The wind pressure finally subsided, leaving a battlefield littered with the bodies of hundreds of ninjas. The corpses of the fallen sprawled across the devastated land, while the surviving Three Kingdoms ninjas nursed varying degrees of injuries.
Kitsuchi, the leader of the Rock Ninja Corps, and the Fourth Kazekage, Rasa, surveyed the carnage with clenched fists. Rage simmered in their hearts as they absorbed the devastating results of Konoha's trap.
The oppressive winds earlier had severely limited their abilities. Rasa, in particular, had struggled to manipulate his gold sand with the same precision. But now, with the winds gone, his control returned in full force.
"Crash!"
With a sweep of his hand, hundreds of gold sand ninja tools materialized behind him, each shimmering ominously.
Not to be outdone, Kitsuchi slammed his hands to the ground, completing a sequence of hand seals.
"Earth Style: Earth Spike Collapse!"
"Gold Dust Shuriken!"
Massive rock spikes erupted from the ground, while Rasa's gold-dust weapons shot forward like golden streaks of light, hurtling toward the hundreds of Konoha ninjas clustered nearby.
At that moment, the Konoha ninjas at the four corners of the battlefield moved closer together, forming tighter formations. Each group included a shadow clone of Minato Namikaze, who stood at the ready.
Swish, swish, swish!
Just as the dual attacks were about to strike, hundreds of Konoha ninjas vanished in unison.
"What incredible chakra control!" Rōshi, who had been momentarily thrown aside by Minato earlier, muttered under his breath. His pupils dilated with astonishment as he realized what had just happened.
Even as shadow clones, Minato's ability to teleport and transfer chakra across hundreds of people was astonishing. Yet, Rōshi's awe quickly turned to something more primal—a tremor of fear emanating from deep within him.
The Four-Tails Jinchūriki froze momentarily, his instincts screaming as a wave of dread coursed through him. He couldn't pinpoint the source until he locked eyes with Minato, standing composed and unshaken in the distance.
"Why… am I afraid?"
Rōshi's heart raced. For decades, he had wielded the power of the Four-Tails without faltering. Yet now, he felt it—a hesitation, almost as if the beast within him was recoiling.
In his mind, Minato chuckled softly, the voice of the Nine-Tails echoing through him. "First the One-Tails, then the Eight-Tails, and now the Four-Tails. They all seem to sense my presence, don't they?"
The realization struck Minato like a bolt of clarity. The tailed beasts, despite their vast power, instinctively recognized and feared the overwhelming aura of the Nine-Tails.
"Hmph!" The Nine-Tails snorted in his mind, its tone laced with arrogance.
Meanwhile, Hanzo of the Salamander closed the distance between himself and Minato. His samurai blade, infused with wind chakra, slashed downward with lethal precision.
Clang!
Minato countered effortlessly, his kunai meeting Hanzo's blade with a burst of sparks.
"It seems your arm has healed nicely," Minato remarked, his calm tone a sharp contrast to the intensity of the clash.
Hanzo's expression darkened beneath his mask. The insult struck a nerve, but before he could retort, Rōshi lunged forward from behind.
Whoosh!
His arm, encased in molten chakra, radiated a suffocating heat that evaporated the very air around him.
"Is this the power of the Four-Tails?" Minato mused, his mind racing. Each tailed beast wielded unique abilities, and for the Four-Tails, magma was its weapon of choice.
The rolling waves of heat surged toward Minato, warping the air and leaving the ground scorched in its wake. He knew better than to test its destructive power.
Swish!
In a flash, Minato disappeared, leaving Hanzo and Rōshi's attacks to collide with one another. Rōshi's magma-coated palm melted the edge of Hanzo's wind blade slightly, the clash forcing both combatants to pause momentarily.
Reappearing at the edge of the battlefield, Minato assessed the situation. Before the battle began, he had meticulously prepared the terrain, embedding dozens of teleportation marks within a kilometer radius. These marks, infused with his chakra, were virtually indestructible.
His sharp instincts kicked in as another presence locked onto him. Without turning, Minato spoke, "It's been a while, Fourth Kazekage."
"Gold Dust Spear!"
The response was swift and deadly. A shimmering spear of gold-dust sliced through the air toward Minato. Though its speed was impressive, it was not enough to catch him off guard.
Swish!
Minato sidestepped effortlessly, evading the spear just as the ground beneath him surged with gold-dust. Rasa's precision was unparalleled, but Minato anticipated the move, retreating further to avoid being ensnared.
"Earth Style: Mountain Earth Technique!"
From a distance, Kitsuchi clasped his hands together, manipulating the ground on either side of Minato. Massive hemispherical rocks rose from the earth, converging rapidly to trap him.
Sensing their coordination, Hanzo, Rasa, and Rōshi scattered, knowing the technique was unlikely to succeed against Minato's instantaneous movement.
"You've planned this well," Minato remarked, a sly smile playing on his lips.
In a blur, he hurled his special kunai high into the air. As it spun, his figure vanished, reappearing outside the encroaching rock formation.
Now perched atop one of the massive spheres, Minato reached into his pouch, withdrawing several kunai.
Swish, swish, swish!
He launched them into the midst of the enemy forces, his hands forming seals almost instantly.
"Shuriken Shadow Clone Jutsu!"
What began as a few kunai multiplied into a relentless barrage of ninja tools, raining down like a deadly storm.
The technique, developed by the Third Hokage, was devastating in its simplicity. Even the replicated kunai carried the full force of the original.
Kitsuchi was the first to react, forming seals in an attempt to block the attack. But it was too late.
The kunai tore through the enemy ranks with lethal precision, striking vital points and dropping dozens of ninjas in an instant.
"Ahhh!"
Screams echoed across the battlefield as chaos erupted once more.
Above the carnage, Minato stood tall, his blond hair catching the faint rays of light breaking through the dark clouds. The eyes of the Three Kingdoms' ninjas turned toward him, their fear palpable.
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