Yōgan was the first to realize something was wrong. Among all the Iwagakure shinobi present, he was the one who had interacted with Hoshiyomi the most — and also the quickest to react.
The moment he saw Hoshiyomi sheath his blade, he instantly thought of the devastating sword technique Hoshiyomi had used earlier to slice through the Iron Prison.
So the moment Hoshiyomi vanished, Yōgan threw himself to the ground without hesitation.
That spur-of-the-moment decision saved his life—Hoshiyomi's circular sword energy, after all, was launched from around waist height.
As the sword energy flew past, it just barely skimmed over the top of Yōgan's head, sparing his life.
Of course, he didn't dare counterattack at such close range. He immediately used Earth-Release Body Flicker to retreat from Hoshiyomi's vicinity.
The battlefield once again fell into silence.
The Iwa forces, already shaken from Hoshiyomi's one-man annihilation of the Explosion Release Unit. Now, seeing him descend from the heavens and unleash a flash-draw slash that instantly annihilated an entire squad of elite jōnin, their morale completely collapsed.
The previous battlefield commander, who had barely survived, was now staring at Hoshiyomi—standing tall amidst the corpses of elite Iwa jōnin—with a heart full of terror.
Any will to fight was gone. He simply threw his head back and shouted with all his might:
"Run!!"
As soon as the words rang out, the Iwa shinobi seemed to snap out of a trance. One after another, they turned and fled in panic, as if wishing their parents had given them extra legs.
Among the crowd, Yōgan was still alive. As he watched the fear-stricken faces of his comrades, he understood: there was no turning this around.
In the distance, the main Konoha force was still working hard to cool the lava. Once that was done, they would charge straight through.
If that happened, everything would be over.
Iwagakure had stationed nearly 2,000 shinobi on the frontlines in the Land of Rain. (Most had been held in reserve, since the focus had originally been on confronting Hanzō.)
This was nearly one-tenth of all Iwa's shinobi. If they were to be wiped out by Konoha here and now, the war would effectively be over.
No, I absolutely cannot let this happen. If I let my fleeing comrades get killed, Iwagakure will have no hope of winning this three-village war
As the head of ANBU, and a contender for the title of Fourth Tsuchikage, Yōgan knew that even if he died, he couldn't let that outcome occur.
With this resolve clear in his heart, the fear in his eyes disappeared—replaced by the grim determination of a man prepared to die.
The mistake had already been made. Now, the only thing he could do was use his life to cover the retreat of his comrades.
Fighting spirit reignited in Yōgan's eyes. No, rather than fighting spirit, it was more like the resolve to die.
Like a lone fish swimming against the tide of a collapsing school, he turned and charged straight toward Hoshiyomi.
The sight was so out of place that it stood out even among the chaos, drawing Hoshiyomi's attention instantly.
Hoshiyomi blinked in surprise:
"So… he's resolved to die?"
Yōgan, eyes locked on the swordsman standing before him, said coldly:
"From now on, unless I'm dead, I won't let you take even one step forward."
A hint of admiration appeared in Hoshiyomi's eyes.
"You've made me see you in a new light. If this were peacetime, I might have spared you… but unfortunately, this is war."
Yōgan gave a bitter smile but didn't respond. Instead, he began forming hand seals.
Lava Release: Scorching Stream Rock!
This time, it wasn't just a single lava ball. Wave after wave of scorching molten spheres howled through the air toward Hoshiyomi. The heat was so intense that it visibly warped the surrounding air.
Even Hoshiyomi dropped his relaxed expression when he saw the barrage. He pushed his Shunpo speed to the limit—his figure darting through the air like a phantom, weaving between the lava balls.
Those he could dodge, he did. Those he couldn't, he cleaved apart with Water Release-infused sword energy.
Under the intense gaze of the Konoha shinobi watching from afar, Hoshiyomi successfully broke through the barrage and closed the distance.
Lava Release: Granite Armor!
Yōgan watched as Hoshiyomi drew close—Mikazuki Munekata pointed at him, ready to cleave him in two. But Yōgan remained calm, activating his defensive technique.
The Granite Armor, as the name suggested, was a hardened shield of granite formed from cooled lava—far tougher than standard Earth-Release hardening jutsu.
When Hoshiyomi's blade struck it, it rang out with a sharp metallic clang. The slash that could cut through ordinary rock only sank partway into Yōgan's shoulder—and went no further.
If Hoshiyomi could swing a second time, he might finish the job—but he didn't have the time.
Lava Release: Molten Fist!
Encased in granite armor, Yōgan launched a punch that was two levels stronger than his usual strength. More terrifyingly, under Yōgan's chakra manipulation, the outer layer of the granite fist had reverted to a lava state.
Hoshiyomi, having just completed his strike, was leaning forward and couldn't retreat quickly enough. As Yōgan's fiery punch surged toward him, he had no choice but to grit his teeth and raise Mikazuki Munechika in defense.
He blocked with the blade across his chest—but Yōgan's strength was monstrous. The sheer force of the punch blasted Hoshiyomi backward.
Fortunately, Mikazuki Munechika was a weapon capable of rivaling the Kusanagi Sword. Had it been a normal sword, Hoshiyomi would've been dead from that magma-covered fist.
After adjusting his stance mid-air, Hoshiyomi landed safely. He instinctively glanced at his left hand, which had been holding the blade—just that brief contact with the molten fist had scalded his hand, leaving a large blister.
Lava Release… it consumes an immense amount of chakra and isn't particularly fast, but the destructive power is terrifying.
Still, the fight was nearing its end.
Yōgan had used several high-level Lava Release techniques in succession. His chakra was nearly depleted, and his right arm had been nearly severed by Hoshiyomi's earlier attack—he had lost the ability to fight.
Yōgan, of course, knew his own condition better than anyone. Looking at the still-bleeding wound on his shoulder, he gave a bitter laugh:
"In the end… I still couldn't kill you. Since I can't take you down… I'll just take you with me."
Despite his pale face, Yōgan's expression suddenly ignited with vigor—a sign Hoshiyomi recognized immediately.
He's forcefully overclocking his body—for one final, suicidal attack.
Hoshiyomi didn't dare be careless. He immediately pushed his speed to the max, dashing toward Yōgan to finish him before he could complete the technique.
But just then, Hoshiyomi saw something chilling—Yōgan's granite armor began to glow red-hot, inch by inch.
"Let's go meet the Shinigami together… Lava Release: Scorching Rock Burial!"