บท 144: Chapter 144: Fire, Wind, and ... Lava?!!
"Huh?"
"Is Konoha planning to launch an attack?"
Hozuki Shingetsu was puzzled as he watched Shūichi split into clones.
At that moment, a commotion broke out within the Mist Ninja army.
"Watch out! Poisonous snakes are crawling out!"
"Quick, kill them all!"
…
At six different locations, poisonous snakes emerged, slithering around. The Mist Ninja were initially startled, but they quickly acted, easily taking down the snakes.
"Why are there poisonous snakes here?"
Shingetsu frowned and turned his head to look, then suddenly recalled a certain person from Konoha.
"Orochimaru's handiwork... this is bad!"
He remembered the Sand Ninja's mention of a space-time jutsu, and cold sweat drenched his back.
Shingetsu turned toward the Konoha forces just in time to see Shūichi disappear.
"Lit—"
Before Shingetsu could finish his sentence, three Shūichi Hoshitas appeared in the midst of the Mist Ninja army.
One was at the left flank, another at the middle rear, and the third on the right flank.
The appearance of Shūichi stunned the surrounding Mist Ninja for a moment, followed by a series of frantic screams.
"Watch out!"
"It's Shūichi Hoshita!"
"Kill him, now!"
…
Despite the army being assembled together, the Mist Ninja's formation was still relatively sparse.
Shouting in fury, the Mist Ninja attacked, drawing the attention of others, which only caused further chaos.
But Shūichi's movements were even quicker. The moment he appeared, two blue flame dragon heads had already formed on his shoulders. As their mouths opened, a blazing white light began to gather, and then a white beam shot forth.
Dragon Flame Breath!
Pew pew pew… Like skewers, the high-temperature beams pierced through one Mist Ninja after another until a water-style jutsu blocked it.
In that instant, Shūichi's real body and his clones had already inflicted over thirty casualties on the Mist Ninja.
At the same time, as the attack unfolded, chains whipped out from behind Shūichi with a metallic clatter. They moved like dragons and snakes, deflecting the incoming shuriken, piercing through the Mist Ninja who had leapt forward, igniting them like torches. Their anguished screams filled the air before they were flung away.
Boom!
Water-style techniques erupted, and more Mist Ninja reacted, launching water dragons and massive torrents toward Shūichi's position.
Shūichi's Fire Nether Chains retracted, burrowing into the ground and transforming into a barrier.
Boom!
Various water-style jutsus collided with the three barriers, causing steam to rise and rapidly spread.
Inside the barrier, Shūichi had already brought his hands together in a seal.
At this point, Hozuki Shingetsu was drenched in sweat, shouting orders repeatedly: "Don't panic!"
"Spread out the formation!"
"Encircle him heavily!"
"Stay alert for Konoha's forces!"
If Konoha were to charge at this moment... Shingetsu continued to issue commands while keeping a watchful eye on the Konoha army.
Thankfully, the opposing side didn't seem to have any immediate intention of advancing. Was there some sort of hidden plot?
A sense of unease welled up in Shingetsu's heart.
Meanwhile, on the Konoha side, many of the ninja had their eyes wide open, unable to stop gulping in disbelief.
"He's... just charging in by himself?"
"Shūichi... is incredible!"
"But... are we just going to watch?"
...
Even the ordinary Konoha ninjas, let alone the jōnin, couldn't help but voice their concern as they saw the Mist Ninja army fall into disarray. One jōnin from the Sarutobi clan, Sarutobi Shinichi, couldn't hold back and asked, "Lord Orochimaru, are we just going to stand here? Isn't this the best opportunity to strike?"
Orochimaru, who was intently watching the Mist Ninja forces, his body tense, smiled when he heard Shinichi's question. He spoke with a calm demeanor, "No need to rush, Shinichi. We haven't reached the moment that Shūichi and I agreed upon yet."
Agreed upon? What agreement?
The Konoha ninjas were all curious.
Meanwhile, within the Mist Ninja army, in just a short amount of time, the Mist had surrounded Shūichi, forming three concentric circles around him. No longer on the outskirts of the army, Shūichi was now completely surrounded.
As the water vapor dissipated, Shūichi retracted his barrier. Immediately, water-style jutsu from all directions rushed at him. In response, fire lotus flowers bloomed on Shūichi's body, launching smaller, blue fireballs—each about the size of a fist—like a barrage of blue lotus seeds.
Each blue lotus seed collided with the incoming water streams and exploded, blooming into blue petals of fire.
This was a Flame-Wind Vacuum Slash, a combination of fire and wind-style techniques.
The collision between fire and water created continuous booms, but some of Shūichi's Blue Flame Vacuum Slashes cut through the water, piercing the Mist Ninja.
Boom boom boom!
The blue lotus seeds were launched one after another, continuously exploding, tearing apart the Mist Ninja's encirclement. What was once a formation became a deadly sea of flames, filled with Mist Ninja's anguished screams.
At that moment, the combination of wind and fire had overcome the water-style jutsu! This was yet another improvement of Shūichi's Fire Prison Lotus.
The intense collision between fire and water generated a thick mist, preventing the outer layer of Mist Ninja from seeing the battlefield clearly. They could only hear the terrifying screams of their comrades, filling them with fear.
When the explosion and screams subsided, and the mist was blown away, a sharp screeching sound echoed through the Mist Ninja ranks.
"What is that…"
"That chakra… it's overwhelming!"
"Damn it!"
The Mist Ninja stared in horror as Shūichi raised a rapidly spinning, blinding wheel of light, resembling a giant windmill.
Hozuki Shingetsu turned to look as well, muttering, "Wind-style… Fire-style… and… Lava-style… Damn it!"
"Scatter!"
"All units, use water-style jutsu!"
Shingetsu shouted with all his might.
Not only him, but other high-ranking Mist Ninja, including many jōnin and chūnin, also began barking orders, urging their forces to retreat and quickly form seals.
The other Mist Ninja followed suit, using the fastest hand seals they knew to cast their water-style jutsu.
Wind Release: Rasenshuriken!
Wind-Fire Rasenshuriken!
Lava Release: Rasenshuriken!
Shūichi's real body used the Lava Release Rasenshuriken, while his two clones each used one of the other two variants.
"If you've started a war… then first, feel the pain!"
Shūichi spoke, and then his clones dispersed. His real body vanished from the battlefield, reappearing next to Asuka.
Immediately, Orochimaru and the Konoha ninjas witnessed two rapidly expanding orbs of light, one of which contained swirling lava. The brightness not only illuminated the night sky but was so intense that they had to avert their eyes.
Under the light of these orbs, the hundreds of Mist Ninja appeared insignificant, swallowed in an instant by the blazing radiance.
"He's… so strong!"
"That kind of jutsu… it's unbelievable!"
"This level of power is beyond us… It's like he's on a completely different level!"
"Gulp… Could Lord Shūichi wipe out all the Mist Ninja by himself?"
…
"Shūichi-kun, you never cease to amaze me!" Orochimaru grinned, his eyes gleaming with excitement as he watched the overwhelming display of ninjutsu.
"Beautiful! Absolutely beautiful! This is the true allure of ninjutsu!"
Shūichi accepted Orochimaru's praise with a smile, reminding him, "A storm is coming next."
As his words fell, the massive orbs of light abruptly shrank, and a powerful wind swept through the area, accompanied by pouring rain that drenched the Konoha ninjas.
The rain wasn't cold—it was hot!
On the other side of the battlefield, atop a hill covered in shrubs, Zetsu, half-buried in the ground, also gazed at the dazzling display of light. "What an incredible jutsu!"
"This guy, Shūichi Hoshita… is he really that strong?"
"They say he's only twelve years old?"
"What was I even doing when I was twelve?" Zetsu mused to himself, genuinely reflecting.
At the forest's edge, Orochimaru turned to Shūichi and asked, "Shūichi-kun, is it time to attack?"
Shūichi nodded. "Yes, it's time."
Without hesitation, Orochimaru raised his hand and ordered, "Charge!"
He was the first to leap into action.
Shūichi followed, leading Uchiha Shisui and the others, and soon the Konoha ninjas, their blood boiling with excitement, rushed out of the forest and charged toward the Mist Ninja.
But… weren't the Mist Ninja already taken care of by Lord Shūichi?
...
The three Rasenshuriken had left behind a massive crater, filled with water like a lake, with numerous Mist Ninjas floating on the surface, their condition uncertain.
Not only inside the crater, but even outside, in the areas covered with pooled water, there were Mist Ninjas lying everywhere.
Some of them appeared unharmed, while others were charred black from head to toe.
With a splash, the liquified form of Hozuki Shingetsu emerged, his body gradually reforming. As he surveyed the battlefield strewn with bodies, his mind went blank for a moment.
"Hmm?"
"Ahh!"
One by one, Mist Ninjas who had been knocked unconscious by the impact started waking up.
Shingetsu finally snapped back to reality, almost weeping with relief.
More and more Mist Ninjas began to rise to their feet, but when Shingetsu turned toward the Konoha forces, his expression changed.
Konoha was charging!
"Retreat! Retreat immediately!"
"Withdraw toward the river!"
Shingetsu shouted his orders.
Even though more Mist Ninjas were getting up, it was clear that continuing to fight was impossible under these circumstances.
And that Shūichi Hoshita...
With unwavering decisiveness, Shingetsu led over a hundred Mist Ninjas in retreat.
Shūichi and his group quickly caught up, and the Mist Ninjas who had just regained consciousness were struck down again by shuriken as soon as they rose.
Without pausing, Orochimaru led part of the force in pursuit, while a smaller group of Konoha ninjas remained behind to clear the battlefield.
Although the three Rasenshuriken had covered the entire Mist Ninja force, it was clear that not all had been killed.
...
Watching the fleeing Mist Ninjas ahead, Shūichi's feet bloomed with fire lotuses, propelling him high into the sky.
Under the watchful eyes of Orochimaru and the others, the lotus patterns on Shūichi's chakra cloak began to come alive.
In an instant, layers of blue lotuses bloomed behind him.
Boom!
With a sonic boom, Shūichi broke the sound barrier, trailing a long tail of flame as he shot forward like a meteor, cutting through the night sky.
"So fast!"
The Konoha ninjas exclaimed in amazement.
In mere moments, the fleeing Mist Ninjas looked up, only to see a streak of fire descending from the sky.
Boom!
Shūichi landed directly in front of them, blocking their path.
He raised his hands, and two dragon heads materialized, one on each shoulder.
Dragon Flame Breath!
High-temperature beams shot out, piercing through the bodies of the Mist Ninjas, who screamed in agony as they fell.
"Scatter and retreat!"
Shingetsu dodged nimbly, forming hand seals, but before he could complete his jutsu, the sound of something cutting through the air reached him. Shūichi appeared right in front of him, gripping his throat with his right hand.
Splash!
Shingetsu liquefied, his body collapsing into a stream of water.
At that moment, Shūichi deactivated his fire-style chakra mode. Accompanied by the chirping sound of a thousand birds, lightning surged from his body, crackling outward.
Chidori!
The electrified Shingetsu was instantly paralyzed, his liquified form solidifying like jelly.
"Captain!"
"Lord Shingetsu!"
Several Mist Ninjas cried out, some of whom had already retreated but turned back upon seeing this. However, in the next moment, their advancing bodies collapsed and rolled across the ground.
Genjutsu – Binding Illusion!
As he watched the remaining Mist Ninjas scatter in all directions, Shūichi decided not to pursue them.
With the leader captured, the rest could be left to Orochimaru and the others.
By now, the rest of the Konoha forces had caught up. Some stayed with Orochimaru, while the others spread out to chase down the remaining Mist Ninjas.
This battle was destined to end in the total annihilation of the Mist Ninja army.
(End of Chapter)
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