To the west, five kilometers from the mountain stronghold.
The forest clearing was a complete mess.
Six Ninja Wolf corpses lay scattered across the ground, their grey-black fur soaked in blood; some were charred, some had their bellies sliced open, and some were riddled with Kunai.
They maintained their offensive posture even in death, fangs bared, eyes filled with resentment.
Beside them were two human corpses.
Two young Ninjas lay on their backs, their chests torn open with massive bloody holes, internal organs a blurred mess—their deaths were extremely gruesome.
Only two people remained alive.
One stood amidst the corpses, Kunai in hand, his entire body radiating a chilling killing intent. He was in his early thirties, the Konoha forehead protector on his brow stained with blood, his gaze sharp as a hawk's—the aura of an Elite Chunin emanated from him without concealment.
The other slumped three meters behind him, clutching a bleeding abdomen, his face as pale as paper.
He was a young Ninja, looking no more than seventeen or eighteen, with the strength of an Elite Genin, yet now he couldn't even stand.
And ten meters opposite them—
Hei Sha was covered in blood, his fur bearing charred marks and his left hind leg wounded.
However, his injuries weren't severe; his eyes remained fixed forward, a low, threatening growl rolling in his throat.
Two Ninja wolves stood by his side.
One was horribly burned, its flesh torn and raw.
The other had a broken front leg and could only stand on three, trembling all over, but there wasn't a hint of retreat in its eyes.
Three wolves against two humans.
The air was so frozen it felt like it would turn to ice.
That Elite Chunin, Mori Toshio, slowly raised his Kunai, pointing the tip directly at Hei Sha.
"Ninja wolves..."
Mori Toshio spoke, his voice low and cold.
"I didn't expect such things to be hidden in this forest."
His gaze swept over the six wolf corpses on the ground, then glanced at his shredded comrade, his eyes filled with solemnity.
He never imagined that a routine patrol within the borders would lead to an encounter with such powerful Ninja wolves, resulting in the death of two teammates.
If not for his superior strength, he might have been injured as well.
"This ends here."
Mori Toshio stepped forward.
Hei Sha tensed, baring his fangs and letting out a low roar.
Pale blue Chakra condensed frantically in his mouth; the Storm Blade was ready to be unleashed.
"You're trying that move again!"
Mori Toshio gave a cold sneer.
Hei Sha had used it once before, directly inflicting fatal injuries on a member of his squad.
He wouldn't give Hei Sha the chance now.
Just then—
From the distance came a low rumble.
The rumbling grew closer and louder, as if some massive entity was sprinting this way.
Mori Toshio's footsteps faltered.
He turned to look deep into the forest.
His pupils suddenly constricted.
Amidst the trees, countless eerie green glints were flickering.
Those were pairs of wolf eyes.
His back was instantly drenched in cold sweat.
"Captain..." the heavily injured Genin behind him said, his voice trembling, "That... that is..."
Mori Toshio didn't answer.
He gripped his Kunai, his knuckles turning white as his mind raced—
Retreat?
But that Genin was so badly injured he couldn't run at all.
Fight it out?
He glanced at the six wolf corpses on the ground, then at the pale blue light still condensing in Hei Sha's mouth.
Six wolves had killed two of his Genin.
Now there were at least twenty coming.
Just then, the movement in the woods stopped.
Those eerie green glints stopped flickering, simply watching him quietly.
Then, a figure stepped slowly out of the darkness.
It was a grey wolf, a size larger than the others. A metallic luster faintly flowed beneath its fur, and its amber eyes shimmered with a cold light in the gloom.
Its pace was neither fast nor slow, each step carrying a suffocating sense of pressure.
Behind it, countless figures emerged one after another.
Grey ones, black ones—more than twenty Ninja wolves surged from the woods like a tide, surrounding the clearing in the blink of an eye until it was impenetrable.
Mori Toshio's heart sank to the bottom.
He looked at the wolves, then at the giant leading wolf.
That wolf was also looking at him.
Their eyes met in the air.
A moment later, the giant wolf slowly spoke—
"Was it you who killed my kin?"
The voice was low and raspy, yet it reached Mori Toshio's ears clearly.
Mori Toshio's pupils shook violently.
A wolf... spoke?
Although he knew some summoning beasts had high intelligence and could even communicate with humans...
Those were extraordinary summoning beast clans that could only be cultivated through a heritage of hundreds or thousands of years—like the toads of Mount Myōboku or the snakes of Ryūchi Cave.
Such existences were few and far between in the entire Ninja World.
Even in Konoha, the number of Ninjas who could contract such summoning beasts could be counted on one hand.
Among them was the strongest Hokage—the Third Hokage.
He never expected to encounter one today in this obscure little forest!
"This is trouble!"
Mori Toshio's entire body tensed up, his eyes fixed on Yang Jiu.
He was no longer thinking about whether he could leave.
A Ninja Beast that could speak would definitely not be weak, not to mention that the opponent was clearly the king of these Ninja wolves!
Could a being capable of leading dozens of Ninja wolves be an ordinary character?
Mori Toshio took several deep breaths, forcing himself to calm down.
He was an Elite Chunin of Konoha, a veteran of the battlefield who had seen great storms—he couldn't panic.
He stared at Yang Jiu, his voice cold, attempting to seize the moral high ground:
"I am Mori Toshio, an Elite Chunin of Konoha Village."
"It was your kin who attacked us first!"
"Furthermore, your kin killed two of my teammates!"
"Heh!"
Yang Jiu gave a cold laugh.
There wasn't a trace of warmth in that laughter.
"So, you're saying it's my fault?"
Mori Toshio gritted his teeth and said, "Yes."
After a pause, he added:
"However, I will report this matter to the Third Hokage first. The Sandaime will decide how to handle it."
Saying this, he felt his own tension ease slightly.
That's right, behind him was Konoha, the head of the Five Great Ninja Villages, the Konoha overseen by the strongest Hokage in history!
No matter how strong the opponent was, it was just a summoning beast. Any creature with a brain should know the consequences of offending Konoha.
As long as he could leave this forest...
A dark glint flashed in Mori Toshio's eyes.
When the time came, wouldn't it be up to Konoha to decide the fate of this Ninja Wolf clan?
No matter how powerful the opponent was, could they be more powerful than Konoha?
Could they be more powerful than the Third Hokage?
Yang Jiu listened quietly to Mori Toshio, the cold sneer on his lips deepening.
"Report to the Sandaime?"
"Let the Sandaime decide how to handle it?"
Mori Toshio's heart skipped a beat.
The wolf's tone... was wrong.
He instinctively wanted to retreat, but as soon as his foot moved—
"Shua!"
A grey shadow was already lunging at him!
So fast!
Mori Toshio's pupils constricted, and his body instinctively rolled to the side, clumsily dodging the pounce.
But his arm was still grazed; his sleeve instantly tore, leaving three deep bloody gashes on his skin.
"You—"
Before he could finish, Yang Jiu lunged again.
Mori Toshio gnashed his teeth and his hands rapidly formed seals—
"Wind Release: Gale Palm!"
Boom!
A violent hurricane erupted from his palms, blowing the incoming Yang Jiu backward.
Yang Jiu flipped in the air, landing on all fours and sliding several meters before steadying himself.
Mori Toshio seized the opportunity, his hands forming seals at high speed—
"Fire Release: Great Fireball Technique!"
He took a deep breath, his chest swelling high, then exhaled forcefully!
Boom!
A massive fireball over two meters in diameter shot out from his mouth! The searing flames instantly illuminated the dim forest, and a heatwave swept outward like a tide; the surrounding leaves curled and blackened instantly, and the air itself distorted.
Trailing a long tail of flame, the fireball roared straight toward Yang Jiu!