"Captain, are we really going to unleash the combo technique?"
"If we use that move, Koyuki might get caught in it too..."
After hearing Fubuki's concern, Nadare Rōga waved his hand impatiently. "We can't worry about that now. Worst case, we'll just dig her out of the snow bit by bit later."
"The most important thing right now is getting rid of these troublesome brats in front of us."
"You see those three little punks? Even now, they still think they can take us head-on!"
Hearing Nadare's words, both Fubuki and Fuyuma felt a streak of ruthlessness rise in their hearts.
"Do it!"
The two of them placed their palms on Nadare's shoulders, channeling all of their chakra into his body through the enhancement of their Chakra Armor.
Nadare let out a roar and rapidly formed hand seals with both hands.
"Ice Release: Wolf Fang Avalanche Technique!"
Countless ice wolves emerged from the snow, each one throwing back its head and howling.
Their voices blended together, as if resonating with the mountain itself, causing the entire snow peak to tremble.
Then, the pack of ice wolves charged straight toward Naruto, Sasuke, and Gaara.
Seeing this, the three of them also shouted in unison,
"Combination Technique: Wind-Sand-Fire Glaze!"
Naruto and Sasuke released Wind Release and Fire Release respectively.
With the wind feeding the flames, a massive flaming tiger let out a deafening roar toward the heavens.
Then huge amounts of yellow sand covered the tiger's body, and under the blazing heat, transformed into a gleaming armor of glass.
Boom!
The gigantic tiger collided head-on with the ice wolves, instantly melting every single one of them.
Seeing this, Naruto, Sasuke, and Gaara couldn't help but burst into laughter.
"Hahahahaha... We won! These three guys are nothing special!"
At those words, however, dark smiles spread across the faces of Nadare and the others.
"That was just the appetizer. The real killing move starts now."
The moment his words fell, the entire mountain let out a terrifying roar.
Snow that had been piled up for who knew how many years came crashing down from above like the sky itself was collapsing, sweeping up a vast white cloud that looked ready to devour everything in its path.
The giant tiger created by Naruto, Sasuke, and Gaara struggled for only a few moments before being swallowed beneath the tide of snow.
Before the overwhelming force of nature, humans were pitifully small and fragile.
"Damn it!"
"Those bastards actually triggered an avalanche! That's so dirty!"
Naruto clenched his teeth and shouted in anger.
Sasuke also tightened his fists.
Gaara desperately drew out the chakra in his body, trying to use every last bit of strength he had to create a mound of sand in front of them to block the avalanche.
All three wore tense expressions.
After all, this was their first real life-and-death battle against enemies. Facing a situation they couldn't handle on their own, it was only natural that they'd start to panic.
The avalanche grew larger and larger, about to crash down on them at any second.
Naruto, Sasuke, and Gaara finally couldn't hold back anymore.
"Dad!!!"
The next second, with a deafening boom, Yuzuru Uchiha's body dropped heavily from above and landed right in front of the three of them.
A layer of black shadow had appeared around his eyes, and his body—though not especially massive—stood firmly against the raging wind as he blocked everyone behind him.
Facing the mountain-shattering avalanche, Yuzuru formed hand seals.
"Sage Art: Super Great Fire Annihilation!"
A sea of flames over a hundred meters wide instantly collided with the snow crashing down from the mountain.
White steam rose into the air, turning everything into a hazy scene straight out of a dreamlike realm.
Naruto, Sasuke, Gaara, Koyuki, Sandayu Asama, Nadare, Fubuki, and Fuyuma all stood frozen in place.
With just a single move, he had stopped an avalanche that had looked completely unstoppable...
Was this... really a human being?
"Damn it!"
"We're retreating!"
The moment Nadare and the others witnessed Yuzuru's power, they no longer had the slightest thought of continuing the fight.
There was only one thing left in their minds.
Run.
'For hell's sake...'
'If you had a dad like this, you should've said so earlier!'
Watching the three flee, Yuzuru turned to Naruto, Sasuke, and Gaara.
"Do you still remember our usual training?"
"Now's the time to show the results."
Hearing that, the three exchanged a glance, and a Rasengan immediately formed in each of their palms.
Yuzuru first used his own chakra to enlarge the Rasengan in Naruto's hand, then grabbed Naruto by the ankle.
"Off you go!"
He spun Naruto around a few times, then hurled him out with all his strength.
Naruto shot forward like a cannonball, holding the Rasengan as he flew straight toward Nadare.
Then Yuzuru repeated the exact same process, throwing Sasuke and Gaara out as well.
At such extreme speed, the three of them practically reached their targets in an instant.
"Big Ball Rasengan!"
Boom!
Nadare, Fubuki, and Fuyuguma didn't even have time to let out a groan before their bodies were shattered by the overwhelming force of the Rasengan.
"Handled."
Yuzuru clapped his hands and walked toward Naruto and the others.
Koyuki and Sandayu Asama quickly followed after him.
"You all okay?"
"Y-Yeah, we're fine."
Naruto, Sasuke, and Gaara brushed the snow off their bodies and stood back up.
They had gone through this kind of training many times already, so they were long since used to it. Naturally, they weren't hurt.
Yuzuru looked at the three of them with satisfaction.
"Not bad. Your performance in your first real battle exceeded my expectations."
"Once this mission is over, I'll reward you with a week of special hell training under me."
As everyone stood together in a warm and lively mood, Koyuki finally spoke.
"Um... Lord Yuzuru, your throwing technique is really 'incredible'..."
Yuzuru smiled.
"It's nothing much. Just practice."
Koyuki froze for a moment.
Just how many times had you thrown these kids around in private?!
For a moment, she had no idea how to respond, so all she could do was force a smile and agree.
"I-I see... That really is amazing."
At that, Sasuke said with some dissatisfaction,
"Auntie Koyuki, Father only handled the throwing. There's not much technical skill in that. To really bring out the power of that move, it still depends on us."
"Without the Sharingan's superior perception and powerful physical ability, there's no way anyone could pull off accuracy like ours and hit exactly where they want."
Koyuki's mouth twitched.
Alright then. So the three of you actually enjoy this...
Her thoughts suddenly began to wander.
'If I'm ever lucky enough to have a child for Lord Yuzuru in the future...'
'Would they end up this unhinged too...?'
Seeing that no one was speaking for the moment, Sandayu Asama glanced at the sky and said softly,
"Lord Yuzuru, now that Kazahana Dōto already knows we've come to the Land of Snow, we should head to the capital as soon as possible."
Yuzuru replied casually,
"Then let's go. Just so happens I'm a little interested in his research too."