Within a valley formed by masses of rock, the ninja on both sides fought like mad. Blood ran in rivers across the battlefield, and smoke filled the air.
Boom, boom, boom...
Countless rocks shattered, gouging deep holes as wide as the mouth of a bowl in the ground.
The ninja of Iwagakure used the terrain to hold a firm advantage. The Konoha ninja mounted repeated charges to break their formation, but none succeeded.
Kitsuchi watched as, after his demolition squad took the field, the Iwa Shinobi won victory after victory and were on the verge of surrounding the Konoha ninja.
Both sides had already deployed their top ninja, and casualties from fierce taijutsu clashes and exchanges of ninjutsu were rising rapidly.
Blood spread across the battlefield. Neither Konoha nor Iwagakure had any intention of retreating. Everyone shared the same thought without exception: drive the enemy back!
"It's about time."
Jiraiya frowned as he watched the battle unfold. Konoha could no longer withstand the Iwa Shinobi's offensive and had begun slowly falling back.
"The situation changed in an instant once the Iwa Shinobi's Explosion Corps joined the battle. Their offensive is a little too fierce."
The Explosion Corps was a special unit unique to Iwagakure. Its members either used explosive clay to perform devastating explosive ninjutsu or possessed the special Explosion Release kekkei genkai.
Almost every member of the demolition unit possessed formidable strength.
Every move they made had an explosive effect, with enough power to easily blast ordinary ninja to pieces.
That was why the Konoha ninja began retreating once these people joined the battlefield. Their offensive was too powerful for ordinary fighters to withstand.
Fortunately, quite a few Konoha ninja excelled at Lightning Release. They relied on the elemental advantage of lightning over earth to counter the ninjutsu that