The battlefield resembled an overturned vat of dye, the black and red demon blood mixed with the blood of Konoha Ninja soaking the earth. The air was filled with the smell of burnt meat and an overwhelming stench of corpses. Might Duy knelt on the ground, his rough hands pressing hard on the wound on his thigh that had been torn open by demon claws. Blood beads that kept gushing from between his fingers hit his helmet with a dull thud.
"Brother Dai! There's someone who slipped through the net to the left rear!"
A young ninja's roar came from not far away. Might Duy up sharply and saw three blue-faced, fanged demon soldiers rushing towards a comrade with a broken leg bone. He gritted his teeth, drew the short sword from his back, and was about to rush over when he suddenly caught a glimpse of the barrier on the far left of the defensive line. It cracked like glass hit by a boulder, revealing Spiderweb- like patterns.
"Not good--"
Before he could finish shouting, four thick, impenetrable clouds of black mist burst through the barrier. Within the mist, jagged bone claws and scarlet vertical pupils could be vaguely seen. The leading demon king licked the remaining flesh from the corner of his mouth, his deep laughter shaking the ground. "You little insects of the Shinobi World, let me crush your hearts."
The defensive line collapsed instantly, and nearby ninjas fell in droves like wheat swept by a whirlwind. Dai watched helplessly as the black mist rushed straight towards the medical position a hundred meters away. Tsunade was squatting there bandaging Jiraiya, and Orochimaru had just cleaved a demon general in two with his sword, his back completely exposed to the attack.
Might Duy abruptly ripped off his Forehead Protector, revealing a gruesome scar on his forehead. He took a deep breath, feeling as if a fire was burning in his chest, and his companion's face, lying in a pool of blood, came into view.
" The Eight Gates Released Formation..."
His skin began to redden, and his veins bulged like earthworms. The first gate Gate of Opening, the second the Gate of Life, the third the Gate of Healing... until the Seventh Gate, the Gate of Wonder, opened, the steam was so hot that the surrounding air was distorted. The four-headed demon king had already broken through to the medical position. The Chakra ball that Tsunade fired was instantly corroded by the demonic energy. Jiraiya gritted his teeth and stuffed Military Rations Pill into his mouth. For the first time, fear appeared in Orochimaru's eyes.
" The Gate of Death... Open!!!"
boom--!
Crimson steam shot into the sky like a volcanic eruption, stirring the air currents of the entire battlefield. Even the ninjas who were fighting the Ghost General in the distance stopped and stared in astonishment. Might Duy's body became blurred in the steam. The ordinary Taijutsu ninja now looked like a war god bathed in blood and fire, and every step he took caused Spiderweb -like cracks to appear on the ground.
"What is this...?" The Ghost King at the front had just shown a puzzled expression when all that remained before his eyes was a blood-red shooting star.
" Night Guy!"
Dai's voice sounded like it was being squeezed out between his teeth. His right leg was enveloped in a blood mist, moving so fast Sky Splitter. When he kicked the ghost king in the chest, the space itself rippled. Crack—the crisp sound of bones shattering was drowned out by a deafening explosion. The ghost king, who had been so arrogant just moments before, exploded into a blood mist like a crushed tomato.
"Three more!" Without pausing, Dai twisted in the air, his crimson steam trailing long flames. The remaining three demon kings finally reacted, simultaneously releasing dense demonic energy in an attempt to block the red lightning.
But it was all in vain. The second kick shattered the barrier of ghostly energy and sent the ghost king's head flying. The third kick struck from the side, and the ghost king's body was instantly broken in two as if hit by a speeding train. The fourth kick, with the force of destruction, crushed the last ghost king along with the surrounding ground, leaving only a crater several meters deep in the scorched earth.
The four demon kings perished in the blink of an eye.
Dai fell to the ground, and the crimson steam quickly dissipated. He looked down at his hands; the skin was charred and peeling away, and excruciating pain shot through his knuckles. Then came the sound of bones shattering from within his body—his arms and torso—as if someone were smashing a basket of glass inside.
" Lord Tsubasa... your Taijutsu seem... quite impressive..."
He wanted to laugh, but only black blood spilled from the corner of his mouth. His legs had begun to turn to ashes, his arms had become transparent, and his consciousness was sinking like into cold seawater, constantly falling. Just when he thought he was about to completely dissipate, a gentle Chakra suddenly enveloped him, like a blanket in the cold winter.
"Don't die, Little Duy."
Dai struggled to open his eyes and saw a black-haired child wearing a red vest squatting in front of him, holding a pill that emitted a golden light. The child looked to be only about ten years old, with chubby cheeks, but his black eyes held a world-weary look that seemed to see through life and death.
"Is that... Lord Hokage?" Dai's voice was barely audible.
"Yes, it's me." The Third Hokage Tsubasa, Tenya, put a pill into his mouth and tapped his body a few times with his fingertips. His previously collapsing body stabilized. "Hold on, the war isn't over yet."
Just then, an exclamation came from the medical field. Tsubasa looked up and saw that three more demon kings had broken through Jiraiya's Fire Release: Toad Oil Flame Bullet, and one of them was about to grab Tsunade's back with its bone claws. He sighed, and in a flash, he appeared in front of Tsunade, raised his hand, grabbed the bone claw, and gently squeezed it.
Click--
The hard ghost bones shattered like biscuits. The ghost king stared at the child in disbelief, about to roar, when Tsubasa pressed his other hand down on its head. Pale blue flames suddenly ignited, instantly burning the entire ghost king to ashes.
" Tenki... has grown up again?" Tsunade, forgetting that she had just been bleeding.
"Stand back." Tsubasa's voice was still clear like a child's, but his movements were so fast they were dazzling. He spun around on the spot, flicking out several wind blades with both hands, precisely slicing open the throats of the other two ghost kings. The blue flames ignited again, burning the two corpses to ashes.
Jiraiya, leaning on his severed arm, stood up and looked at the small figure. Suddenly, his throat went dry. "This child... is...? How terrifying..."
"We just finished fighting the vampire Blood Ancestor of the Land of Hot Water, so we're a little late." Tsubasa clapped his hands, as if he were just brushing off some dust. "You three can leave now. Leave the rest to me."
As soon as he finished speaking, he suddenly looked up at the sky and quickly Hand Seals. In Setsuna, a golden sun rose in the center of the battlefield, and a three- Golden Crow engulfed in immortal flames burst out of the sun, its sharp cry making all the Oni Clan tremble.
"Go," Tsubasa commanded softly.
The Immortal Golden Crow spread its wings, and countless golden fiery feathers fell like a meteor shower. Every feather that touched the Oni Clan ignited into a raging fire. Ordinary ghost soldiers turned to ashes upon contact, and even powerful ghost generals, entangled in the flames, could only slowly melt away amidst painful roars.
"Is that... a summoning beast? It's so powerful and terrifying!"
"Not only that! Look at the sky!"
The Konoha Ninja looked up and saw Tsubasa's figure begin to blur. Countless identical black-haired children appeared on the battlefield. Some carried their wounded comrades to the medical positions, some threw out dense Shuriken Shadow Clone accurately pierced the eyes of countless demon soldiers, extinguishing the soul fire in their minds, and others simply grabbed weapons from the ground and cut down demon generals and demon Oni Clan like chopping vegetables.
Meanwhile, Tsubasa himself walked step by step into the depths of the battlefield. There, dozens of ghost generals and three ghost kings with even more terrifying auras were gathered. They were clearly enraged by the commotion just now and were exuding a suffocating pressure.
"You brat, you've successfully angered me." The demon king at the front was ten zhang tall and carried a spiked club made of human bones.
Tsubasa tilted his head and suddenly disappeared from his spot. The next second, he appeared behind the Ghost King, a staff wrapped in lightning patterns in his hand.
"Yeah?"
A clear, childlike voice rang out, accompanied by the deafening sound of bones shattering, as the ghost general's head flew off. Lightning patterns flashed on the staff, blasting the mangled body into charred remains.
The remaining powerful Oni Clan were completely stunned. They watched the black figure weaving through the crowd, watched their companions being easily killed like paper, and watched the Immortal Golden Crow unleash a firestorm in the ghost tide. Finally, they felt a fear that penetrated to their very bones.
A young Uchiha from Konoha, clutching his bleeding eye, stared at the golden sun in the sky and the countless child clones scattered across the ground, his voice trembling. "Is this... the power of a super strong person? Is this something a human can do?"
The Hyuga ninja beside him nodded, the veins in his Byakugan throbbing. "Not only that, look over there—"
Following the direction he pointed, countless young ninjas were being rescued by children and then launching a counterattack. The Uchiha Clan's Great Fireball burned through the demon soldiers' formation, the Hyuga Clan's Gentle Fist accurately struck the demon general's vitals, the Nara Clan used Kageko to bind the legs of a demon king, the Yamanaka Clan took the opportunity to invade the opponent's consciousness, and the Akimichi Clan ate Military Rations Pill, turning into Human Bullet Tank that smashed through the Oni Clan's defenses.
The insects of the Aburame Clan were frantically gnawing inside the bodies of the Oni Clan, Inuzuka Clan and their summoned beasts transformed into two black shadows, tearing at the throats of their enemies. Even a few civilian ninjas, wielding Kunai covered in runes, forcefully cleaved through the demon soldiers' defenses.
Might Duy lay on the ground, his body charred black like a lump of charcoal, yet he struggled to keep his eyes open and watch everything. He saw Little Tsubasa's clone carrying his wounded comrade as it swept overhead, saw the flames of the Golden Crow illuminating half the sky, and saw those ordinary ninjas like himself shining brightly amidst the blood and fire.
"Youth... it continues..."
He laughed, black blood mingling with tears sliding down his cheeks. Deeper into the battlefield, Tsubasa had already dealt with the second Ghost King, the lightning on his staff growing ever brighter. The last Ghost King, watching its fallen comrades, suddenly let out a roar of resentment and turned to flee.
Tsubasa didn't give chase, but simply raised his hand. The Golden Crow in the sky let out a cry and swooped down, its golden flames instantly engulfing the fleeing black shadow.
The battlefield gradually quieted down, leaving only the crackling of flames and the heavy breathing of the ninjas. Tsubasa withdrew his clone, and Golden Crow also returned to his side as a streak of light. He walked to Might Duy's side, squatted down, and touched the other's charred cheek.
"Is it over?" Might Duy asked weakly.
Tsubasa shook his head, his blue eyes gazing northwards, where the sky was slowly darkening, and an aura more terrifying than all the previous Oni Clan combined was about to burst forth from Hell.
"No," he said softly, "The real big one is coming, but this is my battle. Your mission is over."