"Die, you Konoha trash!"
"Dark Fire Release: Great Fireball!"
The fury in Mukade's heart erupted into flames—literally—as a torrent of dark fire spewed from his puppetized mouth.
In an instant, a massive purple-black fireball took shape in the sky—far larger than a typical Great Fireball Technique.
"Earth and Water Release combination—now!"
Kitsuchi, the commander of the Iwagakure side, shouted the order at once.
Everyone who heard him—regardless of whether they were from Konoha or Iwa—stepped into position.
With a thunderous rumble, the ground began to quake. Moments later, a massive arched stone wall surged up from the earth.
Simultaneously, torrents of water gushed from the mouths of the assembled ninjas, merging high above into a wide, bowl-shaped dome of flowing water.
[BOOM!!!]
The purple-black inferno crashed down from above, slamming into the double-layered defense of stone and water with blinding heat and devastating force.
A deafening explosion followed—like the earth itself had shattered.
The shockwave blasted through the superheated air, creating a hellish storm of pressure and sound.
Nearby, swathes of the Ghost Army and several unfortunate shinobi who hadn't made it behind the defenses were instantly swept away.
"So much power!"
Though he stood outside the defensive layer, Uchiha Fugaku remained unharmed—protected by a crimson skeletal armor of energy that shimmered around his body.
It was the first stage of Susanoo.
...
"Yo... finally, someone decent shows up."
While life-and-death combat raged on the battlefield below, no one noticed the platinum-colored airship floating silently high above.
Upon its broad deck stood armored guards and a handful of black-clad operatives—but also several beautiful figures watching from the ship's edge.
Among them was a blue-haired woman whose bearing, elegance, and looks clearly surpassed the others. She was holding a pair of binoculars, intently observing the blazing chaos below.
She was Esdeath—and behind her stood Guren, Tsunade, Akame, Kurome, and a young Shizune.
They had actually arrived long ago.
But Esdeath had not yet made an appearance—because, in her eyes, no true warriors had yet stepped onto the battlefield. Instead, she'd simply sat back and admired the ongoing warfare of this world.
To Esdeath, war was the greatest form of entertainment.
And the wildly different styles of otherworldly warfare fascinated her even more.
She was especially satisfied by the shinobi's collaborative techniques.
However, as time passed, the novelty faded. The same few joint jutsu repeated again and again—it was starting to bore her.
She had been ready to leave for the Land of Swamps—until Kakuzu showed up and caught her attention again.
But even Kakuzu had let her down.
Back then, he might've counted as a formidable enemy.
But now? He was too weak to stir even the faintest interest in a real duel.
"Lady Esdeath, are you going to make your move?" Wearing a snow-white gown, Guren smiled.
"Mhm. Let's go with him, then. One way or another, I need to fight someone—this frustration's killing me."
Esdeath nodded sharply, her eyes locking coldly onto Mukade's figure.
"Then allow me to remind you," Guren said gently, "best not to kill him. I'd imagine someone like that would be of great interest—to the World Government, and to Lord Imu as well."
Esdeath arched an eyebrow. True enough, she thought.
'Lord Imu…'
Behind her, Tsunade quietly pondered that name—supposedly Esdeath's husband, and the supreme ruler of the World Government.
...
"Ahahahaha!"
"Die! All of you Konoha scum—just die!!"
Above the skies of the Land of Bears—
Mukade laughed maniacally, unleashing wave after wave of black-purple fireballs from his mouth and palms, raining them down on the Allied Shinobi Forces below.
Led by Uchiha Fugaku and Kitsuchi, the shinobi had no choice but to desperately defend against the relentless aerial bombardment while also trying to hold off the advancing horde of Mōryō forces.
"Is there really no way to stop him?!"
Fugaku shouted in frustration.
"There is!"
Kitsuchi, who had been constantly weaving Earth Release techniques, immediately responded. "But we need to buy some time... Wait—they're here!"
"What?!"
Fugaku turned his head sharply in the direction of Kitsuchi's gaze.
In the eastern sky, he saw numerous figures flying in from the distance, each one with faintly glowing violet wings of energy flaring behind their backs.
"Are those... Hoshinin?"
Fugaku and many other Konoha shinobi recognized them at once.
They had previously wondered why the local Hoshinin hadn't shown up on the battlefield—but as the fight grew more intense, that question had long been pushed aside.
Now, however, these airborne Hoshinin looked to be their most reliable reinforcements yet.
"The previous leader of Hoshigakure—the Third—told us that they needed to return to the village to replenish their chakra with the 'Star.' So they took advantage of your arrival to temporarily retreat."
Kitsuchi explained in his usual gravelly tone.
"I see... In that case, they should be in top condition now. I wonder if they can deal with that Mukade..." Fugaku muttered, staring up into the sky.
Meanwhile, under the expectant gazes of thousands of Konoha and Iwagakure shinobi—
Around fifty Hoshinin shot across the battlefield like streaks of violet meteor light, swiftly soaring above the heads of the gathered forces.
Then, the Hoshinin swiftly adjusted their positions in the sky. In the very next moment, the pale violet wings behind each of them suddenly unfurled—expanding outward. And in the blink of an eye, they converged into a brilliant, concentrated formation of energy: a peacock formed entirely of pure chakra.
"Where did this bunch of pesky bugs come from?!"
Mukade scoffed at the sight before him. With a disdainful snort, he thrust both palms forward.
In an instant, two streams of violet-black flames erupted from his palms.
As the two merged before him, they formed into a massive, ferocious fire dragon with snarling jaws.
The soft-purple peacock-shaped formation created by the Hoshinin immediately swung its radiant wings forward with force.
[BOOM!!]
The sinister fire dragon of violet-black flames collided mid-air with the elegant, glowing peacock.
But the next moment, the dragon's 'body' was visibly drawn into the peacock's outstretched wings—absorbed by its chakra structure.
"What?!"
Mukade's face twisted in shock.
Just as he was thinking that things had become troublesome—
The Third Hoshikage suddenly felt a chill surge through him.
As the dark chakra flooded into his body, a torrent of twisted, negative emotions invaded his mind.
Hatred. Murderous intent. Jealousy. Rage. Resentment. Despair...
All of them swirled into terrifying hallucinations that momentarily overwhelmed his senses.
But the Third Hoshikage was a seasoned veteran in his sixties. His firm willpower quickly pulled him back to clarity.
Unfortunately, not all of the Hoshinin behind him were as strong.
Except for a few talented Jōnin, most of the Hoshinin had completely succumbed to the darkness.
From the outside, the once-elegant peacock of lavender light began to darken—inky energy creeping across its form, twisting it, distorting it.
"Ahahahaha! So that's it—you can't digest the darkness embedded in my chakra. Hah! I thought you were dangerous for a second!"
Mukade laughed with manic arrogance.
"If that's the case, why don't you all just surrender to the darkness within your hearts!"
"Damn it… how could this happen?!"
The Third Hoshikage clenched his teeth, helpless as he watched the Peacock Star Formation crumble under the corruption of the dark chakra.
Several Hoshinin, now fully consumed, went berserk—lashing out blindly at both friend and foe.
Others fell into sheer terror, unable to control their chakra or even their bodies, screaming as they plummeted toward the blood-soaked battlefield between the Ghost army and the Shinobi Alliance.
"It's over. Pathetic Hoshinin. Laughable Hoshikage!"
Mukade unleashed another tidal wave of violet-black flames that swept across the sky like a hellish inferno.
"This is bad…"
Uchiha Fugaku, Kitsuchi, and even Jiraiya—who was locked in battle with Kakuzu—felt their hearts sink.
None of them had expected the Hoshinin to be taken down by Mukade in a single blow.
However, just as the Hoshinin were about to be completely wiped out—
The Third Hoshikage suddenly felt a cold wind sweep through the air, sending a chill down his spine—as if he had been plunged into the dead of winter.
Before he could even react—
The wind intensified.
Then, a creature descended from above—a body sculpted entirely of crystalline ice, glowing faintly with blue light. Horse-like, yet not a horse. Deer-like, yet not a deer. Twin sharp antlers crowned its head.
With the speed of lightning, the beast streaked through the sky like a bluish-white meteor and crashed directly into the inferno of violet-black flames.
In the next instant—
A dense wave of icy energy exploded from the heart of the flames, radiating blue light as it clashed violently with the scorching, malevolent fire.
[BOOOOM!!!]
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