The kunai skimmed the edge of his mask and buried itself in the rock face a short distance behind him, sinking in all the way to the hilt!
Spiderweb cracks spread across the rock from the kunai!
The strength and speed of that throw far surpassed those of an ordinary jonin!
The very air in the valley seemed to explode with that throw!
Yahiko snapped his head around and stared at Nagato in shock.
Konan and the other Akatsuki members widened their eyes as well.
The Rain Ninja on the cliffs tightened their grips on their weapons in unison, their killing intent surging once more!
"Yahiko won't kill himself." Nagato's voice was quiet, yet it reached everyone's ears clearly, carrying an unprecedented, icy resolve. "And we won't surrender without a fight."
With that single action, he shattered Hanzō's carefully laid plan and declared to everyone that they would fight with their backs against the wall!
"You don't know what's good for you!" Hanzō snorted coldly, the last shred of his "patience" vanishing completely.
He wasted no more words and swept his hand forward!
"Kill!"
That brief command was like a key opening the gates of hell.
"Loose!"
On both sides of the cliffs, more than a hundred elite Amegakure ninja who had long been poised to strike launched their first wave of attacks simultaneously!
From their elevated positions, they barely needed to aim. Countless kunai, shuriken, and even specially made, poison-coated senbon rained down like a black storm, shrieking through the air toward the eight people protected by Rashomon below!
Clang, clang, clang! Thud, thud, thud!
The sounds of metal striking and weapons sinking into earth and stone instantly merged into a deafening clamor!
Kunai and shuriken battered Triple Rashomon like dense hail. Though they could not break through its