*Bang!*
Takeshi hadn't been asleep long when a faint sound of explosion reached his ears. He scrambled out of his tent and saw flames reaching the sky in the distance.
That...
It looked familiar, almost like fireworks.
Fireworks?
"Nyaa~!"
He yelled immediately, though he didn't need to. The patrolling reconnaissance squad had already spotted the situation and started shouting.
Tsunade rushed out. Seeing the flare of the fireworks, she instantly barked orders: "Minato and Takeshi's team, immediately support the north! The remaining reconnaissance mixed teams follow! Iryo-nin, bring sufficient tools, quickly!"
The rustling of tents and hurried footsteps filled the air as the camp sprang into action.
Fireworks.
This was a method Tsunade had devised out of necessity. The Eastern Front was too long, and conventional ninja communication methods simply weren't fast enough for rapid warnings.
After relaying her orders, she quickly began assembling the Intelligence Corps.
The intelligence network in the east was still heavily reliant on Danzo's Root. While the members were rigid, their speed and efficiency were high, and they organized their manpower in no time.
"Takeshi."
Minato arrived and called out.
"Meow! I'll go ahead, you bring the others."
Takeshi meowed, then shot off, disappearing into the jungle in a blur.
Minato paused for less than a second before immediately gathering Guy, Kakashi, and the others. In the blink of an eye, two teams of seven people departed from the camp.
Initially, Ebisu thought he wouldn't be a hindrance, but...
Halfway through, he realized his taijutsu was severely lacking.
"Eat these military ration pills. It's important to replenish your strength during wartime."
Rin tossed him a bottle. These were her special blend of ration pills, they had roughly the same effect but tasted better and didn't cause such a overwhelming feeling of fullness.
"Thank you."
--**--**
While the others were still running, Takeshi had already reached the battle location. Even before arriving, he could hear the intense sounds of combat.
Lightning, firelight, and the *Bang* of explosive tags rose and fell in succession.
The black cat swiftly traversed the jungle, arriving at the battlefield.
He saw a familiar figure: Ay, whom he had briefly encountered one day but never truly fought.
Looking closer...
'Kura Uchiha?'
Kura was currently being pursued byAy and another Kumogakure ninja. His Body Flicker looked familiar. He was barely staying alive by using Body Flicker and Clone Jutsu to confuse the enemy, but looking around, he was the only survivor.
Around eight bodies lay scattered, some intact, some fragmented, all bloodied on the rocks, while the Kumogakure ninja, having killed the others, gradually gathered around.
With the speed of Ay and Killer Bee, Kura Uchiha couldn't escape.
'Damn, I have no chakra left...' Kura thought. He wanted to be faster, to have more chakra, but he couldn't. He had truly reached his limit.
Just as he was despairing, a black shadow suddenly darted over his head. He saw a massive tail growing in the wind, becoming as thick as a tree branch in the blink of an eye, its hairs standing up like steel needles.
It swept horizontally.
Ay and Killer Bee immediately retreated. Killer Bee was slightly slower, if Ay hadn't pulled him back, he might have been hit.
They dodged, but the third Kumogakure ninja involved in the assault wasn't so lucky. He was directly struck by the tail with a *Boom* and sent flying.
Ay stopped and looked forward, his eyes widening in surprise.
Black Cat.
The black cat, which had been heavily marked as extremely dangerous for in the information Kirigakure had sent.
S-Rank Combatant!
"You guys fall back." Ay's expression turned serious, and lightning instantly flickered around his body.
'Lightning Release: Thunder Armour!'
"Grr-" The black cat let out a low growl.
Although he was currently small, no one dared to underestimate him, especially since that attack had crippled one of their comrades, whose condition was looked worse, might even be dead.
Kura was on the verge of collapse.
His chakra had been exhausted, and he couldn't even maintain his Sharingan. His body was covered in wounds, and one of his hands had been slashed open by a blade, exposing bone.
As Takeshi retreated towards Kura, Ay launched another attack.
Enhanced by his Lightning Release: Thunder Armour, Ay's speed was like lightning. He arrived in front of Kura in the blink of an eye, but as fast as he was, Takeshi was even faster.
The instant Ay charged, Takeshi struck with a claw...
*Boom!* A loud sound of impact rang out, and Ay was sent flying, crashing through three trees before finally stopping.
Takeshi hadn't gathered enough Senjutsu Chakra in time. Otherwise, in Sage Mode, that claw would have taken half of Ay's life.
But at that moment, an incredibly intense light appeared in the distance.
The black cat's eyes narrowed slightly. 'Third Raikage?'
Third Raikage, Ay, and around eight Kumogakure ninja.
It wouldn't matter if it was just him, he could just run if he couldn't win. But there was a seriously injured Kura on the ground...
Takeshi thought for a moment, deciding not to continue fighting head-on. Instead, he used his tail to scoop up the unconscious Kura, created a Shadow Clone, and used Flying Thunder God to escape.
The main body was gone, but the clone remained.
The next second, a Water Dragon emerged from the clone's body, roaring towards those supporting Ay. The opponents quickly scattered to dodge, but the Water Dragon burst on impact, turning into countless Ice Senbon.
At the same time, the Black Cat Clone increased his speed to the limit, streaking past like a black lightning bolt, his sharp claws slicing through the throats of two Kumogakure ninja in the blink of an eye.
"Aargh~" They clutched their throats in agony. Although they didn't die instantly, the bleeding couldn't be stopped, and death was imminent.
At that moment, a piercing sound arrived, and the Takeshi Clone stopped chasing. Instead, he began to gather chakra at his center, then...
A flash of lightning.
Third Raikage used Hell Stab Four-Finger Spear Hand: Sky Drop to pierce through the clone at incredible speed, carrying the Shadow Clone dozens of steps away. He'd sensed a massive surge of chakra from this one.
But...
'Hm? What is this?' He was puzzled. A normal Shadow Clone would disappear when attacked, but this one seemed to produce a strange substance after being struck by his Hell Stab attack.
It was somewhat similar to Earth Release, but the state was odd.
Third Raikage shook his hand, then frowned and looked around. "Take the wounded away. Bee, you carry Ay."
"Yes."
Killer Bee lowered his head.
As Eight Tails Jinchuriki Bee, his duty was to protect his partner Ay, but in reality, he had no ability to protect Ay and could only watch as he was sent flying by the black cat.
If Third Raikage hadn't saved him just now, he himself might already be dead.
The operation had been too rushed. It was impossible to destroy Konohagakure in one battle. If the Konoha reconnaissance squad hadn't expanded their range and discovered their joint operation with Kirigakure, he wouldn't have acted ahead of schedule.
But now, the vanguard had suffered losses, and Kirigakure wouldn't be able to act immediately. Retreating was the best option.
Of course...
The main reason for launching this attack was to send a signal to the Iwagakure and Sunagakure ninja.
'We've made our move, what about you?'
No one single village wanted to defeat Konohagakure alone. Even if it meant ganging up, they had to knock Konoha down from its top position. Otherwise, these ninja villages would remain little more than names among the Five Great Nations, constantly relying on Konoha's dominance.
Since the Land of Fire and the Land of Lightning were far apart, even if Kumo launched an offensive first, with Kiri providing a diversion, Konoha would still be unlikely to have the ability to proactively attack.
At least, that's what Third Raikage initially thought.
But...
After seeing the strength of that black cat and understanding that the opponent knew Flying Thunder God, Third Raikage realized one thing: the information from Kirigakure about the black cat might not be accurate.
Although Kirigakure had marked it as extremely dangerous, they hadn't mentioned that cat also knew Flying Thunder God, a deadly spatial ninjutsu, and that its combat ability was so exaggerated that even a clone could instantly burst out and leave two Jonin on the verge of death.
That combat power was Kage level.
===============
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