The first to leave was Vortex Kushina, carried away by a flying summoning beast.
Spear Egret, Yatagarasu, and several other summoning beasts like giant eagles were present.
Next were the Kirigakure Ninja who were closely pursuing the Whirlpool Hidden Village's sealing scroll.
Following them were two Konoha ANBU Squads.
Danzo also followed.
The Yellow Dog Squad remained behind to cover their retreat.
Night Light stood on the wall, looking back at Whirlpool Hidden Village.
The Kirigakure Ninja in the Village were encircling and intercepting the last Whirlpool Ninja.
Those Ninja, about 50 of them, were desperately trying to break through the Kirigakure Ninja's blockade.
The entire Whirlpool Hidden Village was eerily silent, with only some sporadic fighting near the northwest wall.
Jumping down from the city wall and infiltrating the forest outside the city, Captain Black Gorilla waved his hand, signaling the squad to stop.
The squad now consisted of only 5 people: Black Gorilla, 3 Squad Leaders, and 1 team member.
"Change into Kirigakure Ninja disguises; we have other tasks."
The sole team member carried a large bag, having somehow collected Kirigakure Ninja equipment.
Night Light discarded his Anbu iron vest, which was covered in knife marks, and put on a Kirigakure Ninja's single-shoulder vest.
He threw away his half-broken Ninja sword and picked up a nearly new long Ninja sword.
In addition, there was a blood-stained Kirigakure Ninja headband.
The most crucial step was putting on a mask.
A five-person Kirigakure Ninja squad then appeared.
Black Gorilla glanced at the sole team member, deciding there was no need to conceal the mission details from him, and said:
"Our mission is to ensure that the remnants of the Uzumaki Clan do not affect the Whirlpool Princess's entry into Konoha Village."
No explanation was needed; everyone knew what to do.
Any Uzumaki Clan member who approached the Whirlpool Princess was to be executed.
The five Kirigakure Ninja rushed out of the forest.
The Vortex Remnants had left the Village and were heading northwest towards Konoha.
The narrow peninsular terrain of Vortex Country left them little room to maneuver.
Most of the Kirigakure Ninja remained in Whirlpool Hidden Village, meticulously searching every inch; sealing jutsu research notes, valuables, and intelligence from corpses were their main targets.
A small portion of the Kirigakure Ninja continued to pursue the Vortex Remnants.
The Vortex Remnants continuously dispatched three-person squads to cover their retreat, buying time for the others.
These women stared fixedly towards the northwest; Konoha Village was their only hope.
The appearance of the five Kirigakure Ninja made their hope even more tenuous.
These five Kirigakure Ninja carried long swords, each with a tall, upright posture.
Captain Black Gorilla did not rush forward recklessly but instead led his subordinates to run parallel to the Vortex Remnants.
Slowly closing in, they put pressure on the Vortex Remnants.
Under heavy pressure, normally simple actions like jumping, landing, and running would become distorted due to psychological strain.
Only when someone among the Vortex Remnants' movements became distorted or their footing unstable upon landing would Captain Black Gorilla lead his team to throw Kunai.
That poor Whirlpool girl died in a volley of a dozen Kunai.
With Kirigakure Ninja pursuers behind and Kirigakure Ninja interference from the side, these Vortex Remnants became increasingly desperate.
Night Light frowned inwardly.
The situation was somewhat off; one should not pursue cornered enemies too deeply.
The Whirlpool Ninja were not without resistance; they still had sealing scrolls and secret sealing jutsu.
What if they were pushed too far and fought to the death, trading one life for another?
The Reaper Death Seal was not something Night Light could resist.
Night Light saw several Whirlpool Ninja with lifeless eyes, already determined to die, actively approaching him, disguised as a Kirigakure Ninja.
It was only the seventh day of this month, not yet a full moon, so there were no revival chances. Trading lives with these cornered enemies here was not worth it.
Night Light glanced at Captain Black Gorilla; the Squad Leader's mind was solely on the Anbu's mission: to kill all Whirlpool Ninja.
A Whirlpool Ninja charged over.
Another Squad Leader went to meet her; however, he was immediately entangled by the iron chains of a sealing scroll.
The Ninja had no desire to live and directly detonated an Exploding Tag at close range, blowing up both the Squad Leader and herself.
Night Light secretly clicked his tongue. The Uzumaki Clan suffered countless casualties tonight; the fathers, brothers, and children of these Ninja were all dead.
No, I can't fight these crazy women to the death. I can't let them run towards Konoha anymore.
Night Light looked at Vortex Yuka.
Vortex Yuka was in the center of the group, protected by other Whirlpool Ninja.
She was very lucky; Spear Egret was very fast, chosen by the Village to transport Vortex Kushina away.
If Vortex Yuka died, the summoning contract would be released, and Vortex Kushina would also not be able to escape.
But how could he contact Vortex Yuka?
While he was thinking, the only team member of the Black Gorilla Squad also died.
The squad was now down to three people: Black Gorilla, Fox, and Leaf Monkey.
Captain Black Gorilla, seeing that the Vortex Remnants still possessed such combat power, quickly widened the distance.
He had left the Village with an entire squad of 16 people, and now only 2 remained, with Fox being transferred from another squad.
Night Light breathed a sigh of relief. This was more like it; let the Vortex Remnants and the Kirigakure Ninja fight it out. Why should we, the Konoha ANBU, join the fray?
The pursuit and escape continued.
The Black Gorilla Squad became observers, no longer intervening, merely recording the number of Vortex Remnants.
During a certain lull, Night Light picked up a broken wooden clog.
He held a Kunai in reverse grip, pretending to be ready to throw it at any moment, but secretly carving a few words with it.
The Whirlpool Ninja were becoming fewer and fewer, and they were becoming increasingly reckless, charging at enemies as if each of them had an Exploding Tag for a mutual kill.
While Captain Black Gorilla was entangled with a Whirlpool Ninja, Night Light threw both the wooden board and the Kunai.
After throwing them, Night Light looked left and right; no one noticed the wooden board.
Vortex Yuka saw a Kunai shoot towards her and quickly dodged it.
Beneath the Kunai, there was a small wooden board!
The wooden board fell to the ground, with words on it!
Vortex Yuka picked it up and glanced at it, her face turning pale with shock, then she quickly crushed the wooden board.
The wooden board read: Do not go to the Land of Fire!
Vortex Yuka looked at the Kirigakure Ninja who threw the wooden board, suddenly pausing.
That figure... changed clothes, hair tied up, wearing a mask, but why did he resemble Fox so much?
She had never associated the Kirigakure Ninja with Fox before, but now, looking again, she realized he really did look like Fox.
Could that wooden board be a hint from Fox?
But why wouldn't Fox want her to go to the Land of Fire?
And why was Fox disguised as a Kirigakure Ninja?
Vortex Yuka suddenly remembered Danzo, and why Konoha hadn't provided support yet. More importantly, why hadn't Konoha provided intelligence about the Kirigakure Ninja and Kirigakure Ninja invasion to Whirlpool Hidden Village?
Konoha Village and Whirlpool Hidden Village shared intelligence.
The most bizarre aspect of this disaster in Whirlpool Hidden Village was the complete lack of prior detection; all intelligence Ninja seemed to have been eliminated tonight.
This was completely impossible.
During the Ninja World War, the Uzumaki Clan had deployed many reconnaissance Ninja along the coast of Vortex Country.
Unless... unless someone had given intelligence about the Uzumaki Clan's reconnaissance squads to the enemy!
Only by simultaneously ambushing all reconnaissance squads could it be foolproof, leaving Whirlpool Hidden Village completely unaware.
The Uzumaki Clan couldn't have done such a thing, so then, was it Konoha?
Konoha and Whirlpool Hidden Village shared intelligence and also knew Whirlpool Hidden Village's defensive arrangements.
Vortex Yuka suddenly felt a chill run through her body.
Could it be?
Could Konoha also have participated in the extermination of the Uzumaki Clan?