Chapter 110: Detonation in Advance
As expected—the Fourth Raikage truly was the fastest man alive after the death of the Fourth Hokage.
The Konoha jōnin who had stayed behind felt a searing pain shoot through his neck as the Raikage's massive hand clamped down. A bitter sorrow welled in his chest. He knew that if the Raikage had not deliberately held back, that single strike would already have snapped his neck.
His fate was sealed.
But surrender was never an option. Enduring the suffocating grip around his throat, he forced his hands to move, struggling to form hand seals.
The Raikage noticed immediately. With a snort, lightning crackled across his body. In a blur, he struck, and the jōnin's arms went limp and useless, bones fractured before he could even complete a seal.
Despair surged. The gap was too vast.
He hadn't even clearly seen the Raikage's movements. His strength and speed were beyond human.
Yet at that moment—
Boom! Boom! Boom!
The explosive tags hidden throughout the forest detonated in a chain of violent eruptions. Flames and shockwaves tore through the trees, thunder rolling across the valley.
The Konoha jōnin exhaled shakily, a faint relief in his eyes. At least he had managed to trigger them. His mission was complete.
He hadn't been able to buy much time, but at the very least, the massive explosions would alert the outpost.
Against the Fourth Raikage himself, what more could anyone have expected? Even their entire squad together could never have stopped this monster. Perhaps only the late Fourth Hokage had once matched such speed and strength.
"Look what I've caught," the Raikage said coldly, raising the battered man like a child handling a toy. His two-meter frame loomed over him, lightning crackling along his muscled arms. "A bug."
The Konoha shinobi's breath came in shallow rasps. His eyes, however, burned with defiance.
The Raikage tightened his grip slightly. "Is it just you? Where are your companions?"
A Kumogakure sensory-nin hurried up and reported crisply, "Raikage-sama, there's no one else nearby."
The jōnin's vision blurred as he gazed at the Raikage's harsh expression. In that moment, strangely, an image of the Fifth Hokage, Uchiha Fugaku, flashed in his mind.
Fugaku… can you stop this monster?
Once, he had despised the Uchiha head for slaying the Third Hokage and seizing the seat of Hokage. He had wished Fugaku's downfall.
But now, on the brink of death, the only hope he could imagine standing against the Raikage was that very man—the one who had defeated Hiruzen Sarutobi in a single clash.
Fugaku… don't let Kumogakure plunder Konoha again. Don't disappoint us.
The Raikage leaned closer, frowning as if to catch his muttered words. But in that instant, the jōnin gathered what little strength he had left—spitting blood toward the Raikage's face.
The Raikage tilted his head, easily dodging. The blood splattered onto the ground.
The nearby sensory-nin scowled. "Raikage-sama, allow me to deal with this insolent wretch—"
"No need."
The Raikage's gaze lingered on the jōnin. There was no anger in his eyes—only a glimmer of respect. "I admire those with backbone. So, you refuse to speak?"
The jōnin remained silent. Every breath sent fresh waves of agony through his broken neck and ribs, yet he did not avert his eyes. He simply stared coldly at the Raikage.
"…What a pity," the Raikage said at last. His hand flexed. "To commend your courage, I'll give you a swift death."
Crack!
With a crisp snap, the Konoha jōnin's neck broke. His body went limp instantly, released from pain in the same moment his life ended.
The Raikage tossed the corpse aside without a second thought. He surveyed the forest, still smoldering from the detonations, and barked, "Advance!"
The Kumogakure force pressed forward, undeterred. The explosions meant nothing to the Raikage. In truth, he had already accounted for the possibility that Konoha would detect their movements early. If stealth failed, then they would crush resistance head-on.
This was no setback. It was a declaration.
He would let Konoha know that Kumogakure had arrived. Could their new Hokage stop him?
If Uchiha Fugaku was like the Third Hokage—ready to compromise and pay tribute—then the Raikage would happily bleed Konoha dry once again. But if Fugaku chose to resist?
A savage grin tugged at his lips. That would be even better.
It had been too long since his fists had known a true fight. And Kumogakure's growing armies required more resources than ever before. War—or plunder—would feed both.
While the Raikage crushed another life beneath his grip, far away, another jōnin of the Fourth Squad was racing into the Konoha outpost. He carried the captive they had taken earlier, slung heavily over his shoulder.
As he reached the valley, a thunderous series of explosions echoed behind him. His heart skipped a beat.
That's… from the captain's direction…!
His face hardened. Without hesitation, he charged into the valley. There was no time to mourn. The captain had clearly sacrificed himself for their mission.
The priority now was clear: get the captive to the Yamanaka clan's specialists and extract every last detail from his memories. Only then would Konoha know the true scale of the enemy.
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