Naruto: The Age of Ninja Swords Begins in Kumogakure

Chapter 163 Challenge to Generals

Uchiha Myokyo was already worried and on guard about the upcoming war, and before he could come up with a way to break the deadlock, an unexpected guest arrived.

"Kumakuya envoy, Tamura Hidden, what does Kumogakure intend to do?"

Once again, all the high-ranking members were summoned, and no one could fathom the intentions of the Hidden Cloud Village.

Given the current tense situation, why did the Hidden Cloud Village suddenly send an envoy, and it was none other than Tamura Hao, whom we should be most wary of?

What conspiracy is the Hidden Cloud Village plotting now?

"How many people came?"

Uchiha Baru asked a question, and some thoughts began to form in his mind.

"Both of them, besides Tamura Hiroshi, are troublesome individuals. Don't act rashly."

As if seeing through Uchiha Baru's little scheme, Uchiha Myōkyō gave him a warning at the end.

To be honest, he really didn't want to go to war with Kumogakure. It would have been fine to just play house like before.

Otherwise, if they were to truly provoke the Hidden Cloud Village and trigger a life-or-death battle, it would be hard to say how many of them would survive, or they might even be completely wiped out.

"Please ask them to come over."

After glancing at the silent Uchiha Fugaku, Uchiha Myokage gave an order to someone outside.

The two Uchiha ninjas who were guarding outside left as ordered and soon brought over two people, namely Tamura Hao and Uchiha Hikaru.

"Fugaku-kun, we meet again!"

Upon entering the conference hall, Tamura Hao's gaze first fell upon Uchiha Fugaku. At the same time, using Kaguya's Byakugan and Sharingan powers, he scanned everyone present, gaining a general understanding of their chakra strength and Sharingan abilities.

After greeting Uchiha Fugaku with a half-smile, Tamura Hao looked at the purple-haired woman standing next to Uchiha Myokkei.

The one here has the strongest eye power, not even much weaker than Uchiha Hikaru, who awakened the Mangekyou Sharingan for the second time.

Uchiha Hikaru's gaze also fell on the woman, and his Mangekyou Sharingan activated, allowing him to sense her powerful eye energy as well.

Faced with the oppressive power of Uchiha Hikaru's Mangekyou Sharingan, the Uchiha ninjas present also activated their Sharingan. Apart from Uchiha Myōkyō and a few others who also possessed the Mangekyou Sharingan, the other Uchiha ninjas with three tomoe all looked grim, their eye power being suppressed and interfered with.

The Sharingan not only exerts a strong pressure and restraint on other ninjas, but also on the Uchiha clan.

A high-level Sharingan can suppress a low-level Sharingan to a certain extent, especially a qualitative leap like the Mangekyou Sharingan.

"As expected, the intelligence was correct. You are the strongest here, Miss Chiri!"

After carefully examining the purple-haired woman, Tamura Hao revealed a gentle smile.

These words caused the eyes of the people present to flicker, and they sensed something amiss in those words.

Uchiha Chiri remained expressionless, with only the three-tomoe pattern slowly rotating in his eyes, without activating his Mangekyou Sharingan.

At the same time, she was also observing the two people, especially Uchiha Hikaru. She was secretly surprised to sense that the other party's eye power was stronger than her own.

She knew very well how strong her own eye power was; in terms of eye power alone, she was the strongest in the Uchiha clan. However, the girl's eye power was even stronger than hers.

As expected, these eyes possess four different eye techniques.

"Messenger of Kumogakure, state the purpose of your visit."

After observing for a while, Uchiha Myōkyō spoke in a deep voice, still unable to figure out the other party's intentions.

Without wasting words, Tamura Hao glanced at the people present and arrogantly declared, "I am here on behalf of Kumogakure to issue this challenge to you all. This is the challenge!"

After saying that, he threw the challenge letter in his hand at Uchiha Myōkyō. Since he had chosen to fight fair and square, he naturally had to issue a challenge letter so that he could be legitimate.

He reached out and took the challenge letter, unfolded it, and after reading its contents, Uchiha Myōkyō was shocked and puzzled.

Uchiha Chiri, who was standing beside him, had also seen the contents of the challenge and was equally shocked.

"I refuse this challenge. It's absurd. We are ninjas, not samurai."

When the challenge was presented, Uchiha Myōkyō resolutely refused.

They were already at a disadvantage, so it was best for them to rely on layers of fortifications to defend themselves, thus making the most of their geographical advantage and minimizing casualties.

Although the Hidden Cloud Village's method of inviting him to battle could better reduce casualties, he didn't trust the Hidden Cloud Village, after all, they were the enemy.

If we were to actually leave our fortifications and confront the Hidden Cloud Village, and the enemy were to use a trick to launch a full-scale attack, we would be finished.

"I'm sorry, you don't have the right to refuse."

Tamura Hao's gentle smile remained, but the atmosphere instantly turned cold. Uchiha Meikyo's eye power and chakra surged, and the others beside him also unleashed their eye power and chakra to press forward.

"This is our Konoha camp, not your Kumogakure camp."

This is our territory, so don't be too arrogant.

Tamura Hiroshi remained silent, waiting quietly. After a short while, he turned his head and glanced in one direction.

Everyone looked over, and although they were in the conference room and the view was blocked by the walls, they all had a vague sense of it.

A fierce and evil chakra appeared in that direction and quickly flew towards their camp.

"Tailed Beast!"

As if he had just realized something, Uchiha Myōkyō was shocked and furious.

The Hidden Cloud Village has already used the Tailed Beast Jinchuriki so quickly. Could it be that they have perfectly mastered the power of the Tailed Beasts?

Before anyone could react, a dazzling light burst forth, followed by a deafening roar and shockwave, causing the ground to tremble.

After the shockwave subsided, cracks appeared on the walls of the conference room, turning it into a dangerous building.

"Let's go out and take a look."

With a gloomy expression, Uchiha Myōkyō glanced at the boy opposite him who was still smiling, and then gestured to Uchiha Chiri.

Without saying much, Uchiha Chiri quickly left the meeting room, observed for a while, and then returned soon after.

"The Tailed Beast Ball landed behind us, destroying a key node in the second line of defense."

When the results were revealed, everyone's hearts sank.

In fact, once they realized that it was the Hidden Cloud Village that had used the Tailed Beast Ball, they knew they were in trouble.

The addition of a Tailed Beast Jinchuriki to the battlefield was the worst-case scenario, and the fact that the enemy's Tailed Beast Jinchuriki could use a Tailed Beast Ball was the worst possible outcome.

This means that all the defensive lines they built based on the terrain were useless. Faced with the Tailed Beast Ball that could shatter mountains, even the best defensive works were useless.

"You have three days to prepare. See you in three days."

Having achieved his goal, Tamura Hao did not wait for Uchiha Meikyo's response and turned to leave with Uchiha Hikaru.

He never intended to waste any more words; the appearance of the Tailed Beast Ball was more powerful than a thousand words, and these people had no choice.

Watching the two leave, Uchiha Myōkyō's mood worsened.

"Take a look at them all."

Frustrated, Uchiha Myōkyō pinched the bridge of his nose and passed the invitation around.

The group passed it around curiously to watch, but their mood soured afterward.

"The Hidden Cloud Village actually chose this method to start the war."

Fugaku Uchiha was also surprised. Although he had spoken with Tamura Hao last time, he had not discussed how to fight the upcoming war, and it was impossible for him to leak such a secret.

This fighting style is just too strange, and it's not very tactful!

It's important to know that such duels on the battlefield were not common even among samurai; very few people used them because the risks were too great.

Once a general on one side is killed in battle, morale will inevitably plummet. The enemy will then be able to break through the lines with a single charge, and the outcome of the war will become certain.

This kind of close-quarters combat is not suitable for ninjas. The fighting style that ninjas are good at is the shadowy type, where they hide in the dark and use various means to defeat their opponents. They can better exert their combat power in complex terrain.

Furthermore, their ninja information is crucial to their safety, and leaks could be fatal. Fighting in public like this is tantamount to revealing all their abilities.

That's suicide!

"We have no choice now."

With a sigh, Uchiha Myōkyō knew he had no choice but to accept the challenge; there was no turning back now.

After all, they have Jinchuriki who can launch Tailed Beast Balls, so no matter where they retreat, they can't stop them.

We can't just retreat all the way back to the village, can we?

"Judging from his words just now, our intelligence may have been leaked. The other side must have formulated a targeted combat plan, or even matched up an opponent that can restrain us."

This kind of response will put us at a disadvantage.

Uchiha Chiri also found it troublesome. The core of ninja battles is intelligence warfare, and it is fatal if one's own intelligence is leaked.

Although the young man didn't say much, he clearly had a deep understanding of them, especially since he himself was being closely watched by the other party.

This situation is extremely disadvantageous for them.

"What's there to be afraid of? The power of the kaleidoscope is enough to deal with everything."

Uchiha Naka was very unhappy, and had absolute confidence in his Mangekyou Sharingan.

The Sharingan is the most powerful bloodline limit in the ninja world, something outsiders cannot even imagine.

Upon hearing this, everyone present was immediately alerted.

Indeed, they now possess five kaleidoscopes, enough to handle any opponent.

Seeing that Uchiha Myōkyō did not refute this, he thought for a moment and said, "Since the opponent is likely to know our information, then during the duel, we should try to find opportunities to avoid facing the same opponent. It would be best if we could take the initiative to choose our opponent and seize the initiative."

Everyone agreed with this; since this battle was unavoidable, the only option was to find a way to gain the initiative.

"There's another matter: how did the Hidden Cloud Village obtain our information? And how much did they know?"

Fugaku Uchiha, who had been silent until now, suddenly spoke, causing everyone's expressions to turn ugly. Even Uchiha Pazu and the others looked at Uchiha Myokkei.

They weren't doubting Uchiha Myokkei, but rather certain people in the village.

However, Uchiha Myokyo's stance and attitude over the years have been quite different.

Furthermore, the village has had many internal problems in recent years, especially since that person passed away, the problems and conflicts have become more and more acute, and there is no guarantee that someone will want to weaken or even eliminate the Uchiha clan first.

"I will have someone investigate this matter."

Uchiha Myokyo made a decisive statement, but in his heart he couldn't help but have some doubts about the Third Hokage, or rather the Third Hokage's group.

At least those people have the motive and the ability, just like the tragedy in Uzushiogakure back then.

The incident at Uzushiogakure Village back then made him distrust the Third Hokage and others. Could this be a scheme by those people?

Seeing Uchiha Myokyo's stance, Uchiha Fugaku remained silent, but his expression was very gloomy, even carrying a hint of murderous intent.

The same goes for everyone else; they hate those who betrayed them more than their enemies.

After further discussion, Uchiha Myokkei told everyone to go back and prepare, while he himself took out a bottle, seemingly struggling with his own thoughts.

A pair of eyes, a pair of Mangekyou Sharingan, were soaking in nutrient solution in the bottle. They were given to him by his father before he died.

Although the father had used these eyes to their limit, and their pupil power was almost exhausted, the pupil technique still existed and could be transplanted.

He knew about the eye transplant and its methods; in fact, the family's transcription seal was a byproduct of that transplant surgery.

However, this type of transplant surgery carries considerable risks. Even if the eyes belong to the father and are related by blood, the risk of rejection may be reduced to some extent.

However, it is not completely eliminated; once it causes rejection, your eyes will shatter instantly.

However, if successful, the benefits will be substantial, far beyond simply gaining two more eye techniques.

"It hasn't come to that yet."

Upon seeing the bottle, Uchiha Osamu's expression changed slightly, and he gently offered his advice.

She understood Mingjing's idea: she wanted to transplant pupil techniques to strengthen her eyes.

However, this kind of foreign eye technique may clash with one's own Kaleidoscope eye technique, and the burden of using a foreign eye technique will be greater, which is very dangerous.

"The Cloud Ninja have come with ill intentions, and everyone on our side has their own agenda. I must become stronger."

Clutching the bottle tightly, Uchiha Myōkyō decided to take a gamble.

The fact that the Hidden Cloud Village took the initiative to challenge them suggests that they have made ample preparations, and they may even have other plans.

The only way to break this deadlock is to use even greater power.

"We only have one chance. We must control the Jinchuriki of the Tailed Beasts in Kumogakure to completely seize the initiative."

He knew very well that the key to breaking the deadlock lay with the Jinchuriki of the Tailed Beasts in Kumogakure. Only by controlling the Jinchuriki could he turn the tables and intimidate Kumogakure, or even force them to retreat.

If things really get to the extreme, at worst, we can control the opponent's Tailed Beast Jinchuriki to unleash a Tailed Beast Ball and wipe out the entire Cloud Ninja Army.

However, those Jinchuriki who can unleash Tailed Beast Balls are not easy to control. For example, the First Hokage's wife was not afraid of the Mangekyou Sharingan.

He needs stronger pupil power, and transplanting his father's pupil technique is the only option.

"Zhili, help me!"

Holding his girlfriend's delicate hand tightly, Uchiha Myōkyō knew he needed her help; he couldn't complete the transplant surgery alone.

"You have to promise me you won't overuse it afterward."

After much hesitation, Uchiha Chiri could not resist her boyfriend's will, but she still imposed restrictions.

Whether the transplant will be successful is another matter, but once it is successful, it should absolutely not be used excessively.

While the power of the kaleidoscope is immense, it also consumes a great deal of energy.

It consumes not only chakra, but also the body's life force, especially when using Susanoo.

Every time I use my whole body, it hurts terribly; that's because my eyes are drawing all the strength from my body.

Even the Uchiha clan struggled to withstand it, let alone using an external eye technique.

She didn't know how Uchiha Hikaru succeeded, but the risks involved were definitely huge.

"This is the only war I'll fight. I'll retire after this Ninja World War ends."

Nodding solemnly in agreement, Uchiha Myōkyō had long planned to retire.

The main problem is that these eyes have already suffered damage, and their vision has even been affected to some extent.

The previous war wasn't intense enough to require the use of eye techniques and Susanoo, otherwise he would have gone blind long ago.

However, the upcoming war will certainly not be easy, and I hope I can survive it.

"I'll retire with you."

Uchiha Chiri smiled. She had long been tired of killing, and it would be good for her to retire now.

Moreover, her kaleidoscope had also suffered damage; although her pupil power was strong, her eyesight had declined.

Perhaps after this Ninja World War, these eyes will reach their limit, and their own strength will be greatly reduced.

Besides, she and Mingjing decided to put everything aside, get married, and have another child; she had already thought of a name for them.

If it's a boy, he'll be named Zhishui; if it's a girl, she'll be named Ruoshui.

Leaving aside Uchiha Chiri, who was dreaming of a happy future, Tamura Hao, who was returning to the Cloud Ninja camp, went straight to a barrier in the center of the camp.

Yotsuki Ai and the others were all here, along with eight Eight-Tails clones and their Jinchuriki. Kushina was with Vanilla checking the seals on the eight Jinchuriki.

"One Tailed Beast Ball and it's already too much?"

Looking at the eight pale-faced people, Tamura Hao felt a pang of regret.

The Tailed Beast Ball just now was launched by eight people working together, but no one expected that they would be so weak after just one shot.

"The Eight-Tails' tail is different from other tailed beasts. The chakra inside can be retracted on its own, which results in its strength not being very high. All of them combined only possess a maximum of 10% of the Eight-Tails' power."

Fukai explained that he had once been a candidate for the Eight-Tails Jinchuriki and was more familiar with this matter, knowing the advantages and disadvantages of such a split Eight-Tails Jinchuriki.

The advantage is that it is easier to control the chakra of the Eight-Tails' tentacles. The disadvantage is that the Eight-Tails' tentacles contain too little chakra and the recovery speed is not fast, so it is necessary to draw chakra from the Eight-Tails' main body to replenish it.

"At least it was a success."

Yotsuki A was quite satisfied with this. The greatest value of the Tailed Beast Jinchuriki to the ninja village and the war was the Tailed Beast Ball. Secondly, the defense of the Tailed Beast Cloak was also very good. This kind of split Tailed Beast Jinchuriki was more cost-effective.

Furthermore, they didn't care much about this Shinobi World War; whether or not they had a perfect Jinchuriki didn't matter, as long as they could launch Tailed Beast Balls to deter others.

"We need to find a way to perfect the tailed beast's tentacles so that it can form an independent and complete tailed beast individual."

Tamura Hao, however, was not very satisfied, as it was far from his envisioned plan to split the tailed beasts.

"I wonder how those smaller Three-Tails inside the Three-Tails came to be."

I couldn't help but think of the smaller Three-Tails within the Three-Tails' body. Those were relatively independent and complete individuals, only slightly weaker.

"It would be best to use Yin-Yang Release, but the level of Yin-Yang Release required to split the Tailed Beasts again is extremely high, far beyond what even Kaguya and the Ten-Tails in their current state can achieve."

Thinking back, Tamura Hao's idea of ​​splitting the tailed beasts was actually mainly inspired by the Sage of Six Paths, who split the Ten-Tails' original power to create the nine tailed beasts using Yin-Yang Release.

It's just too difficult to reach that level; I reckon you'd have to cultivate both Yin and Yang power.

"Have you noticed anything over there?"

Ye Yue Ai was unaware of his junior brother's long-term plans; he was currently focused on what his junior brother would gain from his trip to the other side.

If it were just about sending a challenge, anyone could have done it. The reason my junior brother went was to get up close and observe the strong opponents so that he could supplement his plans for the upcoming duel.

After all, there must be something wrong with Fugaku Uchiha's intelligence report, so they need to be cautious.

Fauci turned his head and looked at it, showing that he also valued it, because he was also one of the candidates for the next duel.

(End of this chapter)