Screech—
The sound of a blade slicing through flesh rang out.
Qing Ming swung his blade, leaving a deep, bone-revealing gash across the enemy's chest.
"Argh!"
The Mist Ninja groaned in pain, quickly retracting the kunai he had thrust out, retreating several steps in an attempt to regain his footing.
Qing Ming glanced down at the wound on his shoulder caused by the kunai's earlier strike. Without hesitation, he stepped forward, ready to finish the job.
But just then, the Mist Ninja he had forced to retreat earlier with his Illusion: Sharingan suddenly charged forward, blocking his path.
Whoosh—
A kunai thrust straight toward him.
Qing Ming halted momentarily, raising his long blade to block the attack.
Clang—
The blade and kunai clashed, emitting a sharp metallic ring.
Neither fighter retreated. Both exerted their full strength, their weapons grinding against each other, producing a grating "screech-screech" sound.
Sparks erupted where their weapons met, forcing both of them to squint slightly from the glare.
After a momentary standoff, both withdrew simultaneously, putting some distance between themselves.
But in the next instant, they charged at each other again.
Clang!
Another sharp metallic collision.
This time, however, there was no prolonged standoff. They clashed briefly and separated, only to immediately engage once more.
Clang, clang, clang!
A flurry of sharp metallic clashes rang out in rapid succession.
Qing Ming's long blade struck with precision and relentless aggression. The Mist Ninja, despite trying his best to keep up, was barely managing to defend himself.
The relentless attacks left the Mist Ninja increasingly passive and cornered.
From the corner of his eye, Qing Ming glanced at the other Mist Ninja who had been injured and retreated. Now that the fighter had distanced himself, Qing Ming sighed inwardly, regretting the missed opportunity.
Shaking off the distraction, Qing Ming focused all his attention on the opponent in front of him.
Earlier, these two couldn't defeat him even when working together. Now that there was only one left, dealing with him became even easier.
Within just a few minutes, Qing Ming firmly gained the upper hand, leaving multiple cuts on his opponent's body.
As for himself?
Not only had he remained unscathed during this exchange, but even the wound on his shoulder inflicted earlier was beginning to heal.
This rapid self-recovery was exactly why Qing Ming dared to bait his enemies by exposing himself—it gave him a tactical edge that few could counter.
With that in mind, Qing Ming prepared to repeat the same strategy.
Though he continued to fight aggressively, he also began intentionally leaving openings, tempting his opponent to seize the chance.
However, whether due to caution, insight into Qing Ming's tactics, or sheer timidity, the Mist Ninja refused to take the bait, no matter how Qing Ming lured him.
This frustrated Qing Ming, but he remained undeterred.
Ultimately, the gap in their strength was too large. Even with the Mist Ninja staying defensive, he was clearly no match for Qing Ming.
The battle dragged on for several more minutes.
Under Qing Ming's relentless assault, the Mist Ninja's stamina drained rapidly.
From the increasingly heavy breathing, Qing Ming could tell his opponent was nearing his limit.
Finally, the opportunity came.
Spotting an opening, Qing Ming immediately surged forward, channeling his chakra explosively.
With a powerful kick to the ground, his speed soared to the maximum, and he closed the distance in an instant.
Seeing Qing Ming appear so suddenly, the Mist Ninja—Kenta Shimizu—was momentarily stunned. Reflexively, he thrust his kunai toward Qing Ming's throat.
But to Qing Ming, his enemy's reaction was slow and predictable, as if moving in slow motion.
Between the advanced visual perception of the Sharingan and the fact that Qing Ming had initiated this attack himself, it was no surprise he dodged the strike with ease.
Kenta Shimizu, however, wasn't as fortunate.
Qing Ming's unexpected burst of speed left him completely unprepared. While he managed to stab his kunai in time, it wasn't nearly enough.
In combat, the difference between life and death often came down to mere fractions of a second.
Side-stepping the kunai's thrust, Qing Ming swung his long blade.
The blade gleamed with a faint blue aura, exuding an intense cutting force—a visible manifestation of wind chakra refined and concentrated around the weapon.
Whoosh!
The blade cut cleanly through the air toward Kenta Shimizu's neck.
Kenta instinctively tilted his head back, narrowly avoiding the blade itself.
However, the chakra-infused wind surrounding the blade wasn't as forgiving.
A thin but lethal wound opened on his neck as the wind chakra tore through flesh.
Blood gushed out in torrents.
Staggering backward, Kenta clutched at his neck, desperately trying to stem the bleeding.
But it was futile.
Qing Ming's strike had precisely severed both his carotid artery and his windpipe.
The wound left him not only bleeding out rapidly but also suffocating at the same time.
In such a situation, without immediate intervention from a medical ninja of Tsunade's caliber, survival was impossible.
And clearly, there was no such ninja present on this battlefield.
Qing Ming might rival Tsunade in certain specialized skills, but healing his opponent wasn't on the agenda.
Kenta Shimizu's fate was sealed.
Ignoring his dying enemy, Qing Ming's gaze shifted.
In the distance, the Leaf Ninja who had nearly subdued Itou Shohei was already moving toward another section of the battlefield.
With a swift leap, Qing Ming landed atop a large tree.
A few more leaps took him to the very peak of the treetops.
Standing at the highest point, he surveyed the battlefield.
The entire valley was a chaotic war zone.
The defensive line the Mist Ninja had constructed halfway up the mountain had completely collapsed.
Now, the battle was an all-out melee.
Thanks to careful pre-battle preparations, the Leaf Ninja had the upper hand in most areas.
However, it wasn't a one-sided slaughter either.
If this stalemate continued, the Leaf Ninja might eventually win, but it would take considerable time.
And time was precisely what Ayano Akikiku wanted to exploit.
Her strategy was clear: delay the battle here as long as possible while waiting for reinforcements from the other Mist Ninja forces to overrun the Blackstone Base and join the fight.
If that happened, the Leaf Ninja here would be caught in a pincer attack and annihilated.
It wasn't just a possibility—it was highly likely.
Even with Nobutaka Sano's fleet conducting naval raids, there was no way to completely stop the Mist reinforcements from reaching Blackstone Base.
And once those reinforcements arrived, the Blackstone Base's defenses wouldn't hold.
When the Mist reinforcements flanked them from behind, the outcome for the Leaf forces would be grim.
Thus, this battle couldn't drag on.
And ensuring that didn't happen was precisely Qing Ming's role.
With this thought in mind, Qing Ming wasted no time.
Leaping down from the treetops, he headed straight toward another Mist Ninja locked in combat with a Leaf Ninja.
Thanks to Nobutaka Sano deploying nearly all available Leaf Jonin to this battle, there were very few "free" Mist Jonin left on the battlefield.
In other words, Qing Ming could engage at will without worrying about being surrounded.
This allowed him to unleash his full strength.
And this was Nobutaka Sano's true ace in the hole.
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