From this, it was clear—simply preventing Mikoto from committing suicide wasn't enough to complete the mission.
Uchiha Yu paused in thought.
And came to a conclusion.
He probably needed to provide Mikoto with mental support, help her give up on the idea of suicide entirely. Only then would the reward be granted.
"Well, that shouldn't be too hard..."
Yu had already thought of a method. He suddenly stopped walking and stood still, silently watching Itachi, who was preparing to strike Izumi and Mikoto.
In the center of the forest—
Itachi noticed Yu had stopped and was puzzled, but he didn't hesitate. He raised his blade high.
But in the very next moment—
Itachi sensed danger. A pale figure suddenly flashed past behind him.
His pupils shrank. Alarmed, he immediately withdrew his sword and rolled to the right to evade.
This development was beyond his expectations.
Boom—
A bone spear suddenly appeared, obliterating a tree where Itachi had just been. Splinters exploded in all directions.
"I'd like to see what kind of skill the Uchiha genius that Orochimaru-sama has his eyes on actually has."
The young Kimimaro wore a cold expression. His first strike missed, but sharp bones protruded from his chest as he transformed into a "bone warrior" and lunged at Itachi.
Just moments earlier—
Kimimaro, who had been silent all along, had suddenly sensed that his chakra had completely returned.
Even more astonishing—the amount of chakra now flowing through his chakra network was twice the usual amount.
Kimimaro didn't know why, but as someone bearing the violent bloodline of the Kaguya clan, he would never sit still and wait for death.
"..."
Itachi stared straight at Kimimaro as he charged. Gripping his tachi with both hands, he slashed swiftly.
The blade flashed.
Using offense as defense, Itachi's tachi collided with Kimimaro's stabbing bone spear.
Clang—
The two weapons met with a burst of sparks and a sharp metallic screech.
As he parried the bone thrust, Itachi turned his face just in time to watch a sharp bone jutting from Kimimaro's chest graze past his cheek.
Kimimaro glanced sideways at Itachi's body and drove his right arm—transformed into a bone spear—downward, using sheer force to pin him.
Itachi quickly retreated.
Boom—
He gritted his teeth as his back slammed into a twisted tree with a loud crash, pain radiating through his chest. Rain splattered everywhere.
Kimimaro didn't dare make direct eye contact with Itachi's Mangekyō. His gaze remained fixed on Itachi's chest. Through the clash, he sensed something unusual—then understood.
He realized why Itachi wasn't using his dojutsu or ninjutsu.
Kimimaro was immediately disappointed.
At that moment, the Uchiha also noticed—their chakra had suddenly returned. Their strength and mental clarity had fully recovered.
"You bastard!!!"
Tamao roared and hurled his kunai at Itachi, then drew his tachi and prepared to charge with the other awakened clansmen.
Tap—
Light footsteps sounded.
The Uchiha were stunned.
Before they could move, a graceful figure dashed past like a swallow in flight—it was Uchiha Izumi, her Sharingan now a complete three tomoe.
Swish—
Through the pouring rain—
Izumi's face was icy cold, expressionless. Her three-tomoe eyes radiated killing intent. Her black cloak billowed as she outpaced even the kunai, teleporting instantly behind Kimimaro.
She and the few remaining clansmen had escaped Konoha. They had finally seen through its lies and glimpsed hope.
In the future, the reborn Uchiha would be led and rebuilt by Yu.
She would never allow Uchiha Itachi to trample this newly budding hope.
After regaining her chakra, Izumi was no longer under control. Now, she was acting out her truest will.
"Die!!!"
Izumi stared coldly at Itachi, seething with fury. She drove her tachi straight into his chest—piercing his heart.
Boom—
Itachi's eyes widened as he stared at Izumi, a hint of shock in his gaze.
He slowly closed his eyes—and dissolved into smoke and dust.
Unnoticed, Uchiha Mikoto had fainted at some point and now lay unconscious in the cold rain.
Only then did the Uchiha realize—this Itachi was just a shadow clone.
When they turned around—
They saw Yu had already flickered toward the cliffs at the Valley of Judgment. Behind him, tens of thousands of mind-controlled shinobi surged in a dark mass.
In that instant, it was as if an army of thousands followed behind him, charging into battle.
At the rear of the army followed a giant, colossal purple serpent.
Yu became a blur of motion, crossing the plains, bounding up the cliffs, his figure like the wind.
He wasn't concerned about chakra at the moment.
Previously, Uchiha Yu had stopped and chose not to personally attack Itachi because he had discerned that the one present was just a shadow clone—not the real Itachi.
As for how the Uchiha and Kimimaro had suddenly recovered their chakra—it was due to one of the abilities of Yu's "Yasakani": Chakra Transmission.
The Mangekyō could not only absorb the chakra of marked shinobi but also inject the absorbed chakra into Yu himself or others.
As for why Yu didn't immediately replenish the Uchiha's chakra—he wanted them to clearly see Itachi's choices.
Had they not been in a weakened state, Itachi's shadow clone might not have even appeared.
Back in the forest—
"Follow the captain!!!"
Uchiha Minami was the first to react. He signaled for Nonoyu to carry the unconscious Mikoto and began organizing the group methodically to follow Yu.
At the cliffs of the Valley of Judgment—
The Legendary Sannin watched as Yu led a flood of people charging straight at them. Jiraiya immediately guessed Yu's true goal.
This guy still wasn't planning to let the retreating Hyuga ninja squad escape.
On top of that—
Yu seemed intent on using the over ten thousand Konoha shinobi who had originally been mobilized to fight him to now turn on the one commanding them—Hyuga Hiashi!
"..."
Jiraiya clenched his jaw, face grim.
He knew full well—if Hiashi wanted to retreat successfully, Itachi could no longer be relied upon.
Only by summoning Gamabunta might he have any hope of protecting Hiashi from both the army and Yu.
Just as Jiraiya was preparing to act, he was shocked to discover—
Orochimaru, who had been beside Tsunade, had already vanished from sight.
"Orochimaru..."
Jiraiya scanned the surroundings in disbelief, frozen in place, staring in the direction Orochimaru had disappeared.
Tsunade was multitasking—watching both the oncoming crowd from the front of the valley and the departing Orochimaru.
Shizune still hadn't fully processed the reversal of the situation.
Rumble—
The ground trembled.
After leaving, Orochimaru performed hand signs and slapped the ground, summoning three giant brown snakes.
He stood atop the head of the central serpent, arms crossed over his chest, heading toward the southeast—where Konoha lay.
The three snakes rampaged through the forest with overwhelming force. To ordinary people, they were terrifying beasts. Even elite jonin would feel fear at such a sight.
"Finally, it's time!"
Orochimaru's lips curled into a smile, his eyes gleaming with anticipation and excitement. According to his plan with Yu, Yu would slaughter the elite Konoha forces sent this time.
As long as Yu eliminated the Hyuga clan head, the mission would be complete.
Orochimaru's role—was to block anyone else who tried to interfere.
Meanwhile, to the southeast, two figures flickered rapidly toward the Valley of Judgment.
Tap—
Through wind and rain, the two dashed across the tree branches, which trembled under their weight.
Suddenly—
"Cough…"
One of them—wearing the Uchiha clan uniform—stopped, spitting up a mouthful of blood. He bent over, bracing against a tree, as if struck by a sudden, invisible blow.
It was none other than the real Itachi, who had arrived later.
Beside him was Obito.
Obito, wearing his mask, looked back at the weakened Itachi and asked in a deep voice:
"What's wrong?"
"Nothing. Let's keep going."
Itachi's expression remained calm as he wiped the blood from his mouth. After his shadow clone was destroyed by having its heart pierced, the memory feedback triggered internal chaos, causing his blood to churn and illusionary chest pain in his real body.
What surprised him most—was that the one who destroyed the shadow clone was Izumi, and she had done it so decisively.
Rumble—
The ground and trees shook violently.
Obito looked up and saw three massive snakes charging toward them, crushing huge swaths of the forest. With disdain, he said:
"Looks like someone doesn't want us getting through."
°°°
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