into unconsciousness.

Fu's expression changed upon hearing this, and she instinctively wanted to turn and flee!

But the moment she turned, a figure appeared behind her like a ghost—it was Uchiha Sakuya, who had arrived the moment he received the alarm!

His face was still somewhat pale, his chakra far from recovered, but his speed remained extremely fast. His cold gaze swept across the chaotic battlefield and then toward the fleeing Fu, a flash of murderous intent in his eyes.

Traitors, or potential traitors, must be eliminated.

He raised his hand, chakra condensing at his fingertips, enough to pierce Fu's heart in an instant.

Fu also felt the cold murderous intent behind her and closed her eyes in despair.

However, the moment Sakuya's finger was about to strike, it paused imperceptibly.

In his mind, he saw a flash of the warm smile Fu had shown when she saw the orphans, her figure as she tried her best to cooperate despite her reluctance during battle, and... the vibrant colors she brought when interacting with those children, which were so different from his own cold path of revenge.

That hesitation of less than a tenth of a second!

It was enough!

"Mind Transfer Jutsu!" Ino Yamanaka's main body finally found the perfect moment! Her spiritual power instantly crossed the distance, seized the mental gap that appeared in Fu due to fear and despair, and successfully invaded her body!

Fu's body stiffened, her eyes instantly turning hollow, and when they opened again, they were filled with Ino's resolve!

Without a moment's hesitation, she (Ino) turned and ran frantically toward the escape route Shikamaru had planned in advance!

Sakuya snapped back to his senses, cold light flaring in his eyes! He knew Fu had been controlled! He immediately gave chase!

But at this moment, Shino Aburame's insect swarm and Kiba Inuzuka's Fang Over Fang attacked recklessly, risking their lives to hold him back for a split second!

It was this split-second delay! "Fu" (Ino) had already charged into the narrow alleyway!

"Pursue!" Sakuya was burning with rage and immediately gave the order! At the same time, he sensed that Ren, Tie Xin, and Zhua had repelled the first wave of enemies and were on their way.

The members of the "Ten Branches" (except for the severely injured Zhuo, Gu, and Shen, who needed to maintain the genjutsu) and Ren obeyed the order almost subconsciously, immediately chasing in the direction "Fu" had fled! They absolutely could not let the jinchuriki be taken away!

However, they overlooked the fact that the escape route was far too "smooth"!

When they reached deep into a relatively remote, abandoned industrial zone, "Fu" (Ino) of the "Feather" branch, who was leading the charge, suddenly stopped, turned around, and revealed a smile of successful deception.

The next second, she closed her eyes and collapsed to the ground. Ino Yamanaka's spirit had departed.

At the same time, from the tops of the surrounding buildings, from the shadows, and from underground... countless Allied Forces elites surged forth! Leading them was none other than Shikamaru Nara! His Shadow Possession Technique had already connected to multiple subordinates, and a massive shadow network instantly unfurled!

"A trap! It's a setup!" Haku exclaimed!

But it was too late!

"Ninja Art: Shadow Possession Formation!" Shikamaru ordered calmly!

Countless shadows, like black tentacles, instantly wrapped around the ankles of the "Ten Branches" members and Ren who had charged in! Although they could not completely control these powerhouses, it was enough to severely restrict their movement speed!

"Fire Style: Great Fire Dragon Technique!"

"Wind Release: Great Breakthrough!"

"Lightning Style: Earth Flash!"

"Earth Style: Earth Flow River!"

The Allied Shinobi Forces' ninjutsu division, having long been prepared, launched a blanket strike in an instant! Countless ninjutsu poured down like a torrential rain, completely submerging the entire area!

"Defend!" Tie Xin roared, and an Iron Sand Barrier rose instantly! Haku also immediately created an ice wall! Fu (having regained consciousness but remaining weak) scattered her scales! Zhua and Gu relied on their speed to dodge! Lian's Sharingan spun frantically, using lightning to cleave through the attacks! Obito attempted to use Kamui, only to find the surrounding space interfered with by a pre-arranged barrier, becoming extremely unstable!

Explosions and thunderous roars rang out incessantly! Although the Ten Branches were each formidable in strength, they were instantly plunged into a bitter struggle, restricted in movement, ambushed in advance, and at a massive numerical disadvantage! Every one of them was targeted and besieged by multiple enemies!

Obito was entangled by Kakashi and Guy (still suffering from severe injuries but barely able to fight)! Haku was suppressed by the taijutsu combination of Tenten and Rock Lee! Fu was countered by Temari's Wind Style! Tie Xin was harassed by the Aburame and Inuzuka clans! Zhua and Gu were surrounded by the Hyuga clan's Gentle Fist! Lian was pitted against Sasuke Uchiha (his injuries not yet healed, but barely holding on)!

They charged and broke through, yet they could not breach this meticulously prepared encirclement! Casualties began to appear! To protect Fu, Zhua was struck in a vital point by Gentle Fist and fell to the ground, severely wounded! Tie Xin's Iron Sand was also blown apart by Explosive Tags, leaving her with internal injuries!

The situation was dire!

Meanwhile, inside the village, Shuoyue had just finished clearing away the persistent Konoha ninja and arrived at the edge of the industrial zone, seeing the very scene of the Ten Branches and Lian trapped in a desperate encirclement!

His expression turned incomparably ugly in an instant! Rage and killing intent threatened to burst from his chest!

But just as he was about to charge in, he suddenly coughed up a mouthful of blood! The severe overdraft of his chakra and his previous injuries left him dizzy, making it impossible to exert his full strength! If he forced his way in, he would likely be trapped himself!

Yet the strongest combatant currently in the village—Uchiha Madara—had not arrived immediately for some reason (perhaps out of disdain for such small-scale rescue, perhaps familiarizing himself with his new body, or perhaps having other plans).

On one side were his loyal subordinates and younger brother, deep in the encirclement. On the other was his own poor condition, with the risk that a forced rescue could lead to total annihilation. And on yet another side was that self-willed, uncontrollable Uchiha Madara.

Shuoyue stood in place, his fists clenched tight, his nails digging deep into his palms as blood dripped between his fingers.

He had never felt so powerless.

The root of it all was, unexpectedly, his moment of hesitation... regarding that woman.

A stalemate, an unprecedented stalemate!