In the Uzumaki Courtyard, Uzumaki Mito suddenly stood up.
"This is bad! Takayama Haru went out?"
"To seek death? Someone's seriously trying to wipe out the Senju clan!"
A fiery aura of golden Tailed Beast chakra erupted across Uzumaki Mito's body. Her eyes turned into fox-like slits, and sealing patterns unique to the Uzumaki clan emerged on her skin.
Boom!
With a single leap, Uzumaki Mito shot out of the courtyard.
At the same time, inside the Hokage's office, Hiruzen Sarutobi abruptly stood up from his seat. Just then, Orochimaru entered the room.
"Sensei…"
"Hold on, Orochimaru. Whatever it is, it can wait."
"But, sensei, this is important—"
"Out!"
Hiruzen gave Orochimaru a cold glance. His figure flickered and vanished from sight.
"Danzo… I should've suspected this a long time ago."
The Sarutobi patriarch sped toward Takayama Haru's location, a bitter smile tugging at the corner of his mouth.
He hadn't expected Danzo to stoop this low.
To target Takayama within the village itself—unforgivable.
"You think that without evidence, you can get away with this?"
"You're wrong…"
Hiruzen could already sense the Nine Tails' chakra—Mito had fully snapped.
"Danzo… what are you doing? Even the last bloodline of the Senju clan—are you going to destroy that too?"
"If you keep pushing forward like this, Danzo, there really will be no turning back…"
In a narrow alleyway, ten Root operatives were attacking Takayama Haru from all sides.
Poisonous insects, Genjutsu users, Sharingan bearers—an overwhelming tide of kunai and shuriken, all laced with paralyzing agents, came flying toward him.
Just as all the attacks converged, countless clones suddenly emerged from Takayama's body.
Wood Style—Shadow Clone Jutsu!
Yamanaka-style Mind Transfer Jutsu had been aimed straight at him—but the clones disrupted the spiritual attack. The jutsu had no effect.
At the same time, poisoned weapons and shuriken pelted the clones, shielding Takayama Haru from harm.
Boom! Boom! Boom!
Each clone took the hit and exploded into wood fragments.
Masked Yamanaka Kazeka hesitated, sweat forming on his brow.
This Takayama Haru… is tricky.
Just one Shadow Clone Jutsu, and he'd already broken their entire formation?
Meanwhile, the two Aburame women resumed their attack—releasing a swarm of insects from within their bodies.
Wearing their specialized goggles, they were unmistakably oil-handling kunoichi.
A thick wave of parasitic insects crawled forth, flying directly toward Takayama.
Even other members of Root didn't dare approach, fearing they'd get caught in the insect storm.
"I think I'm starting to develop trypophobia. Good thing Kushina's already unconscious."
Takayama muttered, then clapped his hands together.
"Wood Style—Birth of the Tree World!"
Chakra surged from the soles of his feet and into the earth.
In an instant, massive trees erupted from the ground, tearing through the nearby buildings like unstoppable giants.
Boom! Boom! Boom!
With a thunderous crash, every nearby shinobi leapt out of their rooms in shock.
"What the hell's going on?!"
How had the area suddenly transformed into a lush, forested battlefield?
Blond-haired Minato was still engaged in battle with a masked shinobi when a massive tree root erupted from the ground beneath his opponent.
"Agh!"
The masked ninja flew through the air like an angry bird, crashing to the ground with a painful thud.
Minato's eye twitched.
That was… shockingly effective. Like something out of a slapstick manga.
A certain infamous Leaf jutsu came to mind—A Thousand Years of Death.
Savage.
The man's mask shattered. His pants, torn. A tragic sight.
Minato stared at the now-exposed face and froze in disbelief.
"Shinraku-senpai…?"
It was Shinraku Tanuki, a high-ranking operative from the Root Organization!
Coughing up a mouthful of blood, Shinraku took one look at his injuries, turned pale, and fled the scene without a word.
Minato didn't chase him. Instead, his eyes shifted toward the forested battlefield.
Looking up at the dense canopy, he realized something.
Takayama Haru… had become powerful.
Born of the forest itself.
Just what was Root planning?
And then—another explosion sounded behind Minato.
Golden chakra flames erupted from Uzumaki Mito's body, cracking the concrete beneath her feet as she landed.
"Minato… what happened?"
"Grandma Mito, Takayama's in there—"
Mito gazed into the newly-grown forest, a flicker of something ancient flashing in her eyes. In her mind, the image of Hashirama Senju rose once more.
"You stay out here. I'll go in and take a look…"
Just then, a giant Adamantine Staff slammed down beside her. A slender figure descended through the air.
"The Third Hokage!"
Hiruzen Sarutobi landed beside Minato and gave him a curt nod—only to be immediately scolded by Uzumaki Mito.
"Hiruzen! What are you doing? How could you let criminals run loose in the village?!"
With a heavy sigh, Hiruzen replied, "Mito-sama… put the Nine Tails away for now. Let the students handle this themselves. Give them… one more chance."
Even after becoming Hokage, Hiruzen had never once called himself her student.
But today, facing Mito's fury and her immense power, he felt ashamed—ashamed that his generation had failed their teachers.
He was angry, too.
Meanwhile, the eruption of the Tree World had shaken the heart of the village. All eyes turned toward the scene.
Patrolling nearby was the Uchiha clan, led by Uchiha Fugaku.
Fugaku was the first to spot the giant trees and the booming explosion at the village center.
"What the hell happened over there?"
"Move out!"
With his command, the Uchiha clan raced toward the site.
At the Hyuga compound, prodigious siblings Hiashi and Hinata both turned their gaze toward the disturbance.
Their white eyes locked onto the chakra surging through the tree forest.
"It's thick with chakra… what's going on over there?"
"Let's check it out."
Not only the Uchiha and Hyuga clans, but also Inuzuka and the rest of the noble houses, had all shifted their focus toward the forest.
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