69: Feast of Machines and Petrified Despair

At 4:50 AM, the wind in “Dry Snake Valley” cut like a knife.

Five Ninja, wearing Konoha headbands, were pushing an inconspicuous supply cart, struggling along the rugged mountain road.

“I say, Tang Yan,” Zi Luo whispered, pulling at the clearly ill-fitting Konoha vest, “These clothes are too ugly, especially this green, it makes me look like an unripe watermelon.”

Kiba, walking at the end of the team, retorted grumpily, “Shut up. If you want to be a ripe watermelon, I can cut you open right now with Wind Release.”

Tang Yan walked at the very front, oblivious to the usual bickering of his teammates behind him. His attention was entirely focused on the fortress shrouded in darkness ahead—Ci Hua Fortress. The fortress’s outline in the pre-dawn gloom resembled a lurking behemoth.

At the same time, inside the command tent at Duanfeng Pass, the atmosphere was so heavy it felt as if water could be wrung from it.

Sato and the other officers’ palms were drenched in sweat.

“He really went… with only five people…” a young officer’s voice was dry, his Adam’s apple bobbing.

“Crazy, he’s truly crazy!” Another officer gulped down a mouthful of water, choking and coughing repeatedly. “Infiltrate Ci Hua Fortress? That’s ‘Earth Dragon’ Iwa-ma’s territory! How many elite squads have been lost there! He’ll chew them up, people and cart included!”

Sato remained silent, but his clenched fists betrayed his inner tension.

If the newly appointed deputy commander were to fall on his second day, Sato himself would be in deep trouble.

Since his understanding was crushed by Tang Yan in an incomprehensible way yesterday, his current mood was complex.

Logic told him this was a high-stakes gamble with no return, yet deep down, a ridiculous glimmer of hope flickered.

He wanted to see a miracle, and he also wanted to see how this arrogant young man would end up.

Inside Ci Hua Fortress, at the command tower.

A sensory Ninja suddenly opened his eyes: “Lord Iwa-ma! The supply team has arrived!”

The Ninja called “Iwa-ma” was resting with his eyes closed.

He slowly opened his eyes, his weathered gaze showing no ripple, and a cruel smile appeared at the corner of his mouth.

“Finally, the little rats from Hidden Sand Village have arrived. Did you really think changing your skin would let you sneak into a wolf’s den?”

Without a change in expression, he formed a hand sign with one hand: “Pass down the order, let them in. Once they reach the ‘Welcome Plaza,’ give them a grand gift.”

Tang Yan and his group pushed the cart and smoothly passed through the fortress’s first checkpoint.

The Leaf Ninja inside the fortress looked at them normally, seemingly without any suspicion.

Zi Luo breathed a sigh of relief: “Hey, it seems these Konoha guys aren’t very observant.”

Tang Yan’s steps, however, suddenly halted.

From the ground beneath his feet, he felt an extremely subtle, abnormal flow of Chakra.

A dangerous premonition surged from his feet straight to his head.

“Too late.”

No sooner had he spoken than Iwa-ma’s cold voice, amplified by Ninjutsu, echoed throughout the entire fortress, carrying the playful mockery of a cat toying with a mouse.

“Welcome to hell, friends from Hidden Sand Village! Earth Release: Swamp of the Underworld!”

Boom!

The solid ground instantly transformed into a churning swamp of mud!

A powerful suction came from below, threatening to drag these “supply team members” and their vehicle into the earth, crushing them into paste!

“It’s the Swamp of the Underworld! We’re finished!”

“I knew it was a trap! That old fox Iwa-ma is best at this trick!”

A Sunagakure Ninja’s face turned pale; he could almost see himself and his companions being swallowed by the mud.

Facing this deadly situation, Tang Yan’s lips, instead, curled into a cold smile.

The puppets appeared.

The sturdy Armor · Fortification puppet, with its heavy body, moved across the swamp as if on solid ground, showing no signs of sinking.

The fingertips and soles of the other puppets simultaneously extended Chakra-infused “invisible threads” and grappling hooks, which, with a few hissing sounds, firmly embedded themselves into the surrounding walls.

Like hunters moving on a spiderweb, they instantly transformed the deadly mud swamp into their three-dimensional battlefield!

“Want to play with Ninjutsu?” Tang Yan chuckled, “Then I’ll add some flavor for you.”

The puppet Samara - Thousand Unbinding’s Chakra circulated, and countless grains of sand appeared out of thin air above the fortress, like dark clouds pressing down, instantly obscuring the faint morning light.

Sand Shower!

Whoosh!

A torrential downpour of yellow sand poured down, emitting a dull roar.

The originally slippery and viscous Swamp of the Underworld, upon contact with the dry sand, made a “sizzling” sound as its moisture was frantically absorbed, quickly solidifying and hardening into a cracked sandy ground!

Inside Ci Hua Fortress, Iwa-ma’s face was even uglier than the solidified sand beneath his feet.

And this was only the beginning.

“Now, party time.” Tang Yan snapped his fingers, his voice soft, yet it sounded like a command.

A one-sided slaughter officially began!

High in the sky, Owl · Stealth spread its massive metal wings, emitting a low hum.

“Feather Array!”

Hundreds of gleaming blade-feathers instantly detached from its body. They did not fly chaotically but formed a tight, continuously rotating silver vortex in the air, emitting a screeching sound as they cut through the air, sweeping towards the panicked Leaf Ninja inside the fortress! Where the steel storm passed, flesh and blood splattered, and screams were torn to shreds!

On the ground, Shura Kai’s six grotesque mechanical arms rotated at high speed, transforming into an impenetrable tornado of blades, tearing apart any enemy who dared to approach.

The next second, the mechanism on its chest opened layer by layer, revealing countless dark, hollow launch ports.

Tang Clan’s hidden weapon, Peacock Plume!

Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh, whoosh—!

Three hundred and sixty-five poisoned steel needles, like an enraged swarm of bees, shot out like a torrential rain! A squad of Konoha elites, who had just gathered and were preparing to unleash a combined Ninjutsu, were shot into human-shaped straw targets, riddled with steel needles, before they could even finish their hand signs, and fell in a heap!

In a corner, the most inconspicuous small puppet, Apothecary - Diligence, moved like a ghost, darting through the shadows of the chaotic battlefield at high speed.

Its movements were silent, and occasionally, an almost invisible, hair-thin needle would shoot from its fingertips, precisely piercing an enemy’s carotid artery or joint gaps.

Those struck didn’t even have time to let out a muffled groan before their bodies convulsed and they collapsed to the ground, their faces still contorted in battle, but their bodies completely paralyzed.

Iwa-ma’s eyes were bloodshot; he roared and slammed his hands onto the ground: “Earth Release: Rock Golem!”

Boom! Boom!

Two ten-meter-tall rock golems rose from the ground. They let out dull roars, their heavy fists swinging through the air as they smashed towards the puppet army.

Explosions, the sound of twisting metal, and the cracking of rock mixed together.

The rock golems, relying on their massive size and brute strength, actually managed to knock Shura Kai flying, temporarily halting the puppets’ offensive.

The battle entered a brief stalemate.

Just then, the humanoid puppet known as Pluto, which had been standing beside Tang Yan like an outsider, indistinguishable from a normal person, moved.

It made no sound, merely leaning forward slightly before vanishing from its spot the next instant.

A Leaf Ninja in front of the fortress command tower only saw a blur; a afterimage flashed past, and before his comrades could react, the shadow had already bypassed them, heading straight for the Earth Release master at the top of the tower—Iwa-ma!

“You’re seeking death!” Iwa-ma roared. As a seasoned Earth Release master who had fought countless battles, he feared close combat the least!

His entire body surged with Chakra, covering him in a hard, thick rock armor. He didn’t dodge or evade, twisting his waist and hips, he fiercely smashed his right fist—his proudest and capable of punching through city walls—towards Pluto’s outstretched hand!

He seemed to already see this puppet, which didn’t know the immensity of heaven and earth, being blasted into a shower of parts by his punch!

Bang!

A strange, muffled thud.

The anticipated scene of shattering bones, flesh, and flying parts did not occur.

Iwa-ma’s Chakra-infused fist solidly struck Pluto’s seemingly ordinary palm.

There was no loud bang, no shockwave.

The sound was so muffled it made one’s heart pound, like an iron fist sinking into a bottomless mud pit.

The ferocity and arrogance on Iwa-ma’s face froze for a tenth of a second, then turned into bone-chilling horror.

His proud, immense power had vanished.

It had simply disappeared into thin air, as if it had never existed. The sensation from his fist was not a hard rebound, but a strange stickiness; his strength was entirely swallowed by the opponent’s palm, without causing the slightest ripple.

How was this possible?!

Before he could figure it out, the hand that had caught his fist suddenly tightened its grip.

Crack!

A crisp, teeth-grinding sound of shattering echoed.

The rock armor covering Iwa-ma’s fist, like an eggshell crushed by iron pliers, instantly shattered, turning into rubble that rustled down.

Excruciating pain followed immediately; Iwa-ma felt his finger bones groaning under the opponent’s grip, unable to bear the pressure.

Fear instantly clutched his heart.

Pluto remained expressionless; its other idle arm slightly lifted, and with an extremely fast yet incredibly clear trajectory, it transformed its palm into a blade, gently slicing towards Iwa-ma’s neck.

There was no killing intent, no sound of cutting wind, just pure, ultimate speed.

Iwa-ma’s pupils constricted to pinpricks, and all the hairs on his body stood on end.

In that moment of life and death, his usual pride in combat experience and the intuition honed through countless life-and-death struggles transformed into the most primal survival instinct, forcibly taking over his body before his brain could even issue a command!

There was no block, no counterattack, not even time to conceive of a proper Earth Release defensive Ninjutsu.

His entire body’s muscles involuntarily twisted sharply, and he fell backward in an almost disheveled manner, his waist erupting with immense power, his entire body bending backward at an unnatural angle, crashing heavily to the ground.

To hell with master’s demeanor! To hell with invincibility in close combat!

Only this crude but incredibly real thought remained in his mind. If I die at the hands of a puppet today, I’ll have no face to meet the Second Hokage on the path to the underworld!

Pfft.

A wisp of grayish-white hair floated down, followed by a chilling touch across his cheek.

Bang!

Iwa-ma’s heavy body slammed onto the cold stone floor of the command tower, jarring his internal organs. But he paid no mind to that, nor to his right hand, which was in agonizing pain and almost numb. He used all his strength to prop up his upper body, still shaken, and looked forward.

Pluto still stood in place, its posture almost unchanged, only the arm that had transformed into a hand blade was now suspended at the position where his neck had just been.

A drop of blood slid down the puppet’s smooth, jade-like fingertip, and with a plop, it shattered on the ground.

That was his blood.

Iwa-ma instinctively touched his cheek; a neat line of blood extended from his earlobe to his chin, not deep, but it sent a chill through his entire body.

This puppet… it didn’t even pursue.

It just stood there silently, its head slightly bowed, looking down at him, fallen on the ground, with those lifeless, glazed eyes, like it was looking at a piece of dead meat on a chopping board.

Then, it lifted its foot, and step by step, unhurriedly, it walked towards him.

The footsteps were light, yet they pounded like war drums on Iwa-ma’s heart.

This feeling… something’s wrong!

He lowered his head in horror, looking at his left shoulder.

He saw that his left shoulder, covered in hard rock armor and supposedly indestructible, was now showing large patches of dull, lifeless stony texture.

This texture, like a living thing, was spreading rapidly across his body at a visible speed!

His proud rock armor was as fragile as sand in the face of this bizarre erosion!

“This… what is this thing?!”

Extreme fear gripped his heart; he tried to pull his hand back, but found his entire right arm already stiff, numb, and completely devoid of sensation, as if it had become someone else’s property.

Pluto’s emotionless eyes quietly watched him, as if appreciating a work of art nearing completion.

Tang Yan’s voice drifted up from below, clear in Iwa-ma’s ears.

“It’s my Bloodline Limit: Qi Poison - Petrification. I just rarely use it.”

Earth Release Master Iwa-ma, his face frozen in extreme fear and incomprehension, his body, starting from his arm, turned inch by inch into grayish-white rock.

His life, his Chakra, everything about him, was transformed by this silent erosion into a lifelike yet lifeless statue, forever frozen in place here.