The Avengers of the Uzumaki Family

"hateful!"

"Let's go!"

The battlefield was separated.

The Konoha ninjas, regardless of their emotions, chose to retreat immediately upon receiving the order.

The retreat was carried out in a very orderly and alternating manner.

They each released spells to cover their retreat.

Menma didn't react immediately after being forced back, but when he saw Jiraiya's next move, he understood the other side's plan.

However, by this point, the best opportunity to exert strong pressure had already been lost.

Although it's not impossible to force them to stay using the Flying Thunder God Technique.

However, the possibility of Jiraiya staying is ultimately not very high.

"Don't pursue too far; just kill as many of those covering the rear as possible!"

It's simply impossible to capture all the Konoha ninjas on the battlefield in one fell swoop.

Killing more Konoha ninja is the most realistic and reliable approach.

This battle.

This was merely a battle for Takigakure to show off its power and secure its survival. Menma was not yet ready to sweep through the ninja world. Neither he nor Takigakure had the strength or the qualifications to do so. Knowing when to stop was the only sensible course of action.

"Peng!"

"boom!"

The order to retreat was given easily and decisively.

"Pfft!"

"what!?"

"Peng!"

However, a smooth and complete retreat is not something that can be easily accomplished.

"Boom!"

"Boom!"

Especially on Menma's side, there's also Satoru, the incarnation of Muko, and the Seven-Tails, the incarnation of Fu. With these two enormous creatures pursuing them, it's absolutely impossible for Konoha to escape without paying a price.

Even though Jiraiya personally led powerful Jonin such as Might Guy and Akimichi Choza to cover the retreat, Konoha still suffered two to three hundred casualties on this retreat route.

Menma, along with Muko, Fu, and a group of Takigakure ninja, drove the Konoha ninjas all the way out of the border, forcing them to abandon the stronghold they had just established before finally stopping the pursuit with satisfaction.

This marked the official end of the first temporary curtain in this battle for control of the stronghold.

(End of this chapter)

Chapter 331 Mei Terumi's Ambition

The battle for the outposts has temporarily stalled.

Unable to resist, Konoha had no choice but to abandon the plans initially set by their village and retreat.

The reason Menma didn't continue to lead his troops forward to expand the gains was due to the reasons mentioned earlier, but also because he still needed to send people to support Utaka on the left flank. There, Utaka was only leading a few hundred Taki ninja to hold off the enemy, although according to the plan, Shibuki would also lead three or four hundred people to provide support.

At most, they can only field a thousand soldiers.

Mei Terumi's strength and the foundation of Kirigakure should be taken seriously. Utakata and Shibuki can hold out for a while, but if it drags on, they will inevitably fall into a very disadvantageous situation.

Every minute, every second, is filled with the death of Taki.

Winning is a must.

On this basis.

Menma also needs to do his best to ensure that the Takigakure ninja do not suffer too many casualties. Takigakure cannot be compared with the five great ninja villages. Even if you include the newly graduated youngsters, the number of active ninjas in Takigakure will not exceed five thousand.

They had already suffered considerable casualties in the previous battle with Kumogakure.

If the cost of this battle is even more severe.

This would be detrimental to Menma's future rule over the entire ninja village. Winning a war would mean every family would be in mourning.

Just thinking about that scenario.

Even Mianma himself felt a chill run down his spine.

The desires of the people have always been simple and direct, and Menma himself has a relatively clear understanding of this aspect.

He's not the kind of person who can simply take advantage of Takigakure. Even though it might seem a bit unrealistic, and even at this stage, he's overestimating himself (at least until he gains strength comparable to Hashirama Senju).

But Menma ultimately had his own complete plan.

Survival is the most basic goal.

Then, based on that foundation, you can achieve one goal after another.

Therefore, Takigakure Village is essential.

The same applies to Kusagakure Village.

Even from the most pragmatic perspective, Menma wouldn't allow the Takigakure and Kusanagi ninjas to suffer any unnecessary casualties.

A timely halt to the pursuit.

Then, after leading everyone back to the base.

"I'm leaving this place to you guys. I'm going to support Yu Gao!"

Menma gave a brief instruction, telling Wugou and Fudu to stay at the base to guard against a possible counterattack from Konoha Village.

"Yes, Master Menma (Yes, don't worry, Menma-kun.)"

Menma also did not bring any of the Takigakure ninja.

"Whoosh!"

He directly used the Flying Thunder God Technique and went alone to support Utakata, who was located more than 100 kilometers away on the left flank of the stronghold.

Leading troops takes too long.

One person is enough to be completely numb!

As long as he can forcefully push forward and hold off Mei Terumi, even if Utakata is struggling alone, he can definitely sweep away the Mist Ninja army with the help of Shibuki and the remaining Takigakure ninja.

A figure speeding along at breakneck speed.

"Whoosh!"

"whoosh"

It constantly traverses and leaps through space.

It was in an extremely short period of time.

Mianma has arrived at the very edge of this side of the mountain.

The location chosen by Takigakure to establish its base was the most treacherous area in the southeastern part of the Land of Waterfall. Any attack from an enemy ninja village in the east or south would either have to invade from here or detour from the far north or far south.

In this battle.

Menma truly led all the Takigakure ninja out in full force. Apart from a few hundred Takigakure ninja stationed in the ninja village and some necessary communication and defense points, and excluding the wounded from the previous battle, the remaining nearly four thousand Takigakure ninja went into battle with him.

The Taki ninja assigned to the two flanks each had six or seven hundred men.

Then pair it with either Yudaka or Fu.

This is the configuration of combat power.

Even against the main force of any major ninja village, they could still hold out for a while.

This period of time is enough for Menma to redeploy its forces.

But before Menma's support arrived.

Shibuki had already taken the lead, bringing three or four hundred Takigakure troops to support them, joining the Takigakure and Kirigakure forces in the fierce battle.

Judging from the situation, the Mist Ninja does indeed hold a certain advantage.

But as long as Hataka and Shibuki can still stand firmly at the front.

The battle situation here is absolutely not going to collapse in the short term.

Mei Terumi herself was well aware of this.

"Yu Gao-san, I know all about your past grievances, and Master Yuan has seen them too. I can tell you with certainty that those were all misunderstandings, problems caused by the improper actions of the previous Mizukage. Kirigakure is not the same as it used to be. You have absolutely no need to worry about the past anymore. Trust me, come back now, and everything can start anew!"

Mei Terumi dodged Utakata's bubble attack, and looked at Utakata with a very serious expression on her bright face.

Subduing someone by force is the worst possible solution.

From Mei Terumi's perspective, Utakata was once a member of their Hidden Mist Village. The reason he defected was entirely due to the fact that their Fourth Mizukage was being controlled, which led to some unexpected events that caused Utakata to misunderstand that the village was trying to kill him. Such a misunderstanding could have been completely resolved.

Judging from the previous major battles and the current showdown.

Utakata is already able to use the power of the Six-Tails quite perfectly.

Such a high-end combatant is exactly what Kirigakure needs most right now. Persuading Utakata to return to Kirigakure is definitely more reasonable and cost-effective than forcibly extracting the Six-Tails after subduing Utakata.

The former can directly add a five-kage-level combatant to the village.

In the latter case, you still need to choose a suitable Jinchuriki to seal the Tailed Beast, give them time to adapt, and there is also the risk that they may not be able to reach a consensus with the Tailed Beast and thus perfectly use its chakra.

Without going into too much detail, the previous Eight-Tails Jinchuriki of Kumogakure is the best proof.

Finding a suitable vessel for a tailed beast is not an easy task.

Physical fitness, mental fortitude, magnanimity, and personality are all key factors. Therefore, unless absolutely necessary, no ninja village is willing to casually replace its Jinchūriki. Mei Terumi, on the other hand, aspires to become the Mizukage and lead Kirigakure on the path of revival.

Naturally, they want to strengthen their own ninja village's power through various means.

The first step was to persuade Yu Gao to return to Kirigakure.

This is a step that benefits the village, and even more so, it benefits her.

"Your Excellency Mei Terumi need not trouble yourself. It has nothing to do with the past now. I chose to stay here for other reasons."