TN: I mess up my numbering. I think I missed one chapter aside from the chapter 74, I apologized for that. From now this should be the correct chapter number.
A streak of black lightning burst straight into the crowd!
Blade light flashed and vanished in an instant, accompanied by short, stifled screams and the dull thuds of bodies collapsing to the ground.
Kiyohara did not pause for even a moment. He killed, then swiftly snatched away shinobi tool pouches and scrolls, and without the slightest hesitation continued charging forward!
BOOM!
BOOM!
Occasionally, some quick-reacting Mist shinobi tried to intercept him with ninjutsu or explosive tags, but the fiery explosions usually only managed to catch up to the afterimages Kiyohara left behind—sometimes even injuring their own comrades instead.
And those more than a hundred iron-sand explosive tags floating and roaming around Kiyohara's body made close-range interception nothing short of suicide.
Rage flared in Mitsuryuu's eyes.
Several times, he used Water Body Flicker to close the distance, attempting to end it all with a high-speed iaijutsu strike.
But every time he drew near, Kiyohara would either instantly alter the repulsive force beneath his feet, dodging in the opposite direction—
—or deliberately fling several iron-sand explosive tags into his advance path, forcing him to dodge or defend with Water Release ninjutsu.
"This guy… slippery as a loach. His bloodline limit—what is it exactly? Magnet Release? Or something like the Uzumaki clan? How can his chakra reserves be this absurd?"
Mitsuryuu felt utterly stifled.
He clearly held the advantage in raw strength, and his speed was no worse, yet he simply could not grasp the core of his opponent. All he could do was watch helplessly as Kiyohara slaughtered the weaker subordinates while steadily advancing toward the command point.
"He can't be allowed to get any closer!"
A sharp glint flashed in Mitsuryuu's eyes. He abandoned the idea of an instant kill and switched to mid-range suppression instead.
"Water Release: Thousand Needles!"
Dense water needles rained down from all directions like a torrential storm, covering a vast area and making complete evasion nearly impossible.
Kiyohara's figure jerked sharply as he dodged at full speed. Most of the water needles narrowly missed him, but one sharp needle still grazed his left cheek!
Rip!
A shallow cut appeared, and fresh blood slowly seeped out.
Mitsuryuu's spirits lifted—finally!
He had caught a flaw in Kiyohara's high-speed movement!
The opponent's dodging was not without cost. Such extreme speed placed an enormous burden on the body, causing minute delays in reaction!
"Got you!"
Mitsuryuu shouted coldly, his figure blurring once more as he prepared to launch a chain of attacks.
"I've already figured out your movements."
"Is that so?"
Yet Kiyohara, blood streaking his cheek, suddenly halted his headlong charge. He turned to look in Mitsuryuu's direction, revealing a faint smile within the thick mist.
"Then you might as well… take a good look at your surroundings."
Mitsuryuu's heart skipped a beat as he instinctively expanded his perception.
Just moments ago, all his attention had been focused on Kiyohara himself. Now, as his senses spread outward, his expression changed drastically!
At some unknown point in time, along the edges of the area where they had just been pursuing and clashing at high speed—among charred tree trunks, collapsed rocks, and even fallen corpses—
There were extremely well-hidden strands of copper wire, thin as hair, glinting faintly with a metallic sheen!
These wires crisscrossed in every direction, vaguely forming a massive three-dimensional trap that covered nearly half the battlefield.
And all the wire ends subtly converged toward the position where Kiyohara was standing!
"When did this happen…?!"
Mitsuryuu suddenly realized—Kiyohara hadn't merely been looting spoils of war; he had been setting these threads all along!
"Lightning Release: Lightning Current!"
Kiyohara formed seals with both hands.
Crackle—buzz—!
Lightning-nature chakra erupted instantly from his body, surging into the carefully laid copper-wire network!
Brilliant azure lightning raced along the wires, instantly illuminating the dim, fog-shrouded battlefield as bright as day!
"Not good!"
Mitsuryuu instinctively tried to use Mist Body Flicker to escape this area that had suddenly transformed into a lightning cage.
But at the instant his body was about to move—
"Detonate."
Kiyohara muttered.
Not detonating all the explosive tags—rather, it was the one hidden perfectly against the inside of Mitsuryuu's armor, right over his chest. That iron-sand explosive tag, long planted and concealed, was instantly activated by Kiyohara's reserved magnetic force!
"What?!"
Mitsuryuu's face changed in shock. He felt a sudden heat at his chest, and an overwhelming sense of danger surged toward him.
There was no time to think about when this thing had been attached. His survival instincts forced him into the only possible choice.
He threw himself violently backward while tearing and ripping open the armor on his chest with both hands at top speed, using all his strength to hurl the entire piece of armor toward the open space diagonally ahead!
BOOM!
The armor exploded in midair less than two meters after leaving his hands! The terrifying shockwave slammed straight into Mitsuryuu's unprotected chest and face!
"Pff—!"
He spat out a mouthful of blood as his body was blasted away like a torn sack, crashing through a large tree before slamming heavily to the ground. His chest was a mangled mess of flesh and blood, his face drenched in crimson, his aura instantly collapsing—only half a breath remained to keep him alive.
"…Cough… bas…tard…"
Mitsuryuu's vision blurred as he stared in horror at the figure slowly walking out from the fading lightning within the copper-wire net.
This opponent wasn't just a madman—perhaps from the very beginning, he himself had been guided step by step into a prearranged battlefield!
To have an explosive tag attached to his body without his noticing—what kind of speed was that?!
Kiyohara quickly walked up to Mitsuryuu's side, breathing slightly heavily.
The wound on his cheek was still bleeding, and the chakra within his body had once again dropped to a dangerous threshold.
The prolonged hardening of Steel Release, the acceleration of Magnet Release, and the long-term burst of Body Flicker technique had placed a terrifying strain on both his chakra and mental stamina.
If not for the ultra-efficient energy conversion and overdraw potential brought by Steel Release Kiyohara's possession, he would have been completely drained long ago.
"Thankfully… I had enough explosive tags."
Kiyohara glanced at the scattered loot packs around him—spoils stripped from Mist shinobi—and a trace of pain flickered in his heart.
The trap just now and the final killing blow had consumed no small number of explosive tags.
He didn't hesitate any further and immediately began searching Mitsuryuu and the nearby Kirigakure corpses at high speed, prioritizing explosive tags, soldier pills, and valuable shinobi tools.
This area, shaken by the intense fighting and terrifying chain explosions moments ago, had fallen into an eerie silence. Some MIst shinobi scattered in the surrounding mountains and forests seemed intimidated and dared not rush in recklessly for the moment.
This granted Kiyohara several precious dozen seconds to catch his breath and "clean up the battlefield."
...
Rear area.
Yamanaka Shintoku's voice paused briefly, as if waiting for Hyuga Natsu to report what she was seeing.
He relayed:
"Kiyohara has dismissed his summoning… He's stopped, looks like he's eating something? No—wait, there's… a very strong Mist shinobi near him!!"
"They've engaged, but… suddenly a huge number of explosive tags floated up around Kiyohara. Every time the Mist shinobi slashes, the explosive tags block and detonate. Kiyohara is using explosive tags as shields…"
Everyone in the rear felt their hearts leap into their throats.
"Kiyohara… can he hold on?"
Rin covered her mouth.
Yamanaka Shintoku didn't answer. Even he had been stirred by the performance of this young junior.
But to know what was really happening on the scene, they still had to wait for Hyuga Natsu to observe with her Byakugan.
...
Kirigakure command point.
"Useless! A bunch of useless trash!"
Higashino Noyama's furious roar nearly drowned out the distant sounds of explosions.
Through a special communication ninjutsu and the blurred images transmitted via lingering mist, he watched helplessly as his elite subordinate, Mitsuryuu Sora, was grievously wounded and left on the brink of death by that Konoha brat using such despicable and cunning methods!
Not only had the chaos on the flank failed to subside, it had intensified!
"That Kiyohara… must die! At any cost!"
Killing intent boiled in Higashino Noyama's eyes, the scar on his face twisting.
"Mobilize all nearby squads and surround him completely! He's already at the end of his rope!"
Zabuza silently observed the distance, his brow furrowed beneath the bandages.
The combat experience, ruthlessness, and endless methods Kiyohara displayed made him discard his initial trace of disdain.
This was no hyena that merely preyed on the weak, as the commander claimed—but a lone wolf in sheep's clothing, cunning and vicious!
...
Center of the main battlefield.
Elsewhere, the side wings had gradually turned into withdrawal zones, and most of the shinobi, including those at the main battlefield had already retreated.
Those remaining were specialists in Body Flicker techniques and powerful fighters holding the rear.
The largest-scale clash, without question, was where Jiraiya and Orochimaru were battling the Six-Tails.
"Oh?"
While spewing scorching toad oil bullets to cooperate with Orochimaru's binding-type ninjutsu and temporarily restrain the rampaging Six-Tails, Jiraiya spared a glance toward the flank.
The constant flashes of explosive fire and violent chakra fluctuations there were clearly perceptible even from this distance.
"Among this year's Konoha saplings, there's quite a thorny one growing, huh."
Jiraiya raised an eyebrow, his tone tinged with appreciation.
"Making quite the commotion."
Orochimaru's golden slit pupils also swept in that direction. His long tongue licked the corner of his mouth as he let out a low chuckle, saying nothing—but the interest in his eyes grew ever stronger.
...
At the edge of the flank battlefield, near Konoha's retreat route.
Kiyohara stuffed the last looted shinobi tool pouch into his now-bulging sealing scroll and took a deep breath.
After the brief respite and swallowing several more soldier pills, his chakra had barely recovered a little over ten percent—but the exhaustion from bodily overdraw surged over him like a tide.
Steel Release Kiyohara's spirit also sent a warning: this overclocked state could not be maintained for much longer.
"It's time to withdraw… but before leaving, there's still one last step."
Kiyohara's gaze fell on the command point that still stood out clearly within his perception.
He planned to release a long-range ninjutsu, then throw explosive tags over there from a distance and detonate them.
Just as he was about to act, an extremely faint sound of air being cut came from behind him. A small, slender black shadow landed silently.
"Who's there?!"
Kiyohara instantly went on guard, several iron-sand explosive tags drifting toward that direction.
"Don't attack, we're on the same side!"
A crisp yet slightly hurried female voice rang out.
The newcomer wore an animal mask. Long purple hair was tied into a neat ponytail at the back of her head. She was dressed in a fitted ANBU uniform, with a slightly long shinobi blade strapped to her back.
Although the mask concealed her face, Kiyohara still recognized her from her voice and build—Uzuki Yugao.
The last time they met, Kiyohara had even saved her life.
Yugao was slightly younger than Kiyohara, but due to her outstanding talent, she had already been selected early for ANBU training.
After all, the minimum requirement for ANBU was chūnin.
To be honest, Kiyohara had always found ANBU's internal secrecy a bit puzzling.
After all, when Kakashi joined ANBU back then, with that eye-catching head of white hair—how many people didn't recognize him?
(End of Chapter)