As Veigar and Sahuto clashed in close combat, one of Veigar's Shadow Clones, which had intercepted an attack from a Sand ninja puppet master, suddenly leapt into the air and hurled a kunai directly at the enemy.
Kunai Shadow Clone Technique.
In an instant, dozens of kunai flew toward the Sand ninja, peppering the battlefield as they struck the ground.
Under Veigar's relentless assault, a flicker of fear appeared in Sahuto's eyes.
"I… I'm going to lose?"
"No… impossible."
His mind howled in denial, and with that surge of desperation, his strikes became more frenzied, his blade slicing the air with renewed ferocity.
Clang!
Their blades collided again, but just as Sahuto unleashed a sweeping kick—
Veigar vanished.
Instantly. Without a trace.
When he reappeared, he was right beside the puppet-wielding Sand ninja, locked in combat with Veigar's clone.
The blade flashed. Blood erupted.
"Aaaagh—!"
The Sand ninja puppet master never understood why he died. The truth? It was simply because of the kunai lying at his feet.
Flying Raijin Technique.
The kunai Veigar had thrown, the one his clone had launched, was the marker.
Hearing the scream behind him, Sahuto turned instinctively. When he saw Veigar standing there, his pupils shrank.
"How… how is this possible?"
Veigar didn't spare him a glance. Even if he had sensed Sahuto's shock, he wouldn't have cared.
Rather than continuing their duel, Veigar preferred to cut down more Sand shinobi.
To Sahuto's horror, Veigar's figure flickered and vanished again, like a specter, only to reappear behind yet another Sand ninja.
Slash. Slash. Slash…
Veigar darted through the battlefield like a wraith. Each time he reemerged, a Sand ninja fell lifelessly to the ground.
"Agh! Agh! Agh—!"
Amidst the chaos, no one noticed that each slain Sand ninja had a kunai inscribed with a special seal lying by their feet.
The battlefield echoed with screams as Veigar's ghostly assault sent waves of fear rippling through the Sand shinobi ranks.
"There's a ghost—!"
"Run—run now!"
Under the oppressive aura of death, fear spread like wildfire. The Sand shinobi's morale began to crack.
Their will to fight teetered on the edge.
The Konoha shinobi, who had formed a defensive formation, watched in awe as Veigar wreaked havoc. With Sand's formation faltering, their morale surged.
"Kill them!"
"Counterattack!"
"Wipe them out!"
The Konoha ninja shouted as they performed hand seals in unison:
Water Release: Surging Wave!
Lightning Release: Ground Pulse!
Earth Release: Great Mud River!
Fire Release: Grand Flame Bullet!
Wind Release: Gale Breakthrough!
Five elemental jutsu surged from their ranks and crashed into the enemy lines.
The counterattack had begun.
Thanks to Veigar's sudden and overwhelming assault, the tide of battle had completely turned. Sahuto, who had just impaled one of Veigar's clones with his blade, stood grim-faced.
Yet he still refused to believe they'd lose to Konoha.
"Fight! Don't be afraid!"
As he bellowed, he failed to notice that the clone he had just skewered was grinning devilishly.
Boom.
Shlick!
As the clone dispersed in a puff of smoke, Sahuto's head flew from his shoulders.
"This… this is my body…"
Even as his consciousness faded, Sahuto's final thoughts echoed, his disembodied gaze fixed on the lifeless corpse beneath him.
"Sahuto-sama is dead!"
"We've lost—run for your lives!"
His death shattered the last threads holding Sand's morale together. Panic consumed the battlefield as the Sand shinobi broke ranks and fled.
Their combat strength collapsed entirely, while Konoha's forces surged forward with renewed vigor.
Elsewhere on the battlefield, Shikuro and Yamashi were locked in a desperate struggle against three Sand shinobi, one of whom was a Jōnin puppet master named Kiyohane.
The situation looked dire.
Veigar, having ended Sahuto, was exhausted. The Flying Raijin Technique, especially in its first real combat deployment, had consumed a significant portion of his chakra, less than one-fifth remained.
But seeing the plight of Shikuro and Yamashi, Veigar knew he couldn't afford to stop.
In small-scale battles, a single Jōnin could tip the scales decisively.
Veigar's blade gleamed as the Flying Raijin seal extended across its surface. With a flick of his wrist, he hurled it into the fray.
The short sword tore through the air, bypassing the two Sand Jōnin on the front lines, flying straight toward Kiyohane in the back, who was controlling his puppets.
"Too slow."
Kiyohane scoffed at the approaching weapon, turning his head just as it brushed past his cheek.
And then—
Veigar vanished.
"Wind Release: Rasengan!"
He reappeared midair, behind Kiyohane, left hand gripping the blade's hilt, right hand forming a Wind-enhanced Rasengan.
This was Veigar's final attack. His chakra reserves were completely drained.
He knew that Kiyohane, the support from the rear, posed a greater threat to his comrades than the frontliners.
With a roar of fury, Veigar slammed the Wind Rasengan into Kiyohane's back.
The puppet master's eyes widened. His mind realized the threat, but his body couldn't react.
Boom!
The force sent Kiyohane flying as blood gushed from his mouth, his body hurled directly into the path of the Sand Jōnin who was dueling Yamashi.
"Now's our chance!"
With Kiyohane's puppets no longer a factor, Yamashi broke free. Sliding his ninjatō back into its sheath, he performed a Shadow Clone Technique.
Two clones stood beside him, then all three struck simultaneously.
Konoha Style: Crescent Moon Dance.
Slash. Slash. Slash.
The Sand Jōnin, just recovering from the puppet master's collision, staggered. As he stumbled, three gleaming blades converged.
One swift slice, decapitation.
Two heads flew through the air, severed cleanly behind Yamashi.
Now, only one Sand Jōnin remained.
Boom.
Veigar, having launched his final strike, collapsed to the ground, completely spent. But when he saw Yamashi dispatch the last two foes, a weary smile tugged at his lips.
The tide had turned.
With Yamashi and Shikuro working together, the last Sand Jōnin would fall soon. The rest of the enemy force was too scattered and demoralized to pose a threat.
Veigar deactivated the remaining Shadow Clones on the main battlefield and swallowed a Soldier Pill to regain some strength.
Meanwhile, the last remaining Sand Jōnin, Sanada Shun, still locked in combat with Shikuro, saw Yamashi's double kill.
His face turned pale.
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