"Lord Hunter!"
"Lord Tōshi!"
"Lord Hokō!"
Shocked cries erupted from the ranks of the Iwagakure shinobi as they stared at the battlefield.
None of them had expected things to end like this.
No—more accurately, none of them had expected Yagami to be this overwhelming.
With effortless dominance, he had crushed three jōnin who were considered elite even within Iwagakure.
The gap between them wasn't just large—
…it was absolute.
It felt less like a battle between equals and more like seasoned jōnin toying with fresh genin.
An unbridgeable divide stood between them.
"Kitsuchi, take command here."
After exchanging a brief glance, Rōshi and Han moved at the same time, charging straight toward the battlefield.
For the first time since the conflict began, the two acted in perfect sync.
"…Got it. Leave it to me."
Kitsuchi answered in a low voice, his expression grim as he watched their backs.
At this point, he was still only a jōnin—
far from the Kage-level powerhouse he would become in the future.
Even if he wanted to join them, he knew it wouldn't change anything.
From what they had just witnessed…
any ordinary jōnin stepping into that fight would only become a burden.
"W-What is that…?!"
"Hey—look over there!"
The commotion spread quickly, even reaching Konohagakure's trenches.
Both sides instinctively pulled back, confusion breaking the rhythm of battle.
Many of the Iwagakure forces that had been attacking the trenches abandoned their positions, rushing toward the center of the battlefield to witness the clash.
Without support, the remaining shinobi in the trenches were left locked in a tense stalemate.
Taking advantage of the lull, both sides retreated slightly, creating distance.
"…What's happening?"
Mimura Hamaki frowned and leapt out of the trench, his gaze snapping toward the source of the disturbance.
There—he saw Yagami standing alone, facing multiple Iwagakure jōnin.
And yet…he held the absolute upper hand.
"…He's that strong?"
"No wonder he wiped out Sunagakure's advance unit by himself…"
The Konoha shinobi gathered along the trench edge, staring at the battlefield in disbelief.
From their elevated position, they had a clear view of everything.
"Captain Hamaki."
A jōnin stepped forward, voice tense.
"Two more are approaching from behind the Iwagakure forces. Should we move to support Yagami?"
Hamaki narrowed his eyes.
In the distance, two figures rushed forward—one broad and armored, the other cloaked in red.
"…Don't move."
His voice dropped, heavy with certainty.
"Those two… are jinchūriki."
A chill ran through the group.
"Jinchūriki…?!"
No one had expected Iwagakure to deploy such assets here.
"If we go in now," Hamaki continued, his tone steady but grim,
"we won't be helping him—we'll just get in his way."
Even from this distance, the pressure coming off those two was unmistakable.
"Perception unit!"
His voice sharpened.
"Check for reinforcements—now!"
"Yes, sir!"
A sensory ninja immediately closed his eyes, chakra spreading outward like ripples.
Seconds passed.
Then his face went pale.
"…Captain…"
"There's nothing."
"No reinforcements detected."
"…What?"
Hamaki's expression darkened.
"…So he came alone?"
Around him, the Konoha jōnin exchanged uneasy glances.
If there were no reinforcements…
then what exactly were they supposed to do?
Throw their lives away in a fight they couldn't influence?
For a moment—no one spoke.
Two minutes earlier
The moment Yagami's laser blast sent his opponent crashing down, Kagerō and Tsuchimochi moved together.
"Earth Style: Earth Dragon Technique!"
"Earth Style: Earth Dragon Technique!"
Their voices overlapped.
From both sides of Yagami, two massive earth dragons erupted skyward, twisting through the air with a deafening roar.
After circling once, they dove straight down toward him.
"Clang—!"
"Boom! Boom!!"
Yagami didn't even look hurried.
He casually lifted the Ame no Murakumo sword and flicked it once to each side.
Two golden slashes, each several meters long, tore through the air.
The dragons shattered instantly.
Their massive bodies collapsed midair, crashing into the ground and kicking up clouds of dust.
"…Maa, that's not going to work."
Yagami lazily waved his hand, brushing aside the dust drifting toward him.
A faint, almost bored smile rested on his face as he looked at the three remaining jōnin.
Hunter and Hokō were already down.
Only Kagerō, Tsuchimochi, and Shōhei remained.
None of them spoke.
But the tension in their expressions said everything.
This opponent… was beyond them.
"Such serious faces…"
Yagami tilted his head slightly, his tone light, almost teasing.
"…What's wrong? Just realizing the situation now?"
He let out a soft chuckle.
"…Too late, you know."
The next instant—he vanished.
"Earth Style: Earth Spear Formation!"
The ground trembled as Kagerō slammed both hands down.
"Crack! Crack! Crack—!"
Countless sharpened spikes of earth erupted forward like a forest of spears, sealing off Yagami's path.
"…Didn't I just say it?"
His voice came from within the charge—calm, unhurried.
"This kind of thing… doesn't really matter."
A golden arc flashed.
A massive slash—seven, maybe eight meters long—cut forward in a sweeping line.
Everything in its path was erased.
The dense forest of earth spears collapsed instantly, shredded like paper.
"Move!!"
Kagerō roared, leaping aside.
But Tsuchimochi made a different choice—he jumped upward.
"…Ara~"
Yagami's gaze lifted slightly.
"…you left yourself wide open."
He raised his left hand.
A beam of light shot into the sky—straight toward Tsuchimochi.
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