Within Konoha's encampment in the Land of the Moon, the atmosphere was as taut as a drawn bowstring.
Row upon row of tents lay silent beneath the gloomy sky, rain tapping a fine rustle against their canvas tops.
The air was thick with the scent of damp earth, wet leather, and an indescribable mix of anxiety and anticipation.
Led by Jiraiya, the Konoha jonin all fixed their gazes on the few individuals in the open area at the center of the encampment.
Hyuga Kawa stood at the very front, looking up at the distant battlefield, rain sliding down his cheeks.
Heavy cumulonimbus clouds rolled endlessly, hanging low and inky black. Deep within the clouds, occasional flashes of ghostly white lightning silently ripped through the darkness.
"Kawa."
Jiraiya had shed his usual carefree demeanor, his expression unprecedentedly solemn. Rain plastered his white hair to his body.
"I'm here," Hyuga Kawa softly responded.
"Remember, don't overexert yourself," Jiraiya pursed his lips, admonishing him. "Your plan is perfect, and Cloud Hidden hasn't noticed anything unusual yet, but your safety comes first!"
"I understand." Hyuga Kawa nodded, his voice firm. "For Konoha, we will not fail."
His reply remained concise, as if any more promises would be superfluous.
Upon hearing this, Jiraiya's gaze subtly shifted, and the eyes of the others similarly changed.
Hyuga Kawa looked at Kakashi beside him. Kakashi's Sharingan gazed at the distant dark clouds, and he nodded upon sensing Kawa's gaze.
Seeing this, Hyuga Kawa then slightly turned, his gaze sweeping over the dozen or so fully equipped individuals behind him, and he called out loudly: "Everyone, are you ready?"
Each person had a flying ninja beast by their side, and every face showed a mix of tension, excitement, and determination.
Just thinking about what they were about to do made their bodies tremble involuntarily.
Without a word, their burning gazes converged on Hyuga Kawa, on this young man who would lead them to achieve great deeds!
"Assault squad in position!" The leading jonin licked his lips excitedly.
The entire encampment seemed to hold its breath. Rain pelted against everyone's goggles and headbands, the tapping sound the only background noise at this moment.
Even the patrolling ninja stopped in their tracks, their eyes involuntarily drawn to those figures.
The next moment, two streaks of white light suddenly extended from behind Hyuga Kawa.
What appeared before everyone's eyes was a pair of enormous wings.
As they unfolded, every feather was clearly visible, layer upon layer, perfectly textured, their edges emanating a soft white glow.
"Go!"
As Hyuga Kawa's words fell, the white wings behind him elegantly and gently flapped downwards!
Whoosh!!
A powerful gust of wind instantly pressed down. The puddles on the ground were suddenly compressed, forming a clear, concave basin of water.
The surrounding curtain of rain was instantly blown away and cleared. The tent flaps were violently torn and flapped by the airflow, and Hyuga Kawa's figure abruptly ascended into the sky.
Under everyone's gazes of anticipation, astonishment, or shock, the white figure ascended through the gloomy rain curtain with an undeniable, solemn, and steady demeanor.
And the others, each in their own way, followed closely behind that figure, soaring against the cold rain, rising towards the heavy cumulonimbus clouds!
Only the rain curtain, briefly pushed aside by the immense wind pressure and then gradually closing in, remained on the open ground, along with a group of Konoha ninja holding their breath, their hearts churning with turbulent emotions.
"..."
Jiraiya's fists clenched involuntarily, his gaze following the rapidly shrinking figures in the sky, his eyes filled with complex emotions.
Hyuga Kawa's displayed temperament, talent, and strategic mind moved him deeply.
Undoubtedly, this was "hope" once again bestowed upon Konoha by a deity, just like Minato Namikaze once was.
But if Kawa's plan truly succeeded, he would undoubtedly become the target of hatred for countless Cloud Hidden ninja.
At that time, Kumogakure's "Two-Tails jinchūriki," Yugito Nii, would descend into madness, holding nothing back...
"You must come back safely, or I won't be able to explain to the old man," Jiraiya murmured softly, his gaze gradually firming. He abruptly turned and walked back into the tent.
If the young ones were fighting so desperately.
He, as a senior, also had to do what he had to do.
The lead-grey clouds hung heavily over the Land of the Moon battlefield.
Raindrops smashing onto the ground no longer created splashes of water, but rather dark red mud mixed with fresh blood and scorched earth.
The ground had been ravaged beyond recognition by ninjutsu and explosions. Rainwater flowed through the scorched earth's trenches and craters, forming several turbid streams tinted a sickly pink.
As far as the eye could see, broken kunai and shuriken were deeply embedded in the mud. Body remains lay like forgotten refuse, scattered in the mire and sewage.
The border of the Land of the Moon had now become a quagmire of blood and fire.
"Cloud Style: Flame Slice!"
Atsui swung his ninja blade, wreathed in flames, incinerating a charging Konoha ninja. He panted heavily, looking around with exhaustion.
The air he inhaled was thick with the suffocating smell of intense gunpowder, along with the heavy, cloying sweetness of evaporating blood and the stench of burnt flesh.
Each breath felt like forcefully stuffing a wad of blood-soaked, damp cotton into his lungs—cold, wet, yet scorching and irritating.
Konoha's assault was like a frantic tide, accompanied by rising and falling roars and shouts, crashing against the Cloud Hidden defenses wave after wave.
This offensive was even fiercer than previous ones.
"Hot, hot, hot! So hot!"
Despite the cold rain constantly hitting his face, Atsui felt his skin burning hot from the searing heatwave. He couldn't even tell if it was sweat or rain on his body.
He blurted out his catchphrase, parried a Konoha ninja, and said in a hoarse voice, "Are these Konoha bastards crazy?"
Konoha had used far too many explosive tags in these recent offensives!
Boom! Boom!
As he had this thought, loud explosions, like continuous war drums, erupted in bursts of red fire, but were quickly extinguished by the rain.
They only left more scorched craters on the ground, and rising hot air currents.
Two Cloud Hidden ninja near the center of the explosion were ripped to shreds before they could even scream, their severed limbs and broken bodies splattering with hot mud.
But this kind of loss was not worth it at all!
So many explosive tags just to kill two Cloud Hidden ninja? It was a complete waste! Did Konoha not consider the future of the war?!
"Fire Release: Dragon Fire Technique!"
Feeling the heat surge from behind him, Atsui unhesitatingly dodged sideways. The next moment, a stream of fire grazed him, stinging his skin with a burning sensation.
The flames instantly evaporated and dried up a section of the puddle, engulfing two Cloud Hidden ninja who couldn't dodge in time. A searing heatwave, carrying the smell of charring and piercing screams, spread outwards.
Pfft!
Atsui appeared behind the Konoha ninja, his flaming blade cutting off their head.
He subconsciously glanced at the headless corpse on the ground.
Just as he was about to look away, he suddenly froze.
But when he looked back at the corpse again, he couldn't find that fleeting abnormality he had just seen.
"What's going on?"
Atsui stared intently at the corpse, his gaze repeatedly scanning it, mumbling: "Where is it? Where exactly is the abnormality?"
There must be something very important, yet overlooked, abnormality!
He had clearly discovered it just now!
"No!"
Suddenly, he gritted his teeth, hoisted the headless corpse onto his shoulder, called his two teammates to follow, and without time to explain to them, turned and rushed towards the encampment behind them.
There must! There must be something overlooked!
Even if he couldn't find it now, he had to let his sister know. His sister would definitely be able to find it!