This puppeteer is a bit... well...

Chapter 174 The Great Battle Ends (Please subscribe and vote with monthly tickets)

Calling it a retreat is not accurate; it should be called a strategic shift.

To put it bluntly, this is not a true defeat.

Well... it wouldn't be wrong to say they suffered a defeat, since if they had continued fighting, Sunagakure would definitely have lost.

However, for now, the two sides are still in a stalemate, with Konoha having the upper hand.

Ryuji's order to retreat was not to escape, but to move the battlefield to the residence of the Sunagakure envoy in the suburbs.

Although that place is described as a residence or courtyard.

However, because of its vast size, it's not really a separate residential area.

The area has high walls for cover, defensive equipment made by Ryuji and fifty puppeteers, and is located in the suburbs, surrounded by open plains and sparse woods, so enemy movements can be detected in advance.

If they rely on the terrain to hold their ground, they can hold out for at least half a month if the enemy does not send reinforcements and they do not want to pay a heavy price.

The reason it was only for half a month was because the food and water in the courtyard were only enough for so many people for half a month.

But Long Er doesn't need to hold out for half a month; he only needs to hold out until tomorrow.

Before coming to Konoha, he had thought about this day and had been thinking about how to bring everyone back to Sunagakure safely.

With such a small number of people, it would be wishful thinking to start a war against Konoha while isolated and without any support.

But to think that you can leave quietly through negotiations is just as naive and endearing.

Even if the Third Hokage was personally merciful, he would not easily let go of any opportunity in the power struggle between factions, and the Konoha he represented would not allow it either.

As time passed and the situation in the ninja world changed, Ryuji had made a thorough plan. He was just waiting for the last day of his studies at Sunagakure to end so he could formally bid farewell to the Hokage and leave... He had set aside all his preparations for tomorrow.

It's just that Konoha launched their attack a day earlier, disrupting the plan.

No, if Gallo hadn't made such a fuss, he could have stalled until tomorrow through negotiations.

However, Karura encountered some unknown situation and directly engaged in a fierce battle with the people of Konoha, making such a big fuss. As a result, Konoha's attitude became very firm, and negotiations naturally became impossible.

Therefore, we can only rely on our strength to drag things out until tomorrow.

The reason they fought here for so long was twofold: first, to demonstrate their strength and deter Konoha from pursuing them too aggressively; and second, to wait for Wanlijiang and Gin to return.

But the situation is already showing signs of defeat, and if we don't retreat now, it will be very difficult to do so.

"Wait a minute, Master!" Hearing the order from Ryuji, Kurenai multitasked, fighting the Third Hokage while saying in her mental sea, "Wait a little longer, wait a little longer, I will definitely kill this old guy."

"I believe you can do it, but by the time you kill the Third Hokage, almost all of our people will be dead."

Kurenai and the Third Hokage are roughly equal in strength, but strength is strength, and victory or defeat is victory or defeat. Being stronger does not guarantee victory, nor does being weaker guarantee defeat. Even if their strengths are roughly equal, in the end, Kurenai will definitely be the one to win.

The reason why is that Kurenai has no weaknesses, while the Third Hokage does.

That's physical strength.

Kurenai possesses a vitality comparable to a Sage Mode body, the powerful energy of the Uchiha clan, and her chakra is even stronger than Naruto's at the age of 15.

As for the Third Hokage... although he was only 49 years old and not as disgraceful as he would later be considered to be committing suicide for using a shadow clone, he was still no match for the young and vigorous life force of Kurenai, who was comparable to a Sage Body.

In the end, it will definitely be the Third Hokage who runs out of energy and makes the first mistake.

Even without making any mistakes, if he fought to the very end, he would inevitably be the first to run out of energy, forcing him to make a mistake and be defeated.

There is no other possibility.

In fact, if it weren't for the Monkey King's assistance, the Third Hokage would have been defeated long ago.

Although the two are evenly matched in strength, they each have their own advantages and disadvantages.

The Third Hokage was more experienced in various techniques and combat, while Kurenai had stronger chakra and possessed seven bloodline limits.

However, the gap in skill and combat experience between the Third Hokage and Kurenai could not make up for the gap in chakra and bloodline limit, and Kurenai possessed a brain with computing power comparable to a computer.

She absorbed her opponent's experience every moment during the battle and corrected her past shortcomings every moment. If it weren't for the Third Hokage's many methods, this gap would have been closed long ago.

However, the Third Hokage could not compensate for the advantages brought by Kurenai's chakra reserves and seven bloodline limits.

Faced with Red's relentless bombardment, the Third Hokage could only rely on the Golden Cudgel to break through.

Without the Golden Cudgel, he could only use ninjutsu to exchange blows, which would accelerate the depletion of his stamina and chakra, ultimately leading to his defeat.

However, summoning beasts are also part of a ninja's strength, so it's impossible to calculate a person's strength by separating the summoning beast from the master.

"...I understand, Master."

After a moment of silence, Hong obeyed the order.

"Use Magnet Release to carve a bloody path for everyone."

"Yes."

The connection was severed, and the Red Heart God merged into one, which was then placed on the Third Hokage.

The other party was about to deliver a powerful blow with a high-reaching blow.

A cold smile appeared on his red face as chakra erupted from his wrist, the violent power repelling the Third Hokage.

"Old man, you better live well, because one day I will personally take your life!"

After saying that, she stomped her foot, and the ground within a hundred meters cracked and shattered, then turned into sand, which split into several streams that shuttled across the battlefield, instantly separating the battlefield between Sunagakure and Konoha.

"Trying to run away?"

The Third Hokage's gaze sharpened, and he and his four shadow clones formed hand seals together, unleashing "Ninja Art: Five Elements Great Barrage!"

Fire Release, Wind Release, Water Release, Earth Release, and Lightning Release—the five elemental ninjutsu were used together to create a magnificent ninjutsu feast that would leave even the other four Kage speechless.

However, faced with such a powerful offensive, Hong instead revealed a cold smile.

"You've got a screw loose, haven't you!"

She snorted coldly, opened her arms, and the Dark Release chakra holes in her palms opened, generating a great suction force that drew all five ninjutsu into her palms, and then returned them with pure chakra.

The target is other Konoha ninja.

Looking at the ninjas lying on the ground screaming and their corpses nearby, the Third Hokage's face showed regret.

He wasn't truly out of his mind and had forgotten the opponent's Netherworld Escape Technique; he was simply setting up a plan.

He wanted Kurenai to absorb his ninjutsu, then use the ninjutsu chakra to counterattack, while he would use the chakra as cover to launch a sneak attack.

Doesn't this method seem incredibly stupid?

But if you knew that chakra can cancel each other out, you wouldn't think that way.

Whether it's chakra that has undergone a nature transformation or chakra without any attribute, as long as the amount of chakra present is not significantly different, they can cancel each other out.

In the original work, Kakashi used Lightning Blade to neutralize Kakuzu's Lightning Release, the Third Hokage used the Five Elements Great Combo to neutralize Zetsu's combination of five elemental ninjutsu, and the Jinchuriki used Chakra Cloaks to ignore the enemy's ninjutsu attacks... All of this proves this point.

The chakra of the Five Elements Great Barrage is indeed vast, but it is not an attack method that concentrates it into a single point.

As long as the corresponding chakra is placed on the body surface, one can rush into the counterattacking chakra without taking damage and take the opportunity to launch a sneak attack and kill.

But Kurenai saw through his scheme at a glance and immediately redirected her chakra back at the Konoha ninjas in other directions.

"If you're not afraid of death, then come and chase me!"

Hong uttered a harsh remark and turned to leave.

The Konoha ninjas looked at each other, and finally looked at the Third Hokage.

After surveying the corpses on the battlefield, the Third Hokage ordered, "Pursue, but don't overdo it. Notify the ninjas at the front lines to send men to intercept us at the Land of Fire's border. We'll meet up with reinforcements there and join forces to wipe them out."

"yes!"

And so, a major battle temporarily came to an end.

However, everyone knows that this is just the calm before the storm, and a more intense battle will break out afterward.

However, to Konoha's surprise, the Sunagakure delegation did not escape Konoha, but instead fled back to their temporary residence in the suburbs.

……

All the high-ranking officials and Jonin crowded into the Hokage's office.

"What exactly is going on here?"

Sarutobi pointed to the address on the Konoha map, located in the southwestern suburbs, and looked at the others.

Although the mansion located in the suburbs had a wide field of vision, allowing for early detection of all enemy movements, and had high walls that could be used as cover for defense, it could hold off an enemy several times its size if equipped with war machines.

But this is Konoha.

With only one hundred people, isolated and without any support, it's simply a pipe dream to think that such a place could withstand an attack from Konoha.

At this point, the enemy abandoned their chance to escape Konoha and instead hid here... This kind of operation is really incomprehensible.

If their opponent hadn't been Ryuji Ayaki, they would have all thought the leader was an absolute idiot and recklessly led their men in to charge in.

However, it was precisely because their opponent was Ryuji Ayaki that they suspected he might have some kind of conspiracy. Therefore, they cautiously sent people to monitor the vicinity of that mansion before holding a meeting of Jonin to discuss the matter.

"Is Ryuji Ayaki trying to get Sunagakure to send troops, forcing us to negotiate with them?"

A Jonin from the Nara clan offered his conjecture: "He probably guessed that we would send people to the front lines to intercept them on their escape route. He knew that even if they escaped Konoha, they would not be able to escape the Land of Fire in the end, so he used this method to increase their survival rate."

Upon hearing this, the others looked at each other and finally agreed with this statement.

Because, apart from this reason, they could find no other reason.

An ordinary Jonin angrily said, "These guys have made a mess of our village, killed so many of our people, and now they want to negotiate? Pah!"

This statement resonated with everyone, prompting them to hurl insults.

Even those who didn't speak waved their fists in righteous indignation to show their support.

Upon seeing this, the Third Hokage opened his mouth, but said nothing.

If things develop this way, then accepting peace talks would be the most beneficial solution. However, the current situation is that everyone in Konoha hates this Sand Village delegation to the core. If they accept peace talks, it will likely cause great dissatisfaction among the villagers.

There's really no need to dwell too much on the strength of the Third Hokage.

Everyone has different understandings of anime, and everyone has different ideas. If you don't agree, just consider it a secondary setting in this fanfiction.

In this fan fiction, in this chapter, the Third Hokage in his prime is the final boss.

(End of this chapter)