The instant the white spore shot out, it swelled.
In the blink of an eye, a white figure took shape before them.
Not only from Itachi's ring—Kisame's ring also spat out a spore.
"Zetsu!"
Kisame's face tightened at the sight. So the two of them had been under Zetsu's surveillance all along!
No sooner had the two White Zetsu appeared than they bolted in opposite directions.
As they fled, both activated Kagerō (Mayfly), slipping into the earth and vanishing from sight.
"Now that I've noticed you, how could you possibly escape?"
A cold smile tugged at Yuto's lips. Two chakra chains—Kongō Fūsa (Adamantine Sealing Chains)—lashed from his body, streaking toward the paths of retreat.
Moments later, both chains jolted, then snapped back.
In just a few heartbeats, the two fleeing White Zetsu were dragged out, trussed tight by the chakra chains, and flung at Yuto's feet.
They thrashed wildly but couldn't break the Kongō Fūsa. One White Zetsu glared at Kisame and shouted:
"Kisame! You traitor!"
"Traitor? If you both die here, no one will know he betrayed your organization."
Yuto stepped up to the captives, smile gentle.
Then he lifted a finger and flicked one White Zetsu lightly on the forehead.
The Zetsu convulsed—and the next instant, its body dispersed into white powder and was gone.
He repeated the motion on the other one, then let the chakra chains recede.
"Take Itachi's eyes out and keep them on you for now. We may need them."
Yuto brushed his hands and glanced at Kisame.
Kisame nodded and, with brisk efficiency, removed Itachi's eyes, placing them in a bottle of saline.
When he'd finished, Yuto casually formed a single seal of Katon (Fire Release) and tossed a tongue of flame onto Itachi's body.
He had no intention of letting Itachi appear before him ever again.
"With that settled, the war should enter its climax."
"At this rate, Shukaku of the One-Tail won't hold out."
Yuto turned and walked to the edge of the Hokage Rock, looking down at the leaf village engulfed in war. A faint smile touched his face.
Then he reached up, grabbed Isobu from his shoulder, and made a throwing motion.
Under Isobu's deeply aggrieved look, Yuto hurled him forward.
"Go, Jenny… Three-Tails!"
Isobu streaked through the air like a comet, arrowing toward the village center.
Even as he flew, his body ballooned at a speed visible to the naked eye.
—Chūnin Exam battlefield—
The duel between Orochimaru and Hiruzen had long since morphed into two forces propping their leaders.
Without a barrier to pin Hiruzen to one spot—or to carve out an arena—Orochimaru, much as he wanted to kill him, could never be certain with Anbu and other leaf shinobi constantly harrying him.
Hiruzen, on the other hand, faced the same issue.
Both had fought in the great wars; both knew that unless you were a true apex powerhouse, a single duel barely nudged the larger tide.
So when Hiruzen realized he couldn't settle Orochimaru quickly, he disengaged, took overall command of the leaf side, and began driving a counterattack against the Sand.
Orochimaru's face had grown uglier by the moment; his original plan was already far off-script. Even if he wanted to withdraw now, Hiruzen's temperament guaranteed he wouldn't be allowed to go.
Helpless, Orochimaru could only commit himself fully to the Sand's side and fight alongside them.
Aside from Naruto's earlier clownish beat, the battlefield had returned to white-hot.
The "rookies" made only minor dents; even Naruto and Sasuke were just lending hands here and there.
Though the Sand had One-Tail Shukaku as a backer, this was still the Leaf's home turf.
As time wore on, the great clans who'd been watching began to shift their stance.
One by one, clan fighters moved in.
The first to surge onto the field was one of the Leaf's close-bond clans—the Inuzuka, adept at communicating with and training ninja dogs.
Each Inuzuka fought as two, and their entry alone tilted the balance that had held.
Under Hiruzen's command, the Sand and Sound began to be pressed back.
Faces across the leaf ranks lit with fresh vigor.
Yet Hiruzen, as overall commander, remained grim.
With a disturbance this great, a man like Jiraiya couldn't possibly have missed it. And there was Gamabunta, summoned by Naruto earlier—
Others might have assumed the toad boss simply refused Naruto's orders and left, but Hiruzen had watched closely. Gamabunta had clearly been in a major fight.
And Jiraiya had given no word for this long; that alone suggested he'd run into an exceptionally hard foe.
Then there was the clamorous din from the main gate—not a whit quieter than here.
The Konoha Military Police Force was, aside from Hiruzen's Anbu and Danzo's Root, one of the strongest arms the Leaf possessed.
And Homura and Koharu were no slackers either.
They were all veterans of multiple shinobi wars; once they moved, they never left the enemy room to breathe.
Even so, the Police Force was clearly being held down.
Thoughts flashed through Hiruzen's mind, and his face darkened with worry.
Whichever way he looked, none of this favored the Leaf.
What pained him most: the war was happening inside the village. The damage to the village itself—that was the true wound.
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