On a desolate street, Seimei stood firmly with a blade in hand. Surrounding him were the corpses of Mist Shinobi.
This was the sixth wave of attackers he had successfully repelled.
"Whew..."
He exhaled softly, steadying his thoughts as he sheathed his long sword. With a leap, he jumped onto a nearby building.
A few more agile jumps brought him to the rooftop.
From this vantage point, Seimei could easily survey his surroundings.
Nearby, several Leaf Shinobi were still engaged in battle.
However, Seimei paid them no mind. Instead, he focused his gaze further away—toward the command center.
Through the windows and other openings, he caught glimpses of sporadic flashes of fire, occasional lightning, water streams, and the faint remnants of other jutsu.
It was clear that the Mist Shinobi there were mounting their last stand.
Seimei thought about activating his Byakugan for a clearer view, but considering the number of Hyuga clan members in the area, he decided against it.
After all, given the current situation, the Mist forces wouldn't last long. There was no need to take unnecessary risks.
Just as he was mulling over these thoughts, his peripheral vision caught sight of a team of Mist Shinobi hastily advancing from a distance.
His eyes narrowed, and his expression shifted slightly.
If it were just an ordinary Mist team, Seimei wouldn't have given them much attention. However, this group was coming from the direction of Yujin Port.
In other words, they weren't part of the Mist's main base.
So, where were they from? The answer was obvious.
"It seems Nara Kikō wasn't able to hold off the Mist Shinobi at the inner defense line after all," Seimei murmured softly.
Indeed, these Mist Shinobi were reinforcements from the defensive line near Yujin Port.
Earlier, Seimei had pointed out the possibility of this scenario, as the Leaf forces hadn't brought the fight to those areas. He had warned that their operation couldn't afford to drag on too long.
Now, his concern had come true. The Mist reinforcements were already on their way back.
Though it was just a single squad for now, this was likely just the beginning. More would undoubtedly follow.
If they didn't retreat quickly, they'd risk being surrounded.
And if that happened, the situation would become perilous.
As for escaping using Minato Namikaze's **Flying Thunder God Technique**—that was out of the question.
Transferring them to this location had already consumed over three-quarters of Minato's chakra. After the intense battle, how much could he possibly have left?
Even if their numbers had dwindled due to casualties, it still wouldn't be feasible for Minato to handle the evacuation alone.
From the very beginning, their plan had not relied on Minato for retreat.
In short, they couldn't afford to be surrounded.
Otherwise, no matter how strong they were, the Mist Shinobi would inevitably wear them down through sheer numbers.
With this realization, Seimei quickly formed a hand seal, activating the **Mind Transmission Technique** to contact Minato Namikaze.
"Seimei?"
Minato's voice echoed in Seimei's mind.
"It's me," Seimei replied, wasting no time as he relayed the situation.
Minato fell silent for a moment before asking, "If you go all out, how long can you hold them off?"
The emphasis on "all out" was unmistakable—Minato clearly expected no holding back.
Seimei caught the undertone but remained expressionless.
He wasn't surprised that Minato had noticed he was holding back.
After all, Minato's intelligence was among the best in the ninja world. Having worked closely with Seimei multiple times, it would be strange if he hadn't picked up on it by now.
His sheer chakra reserves alone were enough to raise suspicion.
That said, Seimei was confident that Minato hadn't discovered his true strength—the power of the legendary Mangekyō Sharingan.
Unless someone was familiar with the Mangekyō, they wouldn't easily detect the anomaly.
After a brief pause, Seimei replied, "Ten minutes!"
He gave a conservative estimate, factoring in not only the current reinforcements but the subsequent waves likely to arrive.
Minato audibly sighed in relief. "You won't need that long. Five minutes at most, and we'll wrap things up here. Then we'll retreat as per Plan C."
"Understood!"
With that, Seimei decisively severed the connection.
**Crack... Crack!**
He twisted his neck, the sound of bones cracking echoing faintly.
Looking toward the Mist Shinobi advancing from Yujin Port, he muttered to himself, "Now, the real battle begins."
Indeed, for Seimei, the upcoming confrontation marked the true start of the fight.
The previous six waves of Mist Shinobi, while numerous, were mostly low- to mid-level ninjas.
Taking them down wasn't a real challenge for him—it was merely a warm-up.
Even the chakra he expended during those battles had been replenished using his **Chakra Absorption Technique**, leaving him virtually unchanged.
Such skirmishes couldn't be considered a true fight.
But now, things were different.
As the new Mist reinforcements approached, Seimei could already sense that their leader was a genuine Jōnin.
Additionally, two others in the squad emitted slightly weaker auras, likely skilled Tokubetsu Jōnin.
Their combined strength was enough to warrant Seimei's serious attention.
With that thought, Seimei formed hand seals and activated **Wind Release: Wings of Wind**.
With a "whoosh," a pair of light blue chakra wings materialized on his back. He flapped them once, propelling himself into the sky and toward the advancing Mist Shinobi.
If he was going to go "all out," passively waiting for the enemy was out of the question.
Pushing his speed to the limit, Seimei reached the Mist squad's position in mere moments.
"Flying technique? Uchiha Seimei?"
Below, the lead Mist Jōnin frowned as he looked up at Seimei.
He wanted to command his team to attack but found that Seimei had kept a precise distance, rendering their attacks ineffective.
Leaving Seimei overhead, however, wasn't an option either.
"Should we confront him here?"
Just as this thought crossed his mind, he dismissed it.
He was here to provide reinforcements, not waste time with Seimei.
After a moment's consideration, the Mist Jōnin signaled his team to cast **Water Release: Hidden Mist Jutsu**.
Thin white mist began to appear, quickly thickening and enveloping the squad.
With their movements concealed, the Mist Shinobi advanced rapidly.
It was a sound strategy—if only it could be executed flawlessly.
Unfortunately for them, Seimei had no intention of letting that happen.
*(To be continued...)*