Boom… Boom…
Multiple explosions spreads across the surface of the giant barrier.
Clang… clang…
Akida lands several blows on the barrier, but there isn't even a scratch on its surface.
Swish… swish…
Makoto makes a series of hand signs and inhales.
"Fire Release: Great Fire Dragon jutsu,"
He expels a giant fire dragon to attack the barrier.
BOOM…
The massive fire dragon coils around the large crystal barrier and explodes on-the-spot Akida attacked previously. A massive pillar of fire rises on the impact, sending a burst of heat in all directions.
The rest of the Uchiha clan members shield themselves behind an earth wall.
After a few seconds, the heat and explosion settle down to reveal the sturdy barrier.
"Not even a scratch!" Ekizo frowns.
"Since fire releases don't work, then what about the lightning release?"
Ekizo takes out a special kunai from his holster.
WHAM…
He infuses lightning chakra into the kunai and it vibrates at a high frequency, creating a long lighting blade. The blade is a special artifact made of a special chakra-conducting metal that increases the power and force of infused chakra to land a precise blow.
Swish…
Ekizo's body turns into a blur, and he arrives in front of the giant crystal dome.
Clang…
A burst of lightning arcs followed by a loud metallic noise echoes in the surroundings.
Blood seeps from Ekizo's palm as the hilt of the blade splits the skin between his thumb and index finger.
Ekizo falls back in pain. His arms tremble due to recoil. He shakes his head in dismissal.
"It's useless to mindlessly attack this barrier without enough force." Akihiro, another member of the team, shakes his head and stops the group from attacking the barrier further.
"This barrier has similar structure to a diamond. And it is further reinforced by chakra. So it's impervious to heat or piercing strikes. The only method to break this crystal is to use enough blunt force to shatter it in a single blow. That being said…"
Akihiro glances at the members of his party and shakes his head.
"None of us possess such a powerful attack. But if it's Madara-sama, then he might have a way." He mutters.
"Damn it!" Akida punches the barrier one last time and retreats.
"What should we do next?" He calms down but still grits his teeth in frustration.
"Let's regroup with the branch family members. They might have a better understanding of the current situation."
Makoto takes charge of the situation in Madara's absence.
"Very well!" The rest nods and follows him.
Whoosh… whoosh…
They flicker toward the other side of the barrier and notice several groups of Earth shinobis surrounding and attacking the members of the Uchiha clan.
The members of the Uchiha clan branch family are resisting the attacks of the enemy and are heavily outnumbered. Tatsuzo is leading them to battle the enemies, but their group is trapped in an encirclement.
"Fire Style: Flame Bomb Jutsu,"
"Lightning Style: Thundershock needles,"
Akida and Ekizo launch a barrage of attacks on the encirclement of earth shinobis. The sudden bombardment of such powerful attacks forces the enemy to disperse.
The branch family group uses this opportunity to break through the encirclement.
Whoosh… Whoosh…
Makoto and others also arrive on the spot as reinforcement.
Swish… whoosh…
Makoto dodges the strike of an earth shinobi.
Shiing…
He casts a genjutsu on the attacker and slashes his neck with his blade.
Swish…
Makoto swings his sword to wipe off the blade and marches through the group of shinobis to arrive beside Tatsuzo.
"Makoto-san, I am very grateful for your aid."
Tatsuzo has a miserable appearance as he heaves a sigh of relief.
"What's the current situation? Why is the earth shinobis suddenly attacking your group?" Makoto enquires.
Tatsuzo's expression turns grim, and he quickly explains the situation.
"The motive of these people is to capture Lady Kasumi. Somehow, her whereabouts were leaked to the enemy, and now she is being pursued by these people."
"Where is Lady Kasumi now?" Makoto asks with concern.
"Lady Kasumi… she… she is lured away by a group of enemies?" Tatsuzo clenches his fist and grits his teeth.
"Then we must hurry up and kill our way out of this situation. The enemy wants to stall us here. They might even have reinforcement on standby. We can't delay any longer." Makoto signals the rest of his teammates to go all out without holding back.
"I won't let them harm even a single hair on Lady Kasumi's body." Tatsuzo takes a chakra pill and clenches his fists.
Slash… Slash…
He aggressively attacks the enemies in front of him.
"That secret message from earlier makes sense now." Ekizo murmurs.
"The political whirlwind of this small village isn't simple. The involvement of Earth shinobis, a strange group with unknown Dojutsu, and the possibility of traitors." Akihiro murmurs.
"Don't overthink things for now. Focus on the matter at hand first!" Makoto remarks and fights with the enemies.
"Understood!" Ekizo nods and infuses lightning in his blade.
The group quickly dispatches the group of earth shinobis in front of them with the additional firepower of the Konoha reinforcement.
"Where is Madara-sama?"
Tatsuzo flickers beside them and warily glances at the massive crystal dome.
"This crystal dome… I am afraid… it's not easy to break through it!" He remarks.
Before the attack of the earth shinobis, their group also attempted to break through the crystal dome but failed.
"Madara-sama is trapped inside!" Makoto speaks and turns to Tatsuzo.
"Then that means…"
"Yes!" Makoto nods.
The majority of the enemies are inside this barrier.
"When will the reinforcement from the branch family arrive?" Akida asks Tatsuzo.
Earlier, Tatsuzo sent a message to the branch family headquarters to inform them of Madara's arrival.
"From my estimate, they should already be here by now. But…" Tatsuzo's expression turned grim, and he dared not speak any further.
"Hmm… my hunch seems to be correct. Perhaps the reinforcement was anticipated by the group of those strange enemies." Makoto murmurs.
"That's… that's not good! If that's the case, then we…"
"There is no use overthinking! Let's rescue Lady Kasumi first." Makoto shakes his head.
After killing the final enemy, the group swiftly rushes out of the village towards Kasumi's direction.
The group's speculation is indeed correct. Currently, the reinforcement from the headquarters is also fighting a battle against the group of attackers in black.
While on their way to the small village, they were ambushed by a group of people who were secretly waiting for them. As a result, the group suffered some losses, leading them to fall into a disadvantageous situation.
Currently, the Uchiha branch family is in a grim situation with a three-pronged attack from the enemies: the ambush of the reinforcement, the trap laid for Madara, and the attempted assassination of Kasumi. The enemy seems to be fully prepared with their entire force on all battlefronts.
Initially, they planned to assassinate Kasumi, while holding the reinforcement back. But Madara's sudden appearance led to a change of plan.
Now, Madara has become the primary target of their assassination. If they can assassinate Madara, it will deal a severe blow to the Uchiha clan, greatly weakening their influence and power.
Because of this, the threat to Kasumi's life is lowered by a lot. The further split of the assassination group into two groups decreased it even further.
Currently, in a small valley outside the village; Kasumi is being hunted down by a group of earth shinobis. Even the group of traitors from the Uchiha shinobis are chasing after her.
Kasumi wipes some blood from the corner of her mouth and turns to the traitor Uchiha group.
"To think that all of you will betray the clan after how much my father sacrificed for you people! You are a group of vermins."
"Give up, Lady Kasumi! It's for your own benefit. We don't want to kill you. We just want to capture you!" The leader of the traitor group remarks with a blank expression.
"Hmph… Do you think I am a fool? You want to use me as a hostage to threaten my father? To think you will betray your own clan and ally with enemies?!" Kasumi scoffs.
She turns around and swings her blade to intercept a sneak attack.
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