Gripping the handle of Ryūjin Jakka, his eyes now glowed with coldness. "No matter what happens, I have to try," he muttered.
His gaze swept across the enemy lines, evaluating each potential opponent. If death was the price to activate Ryūjin Jakka's Shikai.
Why not massacre them all?
Even if it meant eliminating all opponents. For him, there was no moral distinction between his adversaries; they were all simply obstacles in his path to power.
For him, there was no distinction between innocents and guilty on the battlefield; he only saw two types of people: himself and strangers.
The notion that there were no absolutely good people in the world, especially among ninjas—whose profession amounted to that of an assassin—reinforced his determination. He yearned to launch himself directly into combat, impatient with the apparent lack of brutality in the confrontation.
His eyes narrowed, observing the seemingly endless exchange of kunai and shuriken. The battle had been going on for half an hour, and the number of casualties on both sides had not yet reached three digits.
A feeling of impatience began to grow within him.
"Is this the cruelty of the battlefield?" he complained with boredom. "I think it's not as fun as playing house."
Tsunade, who had been observing Chen, replied: "This is just a test now. They're consuming the opponent's forces. The real fight, and the real cruelty of the battlefield, are yet to come."
The Third Kazekage, frustrated by the stalemate, raised his voice, "Let's not get stuck. Our ninjas outnumber those of Konoha. Let's finish them off!"
Hanzō nodded. "Alright, I have no objections. This stalemate doesn't benefit us."
"Then we'll attack directly this time. Let's defeat them once and for all." Ōnoki also expressed his agreement.
The Third Kazekage, taking command, shouted his orders: "Have the entire army prepare for another round of kunai! Let's not skimp on explosive tags. Place explosive tags on all kunai!"
Despite the high cost of explosive tags, which counted in thousands of Ryo, the leaders knew that war was a matter of resources, and this was no time to be stingy.
Sensing the imminent danger, Hiruzen reacted quickly. "They're coming with explosive tags! Be careful and use Earth Style to protect yourselves!" He was aware of the destructive power of explosive tags, especially in such quantity.
Chen, observing the situation, couldn't contain his disbelief. "The other side is really stupid," he muttered disdainfully. "The explosive tags are so obvious that I'm afraid someone might not see them. Are they serious?"
He couldn't understand how the enemy openly announced their strategy, practically shouting their intentions and giving Konoha time to prepare.
This lack of stealth and strategy was incomprehensible on a battlefield.
A rain of kunai, each equipped with an explosive tag, darkened the sky before falling upon Konoha's forces.
Taking advantage of the confusion, the Third Kazekage, the Third Tsuchikage Ōnoki, and Hanzō launched their attack, piercing through the smoke screen.
Hiruzen barely had time to react. With a movement, he summoned the Monkey King Enma, transforming him into his battle staff.
Without losing a second, he found himself engaged in a fierce combat against Hanzō and Ōnoki.
Not far away, Sakumo Hatake unsheathed his legendary White Light Chakra Sabre, its blade gleaming with chakra as he faced the Third Kazekage.
Tsunade, with her monstrous strength, launched herself against Chiyo of the Sand. Jiraiya, not yet at his best, found himself desperately fighting against Ebizō, Chiyo's brother.
Orochimaru, with his usual calm, faced the Tsuchikage's assistant.
The battle unfolded on multiple fronts, each combat a demonstration of Kage-level power and skill. However, Konoha's forces showed signs of fatigue. Jiraiya, in particular, seemed to be on the verge of defeat, his lack of experience compared to his future self evident in every move.
Hiruzen, at the center of the storm, fought valiantly against Hanzō and Ōnoki. He found himself pressed to the limit against two opponents of such caliber.
If facing one person, Hiruzen would easily resolve it. Hiruzen is still very strong now, and his Peak-Kage level strength is no joke.
However, it was very complicated to fight against two Peak-Kage level people.
In his mind, he cursed Danzo's absence, whose presence would have balanced the scales. Danzo's incapacitation at Chen's hands now revealed itself as a significant strategic blow.
Swish!
Observing the leaders' battle with a bloodthirsty smile, Chen fixed his gaze on the coalition forces of the three villages. Without resorting to special techniques, relying solely on his physical strength and sword skill, he launched himself towards the crowd.
The blade flashed under the sun, an arc of cold light that reaped the lives of five Genin in a single, fluid movement.
Chen became a blur of motion, traversing the battlefield like lightning. Each swing of his sword claimed one or more lives, leaving behind a trail of bodies and blood.
Fwoosh!
With each life he took, he felt a deeper connection with Ryūjin Jakka.
An intense heat emanated from the sword, intertwining with his own body. "This feeling... could it be that the Shikai is about to activate?" he thought, momentarily stunned by the sensation.
His moment of distraction was seized upon by a Chūnin from Iwagakure.
"Demon, die!" he shouted, lunging towards Chen with a kunai in hand. But Chen reacted, coming to his senses just in time.
Slash!
With an icy gaze, he decapitated the attacker in a single movement, thwarting the ambush before it could materialize.
"Stop him quickly!" The desperate cry of a Jōnin resounded. In a matter of minutes, Chen had ended over a hundred lives. His killing efficiency was terrifying, as if he were cutting grass instead of reaping human lives.
Despite his youthful face, no one dared to underestimate him anymore. On the battlefield, strength was everything, and age was irrelevant in the face of such a demonstration of power.
Six Jōnin, recognizing the threat Chen represented, launched themselves simultaneously against him. Their movements were coordinated, seeking to overwhelm the young man with attacks from multiple angles.
Each of them understood that if they allowed this child to grow, his power could become unimaginable, an existential threat to their villages.
Slash!
"Smoke Cut!" Chen exclaimed, naming his technique as he executed a circular movement with Ryūjin Jakka. The blade described a perfect arc, so fast that it seemed to leave a trail in the air.
In an instant, five heads separated from their bodies, floating for a moment in the air before falling.
"Aaaargh!" The sixth Jōnin, who had tried to retreat at the last second, lost an arm, his cry of pain drowned out by the chaos.
Chen's sword danced in the air, a silver blur barely visible to the human eye. Even the Jōnin guided only by the deeply ingrained survival instinct barely managed to save his life by retreating at the last instant.
The edge of the sword sang a song of death, reaping five lives in a single movement. But the dance didn't stop there.
The blade continued its relentless trajectory, cutting through friends and enemies alike. Ninjas from Amegakure, Iwagakure, Sunagakure, and even from Konoha, fell divided in two before Chen's inexorable passage.
It wasn't that he deliberately sought the death of his comrades. It was simply that, in the chaos of battle, the sword didn't distinguish between ally and enemy.
This was the cruel reality of close combat, the reason why few dared to use large-scale ninjutsu on such a congested battlefield. The risk of injuring one's own comrades was too high.
Both sides were very close together, impossible to separate. Any shinobi with a minimum of awareness would avoid using wide-area techniques. But Chen... Chen was different.
Empathy and compassion were alien concepts to him in battle. If someone stood in his way, whether friend or foe, their fate was sealed.
It was the cruel design of fate, nothing more.
"Was it you...?" The trembling voice of the Jōnin with the severed arm was barely audible above the din of battle.
His eyes, wide open with horror and disbelief, were fixed on Chen's figure. "Was it you who wielded that sword before?"
Confusion and fear intermingled in his voice. The smoke and chaos of the battle had prevented them from clearly seeing who had made that initial devastating cut. They had naturally assumed that it could only be the work of Sakumo Hatake.
After days of combat, everyone had come to respect and fear Sakumo's power. Even among enemies, admiration for his strength transcended battle lines. But this... this was different. The idea that a small demon, a child in appearance, could unleash such destruction, was something they couldn't believe.
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