Ambush

Dark clouds churned across the sky, blotting out the dazzling sunlight as gray shadows engulfed the area.

Dodai, his head full of white hair, stood atop Si Ming Mountain, gazing spiritedly at the Konoha ninja who were about to arrive below.

According to the intelligence gathered over the past few days, Konoha's forces had now split into three teams. Two of them were led by the Uchiha Clan and the Hyuga Clan respectively, while the remaining team had hidden itself too well for them to discover who was leading it.

And now, according to the sensory ninja's report, the ones lured here by their bait were precisely the Hyuga Clan, whom Kumogakure hated most.

Kumogakure specialized in Nintaijutsu, while Konoha's Hyuga Clan, with their Byakugan and Gentle Fist, were like their natural nemesis. Once they were entangled by them, it was difficult to find any chance of victory.

But since they dared to set an ambush here under the Hyuga Clan's watchful eyes, Kumogakure naturally had its own unique understanding of how to deal with them.

The Byakugan's range of observation had its limits. After so many years of war, Kumogakure had already figured out the enemy's viewing range—roughly one thousand meters.

This was no secret among the upper echelons of the ninja nations.

And Si Ming Mountain was more than high enough to render the Hyuga Clan's eyes useless. After days of luring the enemy, coupled with those Hyuga who relied on their Byakugan and feared no ambushes, Dodai felt he could already foresee what would happen next.

"What a pity the Uchiha Clan didn't take the bait. If both teams had been lured over, we'd have this war in the bag," Dodai muttered.

As the pounding footsteps drew closer, the first people to appear before them were their own ninja. To successfully lure the enemy, they had pushed their speed without regard for their lives.

One before and one behind, the Kumogakure ninja and Konoha ninja rushed into the canyon at an extremely close distance. The Kumogakure ninja atop the mountain unconsciously held their breaths, waiting for Dodai's command.

Once the last Konoha ninja entered the canyon, Dodai coldly said, "Release them."

At his command, countless massive boulders that had long been prepared came crashing down from both sides of the canyon.

Rumble!

The thunderous sound erupted from both sides. Hizashi Hyuga, whose eyes had been reddened by the prospect of battle merit, snapped awake the instant he heard it and sensed that something was wrong. Uchiha Fugaku's warning still rang in his ears.

"Retreat!"

Hizashi Hyuga roared for the team behind him to withdraw from the canyon. He truly had not expected the enemy to set an ambush while disregarding the lives of their own allies.

Without hesitation, the Konoha ninja swiftly began retreating from the canyon after hearing his order.

But unfortunately, although the canyon was wide, the number of Konoha ninja under his command was far from small. With such a dense mass of people trying to leave at once, withdrawing from the canyon was no easy matter.

Ahead of them, the Kumogakure ninja who had been fleeing with their backs turned suddenly spun around, their eyes bloodshot as they charged back without concern for their lives.

"You Konoha cowards, don't run if you've got guts!"

"Come fight! Weren't you having fun chasing us?"

"Haha! Killing one means no loss, killing two means profit!"

The Kumogakure ninja, who had just been scattering like rats in the street, suddenly turned into ravenous wolves and charged at the retreating Konoha ninja as if they did not care whether they lived or died. When they accepted this mission to lure the enemy, they had already cast life and death aside.

Blood and cries of agony rang out in the canyon first. Then the massive boulders rolling down from the mountaintops arrived as well.

"Things don't look good," Uchiha Fugaku said expressionlessly as he watched everything before him.

Though he had said he would not follow, Uchiha Fugaku had secretly led his team behind Hizashi Hyuga's group all along.

If nothing had gone wrong, he would not have minded rushing out to share some of Hizashi Hyuga's battle merit.

"Save them!"

Their relationship might not have been great, but Fugaku was not someone who failed to see the bigger picture. He coldly ordered the team behind him to support those inside the canyon and help them withdraw.

Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh—

Dark figures flashed from the forest behind him toward the canyon.

Though the terrain put them at a disadvantage, the Kumogakure ninja atop the mountain had yet to descend. With their numerical advantage, the Konoha ninja quickly rescued a small number of people from the canyon.

But with a deafening crash, a massive boulder directly sealed off the canyon entrance, leaving the Konoha ninja who had intended to withdraw trapped inside.

Even many of those waiting at the canyon entrance to receive them were crushed into pulp.

"Surrender, you Konoha scum. Our Raikage already gave you a chance, but you didn't cherish it. Instead, you kept pushing your luck. But now, I, Lord Dodai, will give you another chance." Dodai led a massive Kumogakure force down the mountain as he shouted toward those below, his voice full of smugness and contempt.

The Kumogakure ninja surrounding them from every direction burst into loud laughter, and the frustration of being hemmed in over the past few days dissipated with their laughs.

Rumble!

Like an army of thousands upon thousands of men and horses, the mighty Kumogakure ninja coated their feet in Chakra and charged directly down the steep mountainside.

Their eyes were all bloodshot. Led by Dodai, they stared at the Konoha ninja as though they were chunks of succulent meat.

Before, the Konoha ninja had regarded them as walking battle merit. But now things were different. These wounded and demoralized Konoha ninja were the battle merit in their eyes.

"What bullshit are losers spouting?"

A Hyuga ninja who had just been pulled out of the canyon by Fugaku's team and was on the verge of a mental breakdown suddenly broke away from the group and charged toward the Kumogakure ninja pouring down from above.

"Fugaku, why aren't you bringing your men to help?" Hizashi Hyuga looked grimly at that Hyuga clansman. He had not managed to stop him in time.

Just moments ago, inside that canyon, more than half his team had been buried.

While he spoke, the Hyuga clansman who had rushed out had already been killed by Kumogakure, triggering the Caged Bird and stripping him of his Byakugan.

One moment earlier, he had confidently ordered his team to pursue Kumogakure. The next, large amounts of sand and stone had poured down from the canyons on both sides and buried most of his force.

"That giant boulder is blocking the way. How do you plan to move it?" Fugaku asked Hizashi Hyuga coldly.

"Then we'll blast it apart!"

As the Kumogakure ninja on both sides of the canyon charged downward, Hizashi Hyuga stood before the boulder and struck it with his Gentle Fist. He looked utterly powerless, unable to leave even the slightest mark on it.

Listening to the screams coming from within the canyon on the other side of the boulder, Hizashi Hyuga would have been a fool not to understand what was happening.

But asking him to abandon his clansmen and the team inside was absolutely impossible!

Because if he left, even if he survived for the moment, he would be held accountable after the war for such enormous losses. He would have no chance of living on.

But if he stayed and fought, although their numbers had been reduced by the ambush and were now lower than Kumogakure's force above, they should still have a chance!

Clang! Clang! Clang—

The Kumogakure force above had drawn extremely close. Kunai rained down from the sky toward them, and Hizashi hurriedly ordered the remaining Hyuga clansmen around him to use Rotation and knock away most of the ninja tools.

"Uchiha Fugaku! Why aren't you helping yet?!"

Hizashi Hyuga's eyes were red as he glared at the Uchiha team some distance away.

"There are too many of them. I won't send my men to their deaths." Uchiha Fugaku glanced at the frantic Hizashi and replied.

Hizashi Hyuga's team had been split apart, and they had no idea how many people were still alive in the canyon on the other side.

The team led by that Root Ninja had not pursued Kumogakure with them either. Watching the Kumogakure ninja gradually encircle them, Uchiha Fugaku made his decision.

"Everyone, retreat with me."

Roaring at the indignant team behind him, Fugaku led everyone away.

With only the team Fugaku had brought, they were certainly inferior to Kumogakure in numbers. What was more, nearly half of Hizashi's team had been buried, and their morale had plummeted.

Rather than fight the high-spirited Kumogakure ninja above at a time like this, it was better to abandon Hizashi Hyuga's team, which had fallen into the encirclement, and preserve more lives.

"Uchiha Fugaku!"

Hizashi Hyuga and the others had heard Fugaku's order as well. Their bloodshot eyes widened as they stared fixedly at the retreating team.

The other man was also a leader, and Hizashi Hyuga had no way to stop his order to retreat.

With Fugaku taking the lead, not only did his own team withdraw, but many people from Hizashi Hyuga's team left with him as well. The only ones remaining on the battlefield were the Hyuga Clan ninja led by Hizashi Hyuga.

"Retreat!"

Seeing that Uchiha Fugaku had no intention of staying behind to fight Kumogakure with him, Hizashi Hyuga could only abandon those in the canyon and withdraw, no matter how unwilling he was.

But at that moment, dark figures descended from the sky like great birds, blocking Hizashi Hyuga's team.

"Don't bother with the other Konoha ninja."

Seeing them attempt to retreat, Dodai had taken several Kumogakure jonin and increased his speed, breaking away from the main force to reach the ground first.

He waved a hand to stop those who wanted to intercept Uchiha Fugaku's retreating group. "We don't outnumber them by much. This time, the objective is the Byakugan."

Charging straight down the steep mountainside while relying on Chakra adhesion was an extreme test of Chakra control, and this stretch was not easy to traverse.

But it was nothing to the Kumogakure jonin led by Dodai.

As they watched Hizashi lead his clansmen through the dense barrage of ninja tools, the Kumogakure ninja did not hesitate. Following Dodai's orders, they surrounded them and ignored Fugaku's retreating team.

Dodai wore a cruel smile. "What a pity. The Hyuga Clan's command of the Byakugan gets worse with every generation. Such a waste of such an excellent bloodline limit."

"Pu Song, take your men and capture them. Make sure to leave them alive."

"Yes."

The Kumogakure jonin named Pu Song nodded, then selected several comrades who were also jonin and charged toward the encircled Hizashi below.

Maniacal laughter and screams intertwined in the air.

Ambushed and then abandoned by their allies, the demoralized Hizashi Hyuga had no way to lead his people out of the encirclement.

More and more Kumogakure ninja descended from Si Ming Mountain, surrounding them at the center in a dense mass.

Hizashi was already soaked in blood. At this point, he was no longer fighting to escape.

Facing the endless stream of Kumogakure ninja, he knew he could not get away. All he could do now was kill as many as he could and use every last ounce of strength.

"Surrender! If you surrender, we'll spare your lives. Then everyone can serve Lord Raikage together. It will definitely be far better than staying in Konoha." Dodai raised a hand to stop the Kumogakure ninja and spoke helplessly as he watched the Hyuga Clan launch their desperate counterattack.

Though they wanted to capture the Hyuga alive, the Hyuga Clan, who possessed the Byakugan and excelled in taijutsu, were not easy to subdue.

Dodai also wanted to persuade Hizashi Hyuga to surrender if possible.

A trapped beast would still fight. The enemy's forces were already few, and minimizing losses was better.

"Pah!" Hizashi Hyuga spat out a mouthful of bloody saliva without hesitation, while the other Hyuga clansmen beside him clenched their fists.

The enemy's attacks had stopped, giving Hizashi Hyuga a brief chance to catch his breath. In a daze, he looked around and saw that there were not many comrades left.

His vision had long since blurred, but even if he died in battle, even if he had been abandoned, Hizashi Hyuga would never surrender.

With the Caged Bird curse mark, even if they wanted to surrender, they would have no chance. They might as well fight to the death and leave behind a good name for themselves.

"Seeking death!"

Cold light flashed in Dodai's eyes. He felt he had already given them plenty of chances, but since they refused to appreciate it, so be it.

His voice icy, Dodai looked at the few remaining Konoha ninja below. "Kill them. Preserve their corpses."

As Uchiha Fugaku hurriedly led his team through the forest toward the outskirts, he encountered Yume Ryoma, who had come rushing over after hearing the commotion.

"What happened?" Yume Ryoma frowned as he looked at the low-spirited team, an inexplicable sense of foreboding rising in his heart.

Uchiha Fugaku looked somewhat embarrassed when he saw Yume Ryoma. "We fell into Kumogakure's trap."

Earlier, he and Hizashi Hyuga had looked down on Yume Ryoma's status and disdained acting with him, so they often left Yume Ryoma behind.

But now, he had no choice but to reunite with him.

"A trap?"

Ryoma looked at the number of people behind Uchiha Fugaku and sternly asked, "Where is Hizashi Hyuga? Where is his team?"

Once he asked that, Fugaku became even less certain how to answer.

He could hardly say that they had abandoned Hizashi's team and run away themselves.

After his thoughts churned for a long while, Fugaku finally came up with a plausible explanation. "Hizashi Hyuga led his team deep into Si Ming Mountain in defiance of Lord Danzo's orders, and they fell into the enemy's trap."

"We were dragged down by Hizashi Hyuga and only fought our way out of Kumogakure's encirclement with great difficulty."

Fought their way out?

Ryoma looked over Fugaku's team. Though everyone appeared somewhat bedraggled, most of them did not even have blood on them.

Were they lying through their teeth?

To that brother preparing for the graduate entrance exam in the comments, good luck. Watch more of Zhang Xuefeng's videos when you have time. My job hunt is giving me a huge headache right now. qwq