"Even Lord Donton…"
"There's no way we can win against someone like that…"
All the Hidden Stone ninja looking at Kaede were now showing clear signs of fear in their eyes.
Sensing that the situation was quickly spiraling out of control, a Jōnin gritted his teeth and barked, "Don't panic! That state of his can't last long. We still have the advantage! Keep attacking!!"
"…That's right."
"That brat doesn't have enough chakra to maintain that form for long!"
Some Hidden Stone ninja noticed that the silver glow around Kaede was starting to dim slightly, which gave them a sliver of hope. Their fear eased a little, and with clenched teeth, they charged once more toward the Konoha forces.
On the Konoha side, thanks to Kaede's rapid killing of four Jōnin and over a dozen Chūnin in just moments, the tide of battle had clearly shifted. The situation was no longer as dire as it had been at the start. Now, when faced with the Hidden Stone ninja's continued assault, they met the attack head-on.
Boom! Boom! Boom!!
Explosions erupted all across the battlefield.
"They're pinning their hopes on my lack of stamina? Too bad… I'm not the same person I was before…"
Kaede's eyes swept across the battlefield as he murmured quietly to himself. Then, with a flicker, he darted toward the nearest Hidden Stone ninja.
In terms of chakra reserves, it was true that Kaede didn't have much. under normal conditions, his chakra was only comparable to that of a Jōnin. Even in the state of the Fourth Gate, his power was only close to Kage-level and still inferior to someone like Orochimaru, who had massive chakra reserves.
However…
With the ability to time reversal, he could continuously restore his physical state and draw chakra from his cells over and over!
His total chakra might not reach the level needed for techniques like the Rasenshuriken or Tailed Beast Bomb, but for techniques with lower chakra requirements like the Chidori, he could practically spam them without limit!
Only Edo Tensei reanimated ninja could compete with him in terms of stamina and endurance, even Jinchuriki would fall behind!
Whoosh! Whoosh!!
The silver flash darted through the battlefield.
under Kaede's blade, few could last more than two or three moves. Even powerful Jōnin could only rely on Body Flicker and Substitution techniques to barely evade his attacks, but they had no way of retaliating effectively.
Sixteen…
Seventeen…
Eighteen…
The number of ninja falling to Kaede's blade kept climbing.
He was like a killing machine!
On the Konoha side, even veteran ninja like Morino Ibiki were completely stunned, shocked beyond belief.
By the time nearly ten Jōnin had fallen to Kaede and Orochimaru had also slain two of his own attackers, the Hidden Stone ninja forces finally collapsed.
"…Retreat! Abort the mission!"
Dodging one of Orochimaru's strikes with difficulty, Sekkotsu gritted his teeth and issued the command.
His eyes were full of unwillingness and frustration.
The situation had flipped entirely. Even if Kaede ran out of chakra and could no longer fight, it wouldn't change the outcome. Konoha had taken the advantage, and their forces that were keeping Orochimaru in check had already been dismantled.
Continuing the battle would only lead to complete annihilation.
"Damn it! Damn it! DAMN IT!!"
Sekkotsu, having issued the retreat order, performed an Earth Style Body Flicker and slipped underground. As he tunneled away, his heart was full of bitterness and regret.
To ambush the Konoha forces, Hidden Stone ninja had gone to great lengths, even predicting that the Konoha advance unit might be led by someone like Orochimaru or Danzo. They had committed five Jōnin just for suppression!
But no amount of planning had accounted for Kaede's appearance!
When they received news that Jōnin Hikaru and a team of elite ninja had been wiped out upon entering the Land of Grass, he had taken note of Kaede. But even then, he had only regarded Kaede as a talented ninja to be eliminated early, not as someone who warranted the same level of caution and planning as Orochimaru.
What's more—
Even Orochimaru wouldn't have been able to kill multiple Jōnin so quickly.
They had deployed enough strength to handle even two Orochimaru-level enemies if necessary. At the very least, they shouldn't have lost so badly!
To deal with speed-based enemies, you need a combination of area-of-effect specialists, sensor-type, and barrier-type ninja working in coordination.
Their squad did have ninja who could counter Kaede's strengths. But since they hadn't anticipated his appearance, by the time Kaede unleashed his terrifying speed, the battlefield had already devolved into chaos, it was too late to respond properly!
They had pinned their hopes on Donton being able to restrain Kaede—
But that had failed too!
"That brat… is he Konoha's Jinchuriki? But the Nine-Tails' host should be a woman from the Uzumaki Clan. And that sword style… is he the White Fang's descendant after all?"
Sekkotsu continued to flee underground, gritting his teeth.
But before he could get far, a sudden sense of danger surged up. Instinctively, he twisted to the right.
Ssshh!
A searing arc of flame split the earth in two.
Even with his evasive maneuver, he wasn't fast enough, his left arm was severed at the shoulder, the stump charred black.
"Ahhhh—!"
Not even sparing a glance at his lost arm, Sekkotsu sprang up from the ground and fled further at top speed, using the Body Flicker Technique again.
Bathed in silver light, Kaede pursued him relentlessly.
He didn't recognize most of the Hidden Stone ninja, they were all nameless in his memory. But based on how they were commanding the battle, the elite Jōnin he had killed earlier and this one issuing the retreat order appeared to be the leaders of the force.
So Kaede had immediately locked onto Sekkotsu.
"..."
Orochimaru saw Kaede chasing after Sekkotsu and stared in his direction for a moment with deep eyes. Then, withdrawing his gaze, he turned and pursued another Hidden Stone ninja Jōnin nearby.
With Sekkotsu's retreat, the Hidden Stone ninja forces completely collapsed. All the remaining ninja began to flee in all directions, while the Konoha forces began to chase them down.
The pursuit lasted from morning until afternoon. Eventually, the Konoha ninja regrouped at the original battlefield and began sweeping up the aftermath.
Thud!
Kaede tossed Sekkotsu's head into a blood-soaked pit of sand. Noticing Orochimaru approaching from a short distance away, he shrugged and said:
"Almost let him get away."
"Hehehe… Looks like you caught him after all."
Orochimaru let out a strange laugh, eyes glinting with appreciation, as if he were looking at some kind of priceless treasure.
Kaede nodded slightly and said calmly, "His chakra was very faint while moving underground. My sensory ability isn't that good, I could barely sense him. If I hadn't cut off his arm earlier, he probably would have gotten away."
Orochimaru smiled darkly and replied in a hoarse voice, "With your speed, if you also develop strong sensory capabilities, then being targeted by you would be like having one foot in the grave… hehehe."
"I thought we'd need Might Duy's help to deal with this problem, but I didn't expect you to have already mastered the Eight Gates technique and chakra nature transformation to this level… I thought you'd need at least a few more years to reach this point."
Kaede's growth had completely exceeded his expectations.
To an abnormal degree.
Even back during the Second Ninja War, when he fought the so-called "Demi-God" Hanzo and earned the title of one of the Legendary Sannin, Orochimaru felt that Kaede might already be stronger than he was back then.
And at that time… he had been twenty-three years old.
Kaede was only ten.
************
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