Trying to figure out what exactly the Fourth Raikage was up to,
Deidara and the others hadn't expected the Raikage to erupt in fury at the mere mention of him.
"Was it your old lies, Ōnoki?
If it weren't for your false intel, would our two jinchūriki have even been captured?!"
"Raikiri!!!"
As he spoke, the Fourth Raikage flashed forward,
his elbow crackling with lightning,
swinging like a guillotine directly at Ōnoki.
The speed alone made even Ōnoki flinch.
"You little brat, no honor!!"
"A sneak attack!!"
Seeing there was no way to dodge,
Ōnoki quickly shrank into his rock colossus body.
"BOOM!!!"
A deafening explosion erupted,
and the head of the rock giant was completely sliced off by the Raikage's strike,
breaking clean from its neck.
"Father!!!"
"Crap! Lord Tsuchikage!"
"You old fart!"
The Iwagakure soldiers were terrified,
thinking their leader had been decapitated.
Fortunately, Ōnoki emerged from the rock colossus unharmed,
gazing at the severed head with a shudder,
relieved he had narrowly avoided a fatal strike.
With Ōnoki safe, the Iwagakure army let out a collective sigh of relief.
But before anyone could catch their breath,
the Fourth Raikage launched another blitz,
bathed entirely in crackling lightning.
He darted around Ōnoki with lethal precision,
each strike aimed at vital points.
Even with Ōnoki's rock colossus to block and counter,
Earth Release remained no match for Lightning Release.
Despite Ōnoki's mastery of nature transformation,
the Raikage was equally adept.
When both sides manipulate elemental chakra,
it was as if neither truly had the advantage—
but Lightning Release still countered Earth Release.
Soon, the rock giant Ōnoki controlled was torn to pieces.
Seeing the danger, Ōnoki quickly formed a massive Earth Release: Rock Arm,
hiding beneath it while creating multiple rock clones.
Just as they prepared to clash again,
a large contingent suddenly appeared at the edge of the battlefield.
"Wait a moment!!!"
KACH!!
As Ōnoki prepared to move, the Fourth Raikage barked,
and the sound of snapping bones echoed.
Ōnoki's face went pale.
He clutched his old back and collapsed to the ground.
"Oi!!! My back!!!"
"It hurts! It hurts!!"
Stopping mid-action had worsened his already fragile spine.
He glared at the Raikage, thinking:
If you don't explain yourself, I'll scatter your ashes!
Before Ōnoki could speak, the Raikage pointed.
Following his gesture, Ōnoki froze—
at the edge of the battlefield,
Konoha's army had arrived, though no one noticed exactly when.
Outside the battlefield, Byakuya watched the chaos with delight,
especially the duel between Ōnoki and the Raikage.
It was truly spectacular.
The old man from Iwagakure was stronger than expected,
and his Dust Release alone was enough to make Byakuya cautious.
Even he, with his defensive abilities, wouldn't want to test it head-on—
a single mistake and Dust Release could wipe him out.
While Byakuya watched the battle,
Uchiha Itachi arrived with his squad,
having left the village to join the fight.
This time, Itachi had brought a few extra people.
"Byakuya-sama, these were sent by Danzo to assist you."
"They said you would definitely need them."
On their way out of the village,
Itachi's squad had met Danzo, waiting at the village entrance.
Itachi had no love for Danzo.
Even though Shisui had defended him before dying, claiming Danzo acted to protect Konoha in his own way,
the loss of his friend left Itachi with deep resentment.
But with the Uchiha clan now in a strong position,
this war could erase past grievances and fully integrate them into Konoha's society.
Seeing Danzo,
Itachi maintained his composure and greeted him respectfully:
"Danzo-sama!"
Danzo nodded in satisfaction.
This is proper.
Konoha didn't need proud Uchiha—they needed humble ones.
"Itachi, you're heading to the front lines."
"Take these men with you."
"Byakuya will need them more than I will."
With that, several Root operatives stepped forward.
Itachi nodded, letting them join his squad.
"I'll bring them to Byakuya-sama safely," he assured Danzo,
then led everyone swiftly toward the front lines.
This explained the scene at the start of the chapter.
"Sent by Grandpa?"
Byakuya's gaze fell on the masked operatives.
He ordered them to remove their masks,
revealing their faces:
Yamato, skilled in Wood Release.Medic-nin Yakushi Nonou.Aburame Ryoma, who had partnered with Orochimaru.
Well, except for Aburame Ryoma,
the first two were exactly the people Byakuya had most needed.
He hadn't expected Danzo to assign them to him.
"Hahaha!"
"Excellent! Yamato, show your talent~"
Yamato paused in surprise—
Byakuya even knew him!
But remembering that Byakuya was Danzo's grandson,
it wasn't so strange.
Under everyone's watchful eyes,
he moved to a clear area.
Uchiha Fugaku and others were curious—
what ability could this Root shinobi possess to earn Byakuya-sama's respect?
What happened next shocked everyone.
"Wood Release: Four Pillars Technique!!!"
After a series of hand seals,
Yamato pressed his palms to the ground.
The once-flat terrain twisted,
and countless wooden pillars erupted,
forming a magnificent house before everyone's eyes.
"This is… Wood Release?!"
"WHAT?!"
"Am I seeing things?!"
"Wood Release of the First Hokage?!"
"Are you kidding?!"
Everyone present was stunned.
A lavish building had appeared from nothing—
and it was Wood Release.
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