Chapter 246: The Tide Turns—Trapping a Turtle in a Jar!
At this moment,
On the northern side of Hell Valley, atop the highest stone pillar, an elderly man with stark white hair, clad in a deep blue robe, sat alone, propping his face up with one hand.
His gaze swept across the battlefield below, which had been devastated beyond recognition. Two colossal, ferocious beasts stood in confrontation, yet he seemed entirely unimpressed by these titanic forms, which would have been beyond the reach of ordinary human strength. He did not even spare them a proper glance.
It wasn't until his eyes landed on the young boy perched atop the Two-Tails' head that the old man let out a faint chuckle. A flicker of nostalgia flashed through his eyes, as if the sight had stirred old memories.
"Decisive decision-making... but still a bit too merciful."
Shaking his head, he remarked coolly,
"Upon unsealing it, one should have immediately signed a summoning contract, then used dojutsu to control it—extracting its power, manipulating its body, enslaving its spirit, and forcing it into a life-or-death battle."
"That is the correct way to handle a beast."
"However, considering the target is the Two-Tails... it's somewhat understandable."
The old man shook his head again, a trace of boredom in his expression, as he prepared to stand up and leave.
The fight that would follow seemed utterly uninteresting to him.
Yet, at that moment—
His senses sharpened. He lifted his head and gazed toward the far northern night sky.
Under the waxing moon, where only a blanket of stars filled the heavens without the moon's presence, an anomaly rippled through the air.
Then, in the next instant—
A streak of light, like a meteor, trailed a brilliant tail and flickered with lightning. A product of electronic leaps at near-light speed through the atmosphere, it entered the old man's scarlet, three-tomoe Sharingan.
"Oh?"
The old man's eyes narrowed slightly, his brow lifting in intrigue as the corners of his lips curled up.
"A chakra even stronger than the First Raikage's..."
"This is getting interesting."
"Uchiha Ci..."
"You've exhausted all your means after dealing with the Two-Tails, yet now you're faced with an even stronger opponent. What will you do?"
Leaning on his hand, his gaze glimmered as his lips quirked into a faint smile.
"Then, let me see you dance."
---
The Crucial Terrain of Hell Valley
Hell Valley was positioned right on the border between the Land of Hot Water and the Land of Frost.
For anyone attempting to take a shortcut from the Land of Frost through Hell Valley to reach the Land of Hot Water, they would have to descend into the valley, cross cliffs with a height difference of over a thousand meters, navigate through an endless sea of mist, and pass through pools of toxic fumes containing hazardous elements. The disorienting magnetic fields made it nearly impossible to determine the correct direction.
Only after scaling the sheer, mirror-like cliffs surrounding Hell Valley would they reach the seemingly insurmountable defense line guarded by the Uchiha Clan.
Of course, for shinobi, mere terrain was never an absolute obstacle. They could run on walls and leap great distances.
The real problem was that once inside the valley, orientation became impossible—an absolutely fatal drawback.
Without the Blood Pool Clan as guides, the Cloud shinobi army had no way to cross Hell Valley.
This meant they had to take a much longer and more complicated route—extending their supply lines while passing through multiple Konoha border patrol stations. They had to travel from the northern part of the Land of Hot Water into the Land of Fields, and from there into the Land of Fire.
Killer Bee and Yugito Nii had followed this path: from the Land of Fields, they infiltrated the Land of Fire, and from there, they made their way to Hell Valley in the Land of Hot Water.
The route was that troublesome.
Thus, even though their current straight-line distance from the Cloud shinobi army was a mere five kilometers, those five kilometers were an impassable gulf if they lacked the Blood Pool Clan's guidance. This severed any possibility of mutual support between them.
This highlighted the Blood Pool Clan's crucial role in the Cloud Village's plan.
Without the Blood Pool Clan's cooperation, Killer Bee and Yugito were essentially fighting alone.
From the very beginning, Uchiha Ci had recognized this fact and based his entire battle plan on it, leveraging top-secret information only he knew.
The Blood Pool Clan had already been wiped out by En Oyashiro.
It was hellish, but it wasn't a joke. At least, not for Uchiha Ci—it was an advantage.
On top of that, he had already sent for backup. By now, Namikaze Minato was probably rushing over at full speed.
Though whether that backup would actually be reliable was another matter.
After all, it would take him half an hour to fly across a thousand kilometers. And after arriving, would Minato be so drained that his legs gave out? That remained to be seen.
That was precisely why Uchiha Ci had been willing to risk everything on such a dangerous gamble.
Because if his strategy succeeded—
The longer this war dragged on, the greater his chances of victory.
The greater Uchiha's and Konoha's chances of victory!
---
"Bee, don't you think... it's a little too quiet?"
Inside Killer Bee's mindscape, the Eight-Tails' words made his expression tighten.
As much as he wanted to tear apart that brat from the Uchiha Clan who sat atop the Two-Tails, he had to stay calm.
After the Eight-Tails' warning, he immediately realized something was wrong.
It was too quiet.
The Blood Pool Clan, which was supposed to play a crucial role in the Cloud shinobi's plan, had made a brief commotion at the beginning...
Then, nothing.
"Could it be that because I failed to destroy the Uchiha defenses as agreed, and since they haven't seen any benefits, they're refusing to act?"
Killer Bee's expression darkened as he glanced toward the cliffs of Hell Valley.
If that was the case, then this entire mission was a wasted effort.
And worse—they had lost the Two-Tails for nothing!
Their mission had been to bombard the Uchiha encampment from a distance, buying time for the Blood Pool Clan to guide the Cloud forces across the treacherous terrain and seize Hell Valley.
But now? Forget the Cloud reinforcements—
He hadn't even seen a single member of the Blood Pool Clan!
What the hell had happened!?
---
"No matter the reason, Bee—"
Inside his mind, the Eight-Tails' tone grew heavy.
"You need to let go of your hatred and think about how to escape!"
"The Amber Purifying Pot meant for sealing that Uchiha brat was safeguarded by that white-haired girl. Now that they can't come, you're in grave danger here."
"Don't forget—there's still that troublesome old Uchiha lurking in this place."
Killer Bee stiffened.
Memories surfaced of the last time he had encountered that one-eyed elder.
That man had never revealed any particularly flashy abilities—only his ruthless, masterful swordsmanship. Yet, somehow, he always felt incredibly dangerous.
But at the thought of Yugito being killed by that brat, a spike of pain stabbed through Killer Bee's heart.
He clenched his fists several times before finally exhaling deeply.
"You're right, Hachibi. It's time to leave!"
---
At that moment—
The Eight-Tails, which had been facing off against the Two-Tails, abruptly turned and leaped toward Hell Valley's southern exit at full speed.
As it moved, its massive body shrank rapidly.
Remaining in full Tailed Beast form would only make it an easy target for the Uchiha. If they managed to block his retreat and ensnare him in Genjutsu, escape would be impossible.
Meanwhile—
Uchiha Setsuna, leading a squad of elite Jōnin from the Uchiha camp, immediately spotted the maneuver.
Narrowing his eyes, he barked an order without hesitation:
"Demolition unit, collapse the southern exit!"
"Everyone else—follow me!"
---
"Trying to run?"
Seeing this, the Two-Tails bared its fangs menacingly.
Now was its chance to fake its death and escape Cloud Village's grasp.
At that moment—
Uchiha Ci, still extracting chakra atop the Two-Tails' head, suddenly opened his crimson Sharingan.
After a moment of contemplation, his gaze darkened as he turned toward the Eight-Tails' severed tentacle from earlier.
"Wait, Two-Tails!"
"Fire a Tailed Beast Bomb at that severed tentacle first!"
(Support me and read additional chapters on my Patreøn: patreøn.com/craxxtranslation. Thanks for your support! Don't forget to send your Power Stones!)