"The enemy is about to enter range! Archers, avoid targeting the Fourth Raikage, A!"
"Ready… release!"
There was no negotiation and no intention to talk.
When the Kumogakure army advanced to within roughly one thousand meters of Kikyō Mountain Fortress, Hyūga Hizashi immediately ordered the Hyūga archers to fire.
The reason they were told to avoid the Fourth Raikage, A, was simple. Once A activated his Lightning Release Chakra Mode, his defensive power increased tremendously. Ordinary arrows could never break through his defenses.
Rather than wasting effort on him, it was better to inflict as many casualties as possible on the Kumogakure forces.
A series of sharp whooshing sounds tore through the air.
Dozens of arrows plunged into the dense ranks of Kumogakure shinobi. After harvesting several lives, the arrows suddenly exploded, their blasts spreading to the surrounding ninja.
Unlike the earlier annihilation battle in the dark forest, this time it was a direct siege battle against Kumogakure.
There was no need for concealment.
Therefore, Uchiha Ren had ordered the Hyūga archers to attach at least three Explosive Tags to every arrow, maximizing the damage they could deal to the enemy army.
With such reinforcement, the first volley of arrows alone instantly incapacitated dozens of Kumogakure shinobi.
"Archers? Spread out the formation! Increase the charge speed!"
A immediately realized the terrifying lethality of the arrows. If they didn't break into the fortress quickly, even if they eventually captured Kikyō Mountain Fortress, the casualties would be devastating.
After giving the order, A pushed his speed to the limit. His body turned into a streak of lightning-like afterimage, instantly pulling far ahead of the Kumogakure army.
A intended to use himself as the spear, charging straight into the fortress to disrupt the rhythm of the Konoha defenders.
"Ignore the Fourth Raikage. Maintain the attack rhythm. Don't give the Kumogakure ninja any breathing room!"
Watching A rapidly approaching below, Uchiha Ren remained completely calm as he issued orders.
After the Kumogakure formation spread out, the lethality of the Hyūga archers' arrows dropped significantly, but their attacks were still effective. Each volley continued to incapacitate over a dozen enemy shinobi.
By the time the Hyūga archers fired their fifth wave of arrows, A—his hair and beard bristling, lightning crackling across his entire body—had already reached the base of Kikyō Mountain Fortress.
"Damn it! Die!"
With a furious roar, A leapt high into the air, crossing dozens of meters as he attempted to break into the fortress.
The next moment—
Boom!
A dull, heavy impact echoed.
A's figure was sent flying backward even faster than he had arrived.
"What…? Who are you?!"
A landed heavily on the ground, staring at the figure not far ahead of him.
Before him stood Uchiha Ren , his entire body engulfed in roaring flames.
A's expression was filled with uncertainty.
For some reason, the moment he saw Ren , he felt an inexplicable sense of familiarity—and deep within his heart surged anger and unwillingness.
Yet after searching through all his memories, A couldn't find any trace of Ren .
This should have been their first meeting.
The contradiction left him baffled.
"Long time no see, A."
Ren revealed a strange smile and raised his hand, slowly drawing Zanka no Tachi from its sheath.
"Long time no see? Who exactly are you?"
Ren 's words made A feel increasingly irritated.
He was certain he had met this man before, yet his mind contained no memory whatsoever connected to him.
Suddenly, A recalled the time he had been captured by Konoha not long ago.
A frightening possibility crossed his mind.
Was my memory altered?
There were many methods in the ninja world capable of modifying memories, and the Yamanaka Clan of Konoha were masters of such techniques.
If Konoha had extracted large amounts of Kumogakure's intelligence from his mind…
The thought alone made A's anger surge like a storm.
"Sorry, A. I don't have time to waste with you this time."
Ren slowly exhaled, holding Zanka no Tachi horizontally before him.
Heat rapidly accumulated along the blade, causing it to darken until it resembled charred coal.
Zanka no Tachi — East: Rising Sun Blade!
"Arrogant! Who the hell do you think I am?!"
A roared in fury. His body flashed, instantly appearing above Ren as his fist crashed down toward Ren 's head.
"I am the Fourth Raikage!
Lightning Release: Lariat!"
Ren did not dodge.
Calmly, he simply raised Zanka no Tachi and slashed upward.
A's pupils suddenly shrank.
A powerful instinctive warning surged through his body. He felt that if he were touched by that blade, he would die without question.
Immediately changing tactics, A twisted his body backward midair, narrowly avoiding the sword. After several rapid flips, he widened the distance between them.
But in the next instant—
Ren 's figure appeared right in front of him.
The blade fell again.
"So fast!"
A was shocked. Ren 's speed was beyond belief.
The sword swept through the air—
—and A's body suddenly exploded into lightning, electricity wrapping around Ren .
Lightning Release: Lightning Clone Technique!
Ren 's expression didn't change in the slightest.
Flames erupted from his body, instantly annihilating the lightning. At the same time, he swung a backhand punch toward his flank.
"Fire Fist!"
A blazing fist of flame erupted forward, colliding head-on with A—whose body crackled with lightning.
The violent impact forced both men backward.
Ren glanced at the now serious-looking Raikage and spoke with mild surprise.
"You brute… actually using a clone technique?"
A's face darkened.
"What exactly do you mean by that?"
"I'm the Fourth Raikage! Just because I rarely use techniques like Lightning Clone doesn't mean I can't!"
As the leader of a great ninja village, A naturally possessed a wide arsenal of ninjutsu.
However, his true advantages were speed and defense. Most enemy techniques didn't need to be dodged—he could simply tank them. And anything he couldn't block could be avoided with his speed.
Thus, his combat style had always been straightforward and aggressive.
But Ren 's speed was no slower than his own, and A had no confidence in directly blocking the technique imbued within Ren 's sword.
That was why he had to resort to clone techniques to assist in battle and avoid damage.
"I underestimated you."
Ren formed a hand seal with one hand.
"But from now on, I won't give you another chance to use clones."
"Fire Release Chakra Mode — Full Power!"
The flames covering Ren suddenly exploded outward, burning far more violently than before.
The raging fire enveloped his entire body, obscuring his figure until he resembled a human-shaped blazing torch.
A's expression grew grave as he watched carefully.
The next second—
BOOM!
The ground beneath Ren shattered violently.
In a single instant, he appeared right in front of A.
A's eyes widened sharply. He barely managed to raise his arms to block.
CLANG!
The charred blade of Zanka no Tachi slammed heavily into the thick metal bracers on A's forearms.
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