Outside Uzushio Village, the mountain-sized Spirit Turtle slowly crawled toward the village.
Its shell was double-layered, and the plastron could open up to form a ramp. The villagers of Uzushio climbed up the slope and disappeared into the turtle's belly.
The Spirit Turtle of Uzushio Village was actually a mobile evacuation shelter.
Its mouth constantly blasted fierce winds, blowing away the Kumo-nin attacking its head.
As for its hardened shell, the Kumo-nin's techniques had no effect.
Yako watched the Spirit Turtle, pondering: What if someone disguised themselves as a villager and entered the shelter? If the defenses inside are weak, wouldn't that be a disaster?
The Spirit Turtle was extremely slow and couldn't distinguish whether someone beneath it was a Kumo spy or a villager.
Minutes later, the path the Spirit Turtle had crawled left behind massive pools of blood.
The vibrations from within made the Spirit Turtle cry out in anguish.
It opened the plates on its belly, and piles of corpses tumbled out.
Kumo-nin had infiltrated the double-layered interior of the shell and gone on a killing spree.
Behind the Spirit Turtle, corpses were piled high—each one with its throat slit, blood pooling around their necks.
Kumo-nin, when dealing with civilians, favored the quick and practiced method of throat-slitting.
Overhead, the Eight-Winged Crow flew repeatedly, dropping explosive eggs where the Kiri-nin were most densely gathered.
Each egg glowed red with Fire Release chakra, exploding with force equivalent to two or three explosive tags.
The energy of the Four Violet Flames Formation was being steadily drained by Kiri-nin using Water Release, so the crow mainly targeted those Kiri-nin collaborating on Water Release techniques.
After several Kiri-nin were blown apart, they quickly devised countermeasures.
Some launched Water Release, spraying thick geysers from the ground that shot the explosive eggs away, causing them to detonate midair.
But there were simply too many Kiri-nin, and the Eight-Winged Crow's harassment was proving only mildly effective.
Yako silently shook his head. Everything outside the Four Violet Flames Formation was utter carnage.
Negotiations near the formation had completely stalled.
The Uzumaki clan wasn't protecting the villagers, and the Kiri-nin and Kumo-nin continued slaughtering them.
In just three hours, the enemy forces had almost completely wiped out the civilians.
The river carried away wave after wave of bodies. Downstream, unaware of what was happening, the river became blocked—corpses piled up and stretched for hundreds of meters.
There were even more corpses around the Spirit Turtle, hindering its already sluggish movement.
Its massive body brought mountain-like weight. When its feet accidentally stepped on civilian corpses it couldn't avoid, the bodies were crushed into pulp.
To break the Uzumaki's will to resist, the Kumo-nin exhausted the Spirit Turtle, then flipped it onto its back using bound steel wires.
Explosive tags and ninja tools continued to rain down on it.
The Spirit Turtle retracted its head and limbs into its shell, but the seams weren't tightly sealed. The Kumo-nin found ways to exploit them—blood kept seeping out.
Add in the lightning shocks from Lightning Release, and the Spirit Turtle was paralyzed.
Its cries from within the shell were muffled and miserably tragic.
After enduring for five full hours, the Four Violet Flames Formation shattered with a deafening roar.
The barrier exploded into a wave of heat and shock, tearing through the surroundings.
Nearby buildings collapsed, and the Kumo-nin and Kiri-nin were startled—many were killed outright by the blast.
Even so, more Kiri-nin and Kumo-nin surged forward in excitement.
Yako lowered his binoculars and couldn't help glancing again at Danzo Shimura.
Danzo remained motionless.
The will of Root was cold as steel. A few allied casualties from other villages meant nothing.
Then—a second Four Violet Flames Formation appeared!
This one was smaller in scale, enclosing the Uzumaki clan's ancestral hall.
Looking through his binoculars, Yako saw that many women and children surrounded the hall.
Among them had to be Princess Kushina.
Aside from the women and children, even the clan head and the others remained outside the formation.
The clan head stood at the front, formed hand seals, and slammed both hands onto the ground.
Four massive puffs of white smoke erupted around him.
The Kiri-nin and Kumo-nin halted, watching closely—they didn't know what trump card the Uzumaki clan was about to play.
From the smoke burst forth four giant summoned beasts:
Hellsplit Hound, Charging Rhino, Giant Centipede, and Fighting Bull.
Yako was astonished. Aren't these the same giant summons that Nagato later used with the Animal Path?
No wonder Nagato had such powerful summons—turns out they were inherited from the Uzumaki clan!
But why weren't these left to Princess Kushina? How did they end up with an orphan in the Land of Rain?
Normal ninja couldn't handle giant summons.
The Hellsplit Hound tore through ninja with ease. When Hozuki Fugu personally intervened, it was forced back—but it didn't linger. It split into two and dashed toward other Kiri-nin.
Any strike that the Hellsplit Hound couldn't withstand only caused it to split further.
The smaller the split, the more agile it became. Kiri-nin were bitten clean in half as the hounds' jaws clamped down and flung them aside.
Entrails dangled from the Hellsplit Hound's teeth—it was a gruesome sight.
The Charging Rhino had thick armor on its body. Kunai and ninja tools were useless.
It lowered its head and charged wildly, crushing and sending Kumo-nin flying.
Even Water Formation Walls from the Kiri-nin were like thin waterfalls before the summon's power—shattered instantly.
The Giant Centipede used its body to cut the battlefield apart, isolating groups of Kiri-nin and giving the Uzumaki ninja a chance to concentrate attacks locally.
Adamantine Sealing Chains flashed—many Kiri-nin fell to these sealing arts.
With the help of these giant summons, the Uzumaki ninja launched a powerful counterattack.
Kiri-nin and Kumo-nin casualties soared.
Yako mused: The Uzumaki clan might actually turn this around.
But knowing Danzo, wouldn't Konoha now intervene to help the Kiri and Kumo forces?
One of the advisors unfurled a Sealing Scroll—it was full of Kumo-nin vests and forehead protectors.
Just as Yako suspected, Root was preparing to step in.
Disguising as ninja from other villages was a common Root tactic.
Once suspicion was eliminated, they could act without restraint.
However, Yellow Dog Unit Captain noticed something new and halted the advisor.
Upstream of the river, a boat appeared.
It moved swiftly and soon entered Uzushio Village.
A man stood at the bow, long hair flowing, eyes closed.
More importantly—he wore the Mizukage ceremonial robe!
Third Mizukage!
No one expected the Mizukage himself to show up at the battle of Uzushio.
Whenever a Kage left their village, it signaled a major incident.
Danzo took a step forward.
Clearly, even Danzo was now taking things seriously.
The Uzumaki clan had tried to seal the wild Three-Tails—that was like kicking a hornet's nest. Kirigakure came to exact revenge, no matter the cost.
They promised the Kumo-nin generous rewards, committed to wiping out Uzushio entirely, and launched an all-out war.
Not only that—the move had also angered Konoha's leadership. When talks failed, the Konoha elders sent Danzo to forcibly seize Princess Kushina.
One wonders whether the Uzumaki resent the First Hokage for giving the tailed beasts to the great villages, but not reserving one for their own clan.
Yako tugged at his collar. Now that I've figured out the truth as part of Root, will Danzo silence me?
The threat didn't just come from Kiri and Kumo—even Root was dangerous.
Yako continued observing through the binoculars, unsure what powers the Third Mizukage truly held.