The patrol leader, Doto, observed the unusual scene in the distance.
At first, it seemed like an enemy stronghold.
But…
What the hell was that massive snowball collision just now?
A battle using snowballs?
No way. That was too ridiculous.
Besides, who in their right mind would be playing in enemy territory—especially with that kind of firepower?
With a deep frown, he raised his binoculars again and scanned the towering piles of snow in the distance.
"...Maybe there really are idiots like that."
He lowered the binoculars and made a decision.
"Move out. We're heading there."
"Yes, sir!"
Leading a squad of Yukigakure ninja, he rushed forward.
They had barely covered any ground when something strange appeared ahead.
Five heads.
Just… sticking out of the snow.
The entire squad halted, staring at the bizarre sight.
The five trapped ninja stared back.
Silence.
Tension.
Confusion.
Doto narrowed his eyes.
Who were these guys?
Could they really be enemy idiots?
Before he could ask, one of the buried ninja suddenly burst into tears.
"Lord Doto!!!"
The others immediately followed suit.
"Sir! You're finally here!"
"We've suffered so much!"
Doto frowned.
Then, someone from the team recognized one of the trapped ninja.
"Oh? Wait a minute… isn't that Fuyuki?"
The buried ninja perked up instantly.
"Yes! Yes! It's me! Fuyuki!"
A nearby soldier leaned over and whispered to Doto.
"Sir, they were part of the scouting teams you sent to patrol the border."
Oh.
That did sound familiar.
Doto finally connected the dots.
These pathetic, half-frozen fools were actually his own men.
He let out a long sigh.
With cold, narrowed eyes, he asked,
"...How exactly did you end up like this?"
Fuyuki shook off the ice stuck to his face and shouted,
"We were ambushed! The enemy's Snow Release techniques were insanely powerful! We got buried before we could react!"
The other four frantically nodded in agreement, their heads bobbing like pecking chickens.
Doto thought back to what he had witnessed earlier.
That gigantic, mountain-sized snowball…
"...Yeah, I can believe that."
"That kind of power is… concerning."
Without another word, he simply stepped over the buried ninja and kept walking.
The squad followed suit, leaving the five men still stuck in the snow.
The smiles on their faces slowly faded.
Then turned to panic.
"...Wait."
"Wait—WHAT?!"
"Sir! WAIT!!!"
They screamed.
"HELP US!!!"
"WE'RE STILL HERE!!!"
"PLEASE!!!"
Doto and his squad…
Kept walking.
No one looked back.
Doto led the troops away, leaving the five stranded ninja behind.
A cold wind blew, shaking loose the ice and snow stuck to their faces and hair. The biting chill only deepened their despair.
"They're not coming back for us…"
No one answered.
Silence stretched until someone finally muttered,
"...It's so cold."
Doto never looked back.
The five trapped ninja just stood there—half-buried, frozen, and utterly abandoned.
Honestly, leaving them behind was mercy. He could have just killed them himself.
Meanwhile, back at the battlefield…
The entire area was buried under a mountain of snow.
For a moment, everything was still.
Then, suddenly—the snow shifted.
A head burst out of the snow.
"Ah—ha!"
Golden-blond hair, whisker-like marks on his cheeks—Naruto.
Even with snow caked on his face, he was unmistakable.
Naruto gasped for air, shook the snow off, and took a moment to look around.
All he could see was a vast, snowy wasteland.
"...That was insane."
Before he could say more, the snow beside him lurched.
Then—one by one—heads started popping out of the snow like gophers.
Ino.
Sakura.
Sasuke.
And more.
Everyone made it out.
...But no one looked great.
Each one of them was covered in snow and slush, looking like frostbitten idiots.
They stared at each other.
A moment of silence.
Then—
Laughter.
"Hahahaha—!"
Soon, everyone was laughing—loud and carefree.
Sure, they'd just been obliterated by an oversized snowball, but somehow, the whole thing felt…
Hilarious.
Like the greatest snowball fight ever.
Then—
"Wait a second."
Ino suddenly stopped laughing, blinking in surprise.
"...Where's Sakiya?"
Nanako's expression froze.
She glanced around, suddenly tense.
"...Where's my sister?"
Just as she spoke, the snow rumbled.
A massive vibration shook the area—
And then—
BOOM.
The snowdrift erupted.
Snow exploded into the air, scattering everywhere.
And soaring through the debris—
A single small figure.
Sakiya.
She hovered above them, hands on her hips, grinning like a lunatic.
"Mwahahaha!"
With the sunlight blazing behind her, she looked like an unstoppable force.
"You all… are mere pawns beneath my power!"
Sakura wasn't having it.
She glared at Sakiya and shouted,
"This isn't fair! You were buried too—why are we the only ones who lost!?"
Ino crossed her arms, eyes narrowing.
"Are you cheating, Sakiya?"
Sakiya just smirked.
"Hmph. Watch this."
With a graceful twirl, she spun through the air, effortlessly shaking off any trace of snow. Her clothes were spotless, her hair perfectly in place.
Meanwhile, everyone else looked like snow-covered disasters.
Sakiya glanced down at them—disheveled, half-buried, faces still caked in snow—and grinned smugly.
"Just look at you. You scream defeat."
Silence.
Everyone exchanged glances.
Their heads poked out from the snow, hair full of ice and slush…
...Yeah.
They kind of did look like losers.
But Nanako?
Nanako did not care.
With zero hesitation, she yanked her hand free from the snow, scooped up a snowball, and hurled it straight at Sakiya.
"Take this, you shameless showoff! The Final Blow of Light and Darkness!!!"
FWOOSH.
Nanako channeled her chakra, making the snowball rocket forward at high speed.
Sakiya's eyes widened.
She hadn't expected a counterattack.
Her hands flinched up to block—
But the snowball slipped right through.
POW.
It smacked her right in the face.
"Wah—!!!"
The impact sent Sakiya tumbling backward—
And she crashed directly into the thickest part of the snowdrift.
WHOOMPH.
For a moment, silence.
Then—
A tiny head popped back out of the snow.
Sakiya sat there, blinking, her entire face now covered in snow.
Just like everyone else.
The group burst into laughter.
"HAHAHAHAHAHA!!!"
"Hah! Look at her! The face of defeat!"
"You lost too, Sakiya!"
"And to Nanako!"
Nanako beamed.
For the first time ever, she had beaten her sister.
"I won! I actually won!!!"
Sakiya groaned, rubbing her forehead.
"Yeah, yeah. You won."
Nanako practically sparkled with joy.
Meanwhile, Ino grinned and reached over to ruffle Sakiya's hair.
"Serves you right, Miss Arrogant. Admit it—you lost."
Before anyone could gloat further, something shifted in the distance.
Naruto and the others turned.
A large group was approaching.
Doto and his Snow Ninja.
The laughter stopped.
Silence settled over the battlefield.
From his vantage point, Doto took in the sight before him—
Sakiya and the others, half-buried in snow, only their heads poking out.
It was almost the exact same scene as his own pathetic ninja squad from earlier.
…Were these really the people he was supposed to be fighting?
Doto frowned.
Something about this felt off.
Nearby, Koyuki and Sandayū watched with wide, panicked eyes.
They had been so caught up in their fun…
…That they had completely forgotten about the actual enemy.
The moment Sakiya saw Doto, she froze.
Wait.
Wasn't this his territory?
Her head snapped toward Koyuki.
And just like that—
Koyuki remembered.
Oh. Right.
This was Doto's fortress.
Oops.
Sakiya shook off the snow and sprang out of the drift, landing lightly on the untouched snow. She crossed her arms, gazing down at Doto from above.
"And who are you supposed to be?"
Doto's smirk widened.
"Oh? You don't know?"
Then, his gaze shifted to Koyuki.
"You do, don't you, Koyuki?"
Koyuki's fists clenched.
Her eyes burned with anger.
"…Doto."
Ino's expression hardened.
So this was him.
The man Koyuki hated the most.
The reason they were here.
Naruto, Sasuke, Ino, Shikamaru, Choji, Sakuragi, Tsuchiya, and Sakiya exchanged glances.
Then, they grinned.
"Oh?"
Naruto tilted his head.
"So you brought your whole army, huh?"
Shikamaru's eyes flicked over the horde of Snow Ninja.
"Hah. Saves us the trouble of hunting you down."
Sakiya planted a hand on her hip, then pointed straight at Doto.
"Alright then! Let's wrap this up!"
Doto barked out a laugh.
"You? End this mission?"
But the smirks on their faces didn't fade.
They weren't intimidated.
Not even a little.
Naruto cracked his knuckles.
"Well, since Sakiya-chan said so—"
"—Let's go."
In that instant—
Chakra exploded.
BOOM.
Naruto's golden-red chakra ignited, the power of the Nine-Tails surging through him.
Sasuke's Lightning Cloak crackled to life, hair standing on end. His Mangekyō Sharingan gleamed, sharp as ice.
Choji activated his Expansion Jutsu—his body towered above them, massive as a giant.
Sakuragi spread his fingers, thin, invisible wires twisting through the air.
Tsuchiya's Fireball Jutsu gathered pressure, flames glowing dangerously in his hands.
Even Shikamaru, Ino, and Sakura unleashed their chakra, their energy flaring up like a storm.
The sheer force of their power—
Vaporized the snowdrifts around them in an instant.
The massive snowdrift vanished.
And in its place—
Naruto's team stood tall.
Doto's smug expression shattered.
One second—mocking.
The next—panic.
What…
What are these monsters?!
His gaze snapped from one to the next.
The sheer power radiating from them—
It was overwhelming.
Especially that blond brat… and the lightning-covered one.
Their chakra was inhuman.
Doto felt it.
And so did his men.
A force so immense—so colossal—that it seemed to stretch into the sky itself.
And he…
He was nothing but an ant.
The Snow Ninja froze.
A few even stumbled backward.
Their bodies screamed at them to run—to flee—because the monsters before them were on an entirely different level.
And yet…
Naruto's group still looked at Doto with those same easy smiles.
Mocking.
Unbothered.
Sakiya grinned.
She lifted a hand.
The ground beneath them glowed—a surge of chakra flaring to life.
Then—
Sakiya's aura ignited.
A crimson chakra cloak enveloped her.
Her voice rang out:
"Alright—smash them!"
"For the glory of the contract!"
Naruto's hand shot up.
A Rasengan swirled to life.
Sasuke unsheathed his sword—Lightning Chakra crackling along its blade.
Choji's form expanded, massive fists clenching.
Doto's hands shook.
"No… I won't believe this!"
He roared.
"Kill them! All of them!"
The Snow Ninja charged.
Fear or not—they obeyed.
And Doto—
He moved.
Hands flashing through seals—
And then—
"Ice Release: Black Dragon Blizzard!"
A massive black dragon of snow and frost erupted, twisting through the air, lunging for Sakiya.
Naruto grinned.
"I got this."
And then—
He vanished.
A golden streak shot forward—faster than the eye could follow.
His chakra cloak flared.
A single chakra arm lashed out—
And in an instant—
The dragon shattered.
Before Doto could even process it—
Naruto was in front of him.
And in his palm—
A Rasengan.
BOOM.
Doto flew backward, skidding through the snow.
Naruto narrowed his eyes.
Tch.
That armor of his… it had absorbed the impact.
But the rest of the battlefield?
It was already over.
Sasuke was lightning itself, flashing through the enemy ranks—cutting them down.
Choji's punches sent ninja flying.
Tsuchiya's fireballs exploded with precision—wiping out whole groups.
Sakuragi's wires sliced through enemies, as fast and lethal as Sasuke's blade.
Sakura's punches tore through the battlefield like cannon fire.
Ino's mind assaults left enemies collapsing on the spot.
Shikamaru?
…He was mostly watching.
It took less than a minute.
The Snow Ninja Army was gone.
Bodies littered the battlefield—some unconscious, some worse.
Doto…
Struggled to his feet.
His armor had saved him.
But now—
Now he stood alone.
Surrounded.
Naruto's team closed in.
And Doto—
For the first time—
Felt true despair.
"…It's over."