The highly compressed Bijuu Dama (Tailed Beast Bomb) condensed into a beam of purple light and blasted toward the area where Konoha's forces were massed.
At that moment, everyone in Konoha watched the incoming Bijuu Dama (Tailed Beast Bomb) with terror on their faces.
If that thing landed, no one knew how many people would die.
"Damn you, Orochimaru!"
Danzo's face flushed red with fury as he slammed his cane against the ground.
"Barrier team!!" Hiruzen bellowed toward the front.
Dozens of Konoha shinobi ahead of him unfurled their scrolls and slammed their hands onto the ground.
An instant later, dense lines and markings spread through the air, then vanished from sight.
What appeared again before their eyes was a half-transparent barrier.
The Bijuu Dama (Tailed Beast Bomb) slammed into the barrier at incredible speed, cold sweat breaking out across the faces of everyone on Konoha's side.
In the next instant, it struck the barrier—but the deafening explosion they expected never came.
Instead, the Bijuu Dama (Tailed Beast Bomb) seemed to sink into the barrier itself and was slowly swallowed up, bit by bit.
A moment later, far away from Konoha, a tremendous explosion erupted.
Sitting on Isobu's head, Yuto saw this and couldn't help raising a brow.
"That feeling is… Hiraishin no Jutsu (Flying Thunder God Technique)?"
Back when he had crossed paths with Minato inside Naruto's body, Yuto had gotten an extremely clear sense of Hiraishin no Jutsu (Flying Thunder God Technique). Now he could feel something very similar woven into this barrier.
He turned to Ranmaru beside him. "Let Ao know. Tell him to get ready to welcome some guests."
Ranmaru's face lit up with joy, and he sprinted off, hopping down from Isobu's massive body.
Yuto looked back around and tapped his finger lightly on Isobu's skull.
"Keep going. I want to see how long that barrier of theirs can hold."
At his voice, Isobu quickly lifted his head again and began firing more Bijuu Dama (Tailed Beast Bombs) toward Konoha.
With each shot barreling in and both Tsunade and Jiraiya being pinned down by the enemy, the Konoha forces didn't dare rush out of the barrier to attack the Hidden Mist.
Right now in the shinobi world, there wasn't a single soul who would dare try to tank a Bijuu Dama (Tailed Beast Bomb) head-on.
Even the Akimichi clan's Chō Baika no Jutsu (Super Expansion Jutsu) was only good for close combat.
"If I open the Sixth Gate, my speed should be enough to reach that Three-Tails before it can fire another Bijuu Dama (Tailed Beast Bomb)."
Gai took a step forward, stopping in front of Hiruzen, and spoke with firm resolve.
"No. Even if you get there, you still won't be able to take down the Three-Tails. Right now, we can only rely on Jiraiya and Tsunade's fūinjutsu (Sealing Techniques)."
Hiruzen rejected him immediately.
He had plenty of faith in Gai's strength—but the Three-Tails was famous among the Tailed Beasts for its defense.
And even if Gai somehow managed to beat it down, what then? Without sealing it, all their efforts would have been meaningless.
"Use the Nine-Tails' power."
Danzo turned and fixed his gaze on Hiruzen.
"No."
Hiruzen refused again without hesitation, glaring hard at Danzo.
"Foolish."
Danzo snarled, seething with anger.
While Konoha was stuck on the defensive, two great plumes of dust were kicking up in the distance, both headed straight toward the village.
The Stone division and the Cloud division moved forward, each side watching the other warily even as they advanced toward Konoha at the same speed.
"That's… a summoned beast. The Three-Tails—that's the Mist!"
Cries of shock rippled through both armies.
The three gigantic summons and the looming bulk of the Three-Tails came into view for the Cloud and Stone shinobi alike.
"So the intel was accurate after all. But for the Mist to unleash a Tailed Beast outright… they've clearly committed."
Kitsuchi stared at the distant Three-Tails launching Bijuu Dama (Tailed Beast Bombs), a note of awe on his face.
"What do we do now?"
Akatsuchi's voice came from his side, and Kitsuchi's expression turned thoughtful.
Over in the Cloud division, a similar scene was unfolding.
Darui watched the battle raging in the distance, a conflicted look crossing his face. This was absolutely not a good moment to jump into the fight.
But before either side could agonize over it for long, two figures appeared in front of their converging armies and blocked their way.
Kitsuchi and Akatsuchi exchanged a glance, then gave hand signs to the Stone forces behind them.
Darui did the same for the Cloud troops.
Before long, both armies ground to a halt.
Blocking the Cloud and Stone forces were Ao and Maki.
Ao had long since removed his eyepatch, his Byakugan (White Eye) activated as he watched the vast ranks of the Cloud and Stone.
Within each army, his gaze picked out a massive chakra presence.
His heart tightened. That familiar chakra… he'd seen something like it from Utakata before. Clearly, both sides had brought their jinchuriki (Tailed Beast hosts) along.
Maki had initially been confused when Ao suddenly dragged him out here.
But when he saw the Cloud and Stone divisions ahead, he understood instantly.
A short time later, one shinobi stepped out from each of the two great armies and walked toward them.
Kitsuchi and Darui glanced at each other, then both turned their heads away at the same time. Cloud and Stone were practically generational enemies.
If not for their Kage giving strict orders ahead of time, the two armies probably would have already been brawling in the road.
Even so, the two men still didn't trust each other in the slightest.
Wearing equally grave expressions, Kitsuchi and Darui walked up to meet Ao and Maki.
The four of them took up positions facing each other from four angles, quietly sizing one another up.
No one bothered with introductions. Their forehead protectors alone told them all they needed to know.
And beyond that, all four were well-known shinobi in the ninja world; each village's intel files included basic information on the others.
They stood there in silence for a long moment.
"I'm sure everyone here already knows why we've all ended up in this spot."
Ao finally broke the quiet, speaking in an even tone.
"So? What exactly are you Mist and Sand planning to do by blocking our way?"
Darui laced his hands behind his head and gave Ao and Maki a lazy sideways glance.
"The Sand has already joined forces with the Mist."
Maki said calmly from the side.
Of the four villages present, the Sand were undeniably the weakest—but he still needed to show some backbone.
Besides, throwing that fact out there meant that when the Cloud and Stone later saw what was left of the Sand forces, they'd be less likely to get any ideas about attacking them.
Out of the corner of his eye, Ao shot Maki a faint look. He could tell exactly what Maki was trying to pull.
But at a time like this, he wasn't about to call him out on it.
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