vncnus Chapter 126 Yahiko's Decision
Chapter 126 Yahiko's Decision
After Ooka Shin and Konan reunited, Ooka Shin asked, "Did you spot anyone else while you were flying in the sky?"
"If I fly too high, I'll be attacked by the Iwa ninja. You have to cover me!"
Konan was also worried about Nagato and the others' safety, and struggled to fly into the sky through the rain.
"It's that woman again! Attack her immediately!"
On the surrounding earthen walls, some Iwa ninja appeared and shot shuriken and kunai at Konan, with lit explosive tags attached to the kunai.
"Wind Release! Great Breakthrough!"
Ooka Nobu and his shadow clone unleashed a hurricane in all directions, directly silencing all attacks.
With Ooka Shin's help, Konan flew higher than the earthen wall and looked around, discovering the location of Yahiko, Nagato, and the others.
"Yahiko is on our left, and Nagato is further away!" Konan pointed out the direction to Ooka Shin from the air.
By this point in the battle, Ooka Shin had used Shadow Clones multiple times, and the aftereffects were starting to appear. His brain was starting to hurt, and his body was becoming fatigued, but he could still endure it, so he created even more Shadow Clones.
"You're in the sky, I'm on the ground, let's charge straight there!"
"it is good!"
Konan unleashed numerous paper shuriken, firing wildly at the Iwa ninja who tried to block her way, flying towards Yahiko's direction.
Ooka Shin's numerous clones are divided into two groups: some work with Konan, while others are scattered around to shield Konan from attacks, turning her into a flying turret so she can safely unleash her fury.
Some time later, they met up with Yahiko, and Ooka Shin noticed Iwa ninja's unusual behavior and frowned.
"I feel like the Iwa ninja's attack power has weakened a lot. Have their casualties reached their limit? Or has something unexpected happened?"
At this moment, Nagato and the others also saw Konan in the sky and quickly followed her to this place.
Gradually, the Iwa ninja also disappeared. The Akatsuki counted their numbers and found that only about fifty people still had combat power, as well as more than forty wounded. The rest had all been killed.
Is this what war is like? Even if it's not large-scale, it can still be so brutal.
Although Kyosuke and Chisuke explained the horrors of war in the dream, Ooka Shin still felt horrified after experiencing it firsthand.
He has killed many people and seen many corpses over the years, but all of them combined do not equal the number of corpses he has seen today.
"What should we do now?"
After gathering the wounded, Ooka Shin and the others used ninjutsu to create a huge semi-circular cave made of rocks to shelter everyone from the rain.
Looking at the corpses scattered on the ground, Konan was filled with grief and a sense of bewilderment. She unconsciously looked at Yahiko.
Thinking of his fallen comrades, Yahiko remained silent for a moment with a somber expression, then spoke in a firm tone.
"We must support the Rain Ninja. Once the Rain Ninja is defeated, the Land of Rain will have no power to protect itself and will become a battlefield for the great ninja villages. This will cause even more suffering."
Nagato had a keen sense of perception. He closed his eyes and sensed for a moment before speaking, "What should we do with the wounded? I sense that the enemy hasn't gone far. They're lurking in the distance, waiting for an opportunity to attack us."
Ooka Shin rubbed his aching head and suggested, "The enemy retreated when they saw the situation was unfavorable, which means they didn't intend to fight us to the death. Now they're not retreating around us, which is probably to delay our advance. We can leave the wounded behind and rush towards Amegakure with all our might. That way, the enemy should be able to stop us and won't waste time on the wounded."
The Buddha leaned against the wall, holding an iron rod, and said in a low voice, "This is a gamble. The enemy might also attack the wounded to lure us back."
Now, Yahiko only has three paths before him.
They could either retreat with the wounded, which would be the least dangerous and the enemy might not pursue them, or even if they did, the Akatsuki wouldn't be afraid. However, this would mean they wouldn't be able to support the Rain Ninja.
They could either abandon the wounded and send their main force to Amegakure, which would provide maximum support, but the wounded would be in great danger.
Alternatively, the main force could be divided into two parts: one to support Amegakure and the other to stay behind and care for the wounded. This approach would disperse the forces and ultimately might result in neither providing strong support to Amegakure nor protecting the wounded, leaving both sides empty-handed.
Each of the three paths has its own advantages and disadvantages. Yahiko stood in the rain, remaining silent for a long time.
Time was of the essence, and now was not the time to hesitate. Ooka Shin tried to persuade him, but Nagato pressed down on his shoulder.
Nagato shook his head at Ooka Shin: "Give Yahiko some time. We need to trust him."
Since becoming the leader of Akatsuki, Yahiko has encountered many difficulties, but none have been as troublesome as this.
His decision affects the lives of his companions and may even influence the situation in the Land of Rain.
Thinking of the ordinary families in the Land of Rain, thinking of the vibrant lives, the immense pressure was almost suffocating Yahiko.
While helping the wounded receive treatment, Konan also showed concern for Yahiko.
"Yahiko, whatever decision you make, we will support you!"
Upon hearing Konan's words, Yahiko let out a deep breath, his sorrowful expression vanishing as he revealed a bright smile.
"Don't worry about me. As a leader, I will take responsibility."
Yahiko turned around and looked at his companions, his gaze sweeping over Konan, Nagato, Ooka Shin, Obutsu, and others.
"I've made up my mind. Nagato, Konan, and I will go to support Hanzo. Daibutsu will take half of the men to protect the wounded, and Shin will take the other half to hold off the Iwa ninja. We need to buy some time and prevent the Iwa ninja from slowing us down or having time to attack the wounded."
Everyone was shocked to hear Yahiko's words. They never expected that Yahiko would make such an extreme choice, which was completely unexpected.
Ooka Shin immediately objected, his tone very vehement.
"Are you insane? Who do you three think you are, to think you can influence a battle involving thousands of people with just the three of you? Are you the Kage of a great ninja village?!"
The Great Buddha also objected, saying, "We only encountered two or three hundred Iwa ninja this time, and we were already struggling to deal with them. You can't take the risk."
Although the Iwa ninja had the geographical and initial advantage in this battle, and the Akatsuki's performance was not bad, it still reflected the strength of the Iwa ninja.
After all, the main force of Iwagakure was attacking Amegakure, where there were more strong Iwagakure members. The one who ambushed Akatsuki was not the main force, but the entire Akatsuki was involved in the battle.
Not only Ooka Nobu and Daibutsu, but also the wounded soldiers loudly opposed Yahiko's decision.
"You promised us that you would create a peaceful world. Now you're taking such a risk, which is breaking your promise!"
"Don't worry about us. It's our fate for ninjas to die in the midst of war. At least our deaths have some value."
"Hurry up and get going, stop dawdling here!"
"That's right! Don't let my missing leg fool you, I'm still a powerful ninja. If the Iwa ninja dare to come here, I'll teach them a lesson! Hahahaha!"
Some of the wounded roared, some laughed, and some waved impatiently at Yahiko, but no one cried.
Even though their wounds were painful, and even though their bodies and faces were covered in blood and mud, their eyes remained clear, shining with a light called hope.