Shikuro swept through the center, while four others guarded the cardinal directions.
Raj, Minato, and Hiashi remained as reserves.
The nanopoison insects proved devastating against ordinary ninja, with Shikuro's Parasitic Destruction Insects wiping out roughly eighty percent of the enemy forces.
Suddenly-
"Careful! Kaguya Clan members! And two from the Snow Clan!" Hiashi immediately warned.
Boom!
A resounding crash split the ground, and seven or eight figures emerged.
Ice mirrors rose to encircle the entire island, while four bloodthirsty madmen appeared in the center.
Spotting the Konoha shinobi, they spread their fingers wide and roared:
"Enemies! Die!"
Whoosh!
The air crackled as bone bullets shot forth in a barrage.
Corpse Bone Pulse: Ten Finger Piercing Bullets!
Simultaneously, two splashes erupted, sending countless water needles flying toward the Konoha shinobi.
Thousand Kill Water Needles!
"Meow!"
At the cry, the surrounding shinobi gathered around.
Raj slammed his paw down, and four ice walls materialized around them, shielding the Konoha shinobi from all external attacks.
Even the most powerful bone bullets failed to breach the icy defenses.
"Hmm?"
"Outsiders? Is that the cat?"
Two figures emerged from the ice crystals.
Though masked, their bewildered voices betrayed their shock.
Despite knowing from Kiri Ninja intelligence that Konoha possessed a cat capable of wielding Ice Release, witnessing it firsthand defied belief.
The four Kaguya Clan ninja drew their bone swords.
The Kaguya Clan possessed a hereditary taijutsu style that complemented their Kekkei Genkai.
The bone sword served as the opening stance.
In the next instant, the four warriors charged forward with lightning speed.
Guy's entire body tensed.
Though he had killed many on the front lines recently, this was his first true high-level mission.
He was contemplating whether to activate the Eight Inner Gates when...
The ice wall shattered, transforming into countless ice spikes that scattered in all directions.
A black and a golden light flashed between the spikes.
Boom!
Two thunderous explosions erupted as Minato and Raj each struck a Kaguya ninja with a Rasengan, sending them flying.
The other two Kaguya ninja extended dozens of bone spikes from their bodies, using them to block Raj and Minato's attacks.
Those bones are truly tough.
Raj had no patience for drawn-out fights.
Noticing Shikuro's underhanded tactics - those nanoscopic poison insects could harm even allies if one wasn't careful - it decided to stay out of their conflict.
Against bone, poison remained the most efficient weapon.
Then...
'Let's shatter these ice crystals first.'
Raj transformed into an enormous, curled-up ball, its fur bristling into steel-needle-like spikes.
The massive "spiked ball" began to roll forward with a
A deafening roar.
Amidst the thunderous chaos, the ice wall crumbled, and two figures plummeted from the sky.
Before anyone could react, a flash of golden light erupted.
Blood splattered.
Against ninjas temporarily stripped of their defenses, Minato's attacks were swift and lethal.
"A pleasure working with you," Minato said with a faint smile, giving a thumbs-up to Raj, who had stopped shrinking in mid-air.
Taken alone, the gesture seemed harmless, but considering the earlier situation, Raj suspected Minato was mocking him.
'How infuriating! Even Minato has turned bad...'
Raj sighed inwardly and turned his gaze to the remaining enemies.
In the next instant, screams and wails erupted from the Takeuchi Clan members.
Then, Shino Aburame and the Earth Release Ninja slowly emerged from the ground.
The nanopoisonous insects had done their work.
"Looks like we weren't needed after all," Hiashi said, glancing around before chuckling self-deprecatingly.
He had hoped to make a strong showing this time, but in the end, he hadn't participated in the battle at all.
'These guys are absolute beasts.'
'Well, no matter.'
As the head of the Hyuga Main Family, his primary duty was to protect himself and contribute where necessary.
Whether he received credit or not was irrelevant; after all, no one could ever erase the Hyuga Clan's contributions to Konoha.
Guy was different.
He was still debating whether to open the Eight Inner Gates when the others swiftly eliminated all the enemies, leaving him no chance to participate.
'I should have acted without hesitation.'
Guy lamented inwardly.
However, after reflecting on the situation, he realized that charging in might not have been the best approach.
Both the Snow Clan and Kaguya Clan employed combat styles that countered his straightforward, direct approach.
Opening the Eight Inner Gates would have been ineffective unless he reached at least the fourth gate.
Otherwise, he risked injury without inflicting any damage on his opponents.
'I'm still too weak.'
More precisely, he lacked versatility.
Guy understood this intellectually, but he had no idea how to address it.
He was never a particularly creative ninja.
If he had been, he wouldn't have spent years mastering only the Eight Inner Gates, nor would he have remained a Genin.
With the battle concluded, the Yamanaka Clan took over.
The poisonous insects hadn't immediately killed the Kaguya Clan members, so there was still time to extract more information while the trail was fresh.
Raj finally understood the situation.
Apart from Minato, Hiashi, and Guy, the remaining four were likely a complete Root squad, working together seamlessly with Shikuro as their core.
The other three were purely support.
The question remained: where did the fourth member come from?
'Most likely, they're from the Nara Clan.'
"We've located ten camps in total," the Yamanaka Clan member reported.
"The Mizukage's position is on a large island ten miles southeast of here, heavily guarded by ninja."
"How many exactly?" Shikuro pressed.
The Yamanaka member shook his head, clearly unable to extract precise numbers from their targets.
"Meow! Let's go straight for the main camp!" Raj declared.
"You guys create a diversion. Raj and I will take on the Third Mizukage."
Minato quickly understood Raj's plan and readily agreed.
After collaborating with Raj for several days, Minato's mindset had gradually shifted from that of an ordinary Jonin to something far more ambitious.
With their combined strength, taking down a Mizukage seemed almost trivial.
"You're targeting the Mizukage?" Hiashi hesitated, then nodded slightly after a few seconds of contemplation.
He turned to Shikuro and said, "I think it's feasible."
"Good."
The Kage represented the strongest military force of their village.
To be honest, neither Shino Aburame nor Hiashi Hyuga had initially considered targeting the Mizukage.
Their original plan was to secure the remaining four swords and use the Four Ninja Swordsmen as leverage to force the Kiri Ninja to withdraw their forces.
But if they could capture the Mizukage, why bother with the four swords?
While the swords were useful, seizing them all would only result in a negotiated peace and their return.
Konoha couldn't realistically claim all seven swords; otherwise, the Kiri Ninja would likely fight to the death rather than surrender.
Leave a way out, so we can meet again someday.
Though, capturing the Mizukage wouldn't exactly be a glorious victory.
"Third Mizukage, Kumogakure began withdrawing their forces yesterday.