Chapter 50

Almost simultaneously, a slender blade silently sliced through the spot he had just occupied.

"Humph!"

Kurosuki Raiga snorted coldly, pivoted on his feet, and violently tugged at the air with his fingers.

"Rip—"

Saitama lost his footing beneath him, but he had been prepared. Lightning covered his body as he used the blade in his hand to block Jūzō Biwa's strike, then viciously kicked out at the same time!

Bang!

Saitama was unbelievably fast. Jūzō Biwa had no time to react before his abdomen took a heavy blow.

"Cough!"

His limbs splayed as he was sent flying backward, blood spraying wildly from his mouth.

That kick had not only allowed Saitama to evade Kurosuki Raiga's wire, but had also severely wounded Jūzō Biwa.

"Whoosh!"

The instant he landed, Saitama kicked off the ground again. The earth sank slightly as his figure vanished from Kurosuki Raiga's sight in an instant.

"Damn it!"

The moment his attack missed, Kurosuki Raiga sensed that something was wrong. He hurriedly leaped backward to open the distance, but Saitama still caught up with him.

"Whoosh!"

The ninja blade thrust out without hesitation. Saitama's gaze was icy as he aimed straight for his enemy's heart.

Lightning coiled around him, and the tomoe in his Sharingan spun rapidly, sealing off every possible avenue of escape.

"Pfft!"

The blade pierced through his left chest. Kurosuki Raiga's eyes widened, terror frozen on his face.

"Splurt!"

Blood splashed across Saitama's shoulder. Expressionless, he activated his Lightning Release. Violent currents instantly cauterized the wound and evaporated the blood.

"Urgh..."

Kurosuki Raiga's pupils slowly lost focus. Until his death, he could not believe that he had been killed so easily.

"Bastard!"

Jūzō Biwa, who had just steadied himself, witnessed the scene and cursed with a livid expression.

"Whoosh!"

Drawing his sword like lightning, Saitama sent the enemy ninja flying into the melee with a side kick.

The screech of metal scraping through the air rang out. Both sides instantly recognized that distinctive ninja blade, and shock flashed through their eyes.

The Hidden Mist forces retreated again, pulling back to a safe distance. Meanwhile, Konoha's morale soared, and they fought all the harder as though they had personally slain Kurosuki Raiga.

Boom!

A continuous ** swept forward in a straight line, and the indiscriminate shockwave tore every ninja in its path to pieces.

"Hm?" Lightning suddenly flashed around Saitama's body, and he vanished from where he stood in an instant.

Whoosh—

Munashi Jinpachi landed heavily beside Jūzō Biwa, drenched in blood yet burning with fighting spirit. The two stared at the Konoha jonin pursuing them. Their bedraggled figures only proved the fearsome reputation of the Explosive Blade ninja.

"Trash! You actually let a brat get you!"

"I warned you to watch out for that guy!"

The Executioner's Blade glinted coldly as Jūzō Biwa licked the blood from the corner of his mouth. "His Body Flicker Technique is impossible to defend against."

The battlefield situation was clear at a glance—Hidden Mist held the numerical advantage, yet in this area alone, they had been suppressed by Saitama single-handedly.

Five figures landed to Saitama's right. "Do you need support?"

"Go help the other fronts." The youth watched the two powerful enemies as Lightning Release scorched black marks into the ground.

Amid the crackling of electricity, the longsword slowly rose. From the corner of his eye, he saw Fuguki Suikazan being badly wounded by Chidori. Even with Samehada absorbing chakra, he was steadily being pushed back under the joint assault of the Uchiha and Aburame Clans.

Clang!

The Executioner's Blade rose from the ground with a scraping sound. Jūzō Biwa lowered his body and revealed a vicious grin. "Let's get serious, Munashi!"

"Do it! The two of us should be able to hold him off for a while. Mangetsu Hozuki and the others will be here soon. As long as we stall him, we have a chance!"

Munashi Jinpachi gripped the Explosive Blade tightly, his mustache twitching as he spoke.

"Whoosh!"

Saitama abruptly vanished.

Clang!

The Executioner's Blade blocked the surprise attack. Though Jūzō Biwa was slightly slower, his battle-hardened experience had allowed him to predict Saitama's blade path.

"Humph!" Jūzō Biwa's expression turned grave as he stared at those sinister tomoe eyes.

"Die!" Taking advantage of the two blades locking together, the Explosive Blade struck for Saitama's neck, with Munashi Jinpachi's killing move arriving right after.

"Whoosh!"

The blade cut through an afterimage. Saitama had already flashed behind Munashi Jinpachi.

Bang!

A whipping kick slammed heavily into his back. Munashi Jinpachi hastily gathered chakra to protect himself, but was still kicked into Jūzō Biwa. The lightning-wreathed ninja blade was already pursuing them!

"Get out of the way!" Jūzō Biwa swung his broken sword in a horizontal sweep. Half of the blade, wrapped in lightning, flew away. Saitama stepped over the shattered blade and pressed forward step by step.

Explosive Blade Ninja Art: Detonation! Munashi Jinpachi spun sharply, and a sky full of ** tags descended like dark clouds.

"Explode!" As the hand seal was completed, a sea of fire swallowed Saitama's afterimage.

A hundred meters away, a substitute log exploded into splinters. Saitama brushed the sparks from his sleeve—his fifteen-meter substitution range had ultimately failed to completely evade the blast.

"Heh!" Saitama sneered and burst forward, charging straight at the two enemies at the end of their rope.

Blade light flashed, and a figure wrapped in lightning leaped out from the smoke and dust. After fighting for so long, little chakra remained in his body. Fortunately, his opponents were in even worse condition.

"Damn it!" Munashi Jinpachi's hand gripping the sword trembled slightly, while Jūzō Biwa clenched his teeth until his gums bled. That earlier heavy kick had injured his internal organs, and the sustained fighting had drained him to the point of exhaustion.

Reinforcements suddenly charged out from the Hidden Mist formation. A ninja wielding an unusual weapon descended from above. Mangetsu Hozuki followed close behind, blood still seeping from beneath his bandages, but his eyes gleamed with the excitement of a beast.

Seeing this, Saitama immediately withdrew his momentum. Pursuing his enemies while injured against two newly arrived ninja blade wielders would not be wise.

Jinin Akebino bent his knees to absorb the impact when he landed. He first glanced at his bedraggled comrades, then fixed his eyes on the enemy ahead who was pulling back his attack.

"Bang!" Mangetsu Hozuki staggered as he landed, and his bandages loosened with the movement.

At that moment, a dazzling ** burst across the sky, forming a deep blue ripple pattern.

"A retreat order?" Mangetsu frowned. The battle had only just begun. Why was headquarters suddenly calling for withdrawal?

Dense whistling sounds came from Konoha's rear as a large number of fresh troops flooded onto the battlefield. Saitama caught sight of unfamiliar forehead protectors—these were clearly reinforcements from other fronts.

"Konoha's reinforcements have arrived." Mangetsu's gloomy gaze swept over Saitama. "Retreat."

Jinin Akebino shook his weapon, signaling his agreement.

"Full retreat!" Jirō Kitada's command echoed across the battlefield. The Hidden Mist ninja withdrew like a receding tide. Even though they had held the initiative, they did not linger to fight—when faced with being outnumbered, reason ultimately prevailed over fighting spirit.

With the sudden arrival of reinforcements, Konoha was able to match Hidden Mist in numbers, so naturally they would not easily allow the enemy to retreat. After a fierce battle, the Hidden Mist forces paid a considerable price but ultimately withdrew successfully. Because he was in poor condition, Saitama did not pursue the enemy ninja.

Corpses littered the battlefield. Severed limbs and blood stained the earth dark red, and even the soil had been soaked and congealed with blood. Saitama noticed Uchiha Rin standing on high ground, kunai in hand as he watched the Mist ninja depart.

"Rin?" Saitama called out.

"Saitama!" Uchiha Rin waved back.

During the post-battle cleanup, Konoha ninja carefully sealed their fallen comrades' ** into scrolls, preparing to transport them back to the village later. Most Hidden Mist ninja ** were carelessly discarded, with only the remains of important figures receiving simple treatment. As one of the Seven Ninja Swordsmen, Kurosuki Raiga's ** was specially preserved by Konoha—there had to be valuable intelligence hidden in the powerful man's brain.

"Fortunately, the reinforcements arrived in time. Otherwise, the losses would have been incalculable." Tsunade sat at the head of the conference room. Beside her were the reinforcement commander, Shikaku Nara, and the other two members of the Ino-Shika-Cho trio.

"It is only our duty to serve the village." Shikaku Nara replied steadily, his youthful face carrying an air of maturity.

The battle report showed that Konoha had lost forty-six chunin, seventy-nine genin, and seven jonin. "The enemy suffered severe losses as well. In particular, Uchiha Saitama killed Kurosuki Raiga of the Seven Ninja Swordsmen and seriously injured several powerful enemies. Overall, the results are acceptable." As Tsunade spoke, her approving gaze fell on Saitama, who sat beside Uchiha Tianming.

Under everyone's gaze, Saitama, whose expression had remained calm throughout, gave a slight nod in acknowledgment.

"Next, let Shikaku analyze the battle situation." Tsunade gestured.

The Nara Clan's wise man rose and walked toward the battle map on the wall.

"Saitama, your strength has improved so quickly!"

Uchiha Sen and Uchiha Rin sat side by side, and Rin's gaze never left Saitama.

"Even an expert like one of the Seven Ninja Swordsmen was defeated by you."

Rin continued, his tone full of admiration.

"Not bad." Saitama leaned back in his chair, the longsword at his waist tilted slightly.

"By the way, Rin, why did you return to the front line so soon?"

Saitama was somewhat puzzled. By convention, ninja who had just finished a battle could rest for at least several months, especially members of a prestigious clan like the Uchiha.

"Sigh!" Rin let out a sigh, looking slightly embarrassed.

Sen and Saitama sensed that something was off. Thinking something had happened, they hurriedly pressed him for an answer.

"It's actually nothing. My family has just been pressuring me to get married."

Rin confessed helplessly.

Although Uchiha Sen had only recently married, his wife had already been confirmed pregnant before he set out, and their child would be born in a few months. Rin, who was around the same age, naturally became the focus of the clan's attention.

Under the pressure, he could only choose to return to the battlefield.

After learning the **, Sen scratched his head, finding it both amusing and somewhat guilty. After all, his "exemplary behavior" had invisibly added pressure to Rin.

The group tacitly skipped over the subject and began chatting about other things instead. From Rin, Saitama learned that Konoha's main reinforcement force had not yet arrived, and the current vanguard numbered only a few hundred.

"Let's stop catching up. I still have a mission."

Sen stood, straightened his clothes, and strode outside. Rin followed close behind.

"Alright. Go get busy."

Although Saitama held a rather high position in the Uchiha Clan, he did not have many daily duties and was usually deployed only for important battles.

Outside the tent, the two waved goodbye to Saitama before leaving.

After confirming they had gone far away, Saitama let out a long breath. The earlier battle had not completely drained his chakra, but the mental exhaustion had yet to fade.

"Whew—" He fell backward onto the bed and slowly closed his eyes.

The situation on the front line had gradually stabilized. Konoha and Hidden Mist had fallen into a prolonged war, with neither side likely to determine a victor anytime soon.

The war at the northwestern border was pressing, with Konoha locked in fierce battle against Hidden Stone. Meanwhile, Cloud Village in the north was also stirring restlessly and could march south at any moment.

"The situation really is troublesome. Any other ninja village would probably have collapsed long ago. Only Konoha can withstand such a two-front assault."

Saitama's eyelids gradually grew heavy, and he soon fell asleep. He needed to rest and recover his strength.

"Captain!" Uchiha Huo waved vigorously at Saitama.

"Are you all ready?" Saitama approached and examined the brothers' neat attire.

"We can carry out the mission at any time." Uchiha Huo patted his chest in assurance.

"Let's go. Head to the rendezvous point." Saitama nodded, then walked toward the camp's ** area.

Three days had passed since the great battle, and the two sides had clashed several more times during that period. On Hidden Mist's side, all of the remaining Seven Ninja Swordsmen had now assembled.

Although the Longsword: Nuibari that had been seized earlier had been sealed by Konoha, it was still forcibly recalled by the enemy.

"Perfect timing." Hyuga Tate took the initiative to greet him. Although the two clans had long been at odds, he held great respect for Saitama's strength.

Saitama merely gave a slight nod. He was not deliberately being cold; it was simply his nature.

This taciturn ninja only opened his heart to a very small number of people. To others, he always appeared distant.

"We're all on the same side now. No need to be so reserved, right?" Hyuga Tate had long grown accustomed to his personality and teased him with a smile.

"Tell me the mission details. All I know is that we're going deep into the Land of Bears." Saitama rarely revealed a faint smile.

This operation had gathered elites from the Aburame, Hyuga, and Uchiha Clans. Aburame Shibi, Hyuga Tate, and Saitama would each serve as a team leader.

"We'll discuss it in detail once Shibi arrives. Lady Tsunade gave the orders too hastily before." Hyuga Tate's expression turned serious, the Byakugan in his eyes calm and steady.

Saitama's gaze swept over the two chunin behind him. He then closed his eyes to rest and waited quietly for Aburame Shibi's arrival.

Of the three captains, Aburame Shibi was the oldest. In certain respects, his strength was not even inferior to Saitama's.

**As the operation's overall commander, Shibi arrived at the rendezvous point right on time, followed by two Aburame Clan chunin.