*Chapter 223: The Village Hidden in the Clouds Scores a Decisive Victory*

A smiled slightly at the corners of his mouth, even though no command was given by him!

There were still people in the Village Hidden in the Clouds capable of assessing the situation with calm precision.

Seeing the panic on Sarutobi Hiruzen's face made A feel incredibly satisfied.

The Village Hidden in the Clouds had revealed its ultimate weapon this time.

If they didn’t capture the Village Hidden in the Leaves, the loss would have been too great.

"The barrier! The barrier is about to break!"

A ninja from the Leaf Village amidst the crowd gulped while looking up at the barrier overhead.

The light beam appeared endless, showing no signs of stopping.

The outer barrier had already shattered, and the inner one seemed barely able to hold on.

Sarutobi Hiruzen shot the panicking ninja a glare. Disrupting morale at this moment?

Under normal circumstances, Sarutobi Hiruzen would have already executed this fool.

But in this situation...

He, too, glanced up at the barrier, hoping it could last just a bit longer!

But the heavens did not grant his wish.

In the next moment, a massive crack appeared in the barrier.

The crack spread, radiating outward in all directions!

The entire barrier began to resemble a fragile spiderweb, ready to collapse at any moment!

Crash!

One of the ninjas maintaining the barrier stumbled and fell to the ground.

At last, the barrier couldn’t hold any longer and crumbled, crashing down on Sarutobi Hiruzen.

"Charge!"

A raised his muscular arm and swung it forward.

"Attack!"

"Kill!"

As soon as the beams faded and the battlefield was still covered in smoke, countless ninjas charged forward.

Countless bodies followed one after another into the smoke, and soon, blood flashed through the air.

Ninjas from both sides clashed fiercely, and with every passing moment, another body fell.

A’s body crackled with lightning as he locked onto Sarutobi Hiruzen!

In the blink of an eye, he transformed into a bolt of blue lightning and charged.

This war was unlike the previous battles, where there was a clear, dominating hero.

During the First Great Ninja War, the Second Hokage was the strongest, showcasing the Village Hidden in the Leaves’ power through his Flying Thunder God Technique and the Reanimation Jutsu.

In the Second Great Ninja War, the Leaf had Sakumo Hatake and the Legendary Sannin to counter Hanzo of the Salamander.

Sakumo Hatake could lead a small team and take on an entire hidden village.

The Sannin earned their fame fighting Hanzo and received their title from him.

During that time, the Leaf was flourishing with talent, perhaps the most prosperous period in its history.

In the Third Great Ninja War, Minato Namikaze stood alone, earning the title of the Yellow Flash due to his unmatched strength.

But this time...

There were no Sannin, no Sakumo Hatake.

Even the young Minato Namikaze was gone.

The once thriving Village Hidden in the Leaves had reached its decline.

This was the reason for the outbreak of this war.

The weakness of the Leaf gave other villages the excuse to invade.

The battle that had started last night hadn’t ended even now.

The fight with the Village Hidden in the Clouds had raged for an entire night, with no signs of stopping!

In fact, it was growing fiercer!

Though the Cloud’s preparations played a significant role, the losses were severe.

In just one night, nearly ten thousand had been killed or injured.

Out of the sixteen thousand they brought, nearly half were lost.

At the center of the battlefield, two figures stood. A looked calm, with only dust on him, no serious injuries.

Sarutobi Hiruzen, on the other hand, was gasping for breath, his steps unsteady.

It looked like he could collapse at any moment, but A didn’t rush in.

Though this old man lacked A’s stamina and physical strength, he had an unparalleled mastery of ninjutsu.

Skilled in the five chakra natures, Sarutobi Hiruzen was slippery, like an eel, impossible to catch.

A didn’t press to take him down; he just needed to wear him out.

Once Hiruzen’s stamina was gone, A could win without fighting.

Meanwhile, on another part of the battlefield...

A glanced around.

The ground was littered with bodies dressed in white.

The Hyuga clan had fought valiantly against the Eight-Tails and Two-Tails.

Now, only a handful remained.

This battle...

It was truly brutal.

But the victors would inevitably be the Village Hidden in the Clouds.

Thud!

Sarutobi Hiruzen, with bloodshot eyes and a face full of unwillingness, leaned on his Enma Staff.

But the overwhelming fatigue in his body left him powerless.

He could no longer compete with the younger, more vigorous forces from the Cloud.

The Cloud ninjas may lack finesse, but they had boundless stamina.

As expected!

Old age had defeated him.

Hiruzen’s hands could no longer grip his staff.

In an unguarded moment, he fell to the ground.

Clang!

Boom!

The remaining Leaf ninjas, who had been holding on because of Hiruzen, were completely demoralized.

They had fought all night and were nearly exhausted.

When Sarutobi Hiruzen fell, they dropped their weapons, no longer able to resist.

"Bind these guys, seal their chakra, and tie up Sarutobi Hiruzen!"

A waved his hand, signaling for the prisoners to be restrained.

Killing Hiruzen served no purpose!

By keeping him alive, they could extract more from the Leaf Village.

So, A chose not to execute him.

After all!

There were few in the Leaf Village as incompetent as him.

"Lord Raikage, what about the Hyuga clan’s ninjas?" Dodai approached A, looking at the remaining handful of Hyuga survivors.

Those who remained were either old, women, or gravely wounded, yet they still fought desperately.

"Capture them and send them back to the village!" A’s eyes gleamed with greed.

Soon, the Cloud Village would possess the Byakugan, not just through transplants but through natural inheritance.

Previously, they had little chance of obtaining even a single Byakugan from the Leaf.

But now!

They had gained more than they ever dreamed.

"Yes!"

Dodai nodded, his thoughts aligning with A's.

Though the Cloud once had bloodline limits, having the Hyuga’s Byakugan would elevate their village to the pinnacle of the Five Great Nations.

With Sarutobi Hiruzen defeated, the battle was essentially over.

A quickly gathered over a thousand ninjas and led them toward the Leaf Village.

The Leaf had no strong defenders left, only Genin and a few Chunin.

They were no match for the Village Hidden in the Clouds.

Within moments, they stormed into the village.

A’s next target was the Leaf's shelters.

By the time Raijin arrived, the Hokage Rock had already been destroyed!

Fires blazed throughout the village, and screams echoed everywhere.

Raijin’s face showed no emotion as he coldly watched the Leaf burn.

Those who had once mocked and rejected the Uchiha clan were now corpses beneath the Cloud’s blades.

And the women of the Leaf...

Raijin watched the chaos, feeling only the urge to laugh.

He wondered how Sarutobi Hiruzen was doing now!

"Looks like the Leaf is going to vanish from the ninja world," Kakashi said with his hands in his pockets, his face devoid of any extra emotion.

His eyes, cold and indifferent, held no attachment to the Leaf.

No matter what happened to the village, it wouldn’t stir any feelings in him.

"The Leaf might still rise again," he added.

Raijin’s lips curled into a smile as he spoke.

"Now that Konoha is in this state, it’s only what they deserve. But the wealth accumulated by the Sarutobi clan is enough for Konoha to rise again."

Of course, that would only happen if Hiruzen Sarutobi was willing to hand over that wealth.

"Are we going to check on Hiruzen Sarutobi? I just noticed that he doesn’t seem to be dead yet," Kakashi asked, sensing that Raijin might want to mock Sarutobi face-to-face.

"No! We’ll capture the Eight-Tails and Two-Tails and then leave," Raijin shook his head. Mocking Hiruzen Sarutobi no longer brought him any joy. Competing with a loser didn’t give him any satisfaction anymore. After all, if he did show up, Hiruzen would only hurl insults. He’d probably die still believing that destroying the Uchiha clan was the right decision, so there was no need to waste time arguing with him.

"Tsk," Kakashi shook his head, disappearing into a bolt of lightning. He had been hoping to see the disappointment in Hiruzen’s eyes but didn’t expect Raijin to not even bother.

With that, there was no reason for him to seek attention there. Capturing the Eight-Tails and Two-Tails was still pretty important. Even though the beasts were guarded, they were no match for Kakashi’s stealth tactics.

Kakashi successfully captured the two tailed beasts but unexpectedly came across Samui as well! Keeping to tradition, he tossed her into his Kamui dimension too.

The two of them appeared in Konoha without anyone noticing. It wasn’t until half a day later that the Raikage realized the Eight-Tails and Two-Tails had vanished.

"Muahahaha! So this is the Lightning Armor of the Hidden Cloud Village, huh? Using this method to train the body—what guts!" In a basement in the Land of Hot Springs, Kaido held a scroll, a grin spreading across his face.

This was the famed Lightning Release Chakra Mode of the Hidden Cloud, which greatly enhanced physical abilities, destructive power, and speed. Kaido found it intriguing, thinking he might try using lightning on himself later. Who knows, maybe he could create his own version.

"Lord Kaido, there shouldn’t be any issues with the Eight Gates technique!" Jhin confirmed the scroll of the Eight Gates technique from Konoha. After all, Kakashi had given them the first three gates, and Jhin was fairly certain there wouldn’t be any problems.

Kaido glanced at Kakashi, who was lounging nearby, and an idea crossed his mind.

"Kakashi, my friend, we’re practically in-laws now. Why don’t you help me verify this technique?" Kaido strolled over, placing a hand on Kakashi’s shoulder. They had bonded in Dressrosa, after all. It had been a while since they last met, and Kaido felt their relationship had grown distant.

"This technique should be fine. You’re lucky—you’ve made quite the haul this time," Kakashi said, his tone implying something left unsaid.

"Hmm?" Kaido had thought the Eight Gates was already a fantastic technique, but Kakashi’s demeanor suggested otherwise.

"You must’ve encountered those tailed beasts before, right?" Kakashi asked Kaido in a low voice.

"Tailed beasts, huh? Yeah, I’ve seen them before. I thought they were just minor creatures. After seeing their power, though, I didn’t get the chance to catch one."

Kaido sounded a bit regretful. The battle against Sengoku and Red-Haired Shanks had ended in a draw, something Kaido hadn’t expected. The kid who had followed Roger back then had grown powerful enough to stand against them.

After the draw, Kaido and Big Mom had returned to Raijin’s side. Rumor had it that Shanks and his crew had done the same, but Kaido hadn’t seen them in almost a week.

"Whitebeard adopted the strongest tailed beast as his son this time," Kakashi remarked.

"Hmm? The strongest tailed beast? How strong could it be? From what I’ve seen, those beasts are only on par with my subordinates."

"As for how strong—well, it can easily destroy an island. Why else would Whitebeard sacrifice his first division commander to save a kid?" Kakashi shook his head, speaking with a sense of wonder. "If that kid grows up, he might surpass even Whitebeard."

"..." Kaido’s expression turned serious.

If that were true, then Whitebeard had a power comparable to the ancient weapon Pluton, which was said to have the ability to destroy an island with a single shot.

Now, with the Whitebeard Pirates’ strength drastically increasing, this wasn’t something Kaido wanted to see.

Bang!

At that moment, the door to Kaido’s residence was kicked open, and Whitebeard stormed in, his face dark and foreboding.

"I hear you’ve been talking about me?" Whitebeard growled, his eyes fixed on Kaido.

The death of Marco had left a deep wound in Whitebeard’s heart. Marco had died in his place, and he wasn’t about to let anyone insult his name.