On the battlefield.
Smoke billowed everywhere, killing cries rang out without end.
Aside from the fight between Uchiha Yusuke and the AB Combination, experts on every front were also locked in intense combat.
Yugito was wrapped head to toe in blue-black chakra flames and had already entered her half-tailed-beast state.
Tasked with blocking the Two-Tails, Nara Shikaku, Yamanaka Inoichi, and Akimichi Chōza formed a three-in-one combined formation.
Yugito looked at the three of them, a trace of disdain on her face.
"Just the three of you think you can stop me?"
"If you don't want to die, get out of my way!"
Faced with Yugito's threat, Nara Shikaku smiled faintly.
"Lord Yusuke has given his orders. We must keep you here."
"Sorry about that."
An astonishing aura suddenly erupted from Yugito's body.
"Sending the three of you to your deaths—has Uchiha Yusuke run out of options?"
Nara Shikaku remained expressionless.
"Whether that's true or not, you'll find out soon enough."
When enemies meet on a narrow road, words are useless.
If victory was to be decided, it would be by real skill.
Yugito rapidly formed hand seals.
"Fire Rat Jade!"
Yamanaka Inoichi closed his eyes and immediately entered a sensory state.
Through sensory transmission, the Fire Rat Jade's attack trajectory appeared directly in Nara Shikaku's mind.
"Shadow Binding Technique."
"Expansion Technique!"
The Ino–Shika–Chō trio moved as one, offense and defense perfectly balanced.
Even against Yugito, they handled the exchange with ease.
While blocking Yugito's Fire Rat Jade, Nara Shikaku didn't forget to launch a counterattack.
"Human Boulder!"
After expanding, Akimichi Chōza rolled forward at high speed, then was flung outward by Shikaku's shadow control.
Yugito failed to dodge in time and was smashed into the ground, getting rubbed along it in a full pass.
"Puh, puh, puh…"
Climbing back up from the ground, Yugito spat out several mouthfuls of dust.
She'd intended to end it quickly, but instead had suffered a setback.
"Interesting."
"Again!"
With an angry roar, Yugito directly entered full tailed-beast transformation.
The blue-black-flame-shrouded cat demon appeared, and the three clan heads of Ino–Shika–Chō all felt immense pressure.
Transforming into the Two-Tails, Yugito showed no restraint, opening her mouth and spewing a massive fireball.
"Split!"
Shikaku reacted instantly, immediately breaking their combined formation.
"Super Expansion Technique!"
Chōza used his secret art to grow even larger, his size now close to that of the Two-Tails, and he chose to charge head-on.
Facing Chōza's attack, Yugito showed no fear at all.
The Akimichi clan's techniques could drastically enhance physical ability, but trying to wrestle a tailed beast head-on was still pushing it.
"Boom!"
A giant fist and a cat's claw collided, producing a thunderous explosion.
Both Chōza and the Two-Tails were shaken and forced backward.
At this moment.
Sweat already covered Chōza's forehead.
He was at his limit, while the Two-Tails still hadn't truly exerted its full strength.
Clearly.
In this contest between human and tailed beast, the tailed beast held the advantage.
A trace of contempt curved Yugito's lips.
"The Akimichi clan's Expansion Technique?"
"That's all it amounts to."
After mocking Chōza, Yugito prepared to press the advantage.
Suddenly—
Yamanaka Inoichi formed an inverted heart-shaped hand sign.
"Mind Body Switch Technique."
"Damn it!"
Yugito's expression changed drastically.
Once hit, this kind of mental technique would be extremely troublesome.
"Matatabi, switch."
Yugito made a split-second decision, directly handing control of her body over to the tailed beast within.
A tailed beast's mind was extremely violent—Yamanaka techniques could control people, but controlling a tailed beast was far more difficult.
"Drip… drip… drip…"
Inoichi's Mind Body Switch lasted only a few seconds before being forcefully broken by the Two-Tails, Matatabi.
Regaining control of her body, Yugito's eyes overflowed with killing intent.
"You three ants from Konoha…"
"Go to hell!"
The Two-Tails' flaming claws came crashing down like a tidal wave.
Suddenly—
Yugito felt her body stiffen, instantly losing all mobility.
"Th-this is…"
Shock flashed through Yugito's eyes.
Nara Shikaku chuckled softly.
"Heh, you haven't seen this one before, have you?"
"Shadow Imitation Technique—success!"
...
Another battlefield.
Kumogakure's Dodai and Darui faced off against Konoha's Hyuga Hiashi and Uchiha Shisui.
Dodai was a trusted aide of the Third Raikage. Not only did he possess Lava Release, he was also the verifier of the Ultimate Ox Lightning Lariat.
Darui, though not yet famous, had long been regarded by the Fourth Raikage as his right-hand man.
His swordsmanship and Lightning Release were outstanding, he possessed Storm Release, and he was the sole inheritor of the Third Raikage's Black Lightning.
These two were both top-tier figures in Kumogakure, and on Konoha's side, only elite heirs like Hyuga Hiashi and Uchiha Shisui could match them.
In such a serious two-army confrontation, Darui still looked half-asleep.
"So this is war?"
"Pretty boring."
Seeing the younger ninja's attitude, Dodai immediately scolded him.
"Get serious."
"This isn't the time for complaining."
Darui scratched his head and blurted out his usual catchphrase again.
"Sorry—my bad!"
Hyuga Hiashi had no intention of being polite.
Since you want to dawdle, I'll strike first.
"Eight Trigrams: Air Palm!"
Hiashi took a stance and threw a long-range palm strike.
Though Darui looked careless, his reaction at the critical moment was extremely fast.
"Clang!"
Darui instantly drew the sword on his back, while Dodai beside him also moved at once.
"Lava Release: Rubber Wall."
"Bang!"
Hiashi's palm force struck their defenses, failing to cause real damage.
In the blink of an eye.
Uchiha Shisui rapidly formed hand seals and joined the fray.
"Fire Release: Great Fireball Jutsu."
Darui countered immediately.
"Water Release: Water Wall."
In an instant, all four were locked in chaotic combat.
"Storm Release: Laser Circus."
"Body Flicker Technique."
"Eight Trigrams Formation: Rotation."
"Lava Release: Rubber Sphere."
...
Dodai and Darui were both kekkei genkai users, while Hiashi and Shisui were likewise elite members of prestigious clans.
With strengths evenly matched, neither side could gain the upper hand for the moment.
On several other battlefields.
Top fighters from Konoha and Kumogakure were also engaged in fierce combat, and the entire plain was completely engulfed in the smoke of war.
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