The wooden arms fell past the front line.
For a moment, A thought they had missed him. Then he realized where they were falling, and his expression changed.
They were not aimed at him, Killer B, Yugito, or the elite Cloud ninja around them. They were heading for the Cloud ninja who had rushed in from the village.
The first fists landed among the crowd.
These were not ninja holding a battle formation anymore. Many of them had come forward because they thought the fight was already over, and before they could spread out, the ground under them burst apart.
The cheering vanished in an instant.
Some Cloud ninja tried to flee. Some tried to pull the people beside them away. Others raised defenses out of instinct, only for the next fist to crash down before they could finish.
A took one step forward, then stopped.
There was no way through. Every few breaths, another wooden fist crashed down between him and the crowd, tearing up the ground and throwing chunks of stone into the air.
All he could do was stand there and watch as the attack meant for him tore through the people behind him.
"Stop!"
His shout vanished beneath the sound of the Buddha's blows.
Inside Killer B, Gyuki watched for a moment before speaking.
"People call Tailed Beasts disasters... So, what does that make him?"
The attack did not last long. After the wooden fists struck the ground a few more times, they slowly pulled back and returned one by one to the huge disc behind the Buddha, leaving the valley covered in dust.
A stood where he was, unable to move.
The smoke was too thick for him to see clearly, but that only made the sounds behind him sharper: coughing, groans, scattered cries, and the faint shifting of injured bodies across broken stone.
His hands tightened into fists.
He wanted to turn around, but his body would not obey him.
A gust of wind swept through the valley, clearing the smoke and revealing what had happened behind him.
The ground had been smashed into uneven pits and broken lines. Cloud ninja were scattered across the ruined field, some still trying to move, some trying to sit up, and others lying where they had fallen, too injured to stand.
The cheers from earlier were gone.
Only a few moments ago, those same voices had been calling Kumogakure's name. Now A could barely tell who was still conscious through the smoke.
A stared at the ruined battlefield until the strength in his legs finally gave out.
Shinichi looked down at A and let out a quiet scoff.
"I only planned to remove you and let someone else manage Kumogakure. You made this harder than it needed to be."
As he spoke, the giant Buddha under him moved. It stepped away from the ring of arms behind it and walked forward, making the broken ground shake again.
Killer B and Yugito were still in their Tailed Beast forms, but they had not recovered yet. Before they could move away, the Buddha bent down and grabbed them both. One hand held the Eight-Tails, and the other held the Two-Tails.
Both Tailed Beasts struggled. The Eight-Tails swung its tentacles, hitting the Buddha's hand, while the Two-Tails dug her claws into the wood and tried to break free. But the Buddha only held them tighter.
Shinichi made hand signs.
"Sage Art: Wood Release: Wood Dragon Technique!"
The ground beneath both Tailed Beasts cracked open, and two Wood Dragons rose from below. They wrapped around the Eight-Tails and Two-Tails, biting into their bodies before either could break free.
A moment later, their chakra began pouring into the dragons.
The Eight-Tails and Two-Tails were Kumogakure's strongest weapons after A himself. Watching them trapped so easily made the remaining Cloud ninja understand one thing clearly... this battle no longer had a next move.
Shinichi jumped down from the Buddha and landed near A while the two Tailed Beasts struggled behind him.
Their movements were already slowing as the Wood Dragons drained their chakra, but none of the Cloud ninja around them moved to help.
After everything that had happened, even raising a weapon felt meaningless.
He stopped in front of A and looked down at him. "Now, A. What is your answer?"
A's shoulders trembled as he looked past Shinichi at the Eight-Tails and Two-Tails caught in the Buddha's hands, then at the ruined battlefield behind him. The last bit of stubbornness in his eyes slowly disappeared.
If he refused again, Shinichi would continue. A understood that now more clearly than anyone.
For a long time, he did not speak. When he finally lowered his head, his voice was hoarse.
"Kumogakure... is willing to submit to Tejima Shinichi."
The Cloud ninja behind him stood in silence. Some lowered their eyes, some clenched their fists, and others only stared blankly, too numb to feel anger or relief.
"A wise choice."
Shinichi looked away from A and glanced over the silent Cloud ninja behind him.
"I don't care who manages Kumogakure," Shinichi continued. "The same is true for Iwagakure. Your villages can keep their names, their offices, and their people, but from now on, when I give an order, you obey."
A's fingers dug into the broken ground, but he did not raise his head.
"Anyone who refuses will be removed."
No one misunderstood what that meant.
Senju Hashirama had once used his power to create the era of the Five Great Hidden Villages. He gave the Tailed Beasts to the villages and built a balance that lasted for decades.
But Shinichi was different.
He was here to break that balance.
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