Seimei looked at the two Mist Village Jonin before him and the large group of nearly a hundred Chunin and Genin in the distance. A glint of caution flashed in his eyes.
This was only the second wave of Mist ninja reinforcements. It was predictable that as time went on, more Mist ninjas would return to join the fray.
The pressure he faced would only grow more intense.
Moreover, he couldn't let this group of Chunin and Genin pass through unchallenged—at least not all of them.
Out of the corner of his eye, Seimei glanced at the battlefield behind him.
The reinforcement squad led by Yoshida Eiyuu had already joined the fray. The dozen or so Leaf ninjas holding off the Mist forces near the central battlefield were clearly struggling.
If these dozens of reinforcements made it through, the pressure on them would increase exponentially.
Should they collapse, the ongoing battle in the Mist command center would be compromised.
Earlier, Seimei had claimed that a few Chunin and Genin wouldn't significantly impact the overall battle.
But that assumed their numbers weren't overwhelming.
As the saying goes, "enough ants can bring down an elephant."
Even a top-tier ninja like the Third Raikage had been worn down by sheer numbers. How could the clan leaders and their subordinates fare any better?
At the very least, even if they weren't defeated outright, the battle could be disrupted. If one or two key Mist personnel managed to escape, the success of their mission would be significantly diminished.
After weighing his options, Seimei decided he couldn't let this group pass easily.
With this thought, Seimei leapt backward, creating distance between himself and Yoshida Eiyuu's squad.
Before they could react, Seimei raised his hands and quickly formed a "Ne" seal, activating the **Shadow Clone Technique**!
A plume of chakra smoke dispersed, and four shadow clones appeared on the battlefield.
Seeing this, Yoshida Eiyuu quickly glanced at the approaching group of Chunin and Genin, then at the Leaf ninjas holding the line. He immediately understood Seimei's intent.
"Stop him! He's trying to stall for time!" he shouted.
Without waiting for his comrades, Yoshida Eiyuu began forming hand seals, preparing to unleash a jutsu aimed at Seimei's clones.
The other three were quick to follow, launching their attacks.
Some hurled kunai, while others prepared large-scale jutsu to take down the clones in one decisive strike.
However, Seimei had already anticipated this.
The moment they attacked, he slammed his hands to the ground and activated another jutsu—**Earth Style: Earth-Style Wall**!
Seimei crouched and channeled chakra into the ground.
Moments later, a massive wall of earth, roughly 20 meters long and 5–6 meters high, rose to shield the clones.
The wall deflected the kunai, leaving only minor chips in its surface. Meanwhile, the large-scale jutsu failed to breach the wall's sturdy defense, leaving the clones unscathed.
This gave the clones their opportunity to act.
They quickly formed hand seals, summoning **Wind Style: Wings of Wind**.
Pairs of pale-blue chakra wings materialized behind the clones.
Nodding toward Seimei, the four clones flapped their wings and shot toward the Chunin and Genin at incredible speed—over 100 meters per second.
Before the Mist ninjas could react, the clones unleashed their next jutsu—**Fire Style: Great Fireball Technique**!
In an instant, four massive fireballs, each 20 meters in diameter, lit up the battlefield like miniature suns, banishing the surrounding darkness and bathing the area in red light.
The searing heat made the Mist ninjas' throats dry and parched.
While these fireballs weren't as massive as those Seimei himself could conjure, they were still formidable, especially when there were four of them.
Someone in the Mist ranks shouted in panic.
Chaos ensued as the Mist ninjas scattered in all directions, desperate to escape.
As for stopping the fireballs? That was out of the question.
Not only did they lack the time to counterattack, but even if they did, none of them could block such an assault.
The fireballs landed with deafening explosions, consuming the area in flames and turning a hundred-meter radius into a sea of fire.
Those who were slower or weaker didn't escape in time and were engulfed in the inferno.
Screams echoed from the fire, reminiscent of the wails of demons in hell.
The horrific scene left many Mist ninjas stunned.
Seizing the moment, the clones continued their assault, killing another seven or eight ninjas without hesitation.
It was only after this massacre that the Mist ninjas regained their composure and began organizing their defenses.
But this played right into Seimei's plan.
His goal was never to kill as many as possible—it was to delay them. As long as they stopped advancing, he considered it a success.
Thus, the clones engaged them in a game of cat and mouse.
Though shadow clones were fragile and couldn't withstand much damage, their agility, enhanced by the near-level-6 **Wings of Wind**, made it nearly impossible for the Chunin and Genin to pin them down.
While the clones danced on the edge of danger, they were never truly at risk.
This allowed Seimei to focus entirely on the four Jonin before him.
Sparks flew as Seimei's blade intercepted Yoshida Eiyuu's kunai, followed by another Jonin's strike.
Pulling his attention away from the clones, Seimei poured his energy into countering the Jonin.
Despite being surrounded, Seimei held his ground. Chapters first released on novęlfire.net
Occasionally, he even found opportunities to counterattack, leaving his opponents frustrated.
The four Mist Jonin, for all their skill, couldn't find a way to overwhelm him.