Gamabunta, who had flown backwards, landed in the Sunagakure camp again, this time. Most of the puppet masters were still concentrating on controlling their puppets in battle, but they didn't expect to be crushed by the giant toad that fell from the sky, destroying most of their puppets and the Chakra threads connecting them. The puppet unit, caught off guard, suffered heavy losses instantly and fell into disarray.
"Hiss, that hurts. As expected of a Tailed Beast."
Gamabunta got up from the ground, feeling a bit dizzy, with a burned fist print on his forehead.
"I was careless. I didn't expect the Tailed Beast's combat intuition to be so sharp, even willing to trade blows."
Jiraiya knelt on top of Gamabunta's head. The dizzying spin just now was not easy to bear, and Jiraiya still felt a bit lightheaded.
...
"Hmph, foolish humans."
The Four-Tails lowered its fist and looked mockingly at Gamabunta and Jiraiya, who had flown backwards, and the humans around it who were injured by its aftermath. Its heart was instantly filled with immense satisfaction.
But before it could react, a voice suddenly came from above its head.
"Hey, big guy, look here!"
"Hmm?"
The Four-Tails looked up in confusion, only to see Ren rapidly descending through the air, raising a fist that was about the size of an ant in its eyes, and striking at it.
Seeing this, a humanised sneer appeared on the Four-Tails' face. It stood still, not even bothering to dodge, preparing to take the blow head-on. At the same time, it said disdainfully,
"That's it? Bu—"
Before the word 'but' could be fully uttered, Ren's fist landed on its head. The former smiled and whispered,
"Ridiculous!"
Monstrous Strength activated!
...
"Lord Jiraiya, are you alright?"
The Ino–Shika–Chō trio suddenly appeared on Gamabunta, looking around vigilantly while casting concerned glances at Jiraiya.
"I'm fine. Why are you here?"
Jiraiya looked at the trio in surprise. Shouldn't they be fighting Ebizo right now? If they're here, where did Ebizo go?
"Look over there, Sunagakure seems to be preparing to retreat."
"Hmm?"
Jiraiya looked over at the sound, only to see many Sunagakure Ninja already beginning to fight and retreat, while Ebizo had returned to the army to coordinate and command, ensuring their orderly retreat.
"We don't have time for them now. You continue to keep an eye on Sunagakure. Ren is still over there. I'll go over first..."
Before he could finish speaking, a roar came from the Four-Tails' side. The instantaneous loud noise even drowned out the shouts of battle on the battlefield. The Four-Tails' side once again became the focus of everyone's attention.
"No, no way."
Jiraiya's mouth hung open, his jaw nearly dropping in shock. The Ino–Shika–Chō trio beside him were no better, standing rooted to the spot like stunned chickens.
The Four-Tails, which had been so aggressive just moments ago, was once again pinned to the ground. Its Four-Tails hung limply, its red fur covered in dust, looking exceptionally dishevelled.
"Weren't you quite arrogant just now, Big Brother Four-Tails?"
Ren raised his fist, sliding it from the Four-Tails' forehead to its eye socket, meeting its gaze.
"You damn brat!"
The Four-Tails felt it hadn't been this angry in years. It had actually been knocked down by a brat in full view of everyone. If the other guys found out about this, they'd laugh it to death!
Seeing the Four-Tails' eyes gradually turn crimson, Ren felt a chill down his spine and quickly jumped to the ground, turning his head and running for his life.
"You can't escape..."
The Four-Tails murmured, looking at Ren's retreating back, then surveyed its surroundings with a violent gaze.
Damn humans, all of you, must die!
The Four-Tails braced its hands on the ground, and the massive Chakra within its body began to circulate, compressing and accumulating under its control. A powerful Chakra fluctuation emanated from its body, sending a shock through everyone on the battlefield.
"What is that monster doing?!"
Chiyo and Sakumo Hatake had stopped fighting. There was no point in continuing the battle; the situation with the Four-Tails was the most important now. If it wasn't handled well, everyone would suffer.
Feeling that the accumulation was almost complete, the Four-Tails raised its head, looking at these humans with hatred, and its hands erupted with Chakra!
"Lava Release: Flower-Fruit Mountain!"
Large amounts of lava erupted from beneath its hands without warning, rapidly spreading outwards.
"This is... lava!"
"Run!"
The Ninja closest to the lava sea reacted quickly, no longer fighting, and screamed as they ran towards their own camps.
"Oh no!"
The faces of all the high-ranking officials from the three villages changed simultaneously. At this moment, they couldn't afford to continue fighting. Instead, they began to dispatch their Ninja to establish defences to block the lava sea.
"Earth Release: Earth-Style Wall!"
Shiroyama, who had returned to the Iwagakure ranks, led everyone in forming hand signs simultaneously. Dozens of earth walls rose from the ground, blocking the lava's path and preventing it from spreading further.
On Sunagakure's side, Rasa stepped forward. With a wave of his hands, waves of Sand Gold crashed down, barely managing to block the lava's spread.
Konoha's side had less trouble. They had a trench in their advantageous terrain, which was two people wide and dozens of meters long, perfect for blocking the lava.
At this moment, Ren, standing by the trench and observing the Four-Tails, had a bad feeling. When he sensed the imminent surge of Chakra from the Four-Tails, Ren reacted, anxiously shouting at the Konoha Ninja who hadn't crossed the trench yet,
"Hurry! Otherwise, it'll be too late!"
"Huh?"
While some people were still confused, the Four-Tails' deadly strike had already arrived.
"Acha!"
The Four-Tails roared. Under its control, the lava sea quickly began to gather into small bulges. After a few seconds of bubbling, a large amount of lava suddenly erupted like a volcano!
The lava, splattered hundreds of meters into the air, directly breached the defences of the three armies. Then, under the Four-Tails' secondary control, it crashed like a tide onto the unsuspecting crowd.
"Ah!"
The defence line established by Iwagakure was directly destroyed. Many Iwagakure Ninja near the Earth-Style Wall defence line were directly caught by the lava and, after a scream, were completely swallowed.
Rasa's side was caught off guard. The lava directly covered the Sand Gold and pursued the Sunagakure army behind them. However, because Sunagakure had been fighting and retreating earlier, their losses were much smaller than Iwagakure's.
As for Konoha's side, it received special attention. Nearly half of the lava sea was directed their way by the Four-Tails, as its grudge with Jiraiya and Ren was still fresh.
…
"Phew, finally everyone's out."
Ren breathed a sigh of relief. Within his line of sight, there were no more figures near the trench. They should all be saved...
Wait!
A figure suddenly appeared in Ren's vision, stumbling towards him. It seemed to have a leg injury.
Ren was struck by lightning when he saw the person's face, stunned for a moment.
Just then, the rolling lava wave behind them surged forward, about to completely engulf the figure in the next moment!
Oh no!
Ren suddenly rushed across the trench, ignoring the exclamations and warnings of the Konoha Ninja behind him, and charged forward.
I can make it!
I must make it!