On the ruined streets, Qingming stood with his sword, his gaze sweeping over the corpses of the Mist Ninjas.
The sixth wave of attacks had been successfully repelled by him.
Hoo~
With a sigh of relief, Qingming gathered his thoughts, sheathed his long sword, and with a leap, jumped onto the nearby building. After a few more agile jumps, he reached the top.
From here, standing tall, Qingming could easily survey the surrounding area.
He saw that many Konoha ninjas were still fighting nearby.
However, he did not pay attention to these battles, instead turning his gaze toward the distant command center.
Through the windows and various cracks and gaps, he could occasionally spot flickers of fire, bolts of lightning, water flows, and other signs of ninjutsu activity.
Clearly, the Mist Ninjas inside were still putting up a final resistance.
Qingming wanted to activate his Byakugan to get a clearer view, but considering there were still several Hyuga clan ninjas present in the area, he ultimately decided against it.
After all, given the current situation, the Mist Ninjas would not be able to hold out much longer, and there was no need to take that risk.
Just as he was thinking this, his peripheral vision caught sight of a group of Mist Ninjas hurrying toward him from the distance.
Instantly, Qingming's eyes narrowed, and his expression changed slightly.
If it were just a regular group of Mist Ninjas, they wouldn't have attracted his attention. The key point was that these ninjas were coming from outside the oil port.
In other words, they didn't belong to the main Mist Ninja base.
So, where had they come from?
The answer was clear.
"It seems Nara Keiko still couldn't hold the Mist Ninjas on the inner defense line."
Qingming muttered to himself.
Indeed, these Mist Ninjas were from the defensive line near the oil port.
Earlier, he had mentioned that because the Konoha ninjas hadn't brought the battle to this region, these Mist Ninjas might come back to provide reinforcements. Their operations couldn't be delayed for too long.
It seemed his concern had become reality, and these Mist Ninjas had already sent reinforcements rushing back.
Although the current group seemed small, it was only the beginning, and more reinforcements would surely follow.
If they couldn't withdraw quickly, they would undoubtedly be surrounded.
As for escaping using Minato's Flying Thunder God Technique—that was simply unrealistic.
Earlier, Minato had expended more than three-quarters of his chakra just transferring them here. Now, after a fierce battle, how much chakra could he possibly have left?
Even if the number of people needing to be transferred had decreased due to casualties, it was still not something Minato could handle.
So, from the beginning of the plan, they hadn't relied on Minato for the retreat.
In other words, they could not afford to be surrounded.
Otherwise, despite their strength, the Mist Ninjas would overpower them by sheer numbers and wear them down.
With this thought in mind, Qingming immediately formed hand seals and used the Mind Communication Jutsu to contact Minato.
"Qingming?"
Minato's voice echoed in Qingming's mind.
"It's me."
Qingming responded briefly before getting straight to the point, explaining the situation he had just observed.
Minato paused for a moment before asking, "If you go all out, how long can you hold them off?"
The words "all out" were emphasized, clearly hoping Qingming would give his full effort.
Qingming could tell what Minato meant, but his expression remained unchanged.
It wasn't surprising that Minato had noticed his concealed strength. After all, Minato's intelligence was among the highest in the ninja world.
Given the multiple close encounters they had shared, if Minato hadn't noticed, that would be strange.
Not to mention, Qingming's vast chakra was hard to hide, and with that kind of chakra, it was clear that his true power couldn't be as simple as it appeared.
However, Qingming believed that Minato had yet to discover the full extent of his strength, especially after unlocking his Mangekyō Sharingan. Minato likely only suspected that he was hiding some of his abilities, not realizing that Qingming had already activated the legendary Mangekyō Sharingan.
After all, those unfamiliar with the Mangekyō Sharingan wouldn't notice any abnormalities, even from close encounters.
With all these thoughts flashing through his mind, Qingming hesitated for a moment before replying, "Ten minutes."
This was a relatively conservative estimate. He wasn't just considering the reinforcements he had seen but also the additional Mist Ninjas that would inevitably arrive.
Upon hearing this, Minato noticeably relaxed and said, "You don't need to hold them off for that long. We'll finish our battle in five minutes at most, and then we can begin the retreat according to the third plan."
"Understood!"
Qingming responded and immediately cut off the connection.
Crack~Crack
Qingming twisted his neck, and the sound of bones grinding filled the air.
He looked up at the approaching Mist Ninjas outside the oil port, muttering to himself in a tone only he could hear, "Now, the real battle begins."
Indeed, for Qingming, the true battle had only just begun.
Up until now, he had only been dealing with the six waves of Mist Ninjas, all of which had been comprised of Chūnin and lower-ranked ninjas.
Dealing with Chūnin and lower-ranked ninjas was hardly a real battle for someone like him—it was more like warm-up exercises.
After all, even the chakra he expended in fighting them had been replenished through his Chakra Absorption Jutsu, and his condition remained almost unchanged.
How could he consider that a real fight?
However, things would be different now. As the group of Mist Ninjas approached, Qingming could sense that the leader of the group was a genuine Jonin.
In addition to the leader, there were two others whose chakra levels were slightly weaker, likely special Jonin with unique skills.
Such strength was enough for Qingming to take the battle a little more seriously.
With this thought in mind, Qingming immediately formed hand seals and activated Wind Release: Wind Wings.
With a whoosh, a pair of light blue chakra wings appeared on his back. As he controlled them, he flapped them forcefully, sending himself soaring into the sky, heading toward the approaching Mist Ninjas.
Since he was about to fight "all out," there was no way he would just stand here passively waiting for them.
Instead, he would take the initiative.
Within the blink of an eye, Qingming reached the air above the group of Mist Ninjas.
"Flying ninjutsu? Uchiha Qingming?"
Below, the leader of the Mist Ninjas, a Jonin named Yoshida Hiroshi, looked up at Qingming in the sky, his brow furrowing.
He wanted to direct his subordinates to attack, but he realized that Qingming had positioned himself so that they couldn't reach him.
However, leaving Qingming to hover above them made him uneasy.
"Are we really going to face off with him here?"
Just as this thought crossed Yoshida Hiroshi's mind, he quickly discarded it.
He was here to provide reinforcements, not waste time fighting Qingming.
After a moment's hesitation, Yoshida Hiroshi, together with several of his ninjas, used Water Release: Hidden Mist Jutsu.
A thick mist spread rapidly, enveloping the entire team. Soon, the mist grew dense enough to conceal their movements.
Then, the Mist Ninja team sped forward.
Unfortunately, while their plan to use the mist as cover was sound, executing it wasn't as easy as they had hoped.
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