"Not good. He's not going to last much longer!"
Kakashi stared at the Four Violet Flames Formation, his expression growing more serious.
This barrier is the worst possible match for Hayashi. It's specifically designed to restrain someone like him. And it's being maintained by elite fire-style chakra users—right when he's at his weakest!
Right now, Hayashi Senju was clearly at a disadvantage, completely tied down.
"If he hadn't wasted chakra resisting at the beginning and had focused on recovering his chakra, he might've had a shot at breaking the seal with one full-power attack."
Kurenai's face was unusually serious, her tone heavy.
In her view, Hayashi's lack of recent combat experience was showing. Attacking the formation head-on without a plan had put him in a dangerous spot.
If this keeps up and he doesn't break free soon, he'll either be seriously injured—or worse.
Captured.
"Even if he doesn't attack the barrier, those four won't just sit back and let a Wood Release ninja recover," Kakashi said, understanding the situation all too well.
"As the ones controlling the formation, they can even make the barrier shrink continuously."
As the space inside the barrier got smaller, its power and pressure would only grow.
So even if Hayashi didn't fight back, they'd never give him the chance to rest.
In fact, he'd probably lose even faster that way.
Once trapped in this kind of formation, there are only two outcomes for Hayashi:
Break the seal—or get captured.
"This has got to be a life-or-death moment for that Wood Release user, right? Should we step in and help?"
Might Guy, watching from the side, was already itching to join the fight.
"If we help him now, he might be super grateful! Maybe he'll finally agree to come with us!"
As he spoke, Guy's eyes were already locked onto one of the barrier ninjas.
As long as Kakashi gave the order, he would immediately take down one of the barrier-setting shinobi.
Once one corner of the Four Violet Flames Formation was broken, the barrier would become unstable.
A little force would be enough to break through!
"Wait a bit longer!" Kakashi shook his head, eyes scanning the surroundings. "There are several elite ninja guarding each of those four. This is when they're the most alert. We can't act recklessly just yet."
As he spoke, he lifted his slanted headband, revealing the Sharingan in his left eye.
With the Sharingan, Kakashi could clearly see the condition of Hayashi and the situation around them. He could also precisely judge the best time to strike.
Beside him, Kurenai Yuhi stayed silent, her eyes fixed on the battlefield.
Huh?
While observing the battlefield, Kakashi's gaze swept over Hayashi inside the formation.
Even though the man—Hayashi—wore a mask and stood in the middle of the blazing fire, he wasn't panicking at all like he should have been.
He stood calmly on top of thick vines, with flames rising beneath his feet. Beside him, the massive Wood Release hand seal was growing more and more damaged from constant bombardment.
Some flames had even scorched parts of his clothes, leaving ragged burn marks and making him look quite battered.
But Hayashi's back remained straight, his posture steady and composed, like this was nothing out of the ordinary.
"Even now, he's still calm… does he have another card to play?" Kakashi was surprised by Hayashi's composure. Could he still be hiding something?
But Kakashi could clearly feel it—Hayashi's chakra was running low. Even the movements of his giant wooden hand had started to slow down.
Inside the Four Violet Flames Formation!
Hayashi could feel the intense heat around him, but his eyes only grew more determined.
"This barrier really is something else... Even with my massive chakra reserves, I'm almost drained dry!"
"If Genya-sama were here, just one strike... he could probably break this barrier wide open."
He looked at the barrier, eyes a bit wistful. Even now, he couldn't help but think about Genya he hadn't seen in a long time.
In his heart, he thought—Genya-sama... this time, your name will shake the ninja world.
Taking a deep breath, Hayashi slowly raised what was left of his wooden giant hand.
"One more time... I don't believe I can't break this damn barrier!"
With a quiet murmur, the massive wooden palm slammed down again!
BOOM! BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!
The ground trembled with each strike, the barrier shaking violently under the impact.
The seal looked like it could collapse at any moment... but in the end, it still held firm.
Inside the barrier,
Broken chunks of the wooden hand and flames from Hayashi's attacks scattered in every direction. Some even landed on the giant vine where Hayashi stood, sparking fire.
But before the flames could spread, the green vines quickly wrapped around and smothered them.
In the entire barrier, only the vine beneath Hayashi remained untouched. The two massive wooden hands had completely shattered, their remains falling to the ground.
At that moment,
The ground within the Four Violet Flames Formation was engulfed in fire—growing fiercer by the second.
"We made it... that was his final attack!"
The team leader of the Four Violet Flames Formation let out a shaky breath, blood still on his lips.
"His chakra's completely gone!"
The other three members also finally relaxed.
Just now, they had clenched their teeth and held on through the Wood Release ninja's final counterattack.
Some of them had already coughed up over three liters of blood. If that last strike had been even a bit stronger, the outcome might've changed. But… in the end, they were the ones still standing.
Now came the time to harvest the fruits of victory.
Thinking of that, the leader spoke with excitement, "Listen to me—collapse the Four Violet Flames Formation. Everyone in the back, move up. It's your turn now!"
As soon as he finished speaking—
The four ninja maintaining the seals all stood up together. Their eyes showed unwavering seriousness and resolve as they walked toward Hayashi. With each step they took, the barrier shrank a little.
At the same time, several more ninja burst out from the woods.
As the barrier kept shrinking, the space inside grew tighter. The vines fueling the flames piled up more and more, and the fire only grew fiercer.
Standing above, the man known as Hayashi looked down at the growing flames, panting slightly. That last attack had drained nearly all of his chakra—but even so, the barrier still hadn't been broken!
Buzz~~
But just as Hayashi was lost in thought, a few more ninja appeared at the edge of the barrier.
They formed hand seals at the same time and pressed their palms to the ground!
Inside the barrier, the flames suddenly stirred like they'd been called. They twisted and coiled together, burning even hotter—until they rose up into the form of a dragon made of pure fire, circling above the vines.
Then it roared and launched straight at Hayashi.
Its massive flaming jaws opened wide, ready to swallow him whole.
If that hit landed, the already-exhausted Hayashi could be seriously wounded!
"They can control the flames inside the barrier from outside? What a perfectly coordinated jutsu," Hayashi muttered calmly, standing still atop the vines, unmoving—still thinking about the technique's inner workings.
"But… I should be able to take this head-on, right…?"
****
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