Da-da-da—
After Hiruzen Sarutobi departed, the elite ANBU loyal to the Hokage melted back into the shadows. As their footsteps faded into the distance, the Root base fell into utter silence.
Koharu Utatane turned to look at Homura Mitokado.
She sighed and shook her head.
"Let's begin researching the forbidden technique."
"Mmm. I'll have this place sealed off. I never thought Konoha would reach this point so soon," Homura replied, frowning with worry as he adjusted his glasses. "Are you prepared for our sensei's wrath?"
Koharu remained silent for a long time before bitterly shaking her head.
"When our teacher entrusted Konoha to the Monkey and made us his advisors… well, here we are. Step by step, we've come to this. Compared to his scolding, letting the village perish and being remembered as those who led it to ruin would be far worse."
The two fell into a heavy silence.
They truly couldn't imagine what Tobirama Senju would say if he were reanimated and saw the current state of Konoha.
But what terrified them even more… was the possible wrath of the God of Shinobi.
"In my memory, the God of Shinobi was always a very kind uncle…" Homura muttered guiltily.
Still, if they dared use Edo Tensei to bring back Konoha's former Hokage, they would surely face the judgment of the First Hokage.
Koharu sighed.
"He may be kind… but when it comes to matters of the ninja village, the First was always unyielding."
"Sigh… It's all that cursed Uchiha brat's fault. If not for him, Konoha wouldn't be such a mess!" Homura muttered angrily, pressing his forehead before waving a hand toward the door.
Whoosh—
A flicker of shadows—three Konoha ninja in green flak jackets appeared, kneeling respectfully before the two advisors.
"Send more teams to guard the Root base. Until the war ends, no one is allowed inside—not even the Hokage himself—without our authorization."
Homura spoke sternly, hands clasped behind his back, exuding authority as though he were Konoha's true leader.
"Yes, sir!"
The leading ninja lowered his head and then hesitantly asked,
"What if… the former head of Root, Uchiha Itachi, comes?"
Koharu's face darkened.
Homura replied coldly,
"You said it yourself—former head."
"Understood!"
The team dispersed. Two remained hidden in the shadows, while one left to organize the security detail.
Once the storage room was empty, Koharu said in a chilling voice: "There has only ever been one true leader of Root—Danzō. As for Itachi, he was a pawn discarded once useless. He doesn't deserve the title."
"Speaking of Itachi… he's half-crippled now, and he's about the right age to marry and have children. Why not use him to produce a controllable Uchiha bloodline for Konoha's future?"
The thought suddenly emerged in Homura's mind, his deeply wrinkled face softening slightly.
With that, perhaps Tobirama's wrath wouldn't be so severe.
Koharu thought for a moment, then nodded.
"Not a bad idea. Let's leave the decision to the Monkey once the war ends."
"Agreed."
---
Outside Konoha.
Creeeaak—
The main gates slowly opened. A massive force of Konoha shinobi, led by Hiruzen Sarutobi, surged forth like a tidal wave heading northwest.
The ground trembled.
Dust and wind swirled.
Ninjas leaned forward, hands behind their backs, sprinting swiftly across the terrain.
Since the Third Great Ninja War, this marked the first time Konoha had re-entered a full-scale wartime state.
At the front of the formation, Hiruzen felt uneasy. While the external threats were to be dealt with by him and the clan leaders, the village's internal affairs had been left in the hands of the two advisors and a small elite force…
He had a bad feeling that problems might arise in his absence.
"Given the Land of Fire and Konoha's position—central and slightly east—it's hard for other villages to stage a surprise attack. The one village best positioned for that is the overseas Land of Water, Kirigakure.
During the Third War, they even sent the Seven Ninja Swordsmen on such a mission.
But now, Kirigakure is in chaos.
Even though the village is sealed tight and no news escapes, the sheer number of defectors says enough about its turmoil."
Hiruzen reviewed the global situation in his mind, brows furrowing deeper.
"Let's hope I'm just being paranoid."
As for Sunagakure, Konoha's leadership had already reached out, hoping they would strike at Iwagakure's flank while it attacked Konoha.
But Sunagakure was weak now. Earlier this year, the Daimyō of the Land of Wind had again slashed their military budget.
Hiruzen dared not rely on the young Fourth Kazekage, Rasa.
At present, Konoha's greatest concern remained a surprise strike from Kumogakure.
---
Land of Hot Water – Hot Spring Village.
In the hot spring inn where Uchiha Yu was staying, the sun had risen high near noon, and the light outside the window was bright.
"Mmm—"
Mikoto stirred gently from sleep, feeling refreshed mentally but physically exhausted.
Yu had been gentle last night… but the length and frequency had left her sore and aching.
She suddenly felt a warm body pressing against her—someone had snuggled up close. A thick fragrance lingered in the air.
Mikoto opened her eyes—and there was Tsunade, staring back at her.
Their eyes locked.
Awkward—!!!
Both quickly shut their eyes again.
Rustle—
Clothes dropped down over their faces. Standing by the window, Yu tossed their outfits over them and spoke:
"Food's on the table. Get dressed. Eat lunch. We're leaving soon."
"You bastard!!!"
Tsunade, burning with embarrassment, gritted her teeth and sprang from the bed.
She was like a wildcat—swift and sharp. Her movement was fluid and deadly.
Clang—
Yu's Sharingan eyes glowed crimson, Mangekyō spinning. One glare—and Tsunade froze, stunned. She quietly started getting dressed.
"Yu-kun…"
Mikoto blushed and bit her lip. Without a word, she put on her clothes and knelt on the tatami mat, obediently eating lunch with Tsunade.
"You coward! Unlock the jutsu and fight me fair and square!!" Tsunade yelled between bites, furious enough to make the room tremble.
"Not yet… but that day will come."
Yu drank a bottle of green potion with a gulp, feeling his strength rise ever so slightly.
Mikoto sipped her porridge and looked out toward the bamboo grove, guilt and sorrow flickering in her heart.
"I'm sorry, Fugaku… Sasuke needs a new home."
---
Two days later.
Kikyō Castle.
The fires of war raged. Thick smoke billowed across the skies. The city's walls were in ruins, pockmarked with craters and collapse. It looked like it had been struck by a natural disaster. Bodies of shinobi littered the ground.
In a forest nearby, the last Konoha defense unit from the southwest had been surrounded by Iwa-nin.
Kikyō Castle had fallen. The Iwa-nin had broken through the Land of Fire's border. Nothing now stood between them and Konoha.
"Death will only ignite the Will of Fire within us, shining a light on the next generation of Konoha. We will never become prisoners of Iwa-nin!!"
A wounded Konoha ninja stood firm, gripping his blade, shielding injured comrades. He stared defiantly at the approaching Iwa-nin and the elder flying overhead.
"Heh… The Will of Fire, you say? Will that save you?"
"But for holding out this long—I admire that. So I'll give you a dignified end!"
Ōnoki's gaze was as deep as a still ancient well. Slowly rising into the sky, he spread his arms wide and began gathering chakra aimed at the remaining Konoha forces below:
"Dust Release: Detachment of the Primitive World Technique!"
Buzz—
The air trembled.
A blinding white light flared.
As the Kekkei Tōta activated, the rectangular Dust Release core expanded and enveloped the area within a hundred meters of the remaining Konoha shinobi. The beam then compressed sharply.
The Konoha survivors were filled with horror and despair. Their eyes reflected the blinding white light.
Under the extreme disintegration of Wind, Earth, and Fire chakra natures fused together, their bodies were broken down to atoms—dispersing in the wind.
"Huff—"
Ōnoki hovered in the air, gasping for breath. He pulled out a soldier pill from his pouch and swallowed it to replenish his chakra.
This Konoha border defense unit had originally been stationed in the southwest, meant to guard against Sunagakure.
But after the collapse of the northwestern border forces, Konoha had no choice but to rob Peter to pay Paul.
There was no one in this squad capable of opposing Ōnoki.
Though they managed to stall Iwa-nin for a few days, they were ultimately wiped out.
"Lord Tsuchikage, we've annihilated Konoha's southwest defense force, and our side only lost 20%," said Bun'ya, a rugged-faced jōnin.
He was the one who had previously questioned Ōnoki for not using force against Uchiha Yu—and was also one of the new-generation elites groomed by the Tsuchikage.
This casualty ratio was quite favorable for Iwagakure.
"Heh, this is what happens when there's no strong leader on the battlefield," Ōnoki said with a satisfied chuckle.
"Lord Tsuchikage, should we now press forward and march straight to Konoha?" Bun'ya asked, his tone grave.
Still floating above, Ōnoki scanned the forest beyond Kikyō Castle with a cold sneer.
"I'd love nothing more than to march into Konoha… but someone won't let me. Heh. The real battle begins now."
As his words fell—
Whoosh—
A sharp gust cut the air.
A long black staff suddenly swept horizontally across the sky toward Ōnoki.
It was entirely pitch-black, with gold tips. Despite its sleekness, it smashed through the surrounding trees like it weighed a thousand tons.
"Adamantine Staff!" Ōnoki's pupils contracted. He calmly formed hand signs:
"Earth Style: Weight-Increasing Boulder Jutsu!"
Earth-nature chakra surged through his body. His small frame immediately grew heavy and dropped like a stone. The massive iron staff narrowly missed smashing his head.
Had it struck, he would've been turned into pulp.
Meanwhile, on the ground, Iwa-nin clashed with a sudden ambush of Konoha shinobi charging from the forest.
Clang clang—
Kunai collided, ninjutsu exploded, and roars of rage echoed—battle had erupted in full.
"The Hokage himself is leading them?"
Ōnoki narrowed his eyes at the sudden shift. He landed just before the staff's arc could catch him and released the weight technique, bracing himself on the ground. Then he formed new hand signs and shouted:
"Earth Style: Rock Arm Technique!"
A few hundred meters away—
RUMBLE—
The ground shook violently.
Hiruzen Sarutobi, clutching the massive Adamantine Staff, suddenly furrowed his brow and looked down—only to see a giant stone hand erupt from beneath him, wrapping around his body in a crushing grip.
Splurt—
His chest was immediately compressed. Blood spurted from his mouth—until—
Poof—
He vanished into a cloud of smoke.
"A shadow clone…"
Ōnoki smirked, glancing around—and just as expected, three shadows lunged toward him.
One was Enma, the Monkey King, who had disengaged the staff transformation in mid-air. The other two were Hiruzen's shadow clones charging from the sides.
"Earth Style: Stone Fist Jutsu!"
Ōnoki calmly infused Earth chakra into his right arm, morphing it into a hardened rock fist.
Then—
He turned.
He swung.
Veins bulged on his forehead. His white beard flared in the wind. As he hurled his fist skyward, he cast "Earth Style: Ultra-Added Weight Rock Technique" to amplify the impact.
"ROAR—!"
From above, Enma came crashing down, roaring through his fanged mouth. His expression was fierce as he raised his massive iron fist to clash with Ōnoki's punch.
Fist met fist.
BOOM—
A shockwave exploded.
The ground beneath Ōnoki shattered. His rocky fist fractured. Yet Enma was blasted backward, his fur coat bursting apart.
"It's up to you now!"
Enma roared as he tumbled through the air. Because he couldn't stabilize in midair, he lost the exchange.
Though his body was nearly indestructible, Ōnoki's blow still hurled him away.
"HAA!"
Hiruzen's two clones simultaneously reached Ōnoki's flanks, throwing punches from both sides.
The whistling wind of their fists roared.
But Ōnoki's small and elderly frame was far more agile than expected.
He ducked beneath the right punch, flipped backward to avoid the left, and landed swiftly. Then he slammed his palms to the earth:
"Earth Style: Seismic Core!"
RUMBLE—
Before the shadow clones could react, the ground beneath them fragmented into a massive square, collapsing into a deep pit.
Poof! Poof!
Two puffs of smoke—both clones were gone.
The exchange ended briefly.
The real Hiruzen Sarutobi stepped out of the forest, face cold and grim. He yelled:
"Ōnoki, go back! The ninja world finally found peace—do you really want to plunge it into war again and drown us all in bloodshed?"
Ōnoki slowly turned in mid-air, putting some distance between them, and sneered:
"Ōnoki is not a name you get to call so casually, Hiruzen. And I'm the one bringing destruction? What about your Leaf Village exterminating the Uchiha, slaughtering its own people? What would you call that?"
Though both Kage had paused, their armies hadn't. The shinobi of Iwa and Konoha were now locked in bloody combat, unwilling to back down.
Hiruzen's face darkened.
"This is an internal Konoha matter! It's not your place as Tsuchikage to interfere! Isn't it money Iwagakure wants? If you retreat now, there's still room to negotiate!"
Ōnoki laughed uproariously, full of contempt:
"Your internal matter? Uchiha Yu is considering bringing the Uchiha to Iwagakure.
As the Kage of the village the Uchiha may one day join, do you expect me to stand by while they're massacred?
Hiruzen, when it comes to the Uchiha—who's really the outsider?"
"Y-you…!" Hiruzen trembled, struck where it hurt most. He bellowed,
"Fine! If you want war, then war it is! But when Konoha recovers—you won't have peace, Ōnoki!"
Ōnoki sighed and shook his head:
"I thought you might say you'd flatten Iwagakure. But no—you're still the same coward you were back then.
You want me to retreat?
Last time, when Kumo kidnapped a Byakugan, you didn't dare retaliate—you pushed Hiashi's brother to take his own life instead.
So here's the deal:
Give me the Hyūga escorting you today—plus one member of the Hyūga main family—and I'll retreat immediately!"
Ōnoki's voice boomed like thunder across the battlefield, drowning out the clash of kunai and jutsu.
Among the Hyūga branch family members on the field, many trembled—this was the deepest scar in their hearts.
"That was Hizashi's own decision—to die in place of Hiashi. For peace in Konoha and in the ninja world! A noble sacrifice you could never understand!"
Hiruzen's face twisted with fury and shame as he shouted back.
It was now clear: Iwa had obtained a shocking amount of Konoha's internal intelligence—likely leaked by defectors like Orochimaru.
Ōnoki gave a mocking smile:
"What a nice word—'voluntary.' But let's be honest, Hiruzen—you're the only one who knows whether it really was."
With that, he raised his hands toward Hiruzen and unleashed:
"Dust Release: Detachment of the Primitive World Technique!"
°°°
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