Chapter 37: A Perilous Moment
A flood of information about the advanced version of the Flying Thunder God Technique surged into Uchiha Dali's mind. At this very moment, it wasn't just stored in his deep memory—it seemed to transform into tangible energy, continuously flowing through his body, integrating with his very cells.
Ultimately, this process formed a powerful "muscle memory" on a cellular level.
When all the knowledge of the advanced Flying Thunder God fully merged with every cell in his body, Uchiha Dali had completely mastered the technique—as if he had spent decades diligently honing this space-time ninjutsu.
What surprised him even more was that the so-called "improvement" of this advanced Flying Thunder God Technique had completely removed the need for marking a target.
In other words, he no longer needed to leave a Flying Thunder God mark on anything—he could activate the technique instantly.
This was clearly an upgrade, at least a full tier above the Flying Thunder God used by the Second Hokage, Senju Tobirama, and Namikaze Minato.
"Now then, who's truly the victor here—me or you, Minato-senpai?"
Uchiha Dali chuckled softly, then silently activated the advanced Flying Thunder God. In an instant, he vanished.
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Northeastern Battlefield, Fire Country Border
A massive force from Kumogakure, the Hidden Cloud Village of the Land of Lightning, had assembled, preparing for a full-scale counterattack to break through Konoha's defensive blockade.
Their goal wasn't to conquer the entire Land of Fire—rather, Kumogakure sought to inflict enough pain on Konoha to force them into retreat.
As long as Konoha's forces withdrew, victory would belong to Kumogakure.
At that point, they could seize complete control of the negotiations.
To achieve this, Kumogakure had deployed not only its Jinchūriki but also nearly all of its elite Anbu forces.
With such a well-planned and secretive operation, Kumogakure had managed to catch Konoha completely off guard.
The defending Konoha forces only realized the invasion when the enemy's army was already at their doorstep.
Although they had sent an urgent distress signal requesting reinforcements from Konoha, their situation was dire.
Outnumbered and overpowered, they struggled to hold the line.
For three days, they had fought desperately. Now, their supplies were depleted, and most of their comrades had perished—only three Jōnin remained, still defending the last stronghold at the border, making a final stand.
"Lord A, Konoha's defenses are at their breaking point. If we push forward and eliminate the remaining few, we'll have a clear path to invade the Land of Fire!"
A Kumogakure scout hurriedly reported the situation to the man leading the charge—A, the son of the Third Raikage and candidate for the next Raikage.
"All heavily injured personnel, fall back for treatment. The rest, follow me and Killer Bee! Charge!"
"This time, we will tear open a massive hole in Konoha's defenses and make them feel real pain! We'll create the most favorable conditions for our negotiations!"
A raised his arm and shouted, his battle cry igniting the spirits of the troops.
Killer Bee was the first to respond, and the other Kumogakure ninja quickly followed.
Then, their massive army—hundreds strong—swept across the battlefield like a tidal wave, surging toward the three remaining Konoha Jōnin.
"This is bad... Looks like this is where we fall."
Jōnin squad leader Higashimura Hiba felt a chill run down his spine as he faced an overwhelming force tens or even hundreds of times their size. His voice was heavy with despair.
"Even if we die, we must hold them back until our reinforcements arrive!"
His comrade, Watanabe Daie, gritted his teeth, his eyes filled with unyielding determination.
He reached into his pocket and pulled out his last two explosive tags, ready to take as many enemies down with him as possible.
If he could kill one, it was worth it. If he could kill two, he'd consider it a victory.
The third Konoha Jōnin, Raimei Yamato, shared the same resolve.
As the enemy forces drew closer, the final clash was inevitable.
But just then, a figure suddenly appeared beside them.
Raimei Yamato looked up, expecting to see reinforcements from Konoha.
However, when his gaze fell upon the person's forehead protector—emblazoned with the unmistakable symbol of Kumogakure—his heart sank.
All hope shattered in an instant.
"So, it's just you three holding out. Why not surrender? Kumogakure will treat you well."
Standing atop a pile of rocks, A looked down on the three exhausted Konoha Jōnin.
He could have killed them at any moment, but he chose to offer them a chance instead.
If they could provide valuable intelligence, it would be worth it.
But it was clear the three Konoha Jōnin had no intention of surrendering.
Raimei Yamato, the closest one, spat fiercely at the ground in defiance.
Without hesitation, he raised his hand, ready to use the last of his chakra to detonate the explosive tags—taking himself and his enemies down together.
Yet, at that critical moment, another figure suddenly appeared behind him.
A sharp blade was already pressed against his throat.
The one who struck was none other than the Eight-Tails Jinchūriki—Killer Bee.
"Those are some dangerous toys you got there. Why not hand 'em over to me?"
Killer Bee smirked as he swung his blade, aiming to slice through Raimei Yamato's wrist and prevent him from setting off the explosive tags.
Just then—
In that fraction of a second, a white blur streaked across the battlefield.
It moved so fast that it was almost imperceptible.
Killer Bee barely registered the anomaly before it was too late.
Clang!
A sharp, metallic clang echoed across the battlefield.
Killer Bee's weapon was struck by the spiraling white blur, deflecting it on impact.
A powerful force surged through his arm, causing him to stumble slightly.
His eyes widened in shock at the immense impact.
At that moment, the white blur intensified its rotation, generating an even stronger outward force—hurtling toward both him and A like a relentless hurricane.
"Watch out, Bee!"
A's expression darkened. With a sharp command, his body erupted in a surge of lightning chakra, forming an impenetrable Lightning Release Armor.
Then, he clenched his massive fist and threw a devastating punch toward the incoming spiraling force, intending to shatter the enemy's assault with sheer brute strength.
Meanwhile, Killer Bee attempted to counterattack as well—but before he could make a move, another sudden strike forced him to defend himself.
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