In the pitch-black night.
A foul wind swept past, playing an eerie howl across the wasteland.
Squelch!
Blood splattered, its thick, metallic stench spreading far as the wind swept it away.
"Urgh..."
A ninja hidden behind a boulder clutched his neck tightly with both hands in agony, struggling to make a sound, but blood kept seeping from his pierced throat.
Blood flowed into his windpipe, choking off the words he had yet to speak.
Thud!
With a dull thud, the ninja fell to the ground, the last of his life slipping away.
"That's the sixth!"
"Ha, I must be the fastest."
Hozuki Suigetsu silently emerged from a puddle, opening his mouth smugly to reveal two rows of sharp teeth.
After glancing at the fallen member of the Allied Shinobi Forces, Hozuki Suigetsu sank back into the water and vanished.
A little later, White Zetsu emerged from the ground beside the dead ninja and swiftly took the body away for disposal.
Calm returned to the wasteland, with only the howling of the fierce wind continuing unabated.
No one knew that an assassination had taken place here not long before!
And Hozuki Suigetsu's words made one thing clear: this was not the only assassination!
Indeed, at that moment, under Obito's orders, the Akatsuki had begun clearing out the Allied Shinobi Forces stationed around the Mountain Graveyard.
More precisely, the Allied Shinobi Forces' Intelligence Unit!
The ninjas belonging to this unit were responsible for monitoring and investigating the movements of the Akatsuki, Obito, and the others around the clock.
At the slightest unusual movement, they would relay intelligence to the Allied Shinobi Forces headquarters.
Having already resolved to start the war, Obito naturally did not want the Allied Shinobi Forces to notice his operation as soon as it began.
So before taking action,