"If the Chakra Cannon can't even break the defensive barrier, then I'll have to use my trump card early, and the war will end like child's play!"
Hearing this sentence, everyone felt a sudden realization.
'No wonder he was so confident during the meeting three days ago. He was hiding a trump card capable of ending the war with an absolute gap!'
In fact, what could possibly end the Allied Shinobi Forces with an absolute gap was beyond their imagination, and they subconsciously believed such a thing simply couldn't exist in the world.
If someone else said it, they'd absolutely think it was boasting.
But these words came from Ryuji's mouth, so they believed it.
Because he had consistently been creating miracles that shattered their imagination. One more wasn't something they couldn't understand.
Rather, it would be strange if he couldn't do it.
However…
"Since you have such a trump card, why not use it directly?" Chiyo granny asked suspiciously. "If used directly, we could win victory without much loss. Wouldn't that be better?"
Hearing this, everyone simultaneously looked at Ryuji.
Ryuji leaned back in his chair, right elbow on the armrest, palm supporting his right cheek, a faint smile on his face. "If the war ends too easily, the mastermind behind the scenes won't show himself."
"Mastermind?"
Everyone was stunned, then someone asked, "You mean this war is being manipulated from behind the scenes?"
"Not exactly manipulation from behind the scenes. After all, he's standing in the open." Ryuji said nonchalantly. "Our past actions might have raised the vigilance of the other villages, but they weren't enough to cause them to unite against us. But they still did it in the end. It's all Zetsu's credit."
"But that Zetsu is just a remnant of the Akatsuki at best. Back when the Akatsuki was influential, we destroyed them. What does a remnant amount to?"
"If only it were that simple!" Ryuji deeply sighed. "Although I'd like to lay out the entire plan, the matter is too unbelievable. Getting you to believe would also be hard work. In short, you just need to know that this war with the Allied Shinobi Forces is merely a means to achieve my goal. There won't be any accidents regarding victory or defeat."
Bang!
Chiyo granny heavily pounded the table, staring at Ryuji with piercing eyes. "It's not as easy as you say! This involves tens of thousands of lives! Do you mean so many people's lives are not worth mentioning compared to your goal?"
"Yes."
Ryuji calmly looked at the crowd eyes filled with rage, said calmly. "I'm not saying anyone's life is more noble than another's, but this is necessary losses. If we don't do this, in the future, countless times more people than now will die. A truly fitting description would be discarding a penny in exchange for countless trillions!"
Chiyo stared at Ryuji, for a good while before saying, "…Is it really that exaggerated?"
"Even more exaggerated than that!"
Facing everyone's inquiring gazes, Ryuji nodded slightly. "I intend to eradicate the hidden dangers of the Shinobi World, no, eradicate the hidden dangers of this world in this war!"
…
Boom!
The light column containing terrifying energy dispersed. The people in the four Sky Castles sighed in relief again.
Although they had blocked one shot before, with the bloody lesson of Amegakure here, everyone was still worried whether the protective barrier could block a second shot.
"Move the Sky Castles up! Those with Wind-Nature Chakra, equip the wind wings. Launch the counterattack!" The Third Raikage, resurrected by Impure World Reincarnation and holding command of the large force, issued the command.
Instantly, the Mechanical City split apart, approaching the Floating Continent from four directions.
Simultaneously, densely packed Shinobi wearing glider-like equipment flew out from the cities, circling around them.
…
Conference room.
Through a Ninjutsu live-streaming the scene here, everyone noticed immediately the Allied Shinobi Forces' movements.
The Third Kazekage said, "It seems they want to place the battlefield on the Floating Continent!"
The Floating Continent was as large as Konoha. Due to the Mechanical City's structural layers, although its population size had reached a level similar to Konoha's, its occupied area was only three-fifths of the Floating Continent's.
Sufficient for a 50,000-strong force to unfold and fight.
"Continue firing. Although the enemy has started moving, making hitting not so easy, with the four Sky Castles dispersed, the previous defensive barrier isn't as thick either. If we can hit, perhaps we can greatly reduce the enemy's manpower. Of course, the Chakra Cannon still has three shots left. Even if all hit, the enemy will still have at least one Sky Castle reach the Floating Continent. So, prepare for boarding combat!"
"Yes!"
…
As the command was issued, the Chakra Cannon fired again.
However, just as Ryuji said, when the enemy started moving, the Chakra Cannon's hit rate greatly decreased. After all, the enemy wasn't a meteor; they could accelerate, decelerate, ascend, and perform various maneuvers, making it impossible to calculate and hit accurately.
One shot came, passing nearly ten meters off target, vaporizing a group of flying Shinobi.
One shot missed, fire another.
A weapon with world-shattering, earth-destroying power fired continuously as if it were free. But except for the last shot, the others all missed.
And the last shot, which should have hit, was also distorted by space and transferred to another dimension.
—Kamui!
Obito's Mangekyo's Dojutsu.
He currently covered his bleeding eye, gasping heavily for breath.
"How are you? Can you still fight later?" Shikaku asked with concern.
"No, I'm fine!" Obito said stubbornly. "Although Pupil Power consumption is a bit severe, as long as I don't use such a large-scale Kamui again in a short time, it'll be okay."
"That's good!"
Shikaku sighed in relief.
To infiltrate the Mechanical City and seize control, Obito's Kamui was indispensable.
"Let me also join the special team!"
A youth with an ordinary face in the room said.
Although a youth around fifteen, he had a height over 1.8 meters and large eyes.
He wore a black short-sleeved T-shirt, the common Shinobi uniform shorts, carrying a katana on his back, with a Konoha's forehead protector tied on his head.
"No need, Shisui, I can…"
"With you joining, that would be even better!" Shikaku cut off Obito's stubborn words, making the decision unilaterally.
"Hey, what's this? I can do it alone!" Obito complained dissatisfied.
Kakashi couldn't help but roll his eyes.
Although the incident back then made Obito much more steady, during these five years of peace, his personality gradually began changing back towards his childhood direction.
Although this was proof that he had emerged from the shadow of past sorrow, a cause for joy, during mission execution, various unreliable things would occur.
Kakashi's small expression change didn't escape Obito, making his expression even more dissatisfied. "Hey, Kakashi, what's that expression? I just saved everyone, a hero!"
"You can continue arguing if you want, but I want to remind you that we've already arrived above the Floating Continent." A middle-aged Iwagakure's Shinobi with an afro said.
His name was Kakko, a Jonin from Iwagakure, recommended by Onoki to join this special action squad.
In the original work, five years ago, during the war with Konoha, he would gouge out one of Kakashi's eyes, bury Obito with a rock collapse, and finally die at the hands of Kakashi with the Sharingan.
But now, fate made them teammates.
He was a very capable person, a qualified Jonin in all aspects.
Although dissatisfied about this operation having a youth who could be his son as captain, he didn't let this emotion affect the mission, reminding everyone at the critical moment.
The remaining person, Chukichi… he was a fat guy, also one of the Shinobi World's foremost Sensor-type Shinobi. His sensory range far exceeded the Byakugan's field of view.
In the original work, when he debuted, he was already dead, summoned by Kabuto with Impure World Reincarnation to cooperate with Deidara, Sasori, and others as the Sensor-type Shinobi for the Impure World Reincarnation vanguard unit.
He said to everyone, "Something in the Mechanical City is shielding it. I can't sense the situation inside."
"That's really bad!" Shikaku took a deep breath, somewhat frowning with worry.
He had originally planned for Chukichi to sense unoccupied areas in the Mechanical City, then have Obito use Kamui to teleport the team.
But if it couldn't be sensed, they might jump into a crowd of enemies, wasting an elite squad in vain.
"What about the Byakugan? Can it see?"
"Can't!" A Hyuga Shinobi said. "Normally, we can see the city walls. Opening the Byakugan, we can only see clear sky, as if it doesn't exist."
"Damn it!" Shikaku gnashed his teeth. "We can only attack by attacking, judge from the enemy's defense intensity where there are more or fewer people. At that time, you all can go in together."
"Yes!"
"Obito, take this time to rest well!"
"Understood!"
…
While Shikaku assigned tasks to the special team, the main battlefield had already begun fighting.
The Shinobi large force wearing the glider-like equipment arrived first, so they initiated the attack first.
They flew in the sky towards the Mechanical City like locusts, holding kunai launchers, preparing to launch aerial strikes once they flew into the city.
However, still five hundred meters from the city walls, the sound of bowstrings being drawn came incessantly.
Then, in their field of view, dense arrows, shooting over blocking out the sky, leaving no gap whatsoever.
Thud, thud, thud…
"Ahhh…"
Bang, bang, bang…
The sound of sharp arrows piercing bodies, the screams of the Allied Forces, the sound of corpses hitting the ground, the sound of arrows cutting through the air… various sounds intertwined, incessantly, weaving a symphony that one only needed to listen closely to imagine the intensity of the battlefield.
Bowstrings were continuously drawn, arrows kept flying.
Facing this arrow formation with not the slightest gap to dodge, the Allied Shinobi Forces truly fell like locusts scattered in large swaths sprayed with insecticide.
"Use the Nuclear Cannon!" The Third Raikage issued the command.
Instantly, the four Sky Castles began transforming, various buildings shifting, revealing steel cannon barrels as thick as buckets.