CHAPTER 154
"Senior White Fang! Excellent! It's Senior White Fang!"
"Senior White Fang is here! We're saved!"
The appearance of Konoha's White Fang, even before he made a single move, instantly stabilized Konoha's wavering battle line. Reputation preceded the man like a tree's shadow. White Fang, Konoha's legendary hero whose fame rivaled and even surpassed that of the Sannin, was undoubtedly the greatest boost Konoha's morale could receive at this critical moment.
Ōnoki also saw Sakumo Hatake, and his expression changed instantly. Even a trace of unease flickered across his aged face. His Dust Release was overwhelmingly effective against enormous, slow moving targets like Manda. It was equally devastating against opponents such as Akimichi Torifu after he enlarged himself with the Multi Size Technique.
However, White Fang was different.
He was a speed type Shinobi whose greatest strength lay in overwhelming velocity and instantaneous killing strikes.
Dust Release possessed terrifying destructive power capable of reducing anything within its barrier to molecular particles. Yet no matter how powerful it was, the technique still required a brief moment of preparation and precise aiming. That tiny interval, insignificant to ordinary Shinobi, was enough for a speed monster like White Fang to completely evade its range.
Against White Fang...
Dust Release simply could not hit him.
"Hiruzen Sarutobi..."
Ōnoki gritted his teeth in anger. White Fang's arrival at such a crucial moment was undoubtedly arranged by the Third Hokage. However, he quickly let out a cold snort.
So what if Dust Release couldn't land?
He, Ōnoki, was not someone who relied solely upon Dust Release.
Earth Release, overwhelming combat experience, countless battles fought throughout the Second Shinobi World War, and the mastery expected of a Tsuchikage still made him one of the strongest Shinobi standing at the peak of the Ninja World.
"As long as I keep White Fang occupied, my men can still wipe out the rest of Konoha."
A cold light flashed across Ōnoki's eyes as he immediately continued issuing commands.
"Kill every last Konoha Shinobi!"
The Iwagakure army continued its overwhelming charge.
On Konoha's side, seeing White Fang arrive at last, Akimichi Torifu finally allowed himself to relax slightly. He looked toward Sakumo with a solemn expression.
"Ōnoki is yours."
White Fang gave a firm nod.
Nearby, Orochimaru also breathed a sigh of relief. His golden vertical pupils glanced toward Ōnoki, who floated high in the air atop a levitating rock.
Although he hated admitting it, Orochimaru understood the reality very clearly.
With his current strength, he was not Ōnoki's match.
Ōnoki might find it difficult to kill him.
Likewise...
He also had no ability to kill Ōnoki.
Even confronting him head on for an extended period would place him at a severe disadvantage.
"Thankfully this guy arrived."
With the enemy rapidly closing in, Akimichi Torifu no longer hesitated.
He raised his voice and roared toward the three thousand five hundred Konoha Shinobi behind him.
"Everyone! Follow me! Kill!!!"
"Kill!!"
"Slaughter those Iwagakure bastards!"
"Kill them all!"
Akimichi Torifu's massive body immediately took the lead.
"Multi Size Technique!"
His body expanded into a gigantic form that resembled a moving hill as he charged directly toward the enemy army.
Orochimaru followed closely behind. His long tongue slowly licked across his lips while his golden vertical pupils remained fixed upon the approaching Iwagakure forces.
The battlefield before them was nothing more than an enormous plain located deep within the Land of Rice Fields.
Neither side possessed prepared fortifications.
Neither side had laid traps.
Only a direct collision between two great armies remained.
Konoha's three thousand five hundred Shinobi, led personally by their commander, erupted with earth shaking battle cries as they charged fearlessly toward nearly six thousand Iwagakure Shinobi.
Although the numerical disadvantage was enormous, no one hesitated anymore.
Because Orochimaru stood with them.
Because Konoha's White Fang had arrived.
The presence of these two top class powerhouses gave every Konoha Shinobi the confidence to face overwhelming odds.
White Fang wasted no unnecessary words.
His right hand reached behind his back and slowly drew out his iconic white chakra short sword.
The blade reflected a cold gleam.
The very next instant, dazzling white Lightning Release Chakra burst from his body.
Visible streams of lightning wrapped around him while crackling thunder echoed continuously.
In a single flash, his entire body transformed into a streak of white lightning.
His speed surpassed what ordinary eyes could follow as he shot directly toward Ōnoki, who floated at the very front of the Iwagakure formation.
The moment White Fang transformed into lightning, alarm bells rang inside Ōnoki's mind.
His vision filled with blinding white light.
Before he could react, a murderous aura appeared directly behind him.
Ōnoki's hands instantly formed seals.
"Earth Release: Earth Style Wall!"
A thick defensive wall of earth erupted behind him in an instant.
"Swish!"
The white flash sliced across the battlefield.
The massive earth wall shattered immediately.
White Fang's short sword tore through it effortlessly before continuing straight toward Ōnoki.
"Clang!"
A sharp metallic sound echoed.
A thick layer of hardened rock instantly covered Ōnoki's body.
Using Earth Release: Stone Armor Technique, he barely blocked the fatal slash.
His body remained unharmed.
"So fast!"
Ōnoki was inwardly shocked.
That explosive burst of speed had almost caught even him completely off guard.
After failing to finish the battle in one strike, White Fang landed calmly upon the ground.
He raised his head and looked coldly toward Ōnoki, who remained suspended in midair atop a floating rock.
Ōnoki looked back at him.
He immediately reached a conclusion.
White Fang's ground speed and mobility were simply too terrifying.
Only by climbing even higher into the sky and fully utilizing his aerial advantage could he restrict White Fang's movement.
Of course, flying higher also meant becoming farther removed from the earth.
His Earth Release techniques would become less convenient to execute.
His Chakra consumption would likewise increase.
After weighing every advantage and disadvantage...
Ōnoki still chose to ascend.
In the air...
He was safer.
His body rose even higher, widening the distance between himself and the battlefield below.
However, White Fang had already anticipated exactly this response.
Without waiting even a moment, he stomped heavily upon the ground.
"Lightning Release: Fang Explosion!"
"Boom!!!"
Violent force blasted apart the surrounding rocks, sending countless stone fragments flying everywhere.
Immediately afterward, blinding white lightning erupted from White Fang once again.
His body transformed into another streak of lightning, carrying those shattered rocks with him as he shot directly toward the sky.
Ōnoki's pupils contracted before fury instantly filled his face.
"Charging straight at me like this?! Don't underestimate me!!"
White Fang had launched directly into the air.
Without stable footing, his direction should have been almost completely fixed.
To attack so recklessly was an obvious sign that he did not regard the Tsuchikage seriously.
Ōnoki let out a cold snort.
He understood that White Fang's speed intentionally denied him the opportunity to gather Dust Release.
However...
Dust Release was not his only technique.
"Earth Release: Added Weight Rock Technique!"
Ōnoki shouted.
Heavy Earth Release Chakra gathered around his right fist before he unleashed a devastating punch toward White Fang, intending to blast him straight out of the sky.
Yet the next moment...
Something unbelievable happened.
White Fang's body actually changed direction sharply while suspended in midair.
"How is that possible?!"
Ōnoki's eyes widened in disbelief.
Could White Fang actually gain leverage in the air?
Then he noticed the countless stone fragments flying around White Fang.
"He's using those rocks as footholds to forcibly alter his trajectory?!"
Ōnoki instantly understood.
But it was already too late.
Using the recoil from those shattered stones together with precise control over his body, White Fang traced an impossible arc through the sky.
He cleanly evaded Ōnoki's fully committed punch.
White light flashed.
His short sword had already slashed fiercely across Ōnoki's neck.
"Swish!"
A deep wound instantly appeared across Ōnoki's throat beneath the blade.
Success?
"No!"
White Fang's instincts screamed a warning.
The sensation was wrong.
It wasn't the feeling of cutting through flesh and bone.
His reaction was instantaneous.
He kicked violently against the opponent's body.
Borrowing that force, he rapidly retreated backward.
The "Ōnoki" he had struck suddenly expanded in midair before exploding violently.
"Boom!!!"
A violent shockwave swept across the battlefield, scattering countless fragments of stone.
White Fang's figure flickered repeatedly as he escaped the center of the explosion.
Only the edge of his clothing was brushed by the blast.
He suffered no real damage.
Within the smoke and dust of the explosion, the seemingly ordinary rock that Ōnoki had been standing upon all this time suddenly twisted unnaturally.
It rapidly transformed into the Tsuchikage's true body.
He hovered silently in the air.
His expression was unpleasant.
Hidden beneath it lingered an unmistakable trace of fear.
Had his true body not been concealed all along through Earth Release: Hiding Like a Mole Technique, disguising himself as the inconspicuous floating rock beneath the decoy...
That slash moments earlier might truly have gravely wounded him.
Or perhaps...
Killed him outright.
"The Tsuchikage truly lives up to his reputation."
White Fang landed steadily atop a protruding boulder, his expression remaining completely calm.
The deadly exchange that had just occurred seemed nothing more than an ordinary probe to him.
He knew very well that someone like Ōnoki, a Kage renowned for his experience and cunning, could never be defeated so easily.
But that didn't matter.
If one probe failed...
He would simply continue probing.
White Fang adjusted his breathing slightly.
Fine strands of white lightning once again began coiling around his body.
So what if Ōnoki could fly and possessed the advantage of the sky?
He, Konoha's White Fang, had slain flying opponents before.
As long as the enemy still needed to attack...
As long as every technique still possessed an opening...
He would eventually seize that opening and deliver the fatal strike.
The two continued facing one another from afar.
The atmosphere became increasingly tense.
Invisible killing intent collided between heaven and earth.
At the same time, far away from the clash between the two supreme powerhouses, the battle raging across the endless plain had also entered an incomparably fierce and brutal stage.
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