BOOM—!
BOOM!
BOOM!
BOOM!
An endless barrage of explosions echoed outside the narrow valley.
The deafening blasts assaulted the ears with such force that it felt as though their eardrums might rupture at any moment.
The earth trembled violently beneath every detonation.
Towering cliffs rose on both sides of the valley, but even those massive stone walls were beginning to fail.
Cracks spread across the rock faces like giant spiderwebs.
Chunks of stone broke loose one after another, crashing down with thunderous force.
Dust filled the air.
The entire valley seemed on the verge of collapse.
“If this continues…”
One Konoha shinobi spoke through gritted teeth.
“The barrier won’t hold much longer.”
Deep within the valley, hidden beneath layers of thick stone defenses, over a dozen shinobi wearing Konoha forehead protectors stood in grim silence.
Every one of them looked exhausted.
Blood stained their clothing.
Fresh wounds covered their bodies.
Yet none of them dared relax.
Their feet were planted firmly into the ground.
Their hands pressed tightly against the cold, rough stone wall before them.
Streams of chakra flowed continuously from their palms.
The chakra spread throughout the surrounding rock formations, reinforcing the protective barrier encasing the valley.
This was the only thing standing between them and complete annihilation.
Outside the barrier—
Hundreds of enemy shinobi waited.
The remnants of Kinkaku and Ginkaku’s rebel forces had completely surrounded the valley.
Wave after wave of attacks hammered against the defensive formation without pause.
Every explosion weakened it further.
Every impact pushed it closer to collapse.
The Konoha shinobi knew exactly what would happen when the barrier finally broke.
There would be no reinforcements.
No escape route.
No miracle.
Only death.
Or capture.
And neither option was acceptable.
One of the older shinobi slowly opened his eyes.
His face was weathered by countless battles.
Deep scars crisscrossed his skin.
The symbol of the Senju Clan was stitched onto his armor.
His voice was calm.
Almost unnaturally calm.
“How much chakra do we have left?”
The question hung heavily in the air.
A younger shinobi answered after a moment of hesitation.
“At most…
one more hour.”
The atmosphere instantly grew even heavier.
One hour.
That was all they had left.
Many of them had already exhausted nearly every chakra reserve in their bodies.
Some could barely remain standing.
Others were forcing themselves to stay conscious through sheer willpower.
The older shinobi nodded.
As if he had expected that answer.
“Then that’s enough.”
Several people looked toward him.
The veteran Senju warrior’s gaze remained fixed on the trembling barrier.
“Tobirama-sama entrusted us with protecting his students.”
“So long as they escaped…”
A faint smile appeared on his battered face.
“Our mission was a success.”
Nobody spoke.
Because everyone understood.
The moment the barrier fell, they would charge out and fight.
Not to win.
Not even to survive.
Only to buy a few more precious moments.
That was the reality of their situation.
A true dead end.
A battlefield with no future.
A desperate situation from which there seemed to be no escape.
The last remnants of chakra within their bodies poured into the rock wall.
Streams of chakra continuously flowed into the barrier, reinforcing it with everything they had left.
As fresh chakra surged through the formation, the massive breaches blasted open by Kumogakure’s relentless bombardment began healing at a visible rate.
Broken stone fused back together.
Cracks sealed themselves.
The shattered wall rebuilt itself layer by layer.
Once again, the raging Cloud shinobi outside found themselves blocked by an unyielding barrier.
This was the Rock Barrier, a sealing technique they had learned from the Uzumaki Clan.
By drawing upon the surrounding terrain and integrating with the mountains themselves, it created a defensive formation of astonishing resilience.
As long as chakra continued to flow into it, destroyed sections could be endlessly repaired.
It was the reason they had survived for so long despite being surrounded.
Unfortunately—
Human endurance had limits.
Even these elite descendants of the Senju Clan, born with chakra reserves far beyond those of ordinary shinobi, had finally reached their breaking point under the endless assault.
Their chakra was nearly exhausted.
Their supply of Soldier Pills was running out.
And once the last drop of chakra disappeared—
The barrier would collapse instantly.
When that happened…
Everyone knew the outcome.
Death.
Or capture.
There would be no third option.
And their enemies were not ordinary shinobi.
They were members of Kumogakure’s most notorious force.
The Kinkaku Unit.
A group infamous throughout the shinobi world for their cruelty.
Mercy was not part of their vocabulary.
Especially not toward members of the Senju Clan.
As the family that had produced the God of Shinobi himself, the Senju bloodline attracted endless attention.
Countless individuals and organizations wanted to uncover the secret behind Hashirama Senju’s power.
The secret of Wood Release.
After all—
Konoha wasn’t the only one obsessed with obtaining it.
Thinking of this, Kusakabe gritted his teeth.
No.
Not Kusakabe.
As one of the few survivors who had followed Hashirama and Tobirama since the Warring States Era—
He slowly raised his head.
His real name was:
Senju Bu.
He could accept the destruction of the Senju Clan in war.
He could accept dying on the battlefield.
But he would never accept becoming a helpless prisoner.
He would never allow his body to become a source of secrets that could one day threaten the village.
The village Hashirama had protected with his life…
Was worth protecting with theirs.
Dragging his exhausted body forward, Senju Bu stepped over shattered stone and slowly climbed toward the highest point in the valley.
The explosions around him continued unabated.
The collapsing cliffs roared.
The earth trembled.
Yet he seemed not to hear any of it.
His aged voice rang out across the battlefield.
Powerful.
Steady.
Unyielding.
“Listen to me!”
For a brief moment, it felt as though the entire valley fell silent.
Every shinobi turned toward him.
The old man appeared to be in his fifties or sixties.
His face was weathered by countless years of war.
His beard had long since turned white.
Several scars crossed his face, some so deep they seemed capable of exposing bone.
Fresh blood flowed down his cheeks, staining his white beard crimson.
Gone was the gentle elder everyone knew.
What remained was something fierce.
Something terrifying.
The resolve of a man walking willingly toward death.
“I am Kusakabe…”
He paused.
Then his voice grew louder.
“No.”
“My name is Senju Bu.”
For the first time in many years, he spoke his true name aloud.
Many of the surrounding shinobi immediately looked up.
Because they understood.
They too were descendants of the Senju Clan.
Years ago, in response to Hashirama and Tobirama’s wishes, they had abandoned the Senju surname.
They had dispersed throughout the village.
Blended into the population.
But in their hearts—
They had always remained Senju.
And hearing that name spoken once more ignited something inside them.
Fire returned to their eyes.
Senju Bu drew a deep breath.
Then continued.
“My comrades…”
“Hashirama-sama founded the village and brought an end to the chaos of the Warring States Era.”
“Tobirama-sama built its foundations and gave the people a life of peace.”
His voice echoed through the valley.
“Now it’s our turn.”
With a sharp motion, he drew his sword.
The blade pointed toward the enemy forces beyond the valley.
“Kumogakure betrayed its promises.”
“They feigned peace.”
“They ambushed Tobirama-sama.”
“They wounded him.”
“And now they seek to slaughter us.”
“To erase our bloodline.”
“To steal our secrets.”
His voice rose higher and higher.
Until it became a furious roar.
“Aren’t you angry?!”
The response exploded from every corner of the valley.
“WE ARE!”
The shout was deafening.
Every Konoha shinobi clenched their teeth.
Rage burned in their eyes.
“Then place explosive tags on your chests!”
Senju Bu led by example.
Several explosive tags appeared in his hand.
Without hesitation, he slapped them directly onto his chest.
“We Konoha shinobi…”
“We Senju…”
“May be killed.”
“We may die in battle.”
“But we will never become slaves.”
“Never become prisoners.”
“We will never allow the enemy to obtain even a fragment of intelligence from our bodies!”
The declaration spread through the valley like wildfire.
One after another, the shinobi followed his example.
Explosive tags appeared everywhere.
Those too busy maintaining the barrier received assistance from their comrades.
No one hesitated.
If they were going to die—
They would die spectacularly.
Senju Bu nodded approvingly.
Good.
None of them had disgraced the name of Senju.
“My friends…”
He raised his sword once more.
“Rather than waiting for death inside this cage…”
“Let’s charge into battle!”
“And if we’re going to die…”
A savage grin appeared on his blood-covered face.
“We’ll tear a piece of flesh from the enemy before we go!”
The valley erupted with cheers.
Senju Bu lifted his sword high.
He was about to order the final charge.
The last dance of the Senju.
Then—
His pupils suddenly contracted.
Dark cracks appeared across the barrier before him.
“No!”
The warning came too late.
The cracks spread explosively.
In an instant, the entire cliff face shattered.
BOOOOM!
The barrier collapsed.
The shinobi maintaining it were thrown backward by the avalanche of stone and debris.
Dust filled the air.
Then a colossal shadow emerged from the smoke.
Lightning crackled through the battlefield.
A gigantic rhinoceros beetle, dozens of meters tall, stepped forward.
Its body was covered in black armor-like plating.
Its massive horn pointed toward the sky.
It resembled a moving fortress.
Around it gathered countless Kumogakure shinobi.
Each carried a blade wrapped in crackling Lightning Release chakra.
The killing intent in their eyes was unmistakable.
Senju Bu narrowed his gaze.
“One of Kumogakure’s Insect Summoners…”
“Kakui.”
The man’s reputation was well known.
His giant summon beast and unique Lightning Release techniques made him a terrifying force on the battlefield.
The kind of shinobi capable of changing the course of an entire war through his presence alone.
Within the Kinkaku Unit, only Kinkaku and Ginkaku themselves outranked him.
Sure enough, Kakui stood atop the colossal beetle.
Looking down upon the trapped Konoha shinobi as though they were already dead.
A cruel smile spread across his face.
“Konoha shinobi…”
His voice echoed across the ruined valley.
“Your struggle ends here.”
Want faster updates?
Send those stones my way—the more, the merrier.