blogombal Chapter 129 Fierce Battle, Peace Talks
Chapter 129 Fierce Battle, Peace Talks
Chapter 120 Fierce Battle, Peace Talks (Bonus Chapter)
Just then—
The flying spider hovering in the air suddenly began to descend.
Immediately afterwards, the Sand Village members jumped down from a height of thirty or forty meters!
Xingyuan Qianshuo had a doubt in his heart: although such a height would not be fatal, there would definitely be stiffness upon landing.
However, the next moment, his Sharingan detected something unusual—a thin but strong chakra thread was connected to the back of each Sand Ninja.
The other end of the thread was tied to Ebizo's fingertip.
Their descent was not a straight fall, but rather they were guided and cushioned in a delicate way by the silk threads, like puppets suspended on strings, their downward force being easily neutralized.
Ebizo skillfully manipulated his ten fingers, making each ninja like an independent puppet unit, precisely controlled by him, and scattered to different positions more than forty meters away, subtly forming a semi-encirclement of the Konoha team.
Without hesitation, Xingyuan Qianshuo predicted the landing point and threw out a kunai.
"Sword Shadow Clone Technique!"
In an instant, the kunai transformed into dozens of them, shooting towards the falling Sand Ninja like a torrential rain.
But then Ebizo's fingers twitched slightly, and his chakra threads suddenly expanded and contracted. Several Sand Ninja who were about to be hit slowed their fall and easily dodged the rain of shuriken.
"As expected of a veteran elite Jonin—" Hoshinohara Chisaku's eyes were solemn. "In this battle, I'm afraid we can no longer hold back."
.
The Sand Village members landed safely, their eyes burning with fighting spirit as they looked towards the Leaf Village camp.
In the distance, Hatake Sakumo, though experienced and shrewd, was firmly entangled by Rasa.
He moved like lightning, his chakra dagger imbued with wind blades, shimmering like white jade in the moonlight, the blade light slashing continuously towards Rasa.
The wind blades vary in length, sometimes close to the blade, sometimes extending up to two meters, making their attacks fierce and unpredictable.
However, Luo Sha's manipulation of the gold dust made the defense impenetrable, with layers of gold dust flowing like living matter, blocking every attack.
Even with the battle escalating to this point, it remains merely a test for both sides.
Sakumo Hatake has figured out that Rasa's ability is very similar to that of the Third Kazekage, and it is very likely that it is also a bloodline limit.
This wide-range sand manipulation technique is a great counter to his speed-based combat style. In particular, the sand gold defense responds extremely quickly, making it difficult to find a weakness for a while.
In the Konoha formation, Hoshino Senju looked at the flying spider hovering in the air, and Ebizo with a calm expression on the spider's back.
He then looked down at the Sand Village ninja who had already formed their battle formation—
Some wielded multi-segmented bone spikes, four or five meters long and shaped like centipedes; some carried broadswords on their backs; some unfurled pure white cloth scrolls; some swung rope darts, their cold light flashing—
One of the female ninjas even smiled faintly, gently stroking the cat in her arms. However, in the Sharingan's vision, the chakra flow on the cat was unusually clear, making it clearly a puppet.
Among the crowd, Ye Cang was the most imposing.
Her face was cold, and she held a kunai in her hands, seemingly an ordinary weapon. But Xingyuan Qianshuo knew that this was a master of manipulating scorching fireballs, whose killing power at close to mid-range was extremely terrifying.
While Tsunade possesses incredible strength, it requires close-quarters combat to be effective. Without knowing Pakura's true strength, there's a risk of falling victim to her attacks.
Konoha is currently unaware that Pakura possesses information about the Scorching Release technique.
Thinking this, Xingyuan Qianshuo no longer hesitated, crossed his hands, and created two more shadow clones. The previous one, which had dissipated due to the use of Wind Release without regard to energy consumption, had already vanished.
"Tsunade, I'll take the lead in the attack, and you'll protect me, how about that?" Hoshino Senju said in a deep voice.
"Okay." Tsunade nodded without hesitation, placing complete trust in Chisaku.
The members of Konoha had already gripped their weapons.
Kamano Yumihira held a chained sickle; Yanagi Inuyasha Hayamaru took out a meter-long curved mechanical ninja tool from a scroll; the others either held kunai or samurai swords, their expressions solemn.
The two Root ninjas who had remained silent all the way did not leave the group, each holding a sword and guarding Minamoto no Wataru's side—for them, Minamoto no Wataru was someone they had to protect in order to complete the mission.
Sakazaki Yamamasa originally intended to follow Sakumo's orders and lead his squad to protect Minamoto-gaoka Ferry.
However, he glanced at the Root ninja and the four guards, and ordered in a deep voice: "Yota, Ao, Tsukishima, you will go forward later and fight alongside Sakumo's team."
"Yes, Captain!" the three replied in unison.
The two sides remained locked in a stalemate for only a few breaths.
Hoshigen Senju looked towards the Sand Village formation, his brows furrowing slightly—Ebizo's chakra threads were actually connected to those Sand Village ninjas.
"Does he intend to continue controlling it remotely like this?"
During World War II, Ebizo rarely engaged in direct combat on the battlefield.
He always prioritizes intelligence, like a spider laying its web, patiently waiting to ambush its prey. Therefore, once he strikes, he can accurately hunt down Konoha ninjas, and he is extremely adept at concealing his own intelligence.
Konoha only knows that he is skilled in sensory perception and puppetry; everything else is shrouded in mystery.
Before he could think any further, the Sand Village ninjas had already charged in.
The Konoha members also charged forward.
Xingyuan Qianshuo's main body remained still, while his two shadow clones rushed straight at Ye Cang.
when!when!when!
The sounds of kunai clashing filled the air as the shadow clones fought two against one, probing each other in a fleeting exchange with Yekura.
"His skills are superb, but he's still within the rank of Jonin," the shadow clone thought to himself.
"He actually used a shadow clone to test me in close combat—I've really been underestimated." Ye Cang thought to himself.
She was always wary of Xingyuan Qianshuo's long-range water-style scorching technique, which combined fire and wind, and was most vulnerable to water-style attacks.
Seeing the shadow clone approaching again, she quickly retreated several steps, waving her hands.
In an instant, four blazing fireballs appeared around her, their dazzling light illuminating the valley under the moonlight.
Xingyuan Qianshuo's shadow clone had already prepared for the Scorching Escape. Seeing Ye Cang retreat, it rushed forward without hesitation.
"Water Release: Water Blade Slash!"
A shadow clone infused water-style chakra into a kunai and slashed down from mid-air.
Yekura's newly formed fireball was not yet stable when it was precisely slashed by this Water Release technique without hand seals and extinguished instantly.
"How could he react so quickly and be so familiar with the Blazing Release?!" Ye Cang was shocked.
In her eyes, Xingyuan Qianshuo's move was decisive and did not seem like a last-minute response.
But that moment of shock became a fatal flaw.
Another shadow clone, taking advantage of the cover of the attack from the first clone, lunged forward while crouching low. Instantly, a Rasengan condensed in its right hand, emitting a loud buzzing sound.
boom!
The Rasengan slammed heavily into Hakura's abdomen.
The ground cracked and roared. Ye Cang was sent flying more than twenty meters backward, carving a deep trench in the ground.
Everything happened in the blink of an eye, and even Ebizo, who had been closely monitoring the battle, was unable to react in time.
Taking advantage of his intelligence disadvantage, Xingyuan Qianshuo acted decisively and precisely created an opportunity in an instant.
"Has the intelligence been leaked?" Ebizo's mind raced.
Before he could think it through, he flicked his index finger, and the broken chakra threads re-extended, coiling around the struggling Yekura on the ground like a serpent.
Ye Cang's body rose into the air, like a fish on a hook, tracing an arc before being swiftly pulled back onto the back of the Flying Spider.
Xingyuan Qianshuo's true form always locked onto Ebizo with his Sharingan.
During the brief moment when his shadow clones were fighting Pakura, Ebizo multitasked, using chakra threads to control the Sand Shinobi. With a few subtle pulls, he helped two Sand Shinobi avoid fatal danger.
In the clash between the two sides, Kamano Yumahira's flying scythe and Yanagi Inu no Hayamaru's mechanical ninja tools—Konoha's first round of attacks all failed.
The Sand Village's attack injured two Konoha ninjas in an instant, giving them the upper hand.
However, Xingyuan Qianshuo's shadow clone's Rasengan disrupted their rhythm.
None of the Sand Ninjas expected that Captain Pakura would be defeated so quickly.
At this moment, Xingyuan Qianshuo's main body clearly saw that after Ebizo pulled up Yekura in the air, he crossed hand seals while maintaining the chakra lines, creating a shadow clone.
The clone caught Ye Cang, quickly formed hand seals, and a green light shone in its palm—it was the Palm Immortal Technique.
"Shadow clones are really everywhere in the ninja world, and Healing Palm Technique is also a common skill—" Hoshigen Chisaku frowned to himself.
While his main body continued to observe, his two shadow clones did not stop, turning and lunging at the two nearest Sand Villagers—
One person uses a specially made rolled cloth, which can be used for both offense and defense; the other person operates a four- or five-meter-long bone spike weapon, which is shaped like a multi-segmented centipede, with each segment containing a hidden mechanism that can be activated at any time using chakra threads.
It was the latter who injured two people from Konoha with poisoned hidden weapons.
One shadow clone dealt with the cloth-bound ninja, using Wind Release: Vacuum Blade, wielding a long blade for sharp cuts; the other targeted the puppet ninja, creating distance, and unleashed Wind Release: Cat Claw Blade.
However, Ebizo was already on high alert, and his chakra threads pulled the two of them to dodge repeatedly.
Taking advantage of the moment when Xingyuan Qian Shuo's shadow clone made a move, Sakazaki Yamamasa arrived instantly from behind and rescued the injured and poisoned Midori Namori and Tsukishima, handing them over to Tsunade for treatment.
In the air, Ebizo remained calm.
His right ring finger trembled slightly, and a new chakra thread quietly extended out. Unlike the previous ones, this thread disappeared the moment it appeared.
It snaked down like a transparent serpent, its target the heavily guarded Yuanqiu Ferry.
From the very beginning, Ebizo had his sights set on this man. All the fierce battles, in a sense, were cover for him.
Without Minamoto no Wataru, all of Konoha's actions would be in vain.
Xingyuan Qianshuo's main body has always kept a close eye on Haila Zang.
The opponent was suspended four thousand meters in the air, beyond the range of most ninjutsu. Even if he could be hit, he could take off or dodge at any time.
At such a distance, he can still accurately control the battle below. This chakra thread technique is far beyond what ordinary puppeteers can achieve.
Not to mention, he always controlled the strange flying spider with his feet.
So far, Ebizo has not revealed his true killing move, but Hoshino Senjuo dares not be careless—who knows what else is hidden in the spider's belly?
"Hmm?" Hoshino Senju suddenly became alert. "This chakra thread—why is it so blatantly heading this way?"
"Wait, I have my Sharingan activated right now. Look closely, it's different from the other lines—could it be invisible?"
In a flash, he took a deep breath and his hands moved swiftly, forming hand seals.
"Wind Release: Vacuum Wave!"
A sharp wind blade shot out, precisely severing the invisible thread, and with undiminished momentum, it hurtled straight at the flying spider.
Ebizo's heart tightened, and he hurriedly manipulated the spider to move sideways and dodge.
"A coincidence? — No, he was sensed. So keen — could it be a dojutsu?" A hint of seriousness flashed in Ebizo's eyes. "Konoha has truly produced an extraordinary young ninja."
At this moment, Tsunade was busy treating two wounded soldiers with antidote.
After covering the wounded and retreating, Sakazaki Yamasa also joined the battle, entrusting the responsibility of protecting Minamoto no Oka Watari to Tsunade, the main body of Hoshino Sensaku, and two members of the "Root" faction.
Tsunade was slightly surprised by Xingyuan Qianshuo's sudden attack, but she didn't ask any questions and focused on healing him.
In the midst of the battle, a shadow clone, mimicking the original, formed hand seals and released a vacuum wave, severing the chakra threads on four Sand Ninja.
Almost simultaneously, another shadow clone attacked, unleashing a series of sharp wind blades that instantly severely injured two Sand Ninja.
The Sand Village has nine members on this mission: Ebizo, Rasa, Pakura, and six elite Chunin, each possessing unique skills. Under Ebizo's control of the threads, they can attack without restraint.
However, Xingyuan Qianshuo's shadow clone attacks were too fast and too fierce, giving them no chance to use their abilities.
Ebizo frowned slightly.
The other Sand Ninja's threads quickly reconnected, but the two seriously injured were already being closely watched by the enemy's shadow clones.
With a slight twitch of his fingertips, two chakra threads suddenly wrapped around two Konoha ninjas, violently pulling them into the air.
"Water Release: Water Severing Wave!"
Xingyuan Qianshuo made his move, unleashing a sharp water blade that shot out in an attempt to sever the thread.
However, Ebizo seemed to have anticipated this, as the threads snapped and then reconnected, quickly pulling the two Konoha ninjas onto the spider puppet.
"Trouble—is this a hostage exchange?" Xingyuan Qianshuo's heart sank.
On the ground, the Sand Village ninja was pulled to one side by the threads, while the Konoha ninja stared in astonishment at their captured comrade.
After a moment's thought, Xingyuan Qianshuo raised his voice and said, "Lord Ebizo, you captured the two from Konoha to exchange for the two injured people, right? How about we compromise and exchange hostages now?"
"Star Source Chisaku—I know you; you're an excellent medical ninja." Ebizo pondered for a moment. "An exchange is possible, but you must heal their wounds."
The treatment is not difficult, but it should not be agreed to lightly.
Just as Xingyuan Qianshuo was about to maneuver, a figure suddenly returned to the formation—it was Hatake Sakumo.
Blood seeped from his left leg and side, and his breathing was slightly erratic.
Without hesitation, Xingyuan Qianshuo created another shadow clone and stepped forward to treat his injuries.
While keeping a close watch on the sand floating on the gold dust, the main body briefly explained the current situation to Hatake Sakumo.
Although the battle between Konoha and Sunagakure was brief, both sides had already sustained injuries.
At this moment, Luo Sha's chest was also stained with blood, and he was breathing heavily. It was clear that his battle with Shuo Mao just now was extremely fierce, no less so than this one.
After listening, Hatake Sakumo pondered for a moment, then looked up at the sky: "Ebizo, Konoha's primary mission on this trip is to save the Daimyo of the Land of Rivers, Minamoto no Mori. As for the internal affairs of the Land of Rivers—Neither Sunagakure nor Konoha should interfere; the Daimyo should decide for himself. What do you think?"
Although the Third Hokage's primary objective was to prevent Sunagakure from installing Minamoto no Oki as the new leader, the forces Sunagakure has dispatched this time are too strong. If the fighting continues, the Konoha forces are likely to suffer many casualties.
Sakumo Hatake ultimately compromised and prioritized the treatment of Minamoto no Mori. He believed that under these circumstances, the likelihood of Minamoto no Mori succeeding his eldest son was very small.
Upon hearing this, Ebizo fell silent.
Ever since he sensed the arrival of three powerful figures—Sakumo Hatake, Tsunade, and Senju Hoshino—he knew that his plans in the Land of Rivers would likely not go as intended.
Although he hadn't used his full strength, Tsunade from Konoha hadn't made a move. Star Source Chisaku was so powerful with just his shadow clones, and he remained calm and composed, so he probably had even stronger methods up his sleeve.
The two sides are evenly matched, and if they continue to fight each other, they will inevitably suffer heavy losses.
He always plans carefully before acting; this kind of unprofitable deal is not in line with his style.
Moreover, Yecang's injuries were extremely serious.
With the limited medical ninjutsu he learned from his sister Chiyo, he could only barely prolong his life, and could not be cured.
He glanced at Luo Sha's grave expression, then at Ye Cang's pale face, and finally spoke: "Fine. But you must be responsible for healing all our wounded."
"Huh—such a good thing?" Xingyuan Qianshuo was secretly delighted, trying his best to suppress the upturned corners of his mouth.
Neither the people of Konoha nor the people of Sunagakure expected that the two sides, who had just fought to the death, would suddenly make peace.
Yuanqiu Du stood quietly behind, listening to and observing everything.
Although he had some expectations of inheriting the position of daimyo, he also wished to save his father in time.
Only the two Root ninjas who hadn't yet made a move exchanged bewildered glances.
They had always known that missions were a life-or-death struggle between the two sides, and had never seen such a scene where, after fighting to the death, they shook hands and made peace in the blink of an eye.
The night wind swept through the canyon, bringing with it the deep, continuous roar of the distant river.
The cool moonlight fell silently, illuminating the remaining traces on the battlefield and enveloping the two sides in a silent standoff. The killing intent had temporarily subsided, but the tension remained.
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