Boom! Boom! Boom!
Three consecutive explosions echoed through the air.
In the distance, a small hill was struck by three massive Magatama, instantly shattering into pieces. The fragments scattered in all directions, leaving nothing but debris raining down.
Not only that, but the path leading to the hill was utterly transformed. Wherever the Magatama traveled, grass, trees, and even insects and small animals vanished without a trace. In their wake, three long corridors stretched through the forest.
Feeling the tremors underfoot, Seimei's heart surged with emotion. No wonder "Susano'o" was called the "Power of the Gods." This level of destruction truly felt like a force only divine beings could wield against ordinary ninjas.
Initially, he believed that the Yasaka Magatama, a common technique developed in the second stage of Susano'o, would have power comparable to an A-rank jutsu. However, it seemed he had underestimated its might.
Indeed, a single Magatama's power might align with typical A-rank offensive jutsu. But firing multiple Magatama in succession was a whole different story.
This wasn't as simple as one plus one equals two. The combined effect far exceeded the cumulative impact of multiple A-rank jutsu cast individually.
After all, most ninjas were fragile. Techniques capable of causing widespread destruction were their natural bane.
It was akin to fighting tailed beasts or other large summoning creatures. Their every move could deal massive area damage, making them inherently perilous.
Unfortunately, Seimei's current abilities allowed him to fire only three Magatama at once. If he could fire more, the power would undoubtedly be even greater.
Still, he wasn't overly disappointed.
After all, not everyone was Uchiha Madara, who could unleash 14 Magatama at once. Even geniuses like Uchiha Itachi could only manage four.
Seimei was confident that three wasn't his limit.
With further chakra growth and deeper mastery of Susano'o, he would undoubtedly fire more Magatama in the future.
No need for discouragement.
After testing various aspects of Susano'o's second stage, Seimei finally deactivated the technique once he was fully accustomed to it.
"Phew~~~"
Exhaling deeply, Seimei felt his entire body relax.
Though Susano'o was powerful, its activation placed immense pressure on the body. Even with his current physical attribute at 20 points, he could still feel significant pain.
But this pain was something he had to adapt to.
Otherwise, if he used this trump card in a critical moment and failed due to the discomfort, it would be no laughing matter.
Of course, Seimei wished there was no pain, but that would require further enhancing his physical strength.
Various thoughts flashed through his mind as he extinguished the campfire. Then, he activated the Wind Release: Wind Wings jutsu, soaring effortlessly into the sky.
Hovering in mid-air, Seimei surveyed the surroundings. After confirming there was no one nearby, he performed the Chakra Cloak jutsu, enveloping himself in a faint blue chakra.
Wasting no time, he flapped his wings and flew at full speed toward the Blackstone Base.
Ten minutes later.
Seimei returned to the Blackstone Base.
After exchanging greetings with Sano Nobuhisa, he headed back to his quarters to continue his training.
Although he had achieved a significant breakthrough earlier, that wasn't an excuse to slack off. His training plan for the day was still unfinished, and he needed to push on.
Fortunately, Sano Nobuhisa didn't assign him any tasks that night, considering his recent completion of a high-difficulty mission. This allowed Seimei to train in peace.
Time passed swiftly, and dawn arrived the next day.
After breakfast, Seimei received a new mission.
As in previous days, Sano Nobuhisa instructed him to create shadow clones to patrol the area around Blackstone Base, gather intelligence from the battlefield, and report back immediately.
Additionally, he was tasked with providing support to allied ninjas when necessary.
Clearly, the frontline ninjas were starting to struggle under the pressure.
Otherwise, Sano Nobuhisa wouldn't have asked Seimei to offer support.
After all, his original role in this war was intelligence gathering. Typically, ninjas weren't assigned tasks with such diverse requirements.
Seimei didn't mind too much. Supporting the frontlines also gave him opportunities to harvest chakra from Kirigakure ninjas, which was a direct and effective method.
After double-checking his equipment and supplies, Seimei activated the Wind Wings jutsu again and took to the skies.
Then, he used the Shadow Clone Jutsu, creating three clones that flew in different directions—east, south, and west.
Once he was out of sight, Seimei's main body created another shadow clone to handle the mission. Meanwhile, he flew to the outer edges of the battlefield to focus on training.
If a shadow clone identified a target to harvest chakra from, it would notify Seimei via the Telepathy Jutsu.
At that point, his main body would strike, eliminating the Kirigakure ninja and absorbing their chakra.
Over the past week, this process had become second nature to him.
However, compared to the previous week, the Kirigakure attacks had become increasingly frantic. Even after Konoha recently thwarted one of their schemes, they continued their onslaught.
It was no wonder the frontline Konoha ninjas were struggling.
Kirigakure's relentless tactics were practically suicidal.
As a result, Seimei's clones had to engage in combat multiple times.
Fortunately, the chakra gains made up for the effort. Otherwise, he would have been at a loss.
Another two days passed.
On one quiet night, the battlefield was unusually calm.
The reason was simple: the final round of negotiations between Konoha and Iwagakure had concluded earlier that day. Whatever the outcome, the die was cast.
Kirigakure no longer needed to continue their offensive.
Now, everyone was waiting for the results of the negotiations.
The next morning.
At the Blackstone Base, a meeting was held in the conference room.
For once, the Konoha jonin were all gathered together.
At one point, the sound of footsteps broke the silence.
Sano Nobuhisa entered the room with a rare smile on his face.
Seeing the crowd, he announced, "I have good news for everyone. The village has reached an agreement with Iwagakure. Starting today, we are at peace!"
Buzz.
The room erupted into chatter.
Though many had guessed the outcome upon seeing Sano Nobuhisa's expression, they couldn't contain their excitement when the news was confirmed.
First, Sunagakure, and now Iwagakure—these developments clearly pointed toward growing peace.
Everyone was overjoyed, except Seimei.
He maintained a serious expression, showing no obvious signs of happiness.
After all, this outcome didn't surprise him.
From his memories of his previous life, he already knew that Iwagakure would eventually sign a peace treaty with Konoha.
Furthermore, in the past ten days, Kirigakure had failed to breach Konoha's defenses in the eastern Fire Country. This outcome was inevitable.
Iwagakure's delay in negotiations had been a strategy to pressure Kirigakure and appease their own hardliners.
Now that Konoha had held firm, it was clear that Iwagakure couldn't win this war.
Thus, mutual compromise was the only logical choice.