Brother

Bang!

Accompanied by a puff of white smoke, hundreds of gleaming Kunai shot out of the scroll like a torrential downpour, hovering in mid-air.

"Kakashi-sensei, cover me!"

Tenten, her hands flew swiftly, like butterflies flitting among flowers. She precisely affixed ten Explosive Tag covered in red runes to ten specially made heavy Kunai.

"Understood." Kakashi didn't waste any words, his hands Hand Seals so fast they were barely visible. "Lightning Release: Lightning Beast Tracking Fang!"

Two blue wolves, formed from solid lightning, roared and charged out, transforming into two bolts of lightning that precisely bit the forelimbs of the two giant dogs at the front, instantly pinning them to the spot with a powerful paralyzing effect.

Might Guy laughed loudly, "Then I'll take the remaining two!"

He leaped up again, delivering a powerful "Leaf Crumbling Rock Rise," which sent the other two giant dogs that were trying to pounce on him sprawling on their backs, completely exposing their weak points in the abdomen and back.

"Now! Seal the Kunai, go!"

Tenten, he would push forward with both hands.

Ten heavy Kunai, each bearing a special sealing talisman, transformed into ten black lightning bolts, piercing through the rain and precisely striking the weak points of the four giant dogs and the Yatagarasu in the sky.

"Snap!"

The moment the Kunai pierced the Black Rod, Karin's pre-drawn "Uzumaki Miniature Sealing Array" was instantly activated.

A crimson Chakra web, like a spiderweb, spread along the Black Rod, forcefully and brutally severing Pain's Chakra transmission lines.

"Waaah..."

The four arrogant giant dogs let out an extremely pitiful wail, and their massive bodies collapsed in a cloud of white smoke, vanishing into nothingness.

The Yatagarasu, suspended in mid-air, plummeted into the ruins like a kite with a broken string and vanished without a trace.

With the crisis averted, the Anbu and civilians at the North Gate finally breathed a sigh of relief.

Rock Lee excitedly pumped his fist in the puddle. "Well done! Tenten! Hinata! Your teamwork was perfect!"

Tenten dusted off his hands, raised his chin slightly, and said with a hint of arrogance, "That's right, don't you know whose family gave you these sealing talismans? They're Young Master's stuff, specially designed to subdue any dissent."

On the Clock Tower, Hinata was not as relaxed as Tenten. Her Byakugan remained open, her eyes fixed on the lone Animal Path standing amidst the ruins below.

Even with his summoned beast broken and his trump card exposed, the Animal Path's cold face remained completely devoid of emotion.

The girl slowly raised her head, her calm purple Rinnegan through the rain and locking onto Hinata on the Clock Tower.

"You saw through the flow of Chakra? The Hyuga Clan's Byakugan... it's certainly a problem."

The Animal Path's lips moved slightly, its voice hollow like a machine.

"Eliminate the source of interference first."

Before the words were finished, the figure of the Animal Path vanished from the spot with a "whoosh."

"Not good!" Kakashi's expression changed drastically as his Sharingan caught an incredibly fast afterimage. "Hinata is her target! Stop her!"

"Chidori!"

Kakashi turned and lunged at the Clock Tower, but the distance was too great, and he couldn't make it in time.

Might Guy had just unleashed a series of powerful attacks and was in a state of temporary muscle stiffness. He could only watch helplessly as the Animal Path, stepping on the ruins and broken walls, rose madly towards the top of the Clock Tower in a straight line that completely defied the laws of physics.

Hinata! Get out of the way!

Tenten reacted extremely quickly, screaming as she drew two short swords and stood in front of Hinata without hesitation.

"Bang!"

The Animal Path didn't even use Hand Seals to perform Ninjutsu; it simply waved one hand.

A jet-black metal rod slid out from her sleeve, whistling through the air, and struck Tenten's short sword at the point of intersection.

"When!"

The immense force, like a heavy truck crashing into him, shattered Tenten's hand. His twin swords flew from his grasp. Tenten groaned, crashing heavily onto the Clock Tower's tiles and sliding a considerable distance backward.

"Tenten!"

Hinata exclaimed in surprise, a hint of anger flashing in her eyes, and immediately adopted the starting stance of the Gentle Fist Hyuga Clan's Gentle Fist.

"Eight Trigrams Vacuum Palm!"

Chakra with a single Hinata strike, its sharp force heading straight for the Animal Path's face.

However, the Animal Path neither dodged nor avoided. Holding the Black Rod in her right hand, she sliced the empty palm of Chakra in half as easily as cutting tofu.

"Too slow."

The Animal Path instantly closed in, its icy Rinnegan meeting Hinata's Byakugan, which radiated pure Byakugan.

The black metal rod, carrying a deadly aura, pierced directly towards Hinata's pale throat.

The distance is too close, and the angle is too sharp.

At that moment, the sound of the surrounding rain seemed to stretch out infinitely. Hinata's pupils contracted sharply, her brain frantically issuing warnings, but her body could no longer keep up with the inhuman speed of her opponent.

"Laugh--"

A faint whooshing sound echoed from the top of the Clock Tower.

The tip of the Black Rod was only half an inch away from Hinata's neck!

"Laugh--"

The cold wind abruptly tore through the rain curtain.

The Black Rod was only half an inch away from Hinata's pale throat.

It was too fast. So fast that the brain didn't even have time to issue the command to dodge, so fast that the raindrops falling around us seemed to freeze in mid-air.

There's no escaping it.

But Hinata had no intention of escaping at all.

There was no fear in the girl's eyes, only a stubbornness as firm as a rock. Fifty meters behind her was Hidden Leaf Third Medical Transfer Station, where hundreds of seriously wounded people and civilians who couldn't even stand up lay.

If she simply stepped back, the Black Rod, exuding an aura of death, would pierce right through the defenses behind her, like a string of candied hawthorns.

"Naruto-kun said that my life belongs to him, and also to Hidden Leaf. I absolutely cannot give it up here!"

The girl bit her lower lip tightly, her arms moving forward instead of retreating, forcefully crossing in front of her. The Pure Yang Chakra, imbued with a golden aura and personally infused by Naruto, surged wildly through her body, rushing into her palms along her blocked meridians.

Just as she was preparing to take the blow head-on.

"When--!"

A deafening clang of metal clashing resounded atop the Clock Tower, sparks flying everywhere.

A rapidly spinning blue Chakra barrier suddenly rose before Hinata's eyes. The violent centrifugal force was like a meat grinder at full power, instantly crushing the raindrops into sharp water blades that slammed into the tips of the Black Rod.

The enormous reaction force was transmitted along the Black Rod.

The petite body of the Animal Path suddenly jolted, its feet sliding backward uncontrollably. Its hard leather boots carved two deep furrows into the hard blue tiles, and it was not until it had retreated seven or eight meters away that it finally regained its footing.

The blue whirlwind came to an abrupt halt.

A tall figure landed steadily in front of Hinata, completely shielding her behind him.

His long hair, soaked by the torrential rain, clung tightly to his back. Neji shook his right hand, which was numb from the shock, and turned his head to reveal a profile that remained as cold and hard as ever.

The "Caged Bird" Cursed Seal on his forehead, which once resembled a venomous snake and symbolized humiliation and enslavement, had long since vanished without a trace. In its place was a clean expanse of skin.

"Neji -nii..." Hinata's eyes widened, and she even paused for a moment.

"Don't misunderstand." Neji's voice was flat, but his eyes revealed an undisguised arrogance and sharpness. "That madman named Naruto Uzumaki smashed the old man's rules in front of the entire clan. If I can't even protect you today, that madman will probably tear down the Hyuga Clan's gates tomorrow."

He paused, a hint of awkwardness in his voice. "I just... don't want Hyuga Clan to lose face again."

Hinata paused slightly, her tense shoulders suddenly relaxing. A gentle smile curved her lips as she softly replied, "Yes, I understand."

This was the Neji had stood before her without resentment or restraint, completely upright and honest.

Ten steps away.

The Animal Path slowly straightened its body. Its unfocused purple Rinnegan stared intently at the two people opposite it, its expressionless face revealing no emotion, as if the interruption of its fatal attack was a trivial matter.

Without uttering a word, she quickly crossed her hands in front of her chest, then suddenly squatted down and slammed one palm heavily onto the broken tiles.