"Yukikaze!"
Feeling Yukikaze's Chakra completely vanish behind him.
Yukisumi couldn't help but let out a mournful cry.
"Damn it! Why! Why hasn't support arrived yet!
So much time has passed, why hasn't support arrived yet!"
...Elsewhere.
After giving instructions to the family Ninja who had come to report.
Yukii, as the Clan Leader, was the first to rush alone towards the site of the explosion.
Firstly, he wanted to see what was happening with his own eyes.
Secondly, he also wanted to provide support, to see if he could eliminate one enemy first and weaken their strength.
"Swish! Swish! Swish!"
Just as Yukii was running, three Kunai suddenly shot out from the darkness.
They flew towards Yukii's head, chest, and leg.
"Pong!"
The three Kunai simultaneously struck Yukii.
But immediately, a puff of smoke emerged.
The Yukii who had been struck by the Kunai turned into a log out of thin air via Kawarimi no Jutsu.
At this moment, the real Yukii was already standing on a tree branch, looking in the direction from which the Kunai had come.
"Which rat dares to ambush me! Are you still not going to show yourselves!"
"Clan Leader Yukii certainly has good skills; I didn't expect you could dodge Kunai from such close range."
Seeing his attack dodged by Yukii, the figure hiding in the darkness decided not to hide any longer, slowly walking out and speaking to Yukii.
When Yukii saw who the attacker was, his expression changed, because the appearance of this person meant the worst possible outcome.
Kirigakure was preparing to act against the Yuki Clan.
"It's you, Yagura Karatachi!"
"Long time no see, Clan Leader Yukii!"
"Why! Is Kirigakure trying to start a civil war? Aren't you afraid that other Shinobi clans will become disloyal to Kirigakure?"
"Hehe! Clan Leader Yukii is truly a loyal subject of Kirigakure! Even facing death, you're still concerned about Kirigakure, but that's not something Clan Leader Yukii should be worrying about!"
After speaking.
He dashed out with Shunshin no Jutsu, holding his coral staff.
And Yukii, upon seeing Yagura Karatachi emerge from the shadows, had been tense.
Therefore, he easily dodged Yagura's sudden attack, and then immediately launched his own offensive.
"Hyōton: Hyō Senbon."
"Hah~tui~tui~tui~"
Senbon after Senbon were spat out from Yukii's mouth, flying towards Yagura's position.
But Yagura parried them all.
Then Yagura returned the favor.
"Suiton: Suiryūdan no Jutsu."
A three-meter-long water dragon charged towards Yukii.
"Hyōton: Hyōryūdan no Jutsu."
Yukii was not to be outdone, retaliating with the same technique.
The two dragon bullets collided in mid-air, then dissipated together.
Yukii and Yagura stood facing each other for a moment, neither making a move.
Because from their previous exchange, they realized.
Neither side had the strength to quickly defeat the other.
And so, the battle seemed to reach a stalemate.
"Give up, Yagura Karatachi! As long as the Yuki Clan holds out until the support from other Shinobi clans arrives, until dawn, then the Mizukage will face a joint impeachment from the other Shinobi clans. At that point, no one will have an easy time. But if you give up now, the Yuki Clan can pretend today's events never happened, and we can sit down and discuss any issues."
"Heh, Clan Leader Yukii, are you perhaps taking me for a child just because I look young! The Yuki Clan will surely be annihilated tonight!"
"And... do you really think your Yuki Clan members can get out alive to find reinforcements?"
"What! Don't tell me..."
Just then, Yukii saw a faint blue light suddenly appear two kilometers ahead, then flash and disappear, re-concealing itself in the darkness.
"A Kekkai!"
"That's right! The entire Yuki Clan has been enveloped by our Kekkai. Nothing happening inside can be seen from the outside, and nothing from inside can be transmitted outside.
Similarly, no one can get out! So, no one will come to help!"
"Heh! It seems Kirigakure has been preparing for this day for a long time."
"No choice, who told you Shinobi clans to be so greedy."
"Greedy? As the leader of the Yuki Clan, is it wrong for me to want my clan to prosper!"
"No, it's not wrong! But hindering the village's development is wrong!"
"The village? The village should be led by Shinobi clans! If it weren't for the Hōzuki Clan's betrayal back then, the village leader would have been from our Yuki Clan! This land! Forty years ago, it was all Yuki Clan territory! We, the Yuki Clan, are the true masters here!"
"A bunch of old-era remnants who only know how to live in past glory, unaware that the Shinobi world is no longer what it once was! Therefore! This is the reason for the Yuki Clan's demise!"
"Hmph! Ignorant child, the Shinobi world will always be the Shinobi world, where the strong decide everything. As long as this old man is strong enough, this old man is the rule of the Shinobi world!"
"Hyōton: Hyōryū Metsu!"
"Die, ignorant child!"
A twenty-meter-long ice dragon burst from a nearby river, charging towards Yagura Karatachi.
"Hmph! Useless!"
"Suiton: Mizukagami no Jutsu."
A water mirror, composed of water, appeared before Yagura, reflecting the full image of the ice dragon.
Then Yagura raised his coral staff, used the barbs on the staff to hook the upper edge of the water mirror, and pulled it back.
Immediately, an ice dragon identical to the one summoned by Yukii burst out from the water mirror.
It charged towards the ice dragon summoned by Yukii.
"What! What kind of Ninjutsu is that!"
Seeing the opponent also summon an ice dragon, Yukii said in shock.
"Hijutsu: Mizukagami no Jutsu!"
"Hmph, I don't believe your fake can compare to the ice dragon I summoned."
With that, he also controlled his ice dragon to collide with the fake one opposite.
"Boom!"
A tremendous crash echoed.
Both ice dragons shattered into pieces, scattering across the ground.
Seeing this, Yukii felt completely distraught.
He had a sense of powerlessness, wanting to curse but not knowing what to curse about.
But Yagura wouldn't give him a chance to curse.
Upon noticing Yukii's abnormality, Yagura decisively advanced with his staff, preparing a sneak attack.
However, Yukii was indeed a veteran strongman; his reaction speed was still excellent.
He immediately dodged with Shunshin, then prepared to follow up with another Hyōton attack.
But just as he finished the hand signs and was about to release it, he saw a mirror appear in front of him, clearly reflecting his own figure.
[This isn't good!]
The thought had just surfaced in Yukii's mind, and he wanted to use Shunshin to leave and escape the mirror's reflection.
But it was too late.
His reflection in the mirror had already burst out, charging towards him, ready to kill.
It was also in the state of having finished hand signs and being ready to release the Jutsu.
Helpless, Yukii could only choose to unleash his Ninjutsu against his own clone.
As expected.
This was yet another evenly matched confrontation.