A terrifying explosion erupted inside the cave behind them!
Captain Huang Quan is a Fire Release Jonin; an explosion of this scale must have been his doing.
Night Light doesn't use Fire Release, so he doesn't know if Fire Release requires oxygen to burn. If it does, wouldn't the people in the cave suffocate?
In fires, over 90% of victims die from poisoning and suffocation, with fewer dying from burns.
Night Light kept his distance from the cave.
He had already warned Captain Huang Quan, doing all he could. Now, if the sky fell, the tall ones would have to bear the brunt.
The two Rock Ninja lurking underground were dealt with by the Anbu Squad, but two Rock Ninja Squads appeared in the forest opposite.
Night Light created a Shadow Clone and positioned it in front of Purple Cat.
This Shadow Clone would provide protection for Purple Cat, who had to seize the opportunity to use the Mind Body Switch Technique.
The remaining two members of the squad were both crucial.
The situation was critical, and there was no time to worry about exposing Purple Cat's Yamanaka Clan identity.
Night Light drew his sword and charged towards the Rock Ninja.
Over a dozen Kunai flew at him with a whooshing sound. Night Light raised his Ninja blade and deflected the Kunai with a few swift movements.
The Rock Ninja Squad Leader opposite was very surprised; this Fox Anbu's fundamental skills were so solid, and his reaction speed was not that of an ordinary Anbu.
Two Rock Ninja stepped forward, while the Rock Ninja Squad Leader formed hand signs in the rear, preparing Ninjutsu.
The Ninja blade spun and danced in the darkness.
Under Cloud Style Swordsmanship, Night Light decisively slashed at the Rock Ninja on his left, quickly killing him.
The other Rock Ninja precisely timed his attack, thrusting a Kunai towards Night Light's side ribs.
Night Light's blade had not yet been retracted.
The Ninja brought by Ōnoki were all of high caliber.
Night Light could counter-kill the Rock Ninja to his side, even if it meant getting injured.
Just at the critical moment, the Rock Ninja's movements abruptly stopped.
Purple Cat collapsed; she had already taken control of this Rock Ninja.
Night Light seized the opportunity, his Ninja blade killing the Rock Ninja.
The Rock Ninja Squad Leader's Ninjutsu also arrived!
Hundreds of stones, like bullets, flew over with a whistling sound.
Night Light had already prepared the one-handed sign for Earth Replacement Technique.
The stones struck Night Light, but made a sound as if hitting a mud pit.
Puff puff puff!
Night Light's body turned into mud, which splattered everywhere as the stones hit it.
The Rock Ninja Squad Leader was shocked again.
Why would a Konoha Ninja know advanced Earth Release from Iwagakure?
He didn't even know an A-rank Ninjutsu like Earth Replacement Technique.
Instinctively, the Rock Ninja Squad Leader jumped up.
After Earth Replacement Technique, there is often a sneak attack from underground, a common tactic used by many Rock Ninja Jonin.
Indeed, a Kunai shot out from beneath his feet.
The Rock Ninja Squad Leader was relieved that his reaction was swift, allowing him to dodge the Fox Anbu's sneak attack.
However, as the Kunai flew past his eyes, he saw that the hilt of the Kunai was wrapped with an Exploding Tag!
Boom!
After an explosion, the Rock Ninja Squad Leader was blown away.
Night Light pulled a Kunai from his Ninja tool pouch and threw it far towards the Rock Ninja Squad Leader.
The Kunai pierced the Rock Ninja Squad Leader's throat, completing the execution.
After clearing one squad, Night Light returned to Purple Cat's side.
His blade was fast; he wondered if Purple Cat's soul had returned in time, or if she had been accidentally injured by his blade.
Seeing that Purple Cat was fine, he jumped onto a large tree and looked towards the main battlefield in the distance.
Adamantine Staff, Dust Release, Wind Release, Earth Release, Fire Release—the entire battlefield was a chaotic mess.
However, none of this was the most striking.
Night Light saw a person!
In the valley, Uzumaki Mito slowly walked out.
No one was supporting her.
At this moment, Uzumaki Mito no longer looked frail and elderly.
She came out of the valley and clasped her hands together.
Chakra surged around her, rapidly solidifying into a physical form.
Beneath Mt. Niuhe, an ominous aura permeated the air.
It felt cold, yet a murderous agitation rose in his heart.
This was Nine-Tailed Chakra.
The Chakra around Uzumaki Mito pulsed, slowly transforming into a ferocious demonic fox head.
Chakra continued to emanate outwards, with more and more Nine-Tailed Chakra appearing.
A complete, translucent Nine-Tailed appeared in the valley.
The translucent Nine-Tailed was wrapped in chains, and its shoulders, waist, and other important joints were pierced by iron chains.
This was a special Tailed Beast Cloak form that was never revealed in the original work.
Only the most skilled sealing masters of the Vortex Clan could utilize the Nine-Tailed in this way with Adamantine Chains.
The Nine-Tailed raised its head, and a Tailed Beast Ball rapidly formed before its gaping maw.
Ōnoki's miserable voice echoed through the night.
"A trap! Uzumaki Mito is nowhere near death!"
Seeing Uzumaki Mito's powerful appearance, Night Light finally understood that today was not the day for the Nine-Tailed's seal transfer at all.
Tonight, Konoha had prepared a feast for its enemies!
There were not many forces capable of interfering with Konoha Village's Nine-Tailed seal transfer, and Iwagakure was one of the strongest among them.
By releasing false information, the enemy would surely fall for it.
This was the best opportunity to weaken Konoha, and the powerful Iwagakure absolutely could not resist such temptation.
Lure Iwagakure over, and then let Iwagakure witness what the strongest Tailed Beast was!
Han, the Five-Tailed Jinchuriki who had burst out three tails, was no match for the Nine-Tailed.
Han's Tailed Beast Ball was only the size of a fist, while the Nine-Tailed's Tailed Beast Ball was dozens of meters, like half a small mountain.
The disparity was too great.
Iwagakure's sealing Jutsu was terrible, vastly inferior to the Vortex Clan's sealing Jutsu.
Uzumaki Mito, over decades, had already approached perfect Jinchuriki status, developing a method to utilize the Nine-Tailed.
Not many Konoha Ninja came out this time.
At this moment, the advantage of having fewer people was apparent; the Konoha side desperately fled backward.
The Rock Ninja did not give up, creating successive Earth Flow Ramparts.
In front of the Nine-Tailed's massive Tailed Beast Ball, those Earth Release walls were as flimsy as a stack of old playing cards.
Night Light lowered his head and shouted to Purple Cat, "Run! Run quickly!"
Daring not to look again, Night Light sprinted frantically.
Chakra infused his legs, pushing his Body Flicker Technique to its limit.
Purple Cat also knew Body Flicker Technique, and her speed was not slow.
After running for only dozens of seconds, a terrifying explosion suddenly erupted behind them.
Night Light quickly tackled Purple Cat, and both of them lay flat on the ground.
The shockwave easily tore through the tree canopy, and the tree trunks tilted at a 45-degree angle, almost falling over.
They were already a kilometer away from the explosion, yet it still had such power.
The Rock Ninja at the center of the explosion must have suffered greatly.
Perhaps ten seconds, perhaps fifteen seconds, the shockwave finally ended.
Night Light got up from the ground, immediately pulled out his binoculars, jumped onto a tilted tree trunk, and looked towards the direction of the Rock Ninja behind them.
Where the Rock Ninja had been, only a large crater remained.
Above the crater, a figure hovered.
Ōnoki used his flying ability to evade the Nine-Tailed Tailed Beast Ball's attack.
He was still carrying a person in his hand, the unconscious Jinchuriki Han.
As for the ground, it was a scorched earth, revealing the color of the soil, with no grass growing and not a single human figure.
"Danzo Shimura! I will definitely kill you!"
It seemed Ōnoki believed that Konoha ANBU had orchestrated this trap.
Spies and counter-spies, intelligence and false intelligence—these were all the work of the Anbu.