In the underground command post, Hizashi Hyuga's Byakugan let him see every move the Sunagakure ninja made with perfect clarity.
"The enemy has entered the trap zone-all of them!"
He turned to Gentō beside him.
Without hesitation, Gentō gave the order:
"Send the signal!"
The next second, Shisui vanished from cover.
When he reappeared, he was crouched on the branch of a large tree on the perimeter.
"Fire Release: Great Dragon Fire Technique!"
A searing dragon of flame shot from his mouth into the sky, bursting open in the darkness. Its dazzling light illuminated the entire forest.
The instant they saw the signal, all the Konoha ninja assigned to detonate the Explosive Tags formed hand seals and shouted in unison:
"Explode!"
Among the distant Sunagakure troops, some were still dreaming of invading the Land of Fire, plundering its riches, and returning home laden with spoils.
Shisui's fire dragon suddenly rose into the sky, leaving many of the Sunagakure ninja momentarily stunned.
Before they could react, the hundred thousand Explosive Tags planted in advance detonated one after another.
Boom! Boom! BOOM-!!
Explosion after explosion instantly engulfed the entire trap zone.
On the ground, on tree trunks, in the grass... Explosive Tags erupted everywhere at once. The earth shook beneath the deafening roar.
The ground split, trees collapsed, and Sunagakure ninja were blasted into the air, screaming.
Severed limbs flew in every direction.
Those too close to the Explosive Tags were blown to pieces on the spot.
Even those farther away were hurled to the ground by the shock waves.
Before the survivors could count themselves lucky, raging flames spread in the wake of the explosions.
The inferno swept through the forest, swallowing the wounded ninja as piercing screams rose one after another.
"Aah! It hurts! It hurts so much!"
"Help..."
"Those Konoha bastards... when did they set these traps?!"
Amid the screams, some uninjured Sunagakure ninja frantically formed hand seals, trying to escape the sea of fire with ninjutsu.
Some used Earth Release to burrow underground, while others barely managed to clear a path with Water Release.
But most Sunagakure ninja specialized in Wind Release. Almost helpless against the blaze, they could only watch as their comrades were swallowed by the flames.
Their commander, Satetsu, burst out of the fire in a sorry state, his face covered in soot.
Watching his subordinates struggle and scream in the inferno, his face darkened, and he snarled through gritted teeth:
"It must be those damned Konoha ninja! How could they be so cunning?!"
"Neither the reconnaissance unit nor the advance force triggered anything. That means these traps were set specifically for our main force!"
Beside him, a jonin who had escaped stared at the sea of flames, his voice trembling:
"It's over... the main force is finished..."
"How did Konoha know our route? And when did they set up this ambush?"
Satetsu was filled with the same questions.
But this was no time to dwell on them.
What mattered now was getting out alive!
With an operation this elaborate, Konoha would never have stopped at the traps.
Enemy ninja were certain to arrive any moment!
He immediately ordered the ninja gathering around him:
"Everyone, retreat! Konoha has an ambush waiting. Move before they surround us!"
With that, he turned to break out of the forest.
But just as he leaped, a cool, sharp shout came from ahead:
"Rotation!"
Satetsu reacted instantly, spinning into a kick:
"Sunagakure-Style Taijutsu: Flash Kick!"
Fist met foot, and both men fell back several steps.
Satetsu looked up, his pupils contracting:
"The Byakugan? So it really is Konoha!"
"You despicable Konoha ninja! Setting such vicious traps!"
Hizashi Hyuga's expression remained cold, though inwardly he was somewhat surprised.
The moment the Explosive Tags detonated, Gentō had ordered an attack on all fronts to eliminate the survivors in the trap zone.
With the Byakugan's perceptive power, Hizashi had already finished off several wounded Sunagakure ninja.
Then he had noticed several people gathering here and hurried over.
He had not expected such a strong opponent-at least a jonin. It seemed he had landed a "big fish."
Hizashi offered no reply, immediately attacking with Gentle Fist.
Seeing this, the other two Sunagakure ninja nearby moved in to surround him.
"Commander, we'll help you!"
The fight became three against one.
But Hizashi's skills were solid. His Eight Trigrams Palm left no openings, and with the Byakugan's all-around vision, the three could not break through his defenses.
Seeing Hizashi hold his own against all three of them, Satetsu grew anxious.
The longer they dragged this out, the slimmer their chances of escape became.
One of the Sunagakure ninja fighting Hizashi shouted urgently:
"Lord Satetsu, go! We'll hold him off!"
Satetsu hesitated no longer. He turned and raced toward the edge of the forest.
Having heard Satetsu addressed as "Commander," Hizashi did not want to let him leave. But the other two kept him firmly occupied, leaving him no choice but to watch his opponent escape.
After a few more exchanges, one of the Sunagakure ninja suddenly felt a chill across his neck and collapsed.
Gentō had arrived, delivering a fatal strike from behind with a Chakra Scalpel.
Hizashi relaxed in relief. Working with Gentō, he quickly finished off the remaining enemy.
"One of their leaders got away?"
Hizashi nodded.
"His name is Satetsu. He was the commander of this operation."
Gentō felt a twinge of regret, but he knew that Explosive Tags alone were unlikely to kill a jonin-level opponent.
A result like this was already excellent.
He gestured to Hizashi.
"Keep clearing the battlefield."
With that, he vanished in a flash, heading for the next skirmish.
From the distance came the occasional shouts of Konoha ninja unleashing ninjutsu:
"Expansion Jutsu!"
"Mind Body Switch Technique!"
"Shadow Imitation Technique!"
The three Ino-Shika-Cho clans worked together seamlessly, swiftly cutting down the remaining Sunagakure ninja.
The Hyuga and Inuzuka clan ninja relied on their exceptional reconnaissance and tracking abilities to pinpoint and eliminate their enemies.
As for the Sunagakure ninja lucky enough to escape the Explosive Tags, the Uchiha Clan pursued them.
Leaderless and thrown into chaos, the Sunagakure force was almost completely overwhelmed by Konoha.
The dying screams of Sunagakure ninja echoed through the forest.
About an hour later, the sounds of battle gradually subsided.
The fires started by the Explosive Tags also slowly died out.
Only charred ruins and enemy ninja corpses strewn across the ground remained on the battlefield.
Uchiha Inabi approached Gentō with a smile to deliver his report:
"The preliminary count is complete. We lost eight, with forty-seven wounded."
"Approximately seven hundred and thirty-one enemy troops were killed."
Just as he finished speaking, a system notification sounded in Gentō's mind:
[Ding! Congratulations, host, on completing the mission! Reward: lottery draws ×1]
Gentō did not draw immediately. Instead, he ordered:
"Everyone, return to the Land of Fire at once and eliminate the Sunagakure advance force that slipped inside!"
The Konoha ninja moved swiftly, pursuing the small Sunagakure advance force they had deliberately allowed across the border earlier.
That vanguard of roughly a hundred men was now looting its second town.
With an overwhelming advantage in numbers and tactics, they soon wiped out the entire unit.
Even as they died, those ninja could not understand why the troops coming from behind were enemies rather than allies.
Afterward, Gentō ordered everyone to rest where they were and treat the wounded. He also distributed the Uchiha's specially made Soldier Pills to the entire force, two per person.
After two consecutive battles, the ninja's chakra reserves were nearly empty, and they were physically exhausted.
Upon receiving the Soldier Pills, most swallowed one without a second thought.
Then looks of surprise appeared on many of their faces.
The Soldier Pills supplied by the Uchiha not only tasted better, but also helped restore chakra!
The ninja from the other clans immediately erupted in excitement.
The Uchiha actually had something this good?
Yet no matter how they probed for information, every Uchiha kept their lips tightly sealed.
Left with no other choice, they carefully put away their remaining pill for a critical moment.
While the main force rested, Gentō walked off alone and settled his mind to make his draw.
He sank his consciousness into his mind:
Draw!
Before you continue