Chapter 503
It's him! It's Hyuga Kumokawa!
Chapter 503 It's him! It's Hyuga Kumokawa!
hum!
The half-body Susanoo solidified and reappeared, and its four arms moved in sync, forming hand seals in pairs, the same as those formed by Uchiha Madara.
Madara Uchiha's vast chakra surged forth with unprecedented ferocity, sending shockwaves soaring into the sky, whipping his black hair wildly, and causing his red armor to snap and rattle.
What is he doing?
Alarm bells rang in Onoki's mind. Ignoring the depletion of his chakra, he once again gathered the light of Dust Release in his hands.
But the next moment, the sky darkened, and shadows slowly obscured the light.
Among the allied ninjas, some began to unconsciously raise their heads.
Then, their mouths opened unconsciously, and their expressions changed from confusion to blank stare.
"God..."
"What is that?"
"Why is it dark? Are there clouds?"
No, it's not a cloud.
call!
A deep, heart-pounding whooshing sound came from behind, the sound of an unimaginably massive mass and volume tearing through the atmosphere as it fell.
"..."
Xiao Nan looked at the clouds that had been violently torn open in the distance, and watched the shadow that covered half the sky slowly descend. Her usually cold voice became hoarse: "What is that?"
It was a massive meteorite, which, upon friction with the atmosphere, ignited a raging inferno, turning the terrified faces of the people below a vibrant orange-red.
Its shadow continued to expand, leaving the allied ninjas' minds blank, their hearts feeling as if they were being squeezed by a hand, unable to even muster the thought of escaping.
"Is this the true power of 'God'?"
Nagato stared at the falling meteorite, the firelight reflected in her eyes, her expression complex.
In fact, he had seen similar techniques before.
It happened during the war between the Land of Rain and the Land of Wind.
The two people hiding in the shadows were discovered by 'Shadow'. The man, in order to cover his child's escape, had tried to use a similar tactic.
He immediately understood the principle behind the technique: using "gravity" to forcibly pull a meteorite from outer space.
The principle is simple, but the terrifying power of that eye that could move a meteorite, and the extent to which that power could extend into space...
Nagato tried, but it turned out he simply couldn't do it.
Even with the White Zetsu cloak as a support, he still cannot do what Madara Uchiha did.
Just like Kakashi Hatake, who received a Sharingan transplant, there will always be a barrier and limitations when using eyes that are not one's own.
As the "container" of the Rinnegan rather than its "original owner," Nagato had to endure enormous physical strain and life force depletion every time he activated the power of those Rinnegan.
When Yahiko died, he used the Rinnegan to control the Gedo Mazo in a fit of rage, and was almost drained of his life force and died.
Even with the White Zetsu cloak, it's just like having an extra high-capacity battery and a signal amplifier; the load and consumption still exist, only some of them are transferred to the cloak.
"That's quite a bit of power."
A voice filled with laughter and greed came from beside him, interrupting Nagato's thoughts.
Orochimaru had returned to the Gedo Mazo's palm, gazing at the distant meteorite falling, a smile on his face, his vertical pupils flashing with intense light.
"It's a pity..." he licked his lips, his voice hoarse, "Power that isn't one's own will never truly belong to oneself."
Before Nagato could even speak after hearing these mocking words, Konan said coldly, "Are you referring to yourself?"
“We are different.” Orochimaru turned to Konan with a smile. “All the power I possess now is something I plundered and plotted for myself.”
"Instead of being like some people who are clueless and used as pawns, yet still think they have power."
"you!"
Upon hearing this, Xiao Nan clenched her fists, her eyes revealing a murderous intent.
"Xiao Nan".
Nagato spoke calmly, stopping Konan who was about to make a move, and turned to Orochimaru: "Killing these people is meaningless to our plan."
"Our goal is to find Jinchūriki, but now, those Jinchūriki, and everyone else, have disappeared."
Orochimaru did not answer immediately, but lowered his head and looked at the giant finger of the Gedo Mazo.
From the texture of the withered wood, a pool of thick, black mud emerged, revealing a pair of eyes and a gaping mouth.
“That is…” Hanzo frowned, “…Absolute?”
He had never seen a Black Zetsu appear alone, detached from the White Zetsu's body. This thing gave him an extremely strange sense of familiarity and déjà vu, as if he had felt a similar aura somewhere before.
“It’s me.” Black Zetsu’s voice was hoarse and deep. “Obito, Itachi Uchiha, and the other Jinchuriki, they should have all been forcibly pulled into the Hollow World by the ‘Kage’.”
The Void Realm?
Nagato and the others frowned.
If they were pulled into a separate alternate dimension, that would be tricky, as they wouldn't be able to find the entrance at all.
“Interesting.” Orochimaru suddenly chuckled. “I happen to know where the entrance to the Hollow World is.”
Orochimaru knew about the entrance to the Hollow World?
How could he know?
The same question arose in the minds of Nagato, the other two, and even Black Zetsu.
However, before they could ask any further questions, a roar came from the distant battlefield, drawing their attention back to the battlefield.
In the distance, under that overwhelming shadow, the allied ninjas were on the verge of collapse.
First, their companions outside the underground palace mysteriously disappeared, their fate unknown. Then, right before their eyes, Mei Terumi, the Mizukage, was killed by Orochimaru, leaving no trace of her body.
And now...
The sky is burning, and the earth is wailing.
The slowly descending meteorite became the final straw that broke the camel's back.
Tactics, teamwork, and beliefs all seem so pale and laughable in the face of such an absolute disparity in strength.
Clang... Thump...
Many ninjas' legs gave way, and they collapsed to the ground, staring blankly at the sky, their kunai and ninja swords slipping limply from their hands.
"Hehe, heh..."
"This kind of monster is simply beyond our capabilities..."
"Only the Fifth Hokage can..."
Fear spread like a plague among the people.
"Everyone, stand up!"
A roar exploded over the Allied forces, drowning out the whistling and clamor of the meteorite.
Onoki hovered in mid-air, having abandoned the more energy-consuming Dust Release technique. His shout clearly reached the ears of every Allied Shinobi: "Look at the state of you! What kind of talk is this?"
"Listen up, all of you! If you don't resist, you'll just be smashed into mincemeat and die a meaningless death. But even if you can only live for one more second and kill one more enemy, we haven't lost yet!"
"Don't forget why you're standing here, don't forget what's behind you!"
He whirled around, his short frame advancing instead of retreating, charging upwards against the sky-obscuring meteorite. "That's right, the two of us haven't given up yet, what are you all afraid of?"
On the other side, Hiruzen Sarutobi roared, "If you want to live, stand up! Earth Release ninjas, dig as deep as you can!"
"Everyone else, build defenses and reinforce cover as close as possible, quick, quick, quick!"
As their voices echoed across the battlefield, the panicked crowd seemed to find their anchor and, driven by their survival instincts, began to move.
Despite their fear, the Earth Release ninjas desperately formed hand seals and slammed their fists into the ground, causing large swaths of earth to cave in, forming trenches and pits of varying depths.
"Old buddy..."
Hiruzen Sarutobi looked down at the Vajra Staff in his hand, his wrinkled and calloused hand brushing across the staff, and said in a solemn and deep voice, "I'm afraid I'll have to ask you for help this time."
The Vajra Staff trembled slightly, and the serious voice of the Monkey King echoed in Hiruzen Sarutobi's mind: "It seems that even this old bone of mine will have to risk its life today."
As soon as he finished speaking, Hiruzen Sarutobi's arm muscles bulged, and with all his might, he swung the Vajra Staff in his hand toward the open space directly below the meteorite, driving it deep into the earth.
Bang!
"Earth Escape - Earthquake Core!"
"Earth Release: Earth Opening and Digging!"
More Earth Release ninjas gritted their teeth and followed, frantically digging trenches around the Vajra Staff and along the edge of the meteorite-covered area, trying to create the deepest possible buffer zone and cover.
At this moment, Onoki had already flown into the air and touched the bottom of the burning meteorite. The scorching heat was burning his skin and clothes, and the terrifying wind pressure was almost tearing him apart.
"Ughhhhh!!"
Ohno's eyes were bloodshot, veins bulging on his forehead and neck like earthworms. He stretched out his arms to support the enormous thing, chakra surging wildly as he roared, "Stop!"
"Earth Release: Super Lightweight Rock Technique!!"
hum!
An invisible force field spread out from Onoki, and the unstoppable downward momentum of the massive meteorite suddenly slowed down.
However, the size and mass of the meteorite are too terrifying. Even with the "Super Light Heavy Rock Technique" greatly reducing its weight, its mass and accumulated kinetic energy are still beyond what humans can withstand.
Click click click!
Onoki's bones groaned under the strain, blood gushing from his mouth and nose, but he continued to roar, desperately maintaining the spell to buy even a second more time for those below.
On the ground, Hiruzen Sarutobi, his eyes wide with rage, poured all his chakra into his Adamantine Staff and roared, "Grow!"
As soon as he finished speaking, the Vajra Ruyi Cudgel standing upright on the ground trembled violently and began to grow thicker and longer at a speed visible to the naked eye!
Its diameter expanded to tens of meters, and its length increased steadily, like a pillar supporting the heavens and the earth, crashing fiercely into the slowly descending meteorite.
Boom! Rumble!!
The tip of the Vajra Ruyi Staff touched the center of the meteorite below. The moment they made contact, a visible ring of air suddenly erupted.
Centered on the Vajra Ruyi Staff, the earth cracked and collapsed inch by inch, with fissures spreading wildly like a spider web.
The Vajra Ruyi Cudgel, known as "indestructible," began to groan under the strain. Its thick shaft bent under the immense force, and fine cracks even appeared on its surface.
"Spirit Summoning Technique: Triple Rashomon!"
In the precious moment when the Vajra Staff held the meteorite in place, Hiruzen Sarutobi suddenly bit his thumb and slammed his bloodied hand onto the ground.
Bang!Bang!Bang!
Three deafening roars rang out in succession, and three gigantic, ghost-faced gates, hundreds of meters high, seemed to have come from hell, rising up in a triangular formation around them and slamming against the edge of the falling meteorite!
Click click...
With the support of the Vajra Ruyi Cudgel and the triple Rashomon, the meteorite's descent was finally brought to a halt.
Although it continued to press down slowly, Rashomon made a creaking sound, and the Vajra staff bent more and more obviously, but it did stop.
"Hold on, held on?" A ninja from the Allied Forces looked at the bottom of the meteorite held up by the giant golden pillar and the demon-faced gate above him, and murmured as if he had survived a disaster.
"Hold on! Hokage-sama! Tsuchikage-sama!"
After a brief silence, the allied ninjas erupted in thunderous cheers.
Hiruzen Sarutobi knelt on one knee, his hands supporting him on the ground, panting heavily, sweat and blood rolling down his forehead.
"I can hold on!" he gritted his teeth and said hoarsely, "Run now!"
Madara Uchiha remained with his arms crossed, watching the ants struggle with all their might.
"Those decades haven't been wasted." His tone remained indifferent. "So, what about the second one?"
As soon as the words were spoken, an even more muffled and magnificent roar came from the sky.
The nerves that had just relaxed for a moment suddenly tightened again.
They looked up abruptly, and in the reflection of their horrified pupils, the slowly gathering clouds were once again violently torn apart.
A shadow, even larger than the first meteorite, burst forth from the hole torn in the clouds...
That was the second meteorite!
It is more than twice the size of the first one!
Under the stunned and frozen gazes of everyone, it slammed heavily onto the first meteorite.
boom!!
The collision of the two colossal objects unleashed a terrifying roar and shockwave. The cracks covering the surface of the first meteorite widened and spread as it continued to crash downwards.
"Pfft!" Faced with this weight that had increased several times over, Onoki spat out blood, and his small body fell helplessly from the air.
Click!
The Vajra Ruyi Cudgel at the bottom had already bent to its limit, and under the force that exceeded its limit, it broke in two, and the triple Rashomon collapsed as well.
"It's over..."
A sense of despair instantly flashed through the minds of the allied ninjas below.
"Hmph." Madara Uchiha stood there expressionless, arms crossed. "That's about all you can do."
Faced with the two meteorites crashing down, trenches, bunkers, and makeshift fortifications built with earth-shattering techniques... any resistance seemed so pale and laughable.
"Get under cover! Don't let go..." Hiruzen Sarutobi roared with his last breath, but his voice was drowned out by the roar of the falling meteorite.
However, at the very last moment, at the very last moment when everyone's pupils were completely filled with shadows and fear.
A figure appeared between the meteorite and the allied defenses below, robes fluttering in the wind.
The figure wasn't particularly tall, and was even somewhat thin, appearing incredibly small compared to the enormous, suffocating meteorite.
But when he appeared there, the roar and howling of heaven and earth seemed to freeze for a moment.
Below, the silhouette of that figure was reflected in the eyes of countless Allied Ninjas, eyes filled with despair and death.
"Silver Wheel Rebirth Explosion".
A familiar, steady voice rang out clearly, reaching the ears of the allied ninjas.
In an instant, death seemed imminent, and destruction was about to befall him.
But the moment they heard that voice, all the Allied Ninjas' tense bodies, their blood frozen by fear, and their minds blank, suddenly relaxed.
It wasn't giving up resistance, but rather an almost instinctive trust and sense of security that dispelled the despair.
No need to see faces clearly, no need to verify identities.
It's him……
It's Lord Hinata Kumokawa!
The next moment, a dazzling light erupted from in front of that figure, transforming into a raging tornado that swept towards the second falling meteorite.
boom!!
To be honest, I still don't understand how the meteorite in the original story managed to pass through the atmosphere without even reaching Mars. It couldn't have been summoned out of thin air, could it?
(End of this chapter)