Frontline battlefield.
The elite forces of Konoha and Kumogakure were still locked in fierce combat, neither side able to gain the upper hand.
Ino–Shika–Chō firmly pinned down the Two-Tails jinchūriki, Yugito Nii, while Hyuga Hiashi and Uchiha Shisui held back Dodai and Darui.
Looking at the three Konoha ninja before her, Yugito spoke with pride on her face.
"To be able to stall me for this long, the three of you do have some skill."
"But it's all meaningless in the end. By now, Lord Raikage and Lord Killer B should have already taken Uchiha Yusuke's head, right?"
Though worry flickered across Nara Shikaku's expression, he still spoke up to refute her.
"Lord Yusuke isn't that easy to deal with!"
"He's the Konoha 'Flame Demon' who shook the entire ninja world!"
A trace of disdain appeared at the corner of Yugito's mouth.
So what if he's the Konoha 'Flame Demon'?
Could he really defeat Kumogakure's AB Combination?
Stop dreaming.
On another part of the battlefield—
Hyuga Hiashi and Uchiha Shisui, fighting against Dodai and Darui, had also developed a mutual respect.
A trusted confidant of the Third Raikage and the right-hand man of the Fourth Raikage—those titles were truly well deserved.
Konoha's strongest Hyuga and the Uchiha whose name shook the ninja world—neither reputation was hollow.
Just as both sides paused briefly to catch their breath, Uchiha Yusuke appeared at the center of the battlefield, Killer B slung over his shoulder.
With a casual swing of his sword, a flying slash cleaved the battlefield cleanly in two.
Uchiha Yusuke raised his voice and shouted:
"Everyone on the battlefield, listen up."
"The AB Combination has been defeated by my hand."
"This war—Kumogakure has lost!"
As those words fell, the entire battlefield plunged into dead silence.
The faces of Kumogakure's ninja filled with shock and disbelief.
Lord Fourth Raikage and Lord Killer B… lost?
That can't be real, can it?
Meanwhile, Konoha's ninja broke into smiles of joy and excitement.
Defeating two opponents alone—
Lord Yusuke was simply too powerful!
Yugito reacted as if someone had stepped on a cat's tail, jumping out immediately.
"What kind of joke is this?!"
"How could Lord Raikage and Lord Killer B possibly lose to you?!"
Uchiha Yusuke smiled faintly and tossed the person he had been carrying on his back forward.
Facts spoke louder than words.
The Eight-Tails jinchūriki had been captured alive—so tell me, are you scared now?
"It's Lord Killer B!"
Yusuke's action once again drew gasps from the Kumogakure ninja.
If Killer B was already a prisoner, then what Yusuke said earlier was very likely true!
"No… I don't believe it!"
"How could Lord Raikage lose?!"
In an instant, the morale of the Kumogakure allied forces plunged to rock bottom.
If both the Fourth Raikage and Killer B had lost, what could they possibly do?
Seizing the moment while Kumogakure was reeling, Nara Shikaku once again used Yamanaka Inoichi's abilities to broadcast to the entire battlefield.
"Lord Yusuke has defeated the Raikage and captured the Eight-Tails jinchūriki alive!"
"We've won!"
"This war is Konoha's victory!"
Shikaku's announcement instantly ignited the entire battlefield.
Amid thunderous cheers, Konoha's morale surged to its peak.
"We won—we really won!"
"Long live Konoha! Long live Lord Yusuke!"
...
Not long after Yusuke appeared, the heavily injured Fourth Raikage A also arrived at the front lines.
The moment he appeared, Yugito, Dodai, Darui, and the others rushed over.
"Lord Raikage, are you alright?!"
"Cough, cough…"
The Fourth Raikage coughed violently twice before speaking.
"I'm fine. Just some light injuries."
"But B was captured by that brat Uchiha Yusuke!"
"We must find a way to rescue him!"
Hot-blooded Yugito immediately lost her composure.
"Lord Raikage, we still have superior numbers!"
"Why don't we fight them to the death?!"
The older Dodai was startled and hurriedly spoke to stop her.
"Don't act on impulse!"
"Lord Raikage, our morale is already shattered—it's not suitable to continue fighting."
"We should withdraw to the village first, then consider negotiations with Konoha!"
The Fourth Raikage's face was filled with unwillingness.
Retreating in disgrace like this would severely damage his authority!
But as the leader of a village, he had no choice but to consider the bigger picture.
With Kumogakure's morale broken, continuing the fight could very well lead to total annihilation.
Retreating might damage his personal reputation, but at least it would preserve their strength.
If he stubbornly fought to the end, Kumogakure could suffer catastrophic losses and never recover.
At that point, as supreme commander, he would become a sinner for all eternity in Kumogakure's history.
The Fourth Raikage had only recently taken office and was still young.
He was not about to gamble everything like Ōnoki had during the Third Great Ninja War.
Moreover, even though Ōnoki had fought with all his might back then, he still failed.
The 'Yellow Flash' Namikaze Minato had appeared like a godsend, completely crushing Iwagakure's ambition to destroy Konoha.
After struggling internally for a long time, reason finally prevailed.
"Pass on my order."
"Full retreat!"
With the Fourth Raikage's command, the Kumogakure allied forces withdrew like a receding tide.
Seeing this scene, Uchiha Yusuke finally let out a breath of relief.
Since setting out, he had endured two brutal battles in succession.
Now, at last, the hardship was over and the reward had arrived.
Uchiha Yusuke deactivated his Sharingan, preparing to finally get some rest.
At that moment, two Konoha jōnin quietly crept up behind him.
Without making a sound, they suddenly launched an attack on Uchiha Yusuke.
Yusuke failed to evade in time, and his cheek was slashed open.
Drip.
A streak of crimson blood slid down from his chin.
Even against Kumogakure's AB Combination, Uchiha Yusuke had never suffered a loss.
Yet now, facing his own people, he was injured for the first time!
After the intense battle with the AB Combination, Yusuke's mental focus and chakra were heavily depleted.
That was precisely why he had deactivated his Sharingan and Fire Release Chakra Mode.
Uchiha Yusuke's eyes sharpened.
I almost fell to my own people just now?
I really was far too careless.
When their first strike failed, the two Konoha jōnin attempted to continue their assault and finish Yusuke off.
However—
Uchiha Yusuke gave them no chance at all.
"Fire Release Chakra Mode!"
With a thought, his body instantly entered an elementalized state.
Though the two jōnin were fairly strong, they had no way of harming Uchiha Yusuke.
"The mission has failed—retreat!"
Seeing they couldn't injure him, the two jōnin immediately decided to withdraw.
A cold smile slowly spread across Uchiha Yusuke's lips.
"Only thinking about running now?"
"Don't you think that's a bit too late?"
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