Battle

Guren looked down at the crystal ball in her hand and said, "Well done, but I didn't expect the pursuers to include the Copy Ninja Kakashi. Now that preparations are almost complete, it's time for my move." She Hand Seals, "Crystal Release: Jade Crystal Maze Technique," and the emerald crystal seeds planted in the ground burst through the surface, sprouting into shimmering crystal flowers. Then, a large expanse of red crystal pillars emerged from the crystal flowers. Surrounding the edges of all the crystal pillars, a crystal barrier with a diameter of one kilometer was formed, enveloping the entire forest.

Inside the forest, everyone was enveloped by a barrier, but no one knew that a fierce battle was still raging.

Kakashi and the others were initially at a disadvantage in the thick fog, but Kiba and Akamaru used Fang Over Fang to disperse the fog.

Seeing this, Kakashi Hand Seals and unleashed "Fire Style: Phoenix Flower Jutsu," spitting out over a dozen small fireballs towards the enemies. Bang, bang, bang! Countless trees snapped in two, forcing the enemies to retreat to avoid Kakashi's attack.

Seeing that Kakashi had turned the tide, Guren said in a deep voice, "He's so useless. It seems I have no choice but to take action myself."

Guren then formed another hand seal, "Crystal Release: Jade Crystal Mirror." Guren's hands were surrounded by crystal particles, forming a red crystal circle, which created a crystal mirror in front of her that was about the height of a person.

Looking at her reflection in the mirror, Guren smiled slightly and said with a touch of narcissism, "Hmm, I'm still as beautiful as ever." Then, she quickly Hand Seals, "Crystal Release: Jade Crystal Clone!" The mirror seemed to ripple like water, and Guren inside multiplied into six, stepping out of the mirror.

Inside the barrier, Kakashi pulled off his eyepatch and used his Three-Tomoe Sharingan to suppress Guren's seven subordinates single-handedly.

Suddenly, Kakashi felt a chill run down his spine, his expression hardened, and he looked back to see a female ninja standing on the tree trunk—it was Guren's clone.

Guren murmured, "Crystal Release: Jade Crystal Blade." Guren right hand was surrounded by shimmering crystal particles, forming a red crystal halo, from which appeared a blue crescent-shaped crystal blade.

With a casual wave of her hand, Guren sliced through a branch the size of a bowl in front of her as easily as cutting tofu, demonstrating the sharpness of the crystal knife.

Kakashi's expression hardened, and several Shuriken appeared in his hands, which he then shot out.

"Copy Ninja Kakashi, huh? I've wanted to challenge you for a long time." Guren's lips curled up as she swiftly swung her crystal sword with her right hand, deflecting the incoming Lava Shuriken.

"Kakashi-sensei, watch out!" Kiba and Hinata exclaimed simultaneously.

Kakashi felt a whooshing sound behind him, his hair stood on end, and he instinctively ducked. Then he kicked backward with his right foot, and with a bang, Uzumaki Hane kicked the attacker. Kakashi then used the momentum to turn around and looked behind him, only to see another Guren, wielding a crystal sword in her right hand, slashing down at him.

"Is this a clone?" Kakashi activated his Sharingan to its maximum extent, trying to see through Guren's Crystal Release technique.

Kakashi's laziness faded slightly, his right hand crackled with lightning, and then he unleashed "Chidori birds were chirping. While dodging Guren's attacks, he simultaneously thrust his right hand towards Guren.

Seeing this, Guren revealed a bloodthirsty and excited smile. She changed the direction of her knife and slashed directly at Kakashi's attacking right hand. Judging from her ruthlessness, she actually wanted to cut off Kakashi's right hand.

Kakashi allowed the crystal blade to pierce his chest, his right hand moving with undiminished speed, viciously piercing through the Guren. With a few sharp cracks, the Guren transformed into shimmering crystal particles, dissipating into the air.

At the same time, Kakashi also disappeared; it turned out that Kakashi at this moment was just a Shadow Clone.

"What?! Shadow Clone? When?" Another Guren clone on the tree trunk shouted, her right hand suddenly slashing behind her. Kakashi appeared behind Guren without anyone noticing. Seeing Guren's sharp crystal blade coming at him, Kakashi had no interest in taking the hit head-on. He simply dropped to the ground to dodge Guren's attack.

"Die, Copy Ninja Kakashi!" Guren's face revealed a bloodthirsty expression as her body plummeted to the ground, the blue crystal sword on her right arm gleaming coldly as she slashed down at Kakashi's head.

Using the force of the fall, he quickly approached Kakashi, and the crystal blade pierced straight through Kakashi's chest as easily as cutting tofu.

"Kakashi-sensei..." Hinata was nearby, was the first to notice the danger Kakashi in and exclaimed in alarm.

"You still have the mood to pay attention to others?" Nurari sneered, and his right hand slammed down on Hinata. Hinata didn't have time to react and could only barely put her hands in front of her chest. Bang! She was sent flying and crashed heavily into a tree trunk, scattering leaves all over the ground.

"Since that's how it is, then you might as well die." Taking advantage of his weakness, Nurari naturally wouldn't let go of the opportunity after Hinata was injured, and rushed towards Hinata.

"Fang Over Fang!" Kiba, sensing Hinata's danger, immediately unleashed Fang Over Fang along with Akamaru, charging towards her. Nurari saw two whirlwinds suddenly plummeting towards him, and the power emanating from them was too much for Nurari to handle head-on. He dodged and quickly retreated.

Boom! Kiba and Akamaru crashed into the ground, creating a large crater. After landing, Kiba looked at Hinata and asked with concern, "Hinata, are you alright?" Hinata wiped the blood from the corner of her mouth and said resolutely, "I'm fine."

On the other side, Guren pierced Kakashi's chest with her sword, and they both fell to the ground. However, strangely, no blood flowed from Kakashi's chest. After landing, he turned into smoke and disappeared.

"Another Shadow Clone?" Guren stood up, looking around, trying to find Kakashi's real body. "The mighty Copy Ninja Kakashi, doesn't he have the courage to fight me?"

Kakashi emerged from behind a tree, still holding the Icha Icha Paradise in his hand, and said, "Oh dear, aren't you also using a clone to fight me? Looks like I can't defeat you without using my real skills?" As he spoke, Kakashi put away the precious Icha Icha Paradise, and the laziness in his eyes disappeared. He hadn't been fighting Guren head-on; he had been using his Sharingan to observe Guren. He had not only discovered that Guren in front of him was just a clone, but also that they had been enveloped by a barrier without their knowledge.

Guren looked at Kakashi with an excited expression, as if she had found her prey. She murmured, "Crystal Release: Jade Crystal Blade," and her left hand was surrounded by shimmering crystal particles, forming a red crystal circle. Then, a blue crescent-shaped crystal blade appeared.

Guren brandished two crystal swords, sweeping them towards Kakashi. Judging from her stance, she clearly intended to cut Uzumaki Hane into pieces and wouldn't give up until she succeeded.