Just as Senku and Moryo's ghost troops were fighting.
On the other side, in Kumogakure of the Land of Lightning, the assembly had already been completed.
This operation was led personally by the Raikage, and standing beside him was the Eight-Tails jinchuriki Killer Bee.
In addition, there were many other experts such as Cee, Samui, and others accompanying him.
This team was truly full of talent, and their strength should not be underestimated.
After careful preparation, the total number of people Kumogakure sent this time reached as many as eight thousand.
Not only that, they also carried an astonishing number of storage scrolls and plenty of various supplies.
All of this was to guard against Rengoku launching another sudden attack.
After all, having suffered a painful lesson before, Kumogakure knew Rengoku's power well and dared not be careless.
However, although Kumogakure's lineup was so strong, their marching speed seemed somewhat slow.
So far, they had only just stepped out of the borders of the Land of Lightning.
The reason they advanced so cautiously was partly because they were burdened with too much baggage; and partly because Kumogakure had almost emptied the village for this expedition, so those ninjas who were relatively weak were not included in the force.
The loss of any one person would be painfully felt.
After the last defeat, Kumogakure decided to adopt a steady, step-by-step strategy, advancing carefully and no longer taking unnecessary risks.
It is worth mentioning that during the march, Kumogakure also sent out a large number of capable intelligence operatives, spreading them in all directions.
These informants acted like sharp antennae, constantly collecting all kinds of information in the vicinity.
According to the estimates of Kumogakure's high command, the Leaf forces should soon engage Iwagakure's troops face to face.
Timely grasping the situation ahead was crucial for Kumogakure.
Only then could they better draw up response strategies and seize the initiative in the battle.
———
The Land of Rivers, located between the Land of Wind and the Land of Fire, is like a natural barrier, serving to buffer conflicts between the two countries.
However, this nation lacks a strong ninja village to support it, and its domestic population is also very sparse.
Across its vast territory, large areas appear deserted.
The surface here is varied, with rolling mountains and jagged rocks, but there are also broad plains.
Unfortunately, due to natural limitations, the Land of Rivers is relatively poor in resources.
Just as Sunagakure's forces were about to pass through the central part of the Land of Rivers, an accident occurred. They ran headlong into Leaf ninja who had come to intercept them.
Leading them, the current Hokage of the Leaf, Uchiha Rengoku.
He walked alone at the very front of the formation.
A few hundred meters behind him stood the fully prepared Leaf army.
As the saying goes "a person's name casts a shadow," Uchiha Rengoku had already become recognized across the ninja world as the top expert.
Not long ago he had single-handedly forced Kumogakure to retreat with their tails between their legs, and even the Two-Tails jinchuriki fell at his hands.
Most of the people from Sunagakure showed expressions of fear on their faces.
Chiyo and Pakura's faces immediately turned ugly as well.
They had originally expected Rengoku to head in Iwagakure's direction, and did not expect him to personally lead troops to intercept them.
What was more critical was that Rengoku had only brought about a thousand soldiers this time.
By ordinary logic, facing an enemy four times their size would put anyone under enormous pressure.
But given Rengoku's intelligence and strategy, since he dared to act this way, it showed he had full confidence in himself and in these mere thousand troops, believing they were enough to repel Sunagakure's invasion.
At such close range, the two sides collided head on.
This was undoubtedly due to Rengoku's unique Mangekyo genjutsu finesse, which had silently dealt with the scouts Sunagakure had sent out.
Because of this, when the two sides had closed to such a short distance, Sunagakure was only then shocked to realize the Leaf forces were right upon them.
Rengoku smiled as if he were simply out for a stroll in the countryside.
"Elder Chiyo, I hope you have been well. What a pity that this meeting has to be on the battlefield."
"It seems you Sunagakure are bold indeed, daring to invade our Land of Fire."
However, that calm demeanor and tone caused Chiyo's heart to sink involuntarily.
Chiyo knew very well that Uchiha Rengoku before her was unfathomable.
She did not even have the courage to look directly into Rengoku's eyes, fearing that a single slip would let his Mangekyo Sharingan subdue her.
Still, Chiyo would not admit defeat verbally:
"Hokage, you are being overly presumptuous. You dare to come to stop our Sunagakure army with so few troops."
While speaking, Chiyo commanded those behind her to act quickly.
The tightly packed formation immediately began to disperse.
Clearly, Rengoku's repeated sorties had revealed a lot of their own intelligence.
Everyone knew Rengoku was most skilled at casting very large-scale fire jutsu.
If they remained clustered together, once hit by fire techniques they would suffer heavy losses.
Rengoku slowly turned his head and scanned the thousand subordinates he led.
These troops were all elites; the weaker ones were not in this force.
Notably, among this team there were as many as two hundred members of the Uchiha clan, and more than half of them had awakened eyes.
Even Sasuke, Naruto, Karin, Gaara, Hinata were in the ranks.
Fugaku, who was blocking Iwagakure, had also brought other elite class students.
"Heh! You actually think I brought too few people? I think these are more than enough."
Rengoku's mouth curled slightly, giving Sunagakure no time to react.
In an instant, the chakra around him exploded like a violent whirlwind.
That tremendous force instantly made the surrounding air viscous, even producing a low rumbling sound.
This sudden change caused Chiyo and the others from Sunagakure to feel an irresistible pressure.
They felt as if their bodies were pressed down by a weight of a thousand catties, heavy and unable to move an inch.
Faced with such a chakra-level opponent, the Sunagakure people were all frightened, sweat beading on their brows, eyes full of endless terror.
If they did not act, they would be intimidated by Rengoku's terrifying presence and lose the will to fight.
At that moment, Chiyo was the first to come to her senses. She drew a deep breath and forced down her fear.
She quickly waved her hands, and a row of sharp kunai floated before her chest as if alive.
"Assault Blades!"
With Chiyo's angry shout, that row of kunai shot toward Rengoku like lightning, tearing through the air with a fierce sound, aimed straight at his vital points.
[🥳 New novel guys—"Online Game: SSS-Tier Skills From Scratching Tickets". It is from the same author who wrote "Awoke As a God After Auto-Battling For 100000 Years". Do give it a try and hope you all had a great year.]
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