Traveling through Naruto with Heroes of Might and Magic.

Qingwu didn't press the matter. He went out to retrieve all the troops from the snowfield, then led the Shadow Guard into the sky, disappearing into the darkening snowy landscape...

Shortly after they left, in the shadow of a snow-covered rocky peak where the previous battle had taken place,

A tall figure, clad in a black trench coat with red cloud patterns, wearing a mask that revealed only a pair of small green eyes, slowly walked out.

It's Kakuzu from Akatsuki!

He carried a corpse on his shoulder, his beady eyes calmly sweeping over the chaotic battlefield below.

"The Fourth Raikage... Orochimaru... Senju Seigo... and that Uchiha brat..."

Kakuzu's deep voice was almost inaudible in the wind and snow: "Tsk, I saw something amazing. That kid... he's gotten even stronger!"

He had never seen a unicorn before, but the withered tree guardian... he was all too familiar with it.

Thinking about how that kid destroyed one of his Wind Release hearts last time, Kakuzu felt a surge of displeasure.

Today, he came here seeking an opportunity after receiving intelligence about a "natural disaster" with a bounty of over 100 million, but he never expected to witness such an earth-shattering battle.

Thankfully, we didn't make a wasted trip.

Kakuzu swayed the corpse on his shoulder, a cold glint in his eyes. He couldn't do anything about the "natural disaster," so hunting a bounty hunter would be a way to make up for some of the losses.

Few bounty hunters have clean hands.

Oh, right!

Kakuzu suddenly put down the corpse, took out a small scroll from his pocket, and quickly wrote something on it.

"Raikage is severely injured and forced to retreat!"

"Orochimaru, the rogue ninja of Konoha, has appeared!"

"Senju Seigo has seemingly obtained the legendary 'Sage Mode' that was only available to the First Hokage!"

"And that brat from the Uchiha clan... he seems to have awakened the legendary 'Mangekyou Sharingan' that only Madara Uchiha possessed!"

"Tsk, this generation of Konoha is truly full of monsters."

He took notes quickly, listing all the important information he observed.

At this moment, he had no idea that Orochimaru... would soon become his teammate in the organization.

After he finished writing, he carefully sealed the scroll.

"Any single piece of information in this intelligence report could fetch a good price, ha!"

Kakuzu put away the scroll, and his mood finally improved.

He didn't linger; his figure slowly blended into the shadows, disappearing into the increasingly fierce wind and snow as if he had never been there.

This icy plain, which had experienced a clash of powers that shook the ninja world, has finally returned to complete silence.

Only the howling wind remained, gradually burying the traces of the battle...

……

Border, Konoha's frontline outpost.

When the silver Pegasus landed directly on the open ground within the base, Akimichi Toudou, Nara Suzaku, Aburame Shiguro, and the others, who had already received the warning and were extremely anxious, immediately came to greet it.

Seeing that the four members of the Shadow Guard were all injured but still breathing well, Qiu Daotangdong visibly breathed a sigh of relief, but his expression immediately hardened again.

"Nonsense, utter nonsense!"

Qiu Daotang lowered his voice to reprimand, but the worry and relief in his eyes could not be concealed: "Captain Qingwu, your Shadow Guard team is too audacious!"

After the Shadow Guard left that day, Suzaku Nara analyzed their target.

Given that the Hidden Cloud Village had begun deploying offensives at the front lines again in the past two days, Akimichi Toudou and the others were almost certain that the Raikage had come to the front lines.

"You lot actually deserted camp to fight the Fourth Raikage? Do you know how dangerous that is? If something happens, how am I supposed to explain it to the Hokage? How am I supposed to explain it to Konoha?!"

After Qiu Daotang finished speaking.

Nara Suzaku frowned and asked:

"Captain Qingwu, did you really fight the Raikage? What was the result?"

He noticed the four people's uncertain state of mind.

Admittedly, Qingwu displayed extremely strong fighting power in his battle against the Jinchuriki of Kumogakure that day, but that was the Raikage!

Aburame Shiguro silently pushed up his sunglasses, his gaze fixed on the Shadow Guard with more scrutiny and contemplation than anything else.

Qingwu dismounted from his silver winged horse and laughed, "Not only the Raikage, but also Orochimaru."

"what?"

"!!!"

Qiu Daotang and the other two were stunned.

Before Akimichi Tangdong could lose his temper again, Qingwu continued, "In the end, the Raikage escaped with serious injuries, and Orochimaru couldn't do anything to us!"

He didn't elaborate, after all, the deal with Orochimaru was dishonorable, and besides, he wanted to keep Shisui's Mangekyou Sharingan a secret for as long as possible.

Of course, he didn't know that someone of Kakuzu's caliber had also appeared on the battlefield...

quiet--

Qiu Daotang's mouth dropped open, his anger froze, and turned into incredulous astonishment.

Suzaku Nara's pupils contracted slightly, and cracks appeared on his usually calm face.

Aburame's black sunglasses slipped down slightly.

Orochimaru was also present? And he severely injured the Raikage? The Shadow Guard... how did they manage that?

"You...you all..."

Akimichi Tangdong's voice trembled slightly, whether from anger or shock, it was hard to tell:

"The Raikage is really seriously injured? How did you manage that? And what's wrong with Orochimaru? What on earth is going on?!"

Qingwu didn't want to explain too much, only saying that Orochimaru's appearance was a coincidence.

The cursed seal on the red bean is no secret in Konoha; they'll probably think in that direction.

"That's how it is..." Qingwu said, "Raikage shouldn't be attacking anytime soon. Um, we need to rest."

Qiu Daotang took several deep breaths before he could barely calm his agitated emotions.

He looked at Qingwu with a complex expression, a mixture of lingering fear, shock, and relief, which ultimately culminated in a long sigh:

"You guys... really... never mind, it's good that you're back safe and sound! Go and rest first, we'll talk about the rest later."

Chapter 214 The First Advanced Spell

Knowing that Qingwu had slugs, Qiudao Tangdong did not call for the medical team.

As he escorted the Shadow Guard back to their camp, Suzaku Nara's eyes gleamed with a sharp light.

"With the Raikage seriously injured, the front line of Kumogakure will inevitably be shaken. Tsuchikage will probably immediately shrink his defensive line, or even take the initiative to retreat."

Qiu Daotang nodded, "That's right, this is an excellent opportunity for us to consolidate our defenses and expand our gains!"

The matter was of great importance, so Akimichi Toudong strode toward the military tent while instructing Nara Suzaku to prepare a battle report for the Hokage.

He wanted to take the opportunity to push the defensive line forward.

If the Hidden Cloud Village shrinks its territory, the few strongholds it lost earlier will have a chance to return to Konoha's hands.

At that time, whether it's war or peace, Konoha will regain the initiative!

……

Lying in his tent, Qingwu finally relaxed completely.

Physical exhaustion washed over me like a tidal wave, but my spirits were still high because of the fierce battle that had just ended and the great gains.

He closed his eyes and focused his mind on the system interface that only he could see.

The first thing you see is the experience bar.

[Ding! Experience points detected. Do you want to level up?]

"Upgrade," Qingwu silently murmured to himself.

【Ding! 】

[Level +1, gain attribute points: Attack +1, Knowledge +1]

【Ding! 】

[Level +1, gain attribute points: Strength +1, Knowledge +1]

【Ding! 】

[Level +1, gain attribute points: Defense +1, Strength +1]

He rose through three ranks in quick succession, and the experience points he gained from the battle with the Raikage and Orochimaru were considerable, even exceeding those gained from wiping out the 1,200 Cloud Village troops.

Therefore, the outcome of a battle is never about the number of troops, but about the "quality" of the troops!

My personal level has reached level 51.

What kind of new magic will it be?!?

Qingwu stared expectantly at the system panel.

【Ding! 】

[Level 50 reached!]

[Level Reward: Mirror Image Spell (Advanced Water Magic)]

"Ok?"

"It was this!"

Qingwu's eyes lit up, and he quickly looked at the skill description.

[Mirror Image Technique] LV1: Advanced Water Magic

[Effect]: Instantly creates a mirror image identical to the target. The mirror image inherits 80% of the original's abilities. Duration: 60 seconds. The mirror image has 1 HP and will disappear immediately upon taking any damage.