strictlysupreme Chapter 771 Calculation
Chapter 771 Calculation
He was also calculating in his mind that after Mabui's disappearance, Kumogakure had reopened the battlefield against Sunagakure. If they fought Konoha to the death now, and Iwagakure seized the opportunity to launch a sneak attack, they would suffer heavy losses. He sighed regretfully, regretting that he hadn't seen through that darkness sooner, otherwise he would never have allowed the Konoha ninja army to retreat so easily.
Raikage was puzzled by the sudden darkness. He muttered to himself, "Is that an illusion, or not quite...? If it were anyone else, they would probably be dead in there." For the first time, he felt such apprehension towards a young man.
……
At Zhang Hai's suggestion, the retreating Konoha ninja army abandoned their previous temporary stronghold and retreated all the way to the border between the two sides.
After settling in, Fugaku and Zhang Hai rested in the simple room. Fugaku's face was unusually heavy, and his mental state was also very poor. The continuous battles, especially activating Susanoo, had put a great strain on his body.
"I didn't expect you to agree to my retreat proposal so easily," Zhang Hai said first, his tone tinged with surprise.
Fugaku gave a wry smile, rubbed his temples, and asked, "How strong is the Raikage? Are there any weaknesses?"
Recalling the battle just now, Zhang Hai gave a concise and powerful answer: "Strong, very strong!" He continued, "In close combat, he completely suppressed me. Ranged attacks were almost ineffective against him." As for his weaknesses, Zhang Hai sighed.
Fugaku frowned at Zhang Hai's high praise and pressed further, "Since taijutsu and ninjutsu are ineffective, what about genjutsu? Your genjutsu should work on him, right?"
Zhang Hai shook his head and explained, "No. The Raikage's body has reached a near-instinctive fighting state. Even if he falls victim to my Mangekyou Sharingan's genjutsu, he can still sense danger and hostility and retaliate on his own. That won't work." A hint of seriousness flashed in his eyes. "The Raikage is the second strong person I've encountered who can do this." He was referring to Hatake Sakumo, the one who had shown him what true strength was through countless training sessions.
“He is extremely troublesome,” Zhang Hai continued his analysis. “A melee assassin is completely countered by a warrior with high defense and high attack. If one combo fails to defeat the opponent, the opponent will annihilate them. After this battle, it is unrealistic for my Dark Travel Technique to trap the Thunder Shadow for such a long time.”
Fugaku's tone was tinged with despair as he asked, "So, does that mean we're completely helpless?"
“It’s not entirely without a solution.” Zhang Hai’s tone remained calm, but a barely perceptible glint flashed in his eyes. “If I were to risk my life to activate Susanoo and fight the Raikage to the death, the outcome would be uncertain. But he is ultimately just the Raikage of Kumogakure, and I wouldn’t risk my life for Konoha like that.” He paused, then added, “As for other methods, perhaps they are not entirely absent.”
After a moment's thought, Zhang Hai began to analyze: "The Raikage's ninjutsu demands extremely high physical strength, and every injury comes at the cost of overdrawing his body. Therefore, he cannot fight for long periods. As long as we can stall for time, we have a chance to defeat him."
Upon hearing this, Fugaku anxiously pressed, "You mean... we have to use human lives to make up for it?"
Zhang Hai calmly analyzed, "If we don't want to use human lives to fill the gaps, we should adopt a strategy of scorched earth, retreating to advance, and breaking up into smaller units. One step, one trench; three steps, one trap; we should go into full defensive posture and let Yunyin Village attack."
Looking at the clear-headed and calm Zhang Hai, Fugaku felt as if he had been doused with cold water, a wave of shame washing over him. He realized that Zhang Hai was far superior to him in commanding the battle. Zhang Hai had even planned out the retreat route and defensive strategies. He couldn't help but sigh inwardly, thinking that Zhang Hai and Sakuya were both born for the battlefield.
After a long silence, Fugaku nodded heavily in agreement and said, "This is the only way for now."
……
Thus, the battlefield between Kumogakure and Konoha entered into a protracted tug-of-war. When the main force of Kumogakure attacked, Konoha ninja would disappear, hiding in the shadows and harassing Kumogakure's supply lines from time to time, preventing them from attacking in peace. After the main force of Kumogakure retreated, Konoha would emerge to launch surprise attacks.
After a while, Kumogakure not only failed to gain any advantage, but was also harassed and exhausted. Later, Kumogakure became smarter and reduced its large-scale group operations, breaking into smaller groups as well, and the two sides tacitly began direct confrontations between small teams.
On the battlefield, the fighting scene appeared calm, but the undercurrents were far more intense. The daily casualties among the ninjas continued to rise, and both sides gritted their teeth, fighting with bloodshot eyes, seeing who would give in first.
In this brutal battle, Zhang Hai's ANBU squad performed exceptionally well, far surpassing other squads in achievements. Uchiha Shisui also gained widespread fame within the Uchiha clan for his outstanding performance, being hailed as a genius of the family. Zhang Hai initially provided protection for a period, but later completely relinquished control, allowing Shisui to lead his squad independently on missions.
During this time, Zhang Hai encountered the Raikage again. After exchanging blows for a few rounds, Zhang Hai decisively chose to retreat, but he was still no match for him. The Raikage's defense and speed were simply too astonishing; although Zhang Hai's swordsmanship was exquisite, he could hardly inflict fatal damage on him.
However, Raikage couldn't break Zhang Hai's Dark Travel Technique in a short time. Every time Zhang Hai used this technique, Raikage was like someone stuck in quagmire, unable to see the direction, and had no choice but to give up the pursuit. This made him so angry that he jumped up and down, uttering all sorts of foul language and cursing loudly in the darkness.
Zhang Hai chuckled lightly, completely ignoring Lei Ying's curses, and walked away with an air of nonchalance.
During this time, Zhang Hai practiced the Supreme Blade's killing prowess relentlessly on the battlefield. His sword control technique was already usable in actual combat; many Cloud Village ninjas died before even seeing Zhang Hai's shadow. The strangeness of this killing technique surpassed that of the Illusion Blade Technique, capable of taking lives from a thousand meters away, inspiring fear in all who heard of him.
Zhang Hai felt a slight regret that the art of differentiation had not yet been well integrated into his sword control technique. He looked forward to the future when his soul could be divided into countless forms, attaching itself to all the blades; at that time, his strength would reach a whole new level.
After a day of killing, Zhang Hai was taking a break at the stronghold when a sealed box bearing a scorpion mark appeared out of nowhere in front of him.
Zhang Hai suddenly opened his eyes, and upon closer inspection, immediately recognized it as Sasori's seal. He recalled sending Sasori to assist Minato Namikaze on a mission last time, and guessed that perhaps there would be unexpected gains this time.
He broke the seal, revealing two scrolls inside the box, one of which was a letter from Scorpion. Zhang Hai took out the letter, opened it, and was immediately astonished, his eyes gleaming with astonishment.