On top of the towering walls, Iwa-nin ran back and forth.
"Hurry! Rain down kunai! Kill them all!"
From their high vantage point, the Iwa-nin launched their attack. Kunai and shuriken rained down, many of them laced with explosive tags.
Below, the Konoha teams and the Sand delegation found themselves trapped within the walled battlefield, like caged animals waiting to be slaughtered.
The situation was dire.
Swish! Swish! Swish!—
The first wave of ninja tools whistled through the air.
Looking up, Konoha and Sand ninjas saw a storm of deadly projectiles blotting out the sky.
The attack came too suddenly.
Neither side had time to coordinate.
Chiyo only managed to shout one word:
"DEFEND!"
At the same time, Kakashi quickly commanded:
"Fire Release! Counterattack!"
Against an attack from above, basic defensive jutsu wouldn't be enough.
No further orders were needed.
Sasuke, Tsuchiya, and Kakashi immediately took the front line.
"Fire Release: Fireball Jutsu!" (x2)
"Fire Release: Great Fireball Jutsu!"
Three blazing fireballs—each larger than the last—collided mid-air, merging into one massive inferno.
The sky turned red as flames swallowed the incoming kunai and shuriken, incinerating many of them before they could land.
The rest of the Konoha and Sand ninjas stayed close behind, ready to deflect any projectiles that slipped through.
---
The Sand Village's defense was different.
Gaara and Chiyo took the lead.
Gaara's sand rose into the sky, forming a protective net.
But having just recovered from his sealing ordeal, his strength hadn't fully returned. The net was smaller than usual.
Fortunately, Chiyo's puppets covered the gaps, intercepting the remaining attacks.
When the assault finally ended, Chiyo and Kakashi exchanged glances.
They both understood the same thing.
They couldn't afford to stay defensive.
They had to break through.
If they remained trapped, they would be wiped out.
Without hesitation, Kakashi shouted:
"We break through! Stay close!"
The leaders of each team immediately took the front.
Asuma, Kurenai, Guy, and Chiyo's squad charged forward, with the younger ninjas following close behind.
Chiyo's remaining Sand shinobi joined them at the front lines.
They only had one option—break through the wall directly!
---
Kakashi and Chiyo's forces rushed forward, sprinting toward the towering wall.
Of course, Iwa-nin wouldn't just let them escape.
"Earth Release: Rock Shatter Jutsu!"
"Earth Release: Earth Dragon Bullet!"
Iwa's ninja executed a coordinated attack.
A formation of shinobi launched fist-sized rocks into the air, creating a storm of deadly projectiles.
Meanwhile, a handful of elite Iwa-nin unleashed Earth Dragon Bullets, their destructive force far greater than the smaller rocks.
The attack should have been devastating.
But something felt… off.
Kakashi and Chiyo quickly noticed the problem.
Iwa's attacks weren't landing where they should have.
Most of their jutsu were aimed far off-target, missing the Konoha-Sand forces entirely.
The defenders instinctively braced for impact, expecting a second, more accurate strike…
But the enemy looked just as confused as they were.
"What are they even aiming at…?"
For a moment, both sides simply stared at each other in bafflement.
At that moment, no one noticed the excited grin creeping onto a certain girl's face.
"In a space beyond dimensions… an invisible boundary line…"
Ino and Sakuragi, standing beside her, froze.
They suddenly thought of something.
Their eyes widened in shock.
Impossible!
Then, everyone heard Sakiya's eerie laughter.
"Hahahahahaha! Drown in illusion and perish!"
"Eye of Death! Dimensional Realm—Activate!"
A massive, glowing circle spread beneath Sakiya's feet.
From the Iwa-nin's perspective, the combined forces of Konoha and Sand vanished in an instant as strange patterns flickered across the battlefield.
A moment later, they reappeared—in a completely different location.
The glowing magic circle still hovered beneath the entire army.
The Iwa-nin's attack missed entirely, slamming into the walls and blasting craters of all sizes.
"What was that?! What kind of jutsu is this?!"
Obsidian, the leader of the Iwa-nin, frowned at the strange technique.
"A large-scale illusion? There's no way she can use that multiple times!"
He immediately gave an order.
"Keep attacking!"
Another wave of ninjutsu rained down on Kakashi's group.
But this time, Kakashi and the others didn't show a trace of fear.
Instead, they were… stunned.
Not far from them, they could see a projection of themselves.
Kakashi and the others glanced at Sakiya, silent.
The shock lingered.
The Sand-nin were just as shaken.
Gaara stared at the projection thoughtfully.
"So this… is how it felt when she fought against me?"
"What a terrifying ability."
He cast a glance at Sakiya before turning away.
Meanwhile, Iwa-nin's attacks continued to miss—striking illusions instead of real targets.
Obsidian's frustration grew.
"It's some kind of sensory interference!"
"Can she really maintain such a large illusion? Find their real location!"
"Yes, sir!"
Three sensory ninja stepped forward.
"Earth Release: Reflection of Fish in the Earth!"
But before they could begin sensing, Konoha's army flickered and jumped three times in rapid succession—appearing right in front of them.
The sudden movement startled the sensory ninja, breaking their concentration.
Light gathered on the magic circle, forming the image of a girl.
Obsidian reacted instantly, his fist covered in rock as he struck forward.
"Earth Release: Stone Fist!"
But his punch passed straight through, hitting nothing but air.
He gritted his teeth.
"Damn it! She's just here to disrupt our sensory unit!"
"Ignore her! Keep focusing!"
The three sensory ninja nodded, closing their eyes and trying to resume their jutsu.
At that moment, Sakiya's grin widened.
Light shimmered in her hands—forming a massive mallet.
The people of Konoha and the Sand watched as she lifted the weapon.
But…
Even though they could see her preparing to attack, they also saw her still running alongside them in their ranks.
Ino furrowed her brow.
Was the Sakiya next to her real?
She knew that once Sakiya's illusions were activated, even her own sensory abilities became useless.
So she simply asked.
"Sakiya… are you real or fake?"
Sakiya smirked.
"I am both real and fake. In this illusory reality, the true is false, the false is false, and only the Eye of Death—"
Smack!
"Ow!"
Sakiya flinched as Ino chopped her lightly on the head.
Tears welled up in her eyes as she clutched the spot.
Ino sighed.
"Come on, Sakiya. Can you just talk like a normal person?"
Sakiya instantly dropped the theatrics, her face turning serious.
"My Eye of Death is the most real thing here."
"Huh?"
Ino looked toward the city walls—then back at the Sakiya standing next to her.
They looked exactly the same—both even had the same blindfold covering one eye.
But after that earlier hit, Ino knew.
This one was the real one.
Up ahead, Kakashi, Neji, Tenten, and even the Sand-nin had noticed their exchange.
The casualness of it felt completely out of place on a battlefield.
For a moment, they all had the same thought:
Are they really fighting… or just playing around?
---
Meanwhile, the other Sakiya stood behind the sensory unit, still holding her mallet.
She twirled it in her hands, considering the best way to strike.
Obsidian didn't even look at her.
He knew she was just a phantom—nothing more than a distraction.
But then…
Sakiya licked her lips playfully.
Raising the mallet like a golf club, she took a wide stance.
And swung.
BAM! BAM! BAM!
Three clean hits.
In Obsidian's widening eyes, the three sensory ninja were sent flying off the wall, flipping through the air like baseballs.
Heads down.
The scene was almost… comical.
_________
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