Ninja Ice House

Chapter 535 Blocking

As the ultimate form of crowd control and crowd control, the power of Wood Release is absolutely undeniable. The First Hokage, Hashirama Senju, was able to become a top-tier powerhouse who dominated an era, and his own strength and qualities were naturally first-rate. The special enhancement of the bloodline limit—Wood Release—was also of paramount importance.

The power of Wood Release used by others is far less than that of Hashirama Senju. It's not that Wood Release is ineffective, but rather that the First Hokage was simply too powerful.

As long as the power of Wood Release can be fully utilized, many problems can be solved.

Zetsu happens to be an expert in Wood Release. Of course, Obito Uchiha could also do it, but he didn't use it as much. Long-term use of the Mangekyou Sharingan puts a lot of pressure on the body. The use of Wood Release requires a very high amount of chakra. If one's own vitality and mental strength are not strong enough, resulting in insufficient chakra, one cannot use it well.

Obito Uchiha and Zetsu's plan was good, but Izumi Uchiha's special ability of the eye technique Ten'u Tsuki was really troublesome. Its passive enhancement of observation and ability to see through the source of weaknesses allowed it to always prevent attacks that targeted weaknesses in advance.

While the improvement in combat effectiveness may not be immediately apparent in life-or-death battles, it is incredibly useful for protecting oneself.

Uchiha Izumi's intention was to hold out and buy time, and she was almost there.

Moreover, with Bai's arrival and the entry of strong reinforcements, the slightly tilted balance of the battle has become more balanced.

At some point, the thin mist that had been spreading around them began to gather in the air, condensing into translucent ice crystals that obscured a large portion of the sky.

It was already a cloudy day with poor visibility, so no one noticed the change in the sky at first. It wasn't until the thin mist below gathered into small water droplets and was then molded into ice clones that Obito Uchiha realized something was wrong.

"Ice Escape?"

During the Third Shinobi World War, the southeastern front, where Konoha and Kirigakure faced off, saw the defending forces, centered around the Uchiha clan, encounter fierce challenges from the Kirigakure ninja and suffer considerable losses.

During the protracted war of attrition, the Kaguya clan's Shikotsumyaku and the Mizuki clan's Ice Release, two bloodline limits, inflicted immense damage on the Konoha ninjas, leaving a particularly deep impression on the Uchiha clan, who bore the brunt of the pressure.

The bloodline limit Shikotsumyaku is alright, as it's a taijutsu type, and this clan is known for its battle maniacs. Although they are quite strong, they are generally not very bright, making them relatively easier to deal with.

The Minazuki clan is different. Anyone who can master Ice Release is unlikely to be a fool. They are powerful, quick-witted, and live in a place like the southeastern coast where Water Release is most effective. Moreover, they possess an enhanced bloodline limit—Ice Release—formed by fusing Water Release and Wind Release. This puts considerable pressure on the Uchiha clan, who are skilled in Fire Release.

Faced with a formidable enemy and playing in an unfavorable "away" environment, regardless of whether they had experienced that protracted and fierce battle, the surviving Uchiha clan members were somewhat wary of the surname "Minazuki".

"I'd heard before about that amazing kid who's good at Ice Release, but I never imagined he'd be even more incredible. Obito, this is getting a bit troublesome..."

Unusually, this time Obito Uchiha did not angrily mock Zetsu. Instead, he reached out from the dark vortex beside him and emerged from a spatial rift that suddenly appeared beside Haku, trying to grab his neck, but missed.

His figure vanished like a phantom, then reappeared in each of the ice crystal mirrors. With a sudden wave of his hand, an ice-style group attack technique, an advancement from Water Release: Thousand Kill Water Flight, rained down like a storm of frozen spikes.

Obito Uchiha was alright; the intangible effect of the space-time ninjutsu Kamui meant that as long as he wasn't completely surrounded, he didn't have to worry about getting hurt.

However, after a while, things started to look a bit off. The torrential downpour of ice senbon showed no sign of stopping. At this intensity of attack, even a Jinchuriki with abundant chakra would feel strained if they could hold out for more than three minutes. The handsome boy in front of them, who looked like a girl, had been attacking relentlessly for more than five minutes.

Most Jonin don't have such long-lasting combat endurance, and this ice-style boy in front of him doesn't seem to have the extraordinary talent of Samehada, the monster with abundant chakra known as the "Tailless Tailed Beast."

"It's Sage Art... no, it's somewhat similar, but not quite. It's also somewhat like a barrier technique, but it doesn't have a core... wait, what's inside the Ice Release chakra...?"

"Gentlemen... could you please stop here? It seems that your goal will not be achieved at this moment. If it were another time, no matter what you do, it would be beyond our... control."

"Is Konoha Village behind you, or the Kosugi clan?"

"What's the difference?"

"really!"

With a flick of his long sleeves, Obito Uchiha said coldly,

"Logically speaking, I have no real conflict with the Kosugi family, nor have I done anything to them or their relatives and friends. We don't even have any conflicts that can be brought to the forefront. Why would the number one secular family in the ninja world get so deeply involved in the affairs between ninjas?"

This is not in line with the traditions of the Daimyo and the ancient cedar, nor is it related to the established power structure.

As long as the fighting between ninjas is confined to their own circles and doesn't significantly impact worldly life, and even provides considerable convenience, then there's no need to interfere.

In fact, it would be better if there were more conflicts among ninjas. If humans with extraordinary powers were a united front, the daimyo of various countries would probably not be able to sleep well at night.

Obito Uchiha was, strictly speaking, a half-classmate of Fukushi Kosugi, but they didn't have much of a relationship.

Although they weren't even nodding acquaintances, they were both quite famous figures back then. One was a brain-dead idiot from the Uchiha clan, a reckless boy who was always making a fuss and didn't know what he was thinking. The other was a noble heir who didn't want to be a proper heir but instead insisted on being a ninja whose life was uncertain.

With the ancient and powerful foundation of the Kosugi family, they could hire as many ninjas as they wanted without having to lift a finger.

Bai smiled subtly and answered slowly and deliberately:

"I don't understand, nor do I need to know too much. I just need to do what I'm supposed to do. Why would I interfere with the decisions of these important figures? It's just that... stopping them, rather than meddling, is probably not to make enemies of you all, but rather because I just happened to be in their way. Otherwise, it wouldn't be me coming, or perhaps it wouldn't be just me..."

Meanwhile, outside, while the two families were still subtly testing each other's weaknesses, neither fighting much nor leaving, Sasuke Uchiha, inside the genjutsu space, finally felt the long-awaited bright light after seemingly "losing his sight" for a long time...