Chapter 337: Gaara and Kimimaro

The sandstorm blew across, leaving the land desolate, with only rocks standing tall amidst the sands.

Underneath the yellow sand, suddenly, black dots appeared in the distance, speeding across the desert, kicking up a trail of dust behind them.

"Report! A large amount of chakra detected ahead!"

In the moving ninja legion, a sensory ninja hastily shouted, causing the entire group to halt and go on alert.

"The ninjas of the Konoha have spotted us, preparing for battle!"

Leading them was Darui, a Jonin from the Cloud Village and confidant of the Fourth Raikage, commanding this vanguard unit with calm orders.

Behind a cluster of towering rocks in the distant yellow earth, a dense group of Konoha ninjas were hidden.

"Captain Gaara, the Ninja Alliance has discovered us."

A Hyuga clan member with the Byakugan also noticed the enemy movement in the distance, as a Hyuga Jonin with bulging veins shouted.

Then, on the towering rocks, a red figure slowly appeared - Gaara, the leader of this ninja legion.

"Gaara, although this is just the enemy's vanguard for reconnaissance, we can't be careless."

Temari, with her calm and strategic mind, evidently took on the role of the tactician.

Temari, holding her large iron fan with one hand, confidently said to everyone with a smile, "The enemy numbers may be similar to ours, but don't forget, this is our home ground, and Gaara's battlefield."

Temari then gave a meaningful look, understanding the importance of boosting morale. Gaara, though not fond of such tactics, understood their necessity.

He coldly raised his hand slightly, and instantly countless grains of sand rose behind him.

The sand continuously formed into clumps. Temari calmly ordered, "Prepare for battle!"

Ninjas, each holding a giant scroll, stood on the sand clumps. Gaara said in a deep voice, "The enemy is too numerous. I can't attend to everyone after releasing my jutsu, so I will envelop you with sand and retreat from the battlefield immediately."

"This is our only chance!"

"Yes!"

Leading them was the Konoha ninja Tenten. Hundreds of ninjas stood on the sand clumps, which, under Gaara's control, began to rise slowly.

In this Ninja Alliance, forehead protectors bearing the 'Nin' symbol represented ninjas from all over the world. The Konoha chose to change theirs to the 'God' symbol for this unifying war, symbolizing the will of a new era.

"Look up at the sky!"

Suddenly, an exclamation came from the Ninja Alliance. They saw tiny black dots appearing in the sky.

The Konoha ninjas, now in the sky thanks to the sand clumps, also spotted their target. Tenten, leading the charge, shouted, "Take action now!"

Super Heavenly Blade Chaos(?)

They were all ninjas skilled in using ninja tools. At a single command, huge scrolls of blades unfurled in the sky. The next moment, a rain of hidden weapons descended from the sky, each embedded with exploding tags, stunning the ninja alliance forces below.

"It's exploding tags!"

Since both sides were covert advance troops, there was no time to bring heavy ninja weaponry to the battlefield.

Unexpectedly, the Konoha ninjas, led by Gaara's Sand Control technique, flew into the sky with hundreds of their fellows.

"Everyone, attack!"

Darui decisively shouted, organizing his ninja troops for an assault. To counter the aerial attack, he rapidly formed hand seals, and instantly, countless lasers appeared in the sky.

'Storm Release: Laser Circus

Simultaneously, calm commanders within the ninja alliance began throwing their own hidden weapons with exploding tags. Just reaching mid-air and triggering a chain explosion was enough.

Boom! The battle erupted. At the same time, Gaara, in the distance, clenched his hand, and the sand in the sky instantly formed a protective sphere around the Konoha ninjas, swiftly moving towards their position.

"Prepare for battle, everyone!"

Roar!

In an instant, on the vast yellow earth, countless specks approached, signaling the onset of a major battle.

Quicksand Waterfall Flow

As the enemy approached, Gaara shouted, his red hair moving without wind, his eyes icy cold. Under his control, the ground erupted with a tsunami-like wave of sand, shocking countless onlookers.

Such terrifying ninjutsu demonstrated Gaara's immense chakra reserves.

Seeing this technique, the enemy alliance's commander, Darui, coldly shouted, "The enemy is Gaara, the One-Tail Jinchūriki. The Rock ninjas prepare for defense; the Cloud ninjas prepare for counterattack."

Following Darui's command, hundreds of Rock Village ninjas emerged, forming seals and then striking the ground.

Earth Release: Earth-Style Wall

The combined Earth Release technique of hundreds of Rock ninjas was terrifying. Instantly, a massive, thick wall of earth rose like a fortress.

The next moment, Cloud ninjas appeared, unleashing powerful Lightning Release techniques against the formidable sand mass.

Meanwhile, the Konoha was not idle; its ninjas completed their hand seals.

Fire Release: Great Flame Technique

Terrifying, intense flames were breathed out, turning the sand red hot.

This secret Fire Release technique, passed down through generations of the Sarutobi clan, had been widely disseminated by Uchiha Yoru throughout the Konoha.

Though not of the highest level, this technique, as a Sarutobi clan legacy, had its merits.

The fearsome Fire Release sent towering flames towards the enemy, and at the same time, Temari shouted, followed by Sand ninjas skilled in Wind Release appearing behind her.

Wind Release: Great Breakthrough

The next moment, a terrifying windstorm swept through, fanning the flames into a fiery tsunami that struck the enemy's defensive earth wall.

Boom!

"Everyone, attack!"

The Captain of the Ninja Allied Forces, Darui, felt extremely frustrated upon witnessing this scene. It wasn't that they were weak, but rather because the Ninja Allied Forces had just been formed and were too chaotic.

The Cloud and Rock ninja villages were somewhat manageable, but the smaller ninja villages were in complete disarray and couldn't be properly managed.

In contrast, the Konoha, Mist, and Sand ninja villages, the three major ninja villages, had been integrated for many years. They had developed a tacit understanding and cooperation with each other. Though not incredibly close, they were far from strangers.

On their side, however, it was complete chaos! As Darui frowned, a terrifying combined ninjutsu instantly broke through a wall, and a fire dragon swept in like a frenzy.

At the same time, there was also the terrifying sand. The sand, heated by the intense fire, swept over, causing countless members of the Ninja Allied Forces to wail in pain.

Although the injuries were not severe, the flying sand caused painful burns on contact with skin, and if it got into the eyes, it caused bleeding, not to mention the clothes that caught fire.

"Everyone, fight in small ninja teams, and break into Konoha's formation," Darui commanded clearly. Playing the group ninjutsu game against the Konoha put the Ninja Allied Forces at a disadvantage.

Instead, relying on the ninja's strong mobility to infiltrate and create chaos in the ranks could turn the tide, putting both sides on an equal footing.

Sand Tsunami

As countless ninjas shouted and attacked, Gaara took the opportunity to coldly launch his terrifying Sand Release ninjutsu.

The terrifying sand swept over, and this time, the sheer heat of the sand was a lethal weapon for the Sand ninjas.

In an instant, a tumultuous sea of sand engulfed those unfortunate enough to be caught in it, screaming as they were burnt alive by the scorching sand.

Lightning Release: Gratitude Wave

A flash of lightning tried to stop Gaara's ninjutsu, but with a puff, the sand shield in front of him was pierced by this lightning release ninjutsu.

Inside the hole, Gaara stared coldly at the distant enemy, Darui from the Cloud ninja village.

"You, the one-tailed Jinchuriki, will not succeed!"

Darui attacked Gaara directly, as Gaara's ninjutsu was too lethal on the battlefield.

Ninjas proficient in wide-range destructive ninjutsu are terrifying on the battlefield and are also prime targets.

Sand Shower

In an instant, a terrifying rain of sand fell over the heads of any allied forces. Gaara made it clear he wanted to maximize the advantage of his Sand Release ninjutsu.

"Quick! Kill them!" Darui shouted angrily. Gaara's ninjutsu was too damaging for the allied forces, such a wide-range ninjutsu was incredibly fierce in battle.

Lightning Release: Black Spot

In an instant, Darui unleashed a black lightning release ninjutsu, leading the Ninja Allied Forces in a charge. At that moment, a smile appeared on the cold face of Gaara.

The next moment, a white figure slowly appeared behind Gaara. Seeing this person, although Darui didn't know what was happening, he still had a bad feeling and urgently shouted, "Everyone, be careful!"

Darui's premonition was correct, but what he, and everyone else, didn't expect was the next scene that overturned their understanding.

Bone Pulse: Early Fern Dance

Suddenly, sharp white bones erupted from the ground, densely packed like a forest, but this sudden bone forest emanated a strong scent of blood.

"Ah!"

Screams and wails echoed, it was too sudden, such a terrifying range and speed, on the battlefield it's simply a mass-killing weapon.

Just this move, the Early Fern Dance, directly caused heavy casualties in the Ninja Allied Forces.

At this moment, Darui was furious and shouted angrily: "Damn it! You had this battle plan set from the beginning."

First, Gaara's terrifying Sand Release made the Ninja Allied Forces eager to engage in close combat with them.

At the same time, the terrifying Sand Release almost covered the battlefield, as the sand contained Gaara's chakra, providing cover for Kimimaro.

After all, such a terrifying ninjutsu consumes a lot of chakra, it's loud and easily detected by sensory ninjas.

But with Gaara's sand, it was different. Sensory ninjas thought it was the sand, and together, Kimimaro and Gaara caused the biggest casualties since the beginning of the battle.

"Kill!"

After performing this ninjutsu, Kimimaro coldly shouted, his body turning into a cannonball and charging out, while the curse mark on his neck began to spread.

"For Lord Yoru's ideals! I, Kimimaro, will be the sharpest tool!"

Kimimaro, cold and indifferent like a dead soldier, directly killed his way forward, effectively defending Gaara from the attacks coming from the front.

Together, they were like the perfect combination of a melee ninja and a mobile artillery.

Destruction Sand Burial

Under the cooperation of Kimimaro and Gaara, it was perfect, a warrior and a mage.

Kimimaro's terrifying Bone Jutsu made him virtually the king of close combat, while Gaara, with his enormous chakra, continuously manipulated large-scale Sand Release for attacks.

For a time, the Ninja Allied Forces actually fell into a disadvantage.

Seeing this, Darui immediately realized that the situation was bad and urgently shouted: "Everyone prepare to fight and retreat, reinforcements are on the way."

The greatest strength of ninjas is their mobility, even on the battlefield, they can retreat as soon as the word is given, unless surrounded.

The Rock and Cloud ninja villages, with their rich war experience, did not rush to retreat in panic, but used defensive ninjutsu to hold off the enemy, then took the opportunity to retreat while covering for each other.

On the ninja battlefield, there were not many sounds of hand-to-hand combat, but more of exploding tags.

Compared to ninjutsu that requires hand seals, close combat among ninjas relied more on kunai, shuriken, and exploding tags.

Especially the exploding tags, constantly being thrown by various means.

Some were hidden on the handles of kunai, specially coated in camouflage colors, only to be discovered when they exploded, but by then it was too late.

Ninjutsu would be released, but only in cooperation with teammates, providing the opportunity to use ninjutsu.

On such a chaotic battlefield, only those with rich experience could seize the opportunity to use ninjutsu alone.

And this was just the appetizer, with the outbreak of the battle at the front lines involving thousands of ninja troops, commanders of both sides in their respective camps also received the news, showing serious expressions.

In the rear camp of the Ninja Allied Forces.

"The battle has begun at the front, is it time to show your so-called strength!"

The Fourth Raikage A had a somewhat unpleasant expression, while the Third Tsuchikage Ōnoki calmly looked at the strangely appearing figure.

It was Uchiha Obito, participating in the Ninja Allied Forces, with one Sharingan and one Rinnegan, looking dissatisfied at the Tsuchikage and Raikage, revealing a hoarse smile.

"Don't be so anxious, because the Edo Tensei ninjutsu summons the dead for battle, and the soul is only one, but the Konoha can also use this forbidden technique."

"These days I and the Konoha have been competing for opportunities, but I can tell you good news, these days I finally found more perfect sacrifices, able to unleash the full strength of the past village powerhouses."

Beneath Obito's hoarse smile, his eyes shone coldly, the Konoha probably also prepared many such existences.

But did he care? It didn't matter anymore, he hadn't even deployed the White Zetsu Army, choosing instead to hide.

The ninja world would fight to mutual destruction, and in the end, there would only be one victor.