"What on earth happened?" Takuno had just finished treating a severe injury, the blood on his hands not yet dry, when he was stunned by the frantic scene unfolding before him.
His brows furrowed as he asked a logistics team member who was hurriedly carrying in a Ninja with a broken leg, "Why are there suddenly so many casualties?! Has the situation on the battlefield changed?"
The team member's face was pale, and he didn't even have time to stop, only hastily throwing back a sentence: "Reporting, sir! It's Kumogakure! The Fourth Raikage has personally led their top elites to attack! The front line—the front line can't hold!"
Before his voice had faded, his figure had already disappeared into the dust billowing outside the door, rushing to transport the next dying comrade.
"Fourth Raikage, Ay—!!" This name was like a heavy hammer, slamming hard against Takuno's heart.
His pupils shrank suddenly, his sharp gaze piercing through the chaos of the medical room.
Although he had expected this Raikage, renowned for his speed and ferocity, to come as reinforcements, the swiftness with which the opponent entered the battlefield far exceeded his estimates!
The heavy smell of disinfectant and blood was almost suffocating.
Looking at the pile of injured bodies before him and hearing the constant wails in his ears, he even felt a sense of absurd regret; the path he had chosen to become a battlefield Medical Ninja now seemed like a heavy shackle.
"If this continues..." Takuno's gaze became exceptionally cold.
He calculated rapidly in his mind, "Must I really wait for the situation with Iwagakure to completely conclude, until Minato can free himself to come and rescue this side, for this business to finally end?"
This meant his plans would be consumed in this quagmire! Precious time could not be wasted here!
Takuno's slender fingers, stained with blood and the faint glow of Chakra, methodically treated the torn wounds of the wounded soldier before him.
However, his heart was far from as calm as his exterior suggested.
The rise and fall of Konoha were originally just an insignificant corner on the chessboard to him.
Even if this massive Ninja Village were to completely collapse, he might not even blink.
But now, this sudden intervention by Iwagakure had firmly imprisoned him on this battlefield, wasting his time.
"Overtime"? What an ironic word.
What he could least tolerate was his own precious time being wasted for no reason.
Every minute and second of delay meant his progress toward his own goals was being forcibly slowed down, which far outweighed any slight regret he felt over Konoha's potential defeat.
Sensing the weak pulse of the injured person beneath his fingertips, Takuno sighed silently in his heart.
The world is treacherous; it truly is difficult to predict everything perfectly.
That Iwagakure would take advantage of the chaos to attack the border of the Land of Fire was a move he had anticipated.
But despite all his calculations, he hadn't expected them to strike so precisely at this critical moment!
If Iwagakure had acted just a bit later, that "Yellow Flash," Minato, would surely have already departed for the Kumogakure front.
As long as Minato entered the Kumogakure battlefield, even if the Fourth Raikage himself provided support, the advantage they brought would be crushed by Minato's Flying Thunder God Technique!
Once the balance was broken, the pressure on Konoha from the Kumogakure direction would plummet, and he would be able to handle his own affairs in peace.
But at this moment, Iwagakure's scorpion-like sting struck hard, instantly shifting the strategic focus.
Minato, Konoha's strongest and most mobile core of war, was actually being held back on the Iwagakure battlefield.
This war will likely descend into a frustratingly long war of attrition.
This fact gave him a bit of a headache; as expected, not everything can go according to plan, and every person in this world is a variable!
Looking around this temporary medical clinic filled with wails, an invisible sense of being shackled grew heavier.
In his identity as "Takuno," he was almost powerless in the face of such a grand-scale war dilemma.
In Konoha's eyes, he was merely a top-tier support Ninja who excelled in Sealing Jutsus and Medical Ninjutsu.
Could these two abilities alone, even at the top level, reverse the collapse of the entire battlefield? Unless—
Go directly to seal Kumogakure's Tailed Beasts?
As soon as this thought arose, he immediately snuffed it out.
Seal a Tailed Beast? Easier said than done! That would require first completely subduing a Tailed Beast the size of a mountain.
Just like during the Nine-Tails' attack, when Kushina exhausted her life force using the Uzumaki Clan's secret Adamantine Sealing Chains to barely suppress the rampaging Nine-Tails long enough to complete the seal.
With his full strength, it would naturally be no problem; even sealing the Eight-Tails would be a possibility.
But those powers truly capable of shaking a Tailed Beast must never come from the hands of "Takuno."
That would be no different from exposing his identity, making everything that followed troublesome.
His thoughts were churning, but the medical treatment in his hands was not at all disorganized, remaining precise and steady.
Since the identity of "Takuno" was already inadequate, it seemed the answer could only point toward that more secretive identity: "The Collector"!
Allow "The Collector" to step into everyone's sight? This was by no means what he wanted.
Even if this identity had already been exposed within the upper echelons of Kumogakure.
But this was temporarily fine, because the Kumogakure, who hated him to the bone, would never publicize the true reason for their failure; to them, it was an indelible disgrace.
But if he were to intervene and sway this massive war sweeping across two nations as "The Collector"—the nature of it would be completely different!
By then, the name of "The Collector" would no longer be just a vague threat circulating among certain high-level officials; it would surely be clearly etched into the center of the entire Ninja World's vision!
Accompanying the exposure would be unprecedented attention and threats.
His thoughts extended further, and another option appeared in Takuno's mind.
That was to completely break away from Konoha right now and establish his own faction.
This was undoubtedly the fastest way to sever all shackles and obtain ultimate freedom.
From then on, he would be free from any constraints, no longer needing to answer to anyone, only acting according to his own will.
However, this thought was quickly abandoned.
If he truly took this path, then all the effort he had poured in until now, the status and influence he had gained climbing up step by step from a nobody, would lose all meaning.
He was now the leader of the Sealing Jutsu research team; he also held the high position of Anbu deputy commander, the true wielder of power in the intelligence system beneath the Hokage.
According to his deductions, taking over as Anbu Captain and becoming one of the Village's most core members was a clearly visible future.
Admittedly, if this identity were in a place like the Hidden Snow Village, it would indeed be meaningless.
But Konoha was completely different! It was the number one Ninja Village standing at the peak of the entire Ninja World.
The pervasive intelligence system it controlled, along with its immense power and resources—these were inestimable assets for Takuno in pursuing certain goals.
This position could provide him with significant help while his wings were not yet fully grown; how could he easily give it up?
Even if the day truly comes to give it up, it is definitely not now!
At this moment, the scales in Takuno's heart instantly tipped.
Compared to being forced to stay here and letting time waste away, what did the exposure of an identity matter?
It was just a persona.
If "The Collector" truly stirred up a massive wave, then he would—just change his face again!
"Heh, it seems that wanting to remain a bystander is now a delusion." That whisper was deep and sharp, "It's time to act, to break this damn stalemate!"
The moment the decision was made, action began.
Takuno found an opportunity to create a Shadow Clone that silently blended into the shadows of a corner and, taking advantage of the chaos, rushed toward the battlefield.
He had to see for himself exactly how the battle was playing out there before he could decide in what manner "The Collector" would intervene in this chaotic vortex.
Takuno stood in the shadows of the mountaintop, a cold mask covering his face, with only his eyes gleaming with an unusual luster in the light.
At this moment, these eyes had quietly transformed into blood-red two tomoe Sharingan, looking down and taking in the entire battlefield.
The mountain wind whistled past him, carrying the strong scent of blood and gunpowder.
His gaze swept across the tragic battlefield, and the three most critical fierce battles were clearly laid out within his vision.
The first point of focus was the Two-Tails battlefield, which seemed slightly less intense.
Fugaku, the head of the Uchiha Clan, was leading several elite Uchiha Jonin in a joint effort to fight against the fully Tailed Beast-transformed Yugito Nii.
However, Takuno's gaze was soon captured by another figure.
It was actually an Uchiha genius who had not yet completely lost the silhouette of a youthful boy!
Despite his young age, this person had already joined the ranks of elite Jonin. His lightning-fast Body Flicker Technique was used with divine skill; under the violent Two-Tails' assault, he not only held his ground but appeared calm and composed, his brilliance almost overshadowing Clan Head Fugaku.
"It's him—!" Takuno's pupils shrank slightly, recognizing the other's identity almost instantly.
Such mastery of the Body Flicker Technique was top-tier even in the entire Ninja World.
Shisui! A peerless genius comparable to, and perhaps even slightly surpassing, the future "Uchiha Itachi."
Unfortunately, this one wasn't very bright and had been brainwashed into sickness by the Third Hokage.
However, his reputation was indeed much better than Uchiha Itachi's, because he was just foolish, not evil, and the audience could be slightly more forgiving of a fool.
Takuno stared at Shisui for a while; the current Shisui seemed not to have awakened that heart-palpitating Mangekyo power yet.
Judging by this youth's character, if he had opened the Mangekyo, he would likely have already activated that forbidden ocular technique at any cost just to carve out a path to survival for the precarious Konoha.
His gaze shifted, and the situation on the other end of the battlefield was completely different.
The Fourth Raikage, Ay, with speed second only to the "Yellow Flash" Minato, led a portion of Kumogakure's elite Jonin to keep Jiraiya, one of the Sannin, firmly pinned down in the core of the fierce battle.
Lightning coiled around Ay's sturdy body, each step causing the earth to tremble, his ferocious fists carrying wind and thunder as they smashed repeatedly toward Jiraiya.
The white-haired sage clearly understood the dilemma before him and tried to single-handedly hold back as many Kumogakure masters as possible.
The roar of fire explosions and the howling of lightning intertwined, shaking the heavens.
Takuno noticed that even at this stage of the battle, Jiraiya had still not used his strongest trump card, Senjutsu.
The long condensation time required to activate Sage Mode was undoubtedly a luxury on a rapidly changing, high-intensity battlefield.
Furthermore, Jiraiya's Sage Mode was also problematic.
Even if he managed to prepare in advance by summoning the two Toad Sages, Fukasaku and Shima, to assist in absorbing Natural Energy, Jiraiya's own Chakra reserves would not allow him to last through the entire battlefield.
Takuno pondered that perhaps Jiraiya had his own considerations for not using Sage Mode.
Finally, Takuno's gaze fixed on the area with the most earth-shaking commotion.
That was the main battlefield of the Eight-Tails Jinchuriki, Killer B.
The massive body of the full Eight-Tails was like a moving mountain range, its giant tails shattering mountains and stones as they swung.
However, what was terrifying was that even with Konoha's elite "Ino–Shika–Chō" trio—Akimichi Choza, whose size was equally massive in his Butterfly Mode; Nara Shikaku, who was strategizing; and Inoichi Yamanaka, acting as the mental connection hub.
Leading a large number of Konoha Jonin in a full-scale assault, Killer B, by his own strength alone, still firmly maintained absolute control!
Akimichi Choza, using the ultimate power triggered by his family's secret medicine, transformed into a hulking giant, using his flesh and blood to withstand every Tailed Beast strike from the Eight-Tails. Each clash erupted with a dull sound like a drum, and Choza's massive body was covered in wounds from the recoil, yet he gritted his teeth and did not retreat.
Choosing this most difficult battlefield was not an act of impulse, but a necessity.
In the face of the Fourth Raikage's nearly unsolvable terrifying speed, even Nara Shikaku's shadow secret techniques combined with Inoichi Yamanaka's Mind Transfer would have difficulty finding an opening to strike.
Therefore, knowing it was difficult, Choza still chose the strongest enemy without hesitation.
In the rear of the battle, sweat beaded on Nara Shikaku's forehead as he used Inoichi Yamanaka's exquisite Mind Transmission Technique to constantly relay calm and precise orders to every fighting Jonin.
His brain was like a precisely operating war machine, striving to maintain this fragile line of defense.
Takuno saw clearly that this situation was merely barely holding on; a collapse was only a moment away.
Konoha's last hope rested on whether the other two battlefields could bring a glimmer of victory before the "Ino–Shika–Chō" were defeated.
"Heh, how tragic." Takuno's whisper dissipated in the whistling mountain wind.
His gaze moved away from the core battlefield, sweeping across the broader area of slaughter.
Because almost all of Konoha's top Jonin were pinned down in the three high-intensity decisive battles, Konoha's numerical disadvantage in elite Shinobi on the ordinary front lines was fully exposed.
Under the dual pressure of Kumogakure's elite Shinobi in terms of both numbers and local combat power, the casualties of Konoha Shinobi were soaring at an alarming rate.
Beneath the mask, Takuno's gaze remained as cold as an abyss.
Act now? This is definitely not the time.
If he were to appear rashly, from what position would he intervene? To help Konoha? To help Kumogakure? Or as a third party drawing the unanimous destructive hostility of both sides? Lurking in the shadows to find the right moment to intervene was the wise move.
Konoha's foundation was not yet exhausted; they could still hold on.
But the outcome was already decided; after this bloody slaughter, Konoha's front line would inevitably and unavoidably shrink back.
Takuno pondered as he watched the battlefield below.
As expected, in a world possessed of individual might, it is always the top-tier combatants who truly decide the outcome; even at this stage, the signs of this were already manifesting!