On the 23rd of October in the 27th year of the Konoha calendar, the sun in the western part of the Land of Wind was like a branding iron heated red-hot by a blacksmith, nailed firmly to the cloudless sky. Yellow sand churned in the heat, and even the wind carried a scorching temperature, whipping up sand and gravel that struck the armor, making a crackling sound, like some kind of ominous omens.
Suddenly, a cloud of dust rose on the horizon, followed by the fluttering of 100,000 banners in the wind. The dark iron armor reflected the blinding sunlight, like a rising black sea sweeping over the endless sand dunes. Tian Zhiyun stood on the highest point at the forefront, the gold patterns embroidered on her silver armor flowing in the sunlight. Her cloak billowed in the hot wind, and her gaze swept over the silent army below, her eyes holding a light colder than the yellow sand.
"Raise your hand!" the adjutant beside him commanded in a deep voice.
The moment Tian Zhiyun raised her hand, the 100,000- Shizune army seemed to be muted. The faint sounds of armor rubbing and horses' hooves pounding on the sand suddenly disappeared, leaving only the sound of the wind howling among the dunes, carrying the aura of death.
"All generals, heed my command—" Her voice wasn't loud, but it was like a gust of wind carrying icy shards, piercing through the heatwave and striking everyone's ears, "The capital of the Land of Wind, the lair of those vampires, today it is time to annihilate their roots!"
"Yes, sir!"
The resounding response of 100,000 armored soldiers echoed across the desert, causing the sand beneath their feet to tremble slightly, and even startling the vultures circling in the distance, causing them to scatter and flee.
Meanwhile, thirty miles to the southeast, outside Sunagakure, another army of 100,000 was completely surrounding this once sacred ninja village. Tian Muyan stood on a makeshift platform, her fingertips lightly tracing the ice patterns on the hilt of her sword. Her gaze swept over the dilapidated Gold Dust Wall in the distance—once Sunagakure's proudest defense, now riddled with cracks, like the wrinkles on an old man's face.
" Sunagakure," her voice, clear and cold as ice, drifted into the village on the wind, "Surrender and you live, resist and you perish. I'll give you the last incense stick's worth of time to consider."
On the watchtower at the village entrance, several Sunagakure shrank back, their hands Kunai as they gripped their kunai. They didn't even dare to look up at the dark mass of soldiers.
On the same day, in the desert deep within the Land of Wind, thirty silver teams were moving silently. The three thousand disciples of the Moon God Cult were divided into thirty groups of one hundred each. Everyone was dressed in silver armor and had a silver moon flag on their back. The crescent moon pattern on the flag gleamed with an eerie red light in the sunlight, like a bleeding wound.
Bai Li, the leader of the third group, reined in the horses. Ahead, behind a sand dune, the outline of a city emerged. The walls of Red Sand City were built of reddish sandstone, resembling a congealed scab from a distance. She raised her hand to signal the group to stop and pulled a sheepskin map from her bosom to check. "This is it, Earl Pinghe's lair."
The hundred disciples gripped their sword hilts tightly at their waists, their silver armor gleaming coldly in the sandstorm. Bai Li spurred her horse forward first, a flash of cold light as her longsword was drawn. Using the momentum of the horse, she swung her sword at the bronze gate. With a loud crash, the two carved doors snapped in two, falling to the ground and raising a cloud of dust.
"By the Moon God Cult— " Bai Li's voice was clear, yet carried a chilling edge, "Exterminate all the nobles, to pay the price for the blood of the commoners!"
A hundred disciples filed in, their swords flashing like snowflakes in the mansion. The splattered blood droplets fell on the blue brick floor, resembling red plum blossoms blooming in the dead of winter. In the Earl's Earl of Yoshitaka Hiratsuru, the golden tiles reflected the sunlight, and the jade steps still bore traces of wine from last night's banquet. Fruits floated in the wine pool in the backyard, and laughter from women echoed from a distant side courtyard—all of this came to an abrupt halt the moment the sword light fell.
Three hundred and twenty-eight people, from white-haired elders to infants still in swaddling clothes, all bearing the surname Pinghe, were beheaded in the courtyard. Outside the mansion gates, commoners who had rushed to the scene prostrated themselves on the ground, watching the once arrogant nobles fall into pools of blood, and couldn't help but cry out, "Moon Goddess, have mercy! Moon Goddess, have mercy!"
As night fell, reports of victory from the thirty groups of disciples reached the central command tent like snowflakes.
"The nobles of Blue Rock City have all been executed; not a single one has escaped."
"The nobles of Quicksand City have all been executed, and their mansions have been burned down."
"Of the nine ducal mansions of the Land of Wind, seven have been burned down, and the remaining two are being cleared out."
Sunagakure, the air was thick with the stench of blood and gunpowder amidst the ruins. Chiyo, leaning on a cane, her white hair disheveled in the night wind, Ebizo coughed softly. The two of them, leading the last 30,000 ninja and millions of others, young and old, knelt on the ground. The Kazekage's body had been found by assassins from the Moon God Cult three days earlier and was perhaps now lying buried under some sand dune. The surviving puppeteers silently broke off all ten of their fingers, blood dripping from between their fingers onto the sand, a sign that they would never again wield puppet strings in battle.
Tian Muyan arrived bathed in moonlight, her silver combat boots leaving not a speck of dust on the sand. She stopped before Chiyo, looking down at the once-powerful female ninja, her voice devoid of warmth. " The Sunagakure was once one of the Five Great Nations, dominating the Shinobi World. Now, fallen to such a state, are you willing to be its slave?"
Chiyo pressed her forehead against the scorching sand, her voice hoarse. " Sunagakure surrenders. We only beg the shogun to have mercy and spare the lives of all the old and young."
Ebizo, trembling, added, "We are willing to offer up all the secret ninja techniques of Sunagakure, from Puppet Technique to poison techniques, all of them, just to beg for the Heavenly General's mercy!"
Tian Muyan raised her hand in a gesture, and the 100,000 soldiers behind her immediately shouted in unison, "Those who surrender will not be killed!"
The surviving Sunagakure could no longer hold back their tears, which mingled with the yellow sand and streamed down their faces. They held scrolls of secret techniques high above their heads, their arms trembling slightly with emotion. Not far away, mothers tightly covered their children's mouths and held them in their arms. The children stared with terrified eyes, not daring to utter a sound.
The capital of the Land of Wind was now a living hell. The once magnificent palaces, adorned with gold and jade, crackled and popped in the Kakkō. The thick red carpets that once carpeted the streets were now soaked in blood, turning a dark brown. Tian Zhiyun rode into the city, the gold patterns on her silver armor stained crimson with blood. She reined in her horse, looked at the nobles kneeling and begging for mercy along the street, and coldly ordered, "All those who wear crowns, jade ornaments, or brocade robes—behead them."
"General, spare our lives!" A fat marquis threw himself before his horse, clinging to its legs and crying, "We'd give up our entire fortune just to save our lives!"
Tian Zhiyun swung her sword and severed his throat, blood splattering onto the stone slab in front of the horse. Her voice was as cold as frost. "Your ancestors amassed their fortunes by sucking the blood of commoners, by waging wars to plunder land, and now you want to buy your life with money? Too late."
The disciples of the Moon God Cult cooperated with the army to search house to house. The libraries in the noble mansions were set on fire, and the rare paintings and calligraphy curled into ashes in the flames; priceless treasures were thrown into the fire, making crackling sounds; and screens embroidered with gold thread were chopped into firewood by the soldiers and thrown into the fire to fuel the flames.
At dawn the next day, less than one-tenth of the nobles in the capital of the Land of Wind were still alive. Their corpses were piled up outside the palace, and the stench of blood was so strong that it lingered for three days and three nights.
As the castle fell, the Daimyo of the Land of Wind, Nobuno Hiratsuru, led his personal guards in a desperate breakout. They carried the Land of Wind's secret treasure, the " Flute of the Wind God," and fled northwest, eventually escaping into the forbidden desert sanctuary, the " Wind God Temple."
The temple was dark and damp, and the murals on the walls were already mottled and unrecognizable. Only the stone statue of the ancient Fujin "Shuo" enshrined in the center still maintained its majestic posture. Nobuno Hiratsuru, with disheveled hair and bare feet, used his own blood to draw a formation in the center of the temple. The blood dripped from his fingertips onto the stone slab, drawing strange patterns.
"A blood sacrifice of three hundred people can break the seal on the Fujin," he muttered to himself, his eyes bloodshot.
The guards around him exchanged bewildered glances, their hands trembling as they gripped their swords, yet not one of them retreated. These were the loyal servants of the Hirakawa family, generation after generation, who had long since disregarded life and death.
The accompanying old Onmyoji knelt on the ground, tears streaming down his face. "Daimyo! You mustn't do this! This will surely invite divine retribution, and may even implicate the entire Land of Wind!"
Nobuno Hiratsuru slashed his palm with his knife, letting the blood drip into the center of the formation. His voice was hoarse yet filled with madness. "Divine retribution? Tian Zhiyun and Tian Muyan are the greatest divine retribution! Since the country is already destroyed, let the last sands of the Land of Wind bury their iron hooves!"
On October 25th, Tian Zhiyun and Tian Muyan joined forces outside Crane Feather City. The two armies merged into one, and the 200,000-strong army raised clouds of yellow sand, heading straight for the Wind God Temple in the northwest.
Tian Zhiyun reined in her horse, gazing at the faintly visible black mountain shadows to the northwest, her killing intent undiminished. "The cancer of the old era may have been removed, but its roots have not been completely eradicated."
Tian Muyan lightly stroked the hilt of her sword, a cold smile playing on her lips, "So what if it's the Wind God Temple? Let him come. The Moon God Cult's bow can't even pierce his little bit of wind?"
At the edge of the yellow sand, a ghostly blue light suddenly shone from the direction of the Wind God Temple. The light pierced through the clouds, tearing a rift in the sky. Nobuno Hiratsuru stood in the center of the altar, raising the Flute of the Wind God high. Three hundred guards simultaneously drew their short swords and slashed their own throats. Blood gushed out, flowing into streams that rushed towards the center of the formation. The sky suddenly darkened, and a howling wind whipped up the yellow sand, forming a colossal pillar connecting heaven and earth.
" The Land of Wind... will perish today." Nobuno Hiratsuru, watching the ever-thickening pillar of wind, "But the desert nobles will never admit defeat!"
He chanted an ancient incantation, and the outline of a giant god gradually emerged in the center of the wind pillar—blue skin, a face covered with sand and dust patterns, and eyes like swirling sandstorms. It was none other than the ancient god, Wind Fujin Shuo, who had destroyed three kingdoms three thousand years ago.
Tian Zhiyun tightened the reins, gazing at the towering pillar of wind, her tone calm yet resolute. "So this demon is your last trump card."
Tian Muyan held the Ice Divine Bow across her chest, an ice arrow condensing on the string. " Shiun, you lead the army to retreat first, I'll hold them off here."
Tian Zhiyun clenched her fist, flames instantly erupting from her gauntlets. "So what if it's an ancient god? I'm ready to fight it with all my might. The people of Konoha have never believed in these bullshit gods. Sister Muyan, you lead the army back, I'll go and deal with it."
She charged towards the pillar of wind, and the hundreds of thousands of soldiers behind her, watching their general charge alone against the demon god, felt no fear. Instead, they cheered in unison. This was the confidence of having an invincible commander; as long as she was alive, the flame of the Land of Fire ' spirit would never be extinguished.
The howling wind whipped sand and gravel against Tian Zhiyun's armor, creating a dense, whistling sound. Yet, she showed no sign of slowing down. Flames burned around her, like the rising sun in the desert, as she charged towards the azure pillar of wind. Within the pillar, " Fujin Shuo" unleashed a deafening roar, Uzumaki yellow sand around it, causing dunes to collapse and rocks to shatter in its wake. But Tian Zhiyun's figure grew clearer and clearer amidst the flames, showing no sign of retreat.
"Fire can scorch the wind." Her voice rang out in the gale, carrying a power that pierced through everything. "Today, I will let you, the ancient Fujin, taste the fire of the Konoha Dragon God!"
In the capital of the Land of Fire, thousands of miles away from the Desert Wind God Temple, the palace roof paved with glazed tiles reflects dazzling golden light, appearing from afar like a molten gold illusion floating in mid-air.
Tsubasa, who looked to be about six years old, leaned against the white jade railing. The crimson-gold flame patterns embroidered on his black brocade robe swayed gently with his movements. His collar was loosely open, revealing a section of his fair neck.
Queen Tian Flying Swallow sat beside him, her slender fingers holding silver chopsticks, carefully picking out the sweetest and softest fruit from the jade plate, gently offering it to his lips. "Eat slowly, the tangerines are especially sweet today."
Tianyi held the fruit in his Tsubasa, his brows and eyes still carrying a childlike languor, but the sharp glint that occasionally flashed in his eyes concealed a depth beyond his years. He chewed the fruit, his fingertips unconsciously tapping the railing, his gaze seemingly casually sweeping across the clear sky outside the palace walls.
Suddenly, he seemed to sense something, causing him to instantly stop chewing and look westward.
"Husband?" Tian Flying Swallow noticed his stiffness, and when she looked up, the smile was still frozen on her lips. "What's wrong?"
Tsubasa didn't respond; he had already left his seat like an arrow released from a bow. He lightly touched the railing with his toes, and his figure transformed into a crimson rainbow, shooting straight into the sky and standing steadily above the clouds. His previous lazy expression had long since faded, and his small face was tense.
Activating the Heavenly Eye and gazing westward, at the edge of the desert thousands of miles away, the once clear sky was being swallowed by surging dark clouds. These were no ordinary dark clouds; lightning snaked wildly within them, interspersed with dark purple thunderbolts, and jagged cracks spread across the cloud curtain, as if some monster sealed for eternity was breaking free of its seal beneath, causing even the air to tremble.
"This is..." Tsubasa's voice was extremely low, filled with disbelief and solemnity, his fingertips turning slightly white from the pressure, "The ancient gods and demons recorded in ancient books... they actually exist, and they have been awakened."
" Tsubasa!" Queen Tian Flying Swallow chased to the eaves and looked at the small figure in the sky, her heart pounding uncontrollably.
Tsubasa suddenly turned around, his once clear eyes now surging with a crimson-gold light, like two suppressed flames. The light clearly reflected Tian Flying Swallow's surprised face; his brows furrowed even more, and his voice became cold and hard. "Stay in the royal city, wait for me to return, and remember, don't follow me."
Tian Flying Swallow wanted to say something more, but Tsubasa's figure had already transformed into a streak of blazing white flame, tearing through the clouds like a red-hot sword. The gale whipped up the Mars from his hair, leaving long trails of flame across the sky, like a meteor falling into the wilderness, its target the Wind God Temple thousands of miles away.
Tian Flying Swallow stared at the point of light disappearing on the horizon, feeling only the lingering warmth of his fingertips in her palm, while her heart had already been hollowed out by the raging wind.