บท 66: It's Their Turn

The reality was undeniable: this hadn't been a battle, but a total annihilation.

Although it was hard for them to admit, the fact was irrefutable: Luo Lei, acting alone, had massacred nearly 2,000 shinobi from Iwagakure, including the Four-Tails and Five-Tails Jinchūriki.

There was no doubt: Luo Lei was a monster among monsters, surpassing even the Third Raikage.

"Victory... we've won" someone murmured, disbelief still present in their voice.

"The Four-Tails Jinchūriki... vaporized."

"Hurrah! Luo Lei-sama annihilated the Iwagakure army all by himself! What unimaginable power!"

Among the Konoha ranks, thousands of ninja watched with stunned expressions. Slowly, the reality of their victory sank in, and looks of relief and joy began to be exchanged.

A collective thought ran through their minds: how fortunate they were to have Luo Lei as their Superhero.

The mere idea of facing him on the battlefield chilled their blood.

Obito, his mentality completely shaken, reflected: "With such power, a single person can decide the outcome of a war. Not even the tailed beasts or the Jinchūriki are a match for him."

His confidence in the Will of Fire wavered, replaced by a new admiration for the brute force that Luo Lei represented.

"Luo Lei-san has taken a very different path than we expected" Kakashi, beside him, could only sigh.

Rin, her eyes dimmed, murmured: "He's too strong..."

After a long silence, Jiraiya finally spoke, his voice laden with conflicting emotions: "Victory!"

"Everyone, prepare to clean up the battlefield."

Shikaku, Chōza, Inoichi, Minato, and the other leaders nodded silently, suppressing the shock in their hearts.

Iwagakure had been annihilated, but they had no part in it. It wasn't that they were incompetent; Luo Lei was simply on another level.

"Little Jiraiya, we're leaving" announced Fukasaku.

"You Konoha folks are truly... unique," added Shima, her gaze fixed on Luo Lei.

With a puff of smoke, the sage toads disappeared, ready to report to the Great Toad Sage about what they had witnessed.

They hoped to discover what kind of power Luo Lei had awakened, and why he seemed to have transcended the limits of what it meant to be a ninja.

....

"Humph!" The sound of disdain escaped Luo Lei's lips as his eyes fell upon the last survivors of Iwagakure: Shibito, Akatsuchi, and a handful of jōnin.

The killing intent emanating from him was palpable.

"S-Shibito-sama! What do we do?" A jōnin's voice trembled with fear.

"What if... we surrender?" suggested another, terror evident in his eyes. "As long as we live, there's hope."

"Luo Lei is a demon who kills without blinking" murmured a third, instinctively stepping back.

The remaining jōnin, paralyzed by fear, began to retreat. The idea of surrendering, of surviving this massacre, seemed the only sensible option.

"Silence!"

Shibito's voice cut through their thoughts of escape. "The will of stone is unbreakable!" His eyes burned with fury and determination. "If we surrender now, will our more than 2,000 comrades have died in vain? Even if we die, we'll resist to the end."

Luo Lei observed the scene with interest. "Just you?" he said with his eyes fixed on Shibito.

"Kill me if you can," Shibito challenged with a firm voice despite the trembling in his hands.

Chakra began to emanate from his body as he prepared a jutsu he had been saving for a moment like this.

FZZZT!

A beam of white light began to form between Shibito's palms. The Kekkei Tōta was taking shape.

"If you were Ōnoki, maybe I'd be worried. But you... you're too weak." Luo Lei shook his head with pity.

To everyone's amazement, Luo Lei charged directly towards the forming jutsu.

Boom!

The beam of white light exploded on contact with Luo Lei, unleashing a shockwave. But when the dust settled, Luo Lei remained standing, completely unharmed.

"How...?" Shibito was paralyzed with disbelief. "The Kekkei Tōta didn't even scratch him?"

His secret weapon, the jutsu in which he had placed all his hopes, had proven completely useless.

"You can die now" Luo Lei declared, appearing in front of Shibito in the blink of an eye. His eyes glowed with that unsettling crimson hue.

"NO!" Shibito's scream was heart-wrenching, his final act.

But it was too late.

FZZZZT!

The thermal vision struck directly at his head. In an instant, the leader of Iwagakure ceased to exist, his body collapsing lifeless.

"I... I surrender!" The desperate cry broke the silence.

"What...?" Disbelief mixed with terror in the voices of the survivors.

"He's a demon... a true demon!"

Shibito's death was the last straw.

Akatsuchi and the remaining 40-plus Jōnin completely broke down. Panic spread like wildfire, and in seconds, they scattered in all directions, desperately fleeing from the monster who had annihilated their army.

Luo Lei observed the scene with a smile. Instead of pursuing them, he turned to Jiraiya, Minato, Shikaku, and the other Konoha leaders. "Begin," he ordered.

"Clean up this mess and make sure not to leave any prisoners."

The order fell like a bomb among the Konoha ninja. Jiraiya, Minato, and Shikaku exchanged looks of disbelief. Was Luo Lei really ordering them to execute the survivors? Wasn't the massacre that had already occurred enough?

"Understood!" Shikaku's voice cut through the stunned silence.

Without wasting a second, he sprang into action, closely followed by Chōza, Inoichi, and other high-ranking ninja. Their faces reflected a mixture of horror and determination.

Jiraiya and Minato were the last to react. Gritting their teeth, they finally nodded and joined the hunt.

________

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