"Shinra Tensei!"
In an instant, Akimichi Choza felt an overwhelming force shaking through his arm.
Before his brain could react, the ground beneath him seemed to be violently lifted, and he was flung several meters away.
Boom!
A shockwave, centered on the tent, spread out in a semicircle.
Everything within that area—whether it was ninja, ground, sand, dust, or air—was pushed away at terrifying speed, as if being 'repelled' by an invisible, immense force.
The shockwave rippled like a tangible wave, overlapping and forming a mushroom cloud.
Choza, having grown in size, bore the brunt of the impact. His large and heavy body couldn't maintain balance, rolling away like a giant spinning top, carving a deep trench into the ground.
If it hadn't been for Nara Shikaku's quick thinking, controlling shadows to stop Choza, he might have rolled even farther.
When Choza finally stopped, he was pale and weak, his body shrinking down.
"Are you okay, Choza?" Yamanaka Inoichi hurried over, concerned for his friend's injuries.
But what he saw made him gasp in shock.
Choza's right arm was bent grotesquely in the opposite direction, a bone protruding from his elbow. The muscles and bones of his arm were severely twisted and torn, as if shoved into a blender.
"What kind of jutsu causes such damage?" Yamanaka Inoichi, despite his experience, furrowed his brow. "Choza, what exactly happened?"
"I… I don't know," Choza coughed, blood on his lips, obviously suffering internal damage. "It felt like there was an invisible wall of air, and then… cough, I was blasted away by a huge force."
Nara Shikaku, who arrived afterward, frowned as he listened to Choza's description. "Chiyo is a puppet master, and Sand Ninja don't have such jutsu. Who could it be?"
Chiyo was skilled with puppetry and controlled the Ten Puppets of Chikamatsu, which they knew well. A jutsu that could blast everything within a radius of ten meters was unheard of. Since when did Sand Village have such a person?
Who could it be?!
Nara Shikaku's right eyelid twitched, an ominous feeling growing stronger.
"Heh, is that all Konoha ninjas are capable of?"
As the words were spoken, the center tent was lifted, and a figure stepped out.
By the firelight, Nara Shikaku saw the figure's face—a young man with spiky orange hair, black studs on his nose and ears, and a black cloak adorned with red clouds, exuding a cold, lifeless aura.
Nara Shikaku's gaze moved up to see the forehead protector of the Rain Village horizontally across the man's forehead. His eyelid twitched violently. "You're… from Rain Village!"
Now, he finally understood what his uneasy premonition was about!
The Rain Village, a nation that had always remained neutral, was actually siding with the Sand Village at such a critical moment.
Although the young man's forehead protector had a line crossing it, which normally indicated a traitor from the Rain Village, it shouldn't affect the Rain Village's stance.
But in this situation, especially with Konoha and Sand Village at a standstill, the sudden appearance of a traitor from the Rain Village was too suspicious. The hidden agenda was too obvious!
"Do you know what Rain Village joining the fight means?!"
Nara Shikaku gritted his teeth, his sharp gaze fixed on the opponent, and shouted angrily, "Rain Village is just a small country. Are they not afraid of being wiped out by participating in a war of this scale?!"
He spoke with confidence, not without reason, but as a real threat.
Even though Konoha was surrounded by the four great ninja villages, it was still strong. The saying "a dead camel is still bigger than a horse" applied here. Destroying the Sand Village might be difficult, but taking down the Rain Village would be easy!
"Heh, is this the confidence of a 'great nation'?"
The opponent sneered coldly, showing no concern, with a contemptuous smirk at the corner of his mouth.
"Hmph, don't worry, you won't be able to do it."
Chiyo emerged from the tent and looked at the Konoha ninjas with a cold smile, saying, "It seems you don't know yet. I'll generously share some information about other battlefronts with you."
Information about other battlefronts?
Nara Shikaku's right eye twitched uncontrollably, and his unease grew stronger.
"To the northeast of Konoha, is it the Uchiha Clan?"
Chiyo sneered ominously, her mouth curling into a satisfied smile as she continued, "Unfortunately, this morning we received news that the Cloud Village has completely wiped out the Uchiha forces and has advanced to near Konoha's Kikyo Mountain!"
These words were like a thunderclap on a clear day.
Nara Shikaku's face turned pale, and he nearly collapsed from the shock.
From the opponent's expression, he could tell this wasn't just a lie or deception; there was at least a 70% chance it was true!
"Heh heh, Konoha will soon become a thing of the past."
Chiyo had never felt so relieved. The Sand Village had been beaten by Konoha for decades, and now she could finally vent some of that frustration.
She turned to the people beside her and said, "Alright, enough with the nonsense. It's a shame you can't see the destruction of Konoha."
"Don't panic! Stay calm!" Nara Shikaku understood that he couldn't break down just yet. He forced himself to stay strong and encouraged everyone loudly, "Think about it. The Uchiha clan is the strongest clan in the entire ninja world. How could a group of Cloud ninjas destroy them in less than a day? They must be lying!"
Hearing his voice, the Konoha ninjas, who were initially losing hope, calmed down a lot.
Yes, if you think about it, even though they don't like the Uchiha, they are undeniably the strongest clan! How could a mere group of Cloud ninjas defeat Konoha's strongest clan in less than a day?
It's a lie! It has to be!
Seeing the morale of the crowd improve, Nara Shikaku took a deep breath, focusing on Chiyo with a fierce look in his eyes. "There are only two of them. We have the absolute advantage. They should be the ones afraid!"
He didn't believe that over a hundred elite ninjas couldn't handle just two people!
"Fire Style: Fireball Jutsu!"
"Water Style: Water Dragon Bullet Jutsu!"
"Shadow Summoning Jutsu!"
"Mind Disturbance Jutsu!"
Over a hundred Konoha ninjas unleashed their most skilled techniques.
In an instant, the massive array of jutsus covered the central camp, and the swirling chakra in the air created a terrifying display and turbulence.
Even Chiyo, who had seen much in her life, couldn't help but blink rapidly and instinctively take a step back, turning her gaze to the side. "Pain, aren't you going to do anything?"
"Ha, no matter how many ants you gather, they cannot even touch a god."
Under the overwhelming jutsus, Pain did not retreat. Instead, he took a step forward:
"From this moment on, let these mighty nations feel the suffering of the small ones. Almighty Push!"
Boom!!!
An invisible force burst forth, violently crashing in all directions.
Centered around Pain, layers of invisible shockwaves intertwined and overlapped. The immense power pushed the ground, spreading out into a visible semicircular vacuum. Everything that came into contact with it—jutsus, people, and even the air—was blasted away.
In the explosive air currents like a stormy sea, over a hundred elite Konoha ninjas were violently thrown out, scattering in all directions.
After a long time, the dust finally settled.
Chiyo's pupils suddenly narrowed, and her face showed a look of horror.
The once flat ground had mysteriously sunk several meters. The soil and rock layers had been flattened by an immense force, creating a huge, perfectly round pit with a diameter of several dozen meters!
Both Konoha ninjas and Sand ninjas were thrown away by that force, lying on the ground, their lives uncertain.
Although Chiyo was shocked, she immediately noticed that three people were missing: "This is bad, it's the Ino-Shika-Cho trio who escaped, Pain. We need to chase them down and kill them quickly!"
"The contract only covers driving away Konoha," Pain replied indifferently.
However, Pain merely glanced at her and said, "Tracking and killing them is an additional cost. You'll need to pay more!"
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