By the time the four reached the battlefield, the fighting had already reached a fever pitch.
The sight set their blood boiling, and Minato took the lead, ready to charge straight in.
Anyo caught him and shook his head, signaling for them to slip underground and approach the fighting. After traveling for a while, however, they were forced to stop. This time, Konoha was fighting Ninja from Iwagakure, whose Earth Release could be called the most destructive among the Five Great Nations. Their ninjutsu had completely altered the underground terrain. If the four forced their way through with Earth Release, they could very well be buried.
Seeing that they could no longer infiltrate from underground, Anyo leaped out of the earth and quickly found cover, then told the other three, "The battlefield is a mess right now. Both sides are lost in bloodlust. Rushing in blindly would mean certain death. Wait until I find our teacher and ask what's happening before we decide where to start."
With that, Anyo became a black shadow and entered the outskirts of the battlefield.
One glance was enough to reveal how chaotic the battlefield was. Ninja were everywhere, and each side had fielded roughly five hundred people in this battle. Just imagine how spectacular it was when over a thousand Ninja unleashed ninjutsu at once.
Almost every Ninja on the battlefield was moving. No one dared stay in the same place for three seconds. Corpses lay strewn across the ground, with severed limbs scattered everywhere.
Among them were some obvious Genin cannon fodder. Their faces were pale and their bodies trembled. Many stared blankly, utterly unresponsive, while others stood vomiting. These rookies were soon swallowed by the merciless flames of war.
Anyo immediately spotted White Fang. Eight burly men surrounded him, leaving no gaps. It was clear that all eight were highly proficient in ninjutsu and worked together with exceptional skill. Holding sealing Ninja Tools, they had deployed a sealing formation, and thick layers of rock covered their bodies. Though White Fang had them suppressed, he could not finish them off quickly.
Anyo was shocked by the sight. He knew very well how strong White Fang was. How had these eight nobodies managed to trap him? What was more, the enemy's Tsuchikage had yet to make a move.
While Anyo was thinking, the battlefield changed. The Iwagakure Ninja, who had held a commanding advantage, suddenly withdrew en masse as though they had received an order. Some even ran over to scoop up one or two gravely wounded comrades before retreating at full speed. Every so often, they looked back at the Konoha Ninja with disdain, their provocation plain to see.
By now, the Konoha Ninja were completely consumed by bloodlust, thinking only of slaughtering the enemies before them. Many had lost comrades in this battle. Though they did not know why the Iwagakure Ninja had suddenly withdrawn, the hatred in their hearts instinctively drove them to give chase.
"Don't pursue!" Even surrounded, White Fang still had enough attention to spare to grasp the situation on the battlefield. His first reaction was that it was a trap. He could hardly let a group of blood-crazed Ninja recklessly charge ahead like that, and he shouted his warning.
Unfortunately, the battlefield was utter chaos. The clash of weapons, the collisions of ninjutsu, and the Ninja's screams completely drowned out White Fang's voice. A few Ninja occasionally heard his warning and hesitated, but once they saw their teammates charging ahead, they continued forward with the tide.
At this critical moment, White Fang stopped holding back. The Short Sword in his hand shone with a soft, jade-like light as he held it at his waist. Bending slightly, he swept a cold gaze over the battlefield and barked, "Die!"
A lightning-swift streak cut through the boundless void. Severed limbs scattered blood and fell soundlessly. The formation that had trapped White Fang shattered beneath that single slash. The eight Ninja with their astonishing defenses could no longer withstand the blow and fell to the ground.
White Fang's Sword Force never stopped. He leaped into the air and brought it down again.
At that moment, White Fang's slash drew the attention of the entire battlefield. A deep fissure barred the Konoha Ninja's path, and everyone stared at this god of slaughter with nearly vacant eyes.
Only now did the Iwagakure Ninja finally understand why the Tsuchikage had ordered them to abandon their missions immediately if they encountered Konoha White Fang. He was even more powerful, even more terrifying, than the legends said.
"All Konoha Ninja, halt! Anyone who takes another step forward dies!" White Fang's icy voice rang out, instantly carrying across the entire battlefield.
Hearing White Fang's voice, the Konoha Ninja's heads cleared. Then they looked at the deep trench before them, their hearts trembling, and stopped involuntarily.
Watching from a distance, Anyo marveled at the power of White Fang's slash. It seemed White Fang was finally showing his true abilities. He had not been using his full strength earlier, probably saving it for the Tsuchikage, who might appear. But the situation no longer allowed him to hold anything back.
The first on Iwagakure's side to react were the men who had fought White Fang earlier. Under White Fang's full-powered strike, however, five of the original eight had died. Another was gravely wounded and had lost a leg, bringing his career as a Ninja to a definitive end.
One of the hot-tempered men immediately picked up the Ninja who had only one leg left and shouted, "Big brother, hang in there! Our comrades are all dead. They're counting on you to avenge them!"
After shouting, his eyes filled with boundless hatred. He stared at White Fang with an icy gaze and said, "Konoha White Fang, Iwagakure will fight your Konoha to the death."
White Fang glanced at him without answering. He shifted his Short Sword sideways, its Sword Aura pointing straight at the remaining three in provocation.
"Bastard."
The other two were about to charge when the man with the severed leg regained consciousness. Gripping them tightly, he said, "Don't act rashly. Don't forget the Tsuchikage's instructions. If you botch the mission, I won't forgive you even in death."
"Big brother..." Both men's eyes were red, and even these iron-hard men had tears welling in their eyes.
"Enough. Let's go." The two nodded together. Without further hesitation, they picked up their gravely wounded elder brother and prepared to leave.
"Hmph. Think you can leave?"
White Fang snorted coldly and lunged after them. These eight had coordinated seamlessly, acted decisively, and displayed practiced mastery of ninjutsu. White Fang had no reason to spare enemies like these.
Considering the possible trap ahead, White Fang decided to pursue alone. By himself, even if there was a trap, who in the world could stop him if he wanted to leave?
This was not arrogance, but confidence and pride forged through battle after battle, scene after scene of slaughter, and piles upon piles of bones.
Clang! Sword Aura swept in every direction as White Fang's sword light engulfed the remaining men. He intended to kill them all by himself through sheer force. Just then, an enormous roar interrupted his attack. What followed was a gigantic shadow shrouded in layers of mist. The trembling earth proved that this was no Genjutsu, but a monster with an enormous body.
No, there was more than one.
"Roar! Roar! Awooo..." Two different sound waves formed a solid wall of air that surged toward White Fang with overwhelming force. Two immense masses of inhuman chakra rapidly took shape, forming chakra spheres compressed to the utmost limit. They shot straight toward White Fang's line of pursuit, even catching the three fleeing Iwagakure Ninja within their range.
Anyo's pupils contracted sharply. Those were Tailed Beast Bombs—two of them.
Iwagakure actually had two Tailed Beasts, and both had locked on to him at once. White Fang was in danger.
Targeted by the Tailed Beast Bombs, White Fang remained unruffled. He drew his Short Sword back, its radiance flaring as it traced an elegant arc. His entire being merged completely with his blade, the heavens, and the earth. Standing between heaven and earth, he seemed to become everything within them. The Short Sword in his hand transformed into an enormous, tangible Sword Aura and hurtled toward the two oncoming Tailed Beast Bombs.
Anyo watched in shock. Taking on Tailed Beast Bombs with a sword? Heaven above, are you kidding me?
Boom! Boom! Boom!
The violent collision shook the entire earth. The ground, already riddled with damage, endured another powerful impact. What had been flat terrain was transformed by power beyond the limits of the human body, becoming a jumble of shattered walls and broken cliffs.
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