Elsewhere on the battlefield, smoke rose in every direction.
Both sides continued pushing and pulling against each other. With the arrival of reinforcements, the Konoha ninjas were now roughly equal in number to the Hidden Mist vanguard, and they began to show the strength of the number one ninja village.
In the clash between the two sides, most Kirigakure ninjas were gradually forced onto the defensive. If things continued like this, the balance of victory would slowly tilt toward Konoha.
Although the overall strength of the Hidden Mist forces was inferior to that of Konoha, they still had two powerful experts besides Asuka: Hōzuki Mangetsu and Minazuki Murasaki.
With the two of them holding the line, the battlefield had not yet become completely one-sided.
---
Hōzuki Mangetsu slit the throat of a Konoha ninja who had tried to ambush him, then casually flicked the blood from his sword.
Glancing around the battlefield, he quickly realized that the Hidden Mist forces were at a disadvantage.
Clicking his tongue in annoyance, Mangetsu tightened his grip on his sword and rushed off to support other Kirigakure units.
However, Mangetsu's constant appearances across the battlefield soon attracted attention from the Konoha side.
Before long, a squad of Konoha ninjas surrounded him.
Mangetsu looked at the enemies closing in and immediately understood that his rescue efforts had made him a priority target.
Still, despite being surrounded, he remained completely calm.
The leader of the Konoha squad quickly recognized Mangetsu's identity.
"Listen up!" he shouted to his teammates. "He's a ninja from the Hōzuki Clan of the Hidden Mist! Anyone who can use Lightning Release, take the lead and lock down his movements!"
Several Konoha ninjas immediately stepped forward and formed hand seals together.
Lightning Release: Ground Crawler!
Bright electric currents surged along the ground toward Mangetsu.
Because the technique was used by several ninjas simultaneously, its coverage area was enormous.
Seeing that he couldn't dodge such a wide attack, Mangetsu stabbed his sword into the ground and stepped on the hilt, launching himself high into the air.
While airborne, he stretched out both hands.
Water bullets shot from his fingertips.
Water Release: Water Gun Technique!
The high-speed water bullets pierced through several Konoha ninjas, leaving bloody holes in their bodies.
One unlucky ninja was struck directly in the head and died instantly.
Seeing Mangetsu still in the air, the Konoha squad leader immediately threw a kunai wrapped with explosive tags.
Boom!
The explosive tags detonated near Mangetsu.
But instead of blood, what scattered through the air were tiny droplets of water.
Mangetsu's body had turned into a puddle of water.
At some point, he had switched places with a Water Clone.
The real Mangetsu had already used the Body Flicker Technique to circle behind the Konoha squad.
His sword, now wrapped in flowing water, slashed fiercely toward them.
Caught off guard, several Konoha ninjas were cut down instantly.
Seeing his teammates falling, the squad leader made a ruthless decision.
Ignoring the danger to his own men, he quickly formed hand seals.
Lightning Release: Four Pillar Bind!
Four pillars rose from the ground around Mangetsu.
Lightning burst from the pillars, forming a powerful barrier.
Mangetsu hadn't expected the Konoha ninja to ignore his own teammates and trap everyone together.
Caught off guard, he was struck by the lightning current.
In an instant, Mangetsu's body dissolved into water.
The Konoha squad leader's eyes lit up with excitement.
"I've got him! Finish him off while he's weak!"
As the lightning barrier disappeared, the surrounding Konoha ninjas immediately unleashed their ninjutsu.
Various attacks slammed into Mangetsu's position.
But when the smoke cleared, Mangetsu was nowhere to be seen.
The Konoha squad immediately grew tense.
Suddenly—
A massive Water Dragon appeared in the air.
Roaring violently, it crashed straight into the center of the Konoha formation, sending everyone flying.
Although Mangetsu had been affected by the lightning attack, he hadn't lost his ability to fight.
When the lightning barrier disappeared, he had liquefied his body and slipped through cracks in the ground.
From the enemy's blind spot, he unleashed a Water Dragon Bullet, shattering the formation.
Seizing the moment, Mangetsu fired a rapid barrage of Water Gun attacks, eliminating the fallen Konoha ninjas one by one.
After finally breaking free from the encirclement, Mangetsu rushed off again to support other Kirigakure forces.
---
Meanwhile, Minazuki Murasaki was also facing a troublesome opponent.
Her enemy was a member of the Uchiha Clan—and a well-known one at that.
Uchiha Fugaku.
The Uchiha Clan had joined this Konoha reinforcement force, and as one of their most outstanding members, Uchiha Fugaku had naturally become part of the elite unit led by Minato Namikaze.
At this moment, Fugaku was surrounded by countless ice mirrors.
Each mirror reflected his own figure.
Ice Release: Demonic Mirroring Ice Crystals!
Fugaku carefully observed his surroundings, searching for flaws in the technique.
"Ice Release… a Bloodline Limit," he muttered. "From the Hidden Mist's Yuki Clan, perhaps?"
Suddenly, countless ice senbon shot out from the mirrors.
Fugaku's Sharingan spun rapidly.
With the help of his dynamic vision, he easily dodged most of the senbon and deflected the rest with the kunai in his hands.
Through the attack, Fugaku quickly located Murasaki's position.
He immediately formed hand seals.
Fire Release: Great Fireball Technique!
A massive fireball shot toward one of the mirrors.
Fire and ice collided, melting the mirror instantly.
Fugaku seized the moment and jumped out of the mirror formation before it could reform.
But the moment he landed—
A huge ice spike suddenly erupted from the ground.
Although Fugaku reacted quickly and dodged sideways, the ice spike still froze his right leg.
Minazuki Murasaki stepped out from the shadows.
A shuriken shot toward Fugaku.
Poof!
The struck Fugaku turned into a cloud of smoke.
It was only a Shadow Clone.
Suddenly, two hands burst from the ground beneath Murasaki's feet and dragged her downward.
Earth Release: Double Suicide Decapitation Technique!
Uchiha Fugaku emerged from the earth and calmly announced the technique.
But before he could celebrate, the Murasaki he had dragged underground began to transform.
Her body slowly turned into an ice statue.
Several explosive tags were embedded inside it.
Boom!
The ice statue exploded.
Flames, shockwaves, and countless sharp ice fragments blasted outward.
Fugaku barely reacted in time.
Even though he coated his body with chakra to defend himself, his arm and thigh were still cut by flying ice fragments.
The explosion also scorched his skin.
Fugaku retreated several steps, looking around cautiously.
During that brief exchange, he had already realized how dangerous this young girl from the Minazuki Clan truly was.
He no longer dared to underestimate her.
However, the follow-up attack he expected never came.
After waiting cautiously for a long time, Fugaku realized that Minazuki Murasaki had already withdrawn.
In truth, Murasaki had wanted to eliminate him.
But she understood that defeating Uchiha Fugaku would not be easy and certainly wouldn't happen quickly.
Meanwhile, the situation across the battlefield was unclear.
So Murasaki decisively abandoned the fight with the troublesome Uchiha ninja and moved to reinforce other Kirigakure units instead.
---------------Author---------------
Read 40 advanced chapter on
👉 patreon.com/Master_fic
U can read 10 chapters ahead just for 5$