Although Kikyo's combat style focused primarily on long-range attacks, it did not mean she feared close-quarters combat.
As the gentle wind blew through her long black hair, Kikyo, holding her longbow, gave off a holy aura of absolute invulnerability.
As a priestess who came from the Warring States period, her lifetime of combat experience was incredibly vast.
The speed and reaction times of the demons and monsters Kikyo had faced in the past were far quicker than those of ordinary ninja in this world. Therefore, she possessed a mature set of tactics for dealing with close combat.
"How is this possible!"
With just a single arrow, her opponent's vanguard undead army had been thoroughly dismantled. Yomi could not believe that a mere priestess possessed such terrifying, destructive power.
After establishing her dominance with that single shot, Kikyo activated a specialized purification barrier. In an instant, a unique pentagram array formed around the entirety of the Land of Demons' royal capital.
The sky and earth were illuminated by the holy light of purification, causing any malevolent entity to appear extremely fragile and insignificant before this power.
"This is..."
Five Elements Purification!
Suddenly, the earth seemed to be completely activated. Under the guidance of Kikyo's single finger, countless fissures tore through the ground, swallowing the walking zombie legion.
As a top-tier priestess, Kikyo was highly proficient in barrier techniques. In her native world, she had utilized various types of barriers and spells. Even a supreme arch-demon like Naraku in his later stages did not dare to look down on Kikyo's techniques, let alone these ordinary zombies.
Countless zombies had nowhere to hide before Kikyo's advanced Five Elements Purification. As they were evaporated and purified, Kikyo's face turned slightly pale. Clearly, overdrawing her own spiritual energy left her a bit weakened.
"Now is the time!"
Catching the brief trace of fatigue in Kikyo's eyes, several Land of Demons mercenary ninja immediately used the Body Flicker technique to rush forward, launching a direct assault on Kikyo in the center.
However, the Five Elements Purification array beneath her feet altered its form once more, releasing a powerful explosion of spiritual light.
A cluster of blue flames condensed in Kikyo's hand. The kunai held by the attacking Jonin instantly caught fire and burned away.
At that moment, Kikyo spun her longbow, and countless bursts of spiritual energy detonated outward, transforming into her signature spiritual particle shockwaves.
"This is the Fifth Kazekage's Blue Flame!"
Shiraishi's Blue Flame was famous throughout the ninja world, so the moment Kikyo utilized this fire, someone recognized it immediately.
In truth, before leaving Sunagakure, Kikyo had explicitly asked Unohana to find some special fire sources to set up the Five Elements Purification array. She had not expected Unohana to directly borrow the Blue Flame from Shiraishi.
With the power of the Blue Flame backing her, Kikyo leaped into the air. At the same time, the bodies of the remaining attackers became completely frozen, unable to move a single inch.
What kind of sealing jutsu is this?
Dimensional Seal!
This was Kikyo's most powerful sealing technique, capable of sealing a target's physical form into a different space within the same dimension.
It prevented sound from traveling, restricted all movement, and made their physical bodies impossible to detect. Kikyo had once used this exact technique to immobilize Kagome.
Compared to that instance with Kagome, Kikyo's current physical condition was nearly at her lifetime peak. Therefore, the absolute power of this seal left the ninja instantly incapable of any movement, preventing them from even circulating their chakra.
"You witch..."
Seeing Kikyo display such fierce capability, Yomi made a split-second decision to retreat. However, just as Kikyo's longbow slowly drew back, her figure vanished into thin air, materializing directly in front of Yomi.
Because her current vessel was in optimal condition, Kikyo could directly execute a highly advanced spatial transfer methodology.
In her original history, Kikyo had utilized this exact move multiple times to shake off Naraku's pursuit. Now, she utilized it as a Body Flicker technique to ambush her opponent.
Although Kikyo's speed was not as instantaneous as the Flying Thunder God or Shiraishi's spatial vortex, it was still an astonishing movement speed compared to standard Body Flicker techniques—especially considering she was an archer.
An archer who could execute multi-stage teleportation and lock down targets?
Space-time ninjutsu? How can a priestess know so many diverse skills!
Yomi found the entire situation completely absurd, but as Kikyo pointed her longbow directly at his head, the look in her eyes showed she was not joking.
"I surrender..."
Meanwhile, back on the Mount Kikyo battlefield.
The match between Haruno Sakura and Uzumaki Karin had finally entered its final phase.
The two girls traded punch for punch, brutally battering each other. Amidst the bloody exchange, both sides had been beaten to a swollen, bruised state.
Although Uzumaki Karin had been a bit of a background figure compared to her dominant twin sister, Tomoko, over the years, it did not mean she would easily yield to the girl before her. This was a deep-seated stubbornness rooted in her bones.
The dynamic between women could sometimes be highly subtle. Even from their very first glance, they felt their chemistry was entirely mismatched. Consequently, neither side gave an inch, making the battle exceptionally fierce.
As for Haruno Sakura, for some unknown reason, she felt a powerful urge not to lose to this red-haired girl. Therefore, the fight had devolved into a direct, unyielding collision where neither recognized structural defeat.
The enthusiasm of the audience was thoroughly ignited by the raw determination of the two girls, and the crowd shouted cheers for their respective favorites.
"Sakura..."
This was the first time Sasuke had ever seen Sakura in such a state. While she usually lacked a strong presence within Team 7, this specific encounter forced Sasuke to re-evaluate the pink-haired girl before him.
Perhaps she, too, had been secretly putting in immense effort when no one else was watching.
Sakura's growth occurred much earlier in this timeline compared to her original history. This was not only due to the harsh geopolitical environment Konoha faced, but more because the rapid growth of Sasuke and Naruto pushed Sakura to work harder.
Naruto had spent the past few years training under Jiraiya, and his rate of improvement was not a single fraction slower than Sasuke's, who possessed the advantage of the Sharingan. This included their first bell-test exercise against Kakashi.
Although Sasuke and Naruto had failed to secure the bells back then, the fluid cooperation and coordination they displayed left Sakura envious and privately disheartened, realizing the gap between her and her teammates was widening.
That changed when Sakura encountered the Fifth Hokage. She had not expected Lady Tsunade to take her in as a personal disciple.
Ultimately, no one wanted to serve as a mere decorative item in a team. Sakura had her own goals and pursuits, which was why she trained exceptionally hard after gaining Tsunade's favor.
As both girls launched their final punches simultaneously into each other's frames, Shiraishi's eyelids twitched slightly. "To think it would end without a victor."
It was an unexpected result: the match was a double knockout. Both girls had collapsed onto the dirt, completely unconscious.
Since it was a draw, neither would advance; instead, both were eliminated together.
This was a hidden rule shared by Sunagakure and the other hidden villages alike.
Following the conclusion of the opening match, the second round began, featuring Konoha's Uzumaki Naruto against Sunagakure's Nagahira Haku.
As a civilian ninja trained by the Naval Department, Haku worked incredibly hard, utilizing a diverse array of tactics to counter Naruto. Unfortunately, Naruto's massive chakra reserves and his Multi-Shadow Clone human-wave tactics completely suppressed his opponent, forcing a definitive defeat.
Naruto's ability to master the Multi-Shadow Clone technique at this stage was entirely due to his relationship with Jiraiya.
Consequently, Haku felt incredibly frustrated. Facing an opponent who relied entirely on the illogical brute force of thousands of shadow clones, he had no choice but to forfeit and surrender.
Mastering a single technique to dominate the world—that was the exact description of Uzumaki Naruto.
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