The fierce wind swept through the entire forest, carrying the Fire Style jutsu forward in a devastating wave.
Fugaku exhaled the last of the smoke from his mouth, breathing heavily despite himself.
The enemy's numbers far exceeded what he had imagined. As soon as one Iwa ninja fell, new ones rushed forward, giving him no chance to rest.
Or perhaps it was that there were too few comrades by his side, making the enemy seem endless by comparison.
The forest was vast. As Fugaku gazed into the distance, his field of vision was filled with countless Iwagakure ninjas, with who knows how many more in areas he couldn't see.
Suddenly, a voice echoed in his mind.
"Be careful, Fugaku. A unit of several hundred Iwa ninjas is heading toward your position. Don't let the enemy break through."
It was Shikaku warning him.
Fugaku's expression immediately tensed at these words.
On the battlefield, various jutsu collided with each other, shuriken and flying stones whizzed through the air, explosions rang out intermittently, and people constantly fell in death.
Soon, Fugaku spotted the Iwa ninja unit Shikaku had mentioned.
He leapt backward, and several ninjas from his clan quickly stood alongside him.
"Fire!"
At Fugaku's low command, those around him instantly scattered and jumped into position, forming identical tiger hand signs and casting their jutsu in unison.
"Fire Style: Great Fireball Jutsu!"
Several giant fireballs descended from above like falling suns, blocking out the sky. The intense heat distorted the surrounding air, and waves of heat surged forward.
The Iwa ninjas who had just arrived found themselves facing this overwhelming inferno with nowhere to escape, and many perished in the sea of flames.
But quickly, many Iwa ninjas performed countering techniques, creating massive earth walls or enormous Water Style jutsu.
As water and fire collided, thick white steam obscured everyone's vision.
The Uchiha ninjas remained calm within the mist, wielding kunai or short swords, their red eyes gleaming as they began to reap the lives of their enemies.
"A group of Iwa ninjas has broken through our defenses on the west side. Minato's team, go hold them off."
"Sazen, Doto, Murasaki—there's an Explosion Style user 30 meters to your north. Go eliminate him."
"Shibi, watch the ground! Enemies are tunneling beneath you!"
"Kaito, take your squad to support Fugaku."
Behind the Konoha forces, Shikaku sat beside Inoichi, completely focused on directing the battlefield.
With the Yamanaka clan's secret technique, the chakra positions of all enemies and allies in the forest were mapped in his mind.
On the ground before him, he had drawn many simple position maps with branches, some half erased.
This battle was proving far more difficult than he had anticipated. The enemy's numbers were too great. Both sides had already suffered countless casualties, yet Iwagakure continued to pour fresh troops into the forest.
He had done his utmost to minimize casualties on their side, reasonably allocating forces to each section of the battlefield.
But the disparity in military strength couldn't be compensated for by these measures alone. These Iwa ninjas weren't just a disorganized mob but hardened veterans who had been through the crucible of war. It was difficult for Konoha ninjas to fight at such disadvantageous odds.
"Lord Hokage! You've advanced too deep!"
"Minato, Lord Hokage isn't far from you. Head south to provide support."
Shikaku's eyes were bloodshot from sustained mental strain, and beside him, Inoichi had begun bleeding from the nose.
The other sensor-type ninjas also showed signs of exhaustion.
Though concerned, Shikaku saw Inoichi gritting his teeth in determination, and considering the chaotic battlefield...
"Fugaku, another unit of two hundred is heading to your position! We can't allow a breach in our front line."
From their position at the rear of the battlefield, they could hear the sounds of combat in the distance.
Some Iwa ninjas had bypassed the main battle, choosing to attack from the flanks.
Shikaku glanced at the clock in his hand.
More than an hour had passed. Konoha had suffered heavy casualties, and although Iwagakure's losses were even greater, the enemy's forces far outnumbered theirs.
"Lord Hokage, please fall back..."
"Fugaku! The enemy's main force is coming! One thousand... no! Two thousand men!"
"Lord Hokage, quickly retreat southward!"
"Hiashi, take your squad to support Fugaku!"
"Choza! Choza! You go too!"
At the front lines, Fugaku had gathered the remnants of his forces along with his clansmen, but they numbered barely a few hundred.
How could they possibly hold off over two thousand Iwa ninjas?
He felt that more than half of his chakra had been depleted, and he was exhausted both physically and mentally.
The enemy attack came swiftly. In the distance, the forest seemed like a broken dam, with Iwa ninjas rushing forward in endless waves.
Fugaku gritted his teeth and ordered: "Inakai, Yashiro, fall back!"
He chose to avoid the brunt of the attack, and his ninjas began falling back. However, the newly arrived Iwa ninjas weren't about to let them retreat as planned.
A storm of shuriken and kunai rained down like a tempest. The ground beneath their feet turned to mud under various jutsu, and trees around them occasionally collapsed.
Fugaku heard Shikaku's urgent voice in his mind again.
"Fugaku, you can't retreat! If you pull back and open a gap in our front line, we're finished!"
These words left Fugaku caught between impossible choices. Glancing back, he saw the countless Iwa ninjas, a dark mass rapidly pursuing them.
"Captain, look out!"
Fugaku was suddenly yanked away by a powerful force, Yashiro Uchiha had saved him from stone spikes erupting from below.
But in that brief delay, countless Iwa ninjas instantly pounced forward. His comrades resisted to the death, but the enemy's overwhelming numbers quickly claimed more lives.
"Fire Style: Dragon Flame Jutsu!"
"Fire Style: Great Fireball Jutsu!"
Fugaku felt his consciousness growing hazy.
Crimson flames filled his vision, the intense heat causing him to feel dizzy after the prolonged life-and-death battle. Fortunately, these were jutsu cast by his clansmen, who shielded him from behind while holding off the Iwa attack.
"Captain, are you alright?" Yashiro asked anxiously.
Fugaku breathed heavily, a ringing in his ears making his comrade's call sound muffled.
"Fire Style: Ash pile burning!"
An Uchiha clan member spewed a massive cloud of gray smoke that instantly spread throughout the area, obscuring everyone's vision.
The ash was unbearably hot, with particles in the air causing intense pain upon contact with skin.
The Iwa ninjas were temporarily blocked from advancing, but their leader shouted: "Don't let them escape! They're Uchiha!"
Swish! Swish! Swish!
At his command, several hundred figures charged fearlessly into the ash cloud.
A fierce wind blew from behind the Iwa ninjas, attempting to disperse the ash, but this only caused more suffering to those caught in it, who couldn't even open their eyes.
As the smoke finally began to disperse, the lead Iwa ninja rushed forward, determined to find Fugaku.
But after just a few steps, he glimpsed what seemed to be an enormous dark shadow moving behind the thinning smoke.
What is that? Someone from the Akimichi clan?
This thought barely flashed through the Iwa ninja's mind before his vision blurred and a dark shadow directly pierced through his abdomen!
He stared wide-eyed, his body frozen as he looked down to see a massive, twisted blade impaling him.
Visible black chakra jumped along its surface, resembling black flames!
The shadowy figure in the smoke revealed a pair of glowing eyes, and before the other Iwa ninjas could react, countless black chakra tomoe shot out from the ash, spinning at high speed and causing violent explosions upon contact with anything.
"What is that?!"
"Ahhh! Ahhh!"
"Quick, get away!"
"Earth Style—"
The Iwa ninjas screamed continuously as they scattered. Some tried to defend with jutsu, but ordinary Earth Style techniques couldn't withstand the explosive power of those tomoe.
This single attack claimed over a hundred Iwa lives.
As the smoke finally cleared, Fugaku had temporarily withdrawn elsewhere.
Supported by Yashiro, he wiped away bloody tears from his eyes and looked toward the Iwa ninjas who now dared not pursue out of fear.
He noticed his vision had become blurry, with multiple afterimages swirling in front of his eyes.
"Captain?"
"It's nothing," Fugaku said through labored breathing.
The Hokage finally returned at this moment.
With just his staff, he charged into the enemy formation, fearlessly facing the numerous foes. Many Iwa ninjas couldn't last even a single exchange before being struck down.
His arrival greatly relieved the pressure on Fugaku and his men.
A fighting force like the Hokage had an enormous impact on the battlefield, with the ability to turn the tide of battle.
This was why Minato had gone alone to disrupt the Iwa forces, one reason why the Iwa troops were attacking in waves rather than all at once.
"Fugaku, that technique you just used was very effective. Can you use it again?"
Shikaku's voice suddenly echoed in his mind.
Fugaku smiled bitterly, responding in his thoughts: "Why don't you try giving it a shot yourself?"
He shook his head and focused on what lay ahead, though his vision was still filled with afterimages.
Shikaku could only reply: "Quickly go assist Lord Hokage!"
Hiashi Hyuga and Choza Akimichi each arrived with their squads, but together they numbered less than 100 people.
The battle continued, death had not ceased, enemies still pressed forward, and they could not retreat.
The smell of blood was choking, and many of the corpses on the ground were likely familiar faces.
The sounds of fierce battle in the distance never stopped, screams, roars, from both enemies and comrades.
Fugaku took a deep breath and called out to those around him: "Everyone, are you prepared to die in battle?"
The crowd responded: "We fight to the death without fail!"
5 more chapters incoming! guys! don't forget to show your support, I'll be doing one bonus chapter every 100 powerstones!