Fire a Shot

"Konoha!"

Darui's eyes burned with fury as he clenched his fists. This time, he did not rush toward the explosions again. He knew that even if he arrived, he would not find any traces of the enemy.

Moreover, the explosions had come from the same direction he had rushed toward the first time.

The stifling frustration made him exceptionally enraged.

They could not even see the enemy, yet their own casualties kept rising.

"Send word for all patrols to return to camp immediately. Anyone below jonin level is not to wander around outside." Darui took a deep breath, suppressing the fire in his heart as he gave the order to the person beside him.

"Yes!"

The Cloud ninja answered, his figure turning into a black shadow as he vanished.

But not long after the Cloud ninja left, a relentless series of explosions erupted in every direction, accompanied by screams and furious roars.

They were doing it on purpose!

Darui realized it immediately.

Ambushes and assassinations between ninja would never give the enemy a chance to send out a message.

But Konoha's people were not merely killing. They were making such a huge commotion precisely so everyone here would know that every explosion meant another Cloud ninja had died.

Noticing the fear and worry beginning to show on the faces of the other Cloud ninja around him, Darui narrowed his eyes.

This could not continue!

He made his decision at once. With a wave of his hand, he roared at the baffled crowd, "Everyone, assemble! We attack Si Ming Mountain!"

The unceasing explosions had already thrown the entire force into a state of panic.

If this continued, their morale might collapse before the real battle even began.

"Lord Danzo, the Cloud ninja have begun assembling and are advancing on Si Ming Mountain!"

Ryoma flashed to Danzo's side and spoke respectfully.

He had come to respect Danzo more and more, not merely because of his status, but because of his abilities.

Watching the Cloud camp, where explosions continued to erupt, begin to gather its troops, Danzo nodded, his eyes calm and undisturbed.

With his current strength and mental attributes, he could clearly observe the Cloud ninja from a thousand meters away. He turned to Fugaku, who had been waiting nearby. "It is time for you to prepare."

"Their Jinchuriki is a golden-haired woman. The moment she uses the Tailed Beast's power, you must move to suppress her."

"We cannot let her affect our morale in any way. We must even use her to bolster our own momentum!"

"Yes."

Fugaku nodded and headed toward a mountain peak outside Si Ming Mountain, following Danzo's instructions.

Si Ming Mountain was the main strategic location. Only if they truly could not hold it would they retreat here. Their battles would all take place around the other peaks near Si Ming Mountain.

As for the Cloud force led by Darui, aside from their lowered morale from the earlier ambushes, their journey toward Si Ming Mountain was calm.

Yet that only made Darui even more irritated.

He had remained on high alert the entire way. If the enemy dared strike while their troops were assembled, he would immediately chase down the attacker.

Darui was very confident. His speed was definitely greater than that of those ambushers.

But unfortunately, the journey had been peaceful, and his vigilance had amounted to nothing.

"Still feeling unwilling to let it go?" Yugito came to Darui's side and asked.

"Once we reach Si Ming Mountain, I'll make those bastards understand that Cloud's Nintaijutsu is the fastest and strongest!" Darui said, clenching his fist.

"This should be far enough." Darui spoke, signaling Yugito to move toward the front of the formation.

"Then I'll help you win back some face first."

Yugito grinned. Ever since mastering Tailed Beast Transformation, she had never had the chance to properly unleash Two-Tails Matatabi's power. Now that she finally had the opportunity, she could hardly wait.

Darui frowned. Yugito was indeed strong, but having stayed in the village for so many years had made her somewhat overconfident.

Darui signaled the troops to halt.

"Prepare to launch the attack!"

Yugito smiled confidently, then leaped into the air and landed at the very front of the entire force.

"What's going on?" Samui came to Darui's side and asked. The troops had stopped, but she had received no explanation.

"Konoha surely never expected us to use the Tailed Beast's power right at the start of the war. But their force may have members of the Hyuga Clan." Darui explained.

"The Hyuga Clan possesses the Byakugan. Their reconnaissance ability ranks among the best in the ninja world. No matter how meticulous our plans are, they'll be exposed beneath those eyes."

"So I plan to fire a shot at those Konoha scum first." Darui said with a smile. One was the Raikage's guard, and the other was one of the Raikage's trusted subordinates, so they had a very good relationship.

Samui glanced at Yugito ahead of them and asked with a frown, "What about the prisoners?"

"Even if they risk their lives to retreat, I won't blame them. But surrender is not something Cloud ninja should do. If they are lucky enough to survive this shot, then I'll forgive their cowardice." Darui said mercilessly, his face cold.

War was no game. Dodai's force had already been greatly reduced after one battle. He could not sacrifice the greater cause for a minor concern.

After thinking for a moment, Samui did not object. She began directing the troops to prepare for battle.

Meanwhile, Danzo, who had been quietly observing the Cloud ninja's movements from afar, frowned. With his eyesight, he could clearly see the situation within their formation.

Just moments ago, the entire force had suddenly stopped, and a figure had moved from the rear of the formation to its very front.

Golden hair, a youthful face, yet beautiful and dignified.

With a single glance, Danzo recognized her identity.

Yugito, the Jinchuriki of Two-Tails Matatabi.

Just as Danzo wondered what Yugito intended to do, a layer of pale red Tailed Beast Cloak appeared over her body at the front of the formation.

This was bad!

Startled, Danzo could roughly guess Yugito's intentions. He immediately ordered Ryoma beside him, "Have everyone secretly withdraw from Si Ming Mountain and disperse among the surrounding peaks."

"Move quickly, but do not make too much noise. Avoid being discovered by them."

"Yes."

Though Ryoma was puzzled, he still followed Danzo's orders and directed the entire force to withdraw.

Sure enough, not long after Danzo gave the order, the Tailed Beast Cloak around Yugito had begun to condense into a tangible form. Within Danzo's sensing range, the amount of Chakra in her body also began to rise continuously.

A Tailed Beast Ball!

With such a long-range technique, combined with Yugito's identity, the only thing Danzo could think of was a Tailed Beast Ball.

If it truly was a Tailed Beast Ball, Danzo currently had no means of blocking it. Si Ming Mountain might be vast, but it could not withstand a direct hit from one.

However, while a Tailed Beast Ball was powerful, it took a long time to gather. Its power also depended on the length of time it was condensed and the amount of Chakra poured into it.

Now that he had learned of their method in advance, avoiding the Tailed Beast Ball ahead of time would not be difficult.