The shinobi from the Shimura clan collapsed to the ground like a broken puppet.His entire body was paralyzed by the electric shock, and he was on the brink of unconsciousness.
Naraku approached calmly, watching as the ninja struggled to remain awake. Blood trickled from the corner of the man's mouth—a dark, almost black stream.
Suddenly, the Root seal activated—a long-engraved jutsu detonating inside the ninja's mind. In an instant, his brain was destroyed. Any potential intel evaporated with him.
Naraku sighed softly."Classic Root protocol."Fail the mission? Die.Get captured? Die.Survive too long? Still die.
They were tools. No past. No future. No names. No emotions. Only orders.
—
Elsewhere in the forest, the two remaining Root shinobi whispered in the shadows.
The one from the Nara clan asked,"His chakra shield… can you break it?"
The Aburame hesitated."Uncertain. I'd have to test it myself."
The Wind Release: Vacuum Sphere from their fallen Shimura ally hadn't even scratched Naraku's barrier.
Both began to realize the same thing.
This mission might be impossible.
Still, neither flinched. Their fear of death had been erased long ago. The only concern left was mission failure.
These weren't the typical Nara or Aburame you'd find in Konoha.The Nara's hair wasn't styled in the family's signature spiky ponytail. The Aburame didn't wear sunglasses or a high collar.They had shed their clan identities, swallowed by Root's void.
—
The Nara made the first move.
He extended his shadow toward Naraku, letting it slither beneath the trees.
"Did I… get him?"His shadow had touched Naraku's.
He quickly weaved hand seals:"Shadow Imitation: Binding Technique!"
But when he looked up—
Naraku was staring straight at him, lips barely moving.
"Sorry. I'm stronger."
The Nara's eyes widened in horror.
Suddenly, his own shadow twisted unnaturally—stretching up like a hand—grabbing his throat.
"My shadow—it's out of control!"
Naraku's hand closed slowly in the air.The Nara ninja collapsed unconscious.
"Second target secured," Naraku muttered.
He understood their techniques.
The Nara clan's shadow jutsu was only a surface-level application of Yin Release. They used ambient shadow and shaped it with chakra.Naraku, having grasped the true essence of Yin Release, could manipulate shadow at a higher level—even hijack it.
—
The remaining Aburame ninja said nothing.
With ruthless efficiency, he released a swarm of black insects toward his fallen comrade. The beetles burrowed under the unconscious man's skin.
Within seconds, the Nara ninja's body turned black and limp.
Dead.
Naraku arrived moments later.
"Another one… dead. Again with the suicides."
Root's code was absurd. Succeed and die. Fail and die. Even teammates weren't safe if they jeopardized the mission.
Without warning, the last Aburame launched a fresh attack. Black insects poured out from his sleeves like a tide of death.
Naraku activated his Chidori Stream. Lightning crackled across his body, electrocuting the beetles as they approached.
"This trick again?" he muttered, unimpressed.
But this time, something was different.
The beetles began draining his chakra.
"These aren't ordinary poisonous insects… They're chakra-absorbing!"
Naraku reinforced his lightning barrier, blue energy crackling to life.
He still held the advantage. But he had to admit—these Root shinobi were exceptional.
The Shimura's wind tactics. The Nara's infiltration. The Aburame's strategy.All of them were elite.It was a tragedy they had been molded into emotionless machines.
Even the chakra-draining beetles couldn't fully breach Naraku's defense. His barrier was simply too powerful.
"If that was your trump card…" he began.
The real Aburame appeared in a blur behind the insect clone.
Thousands of insects darkened the sky like a plague descending.
Naraku didn't flinch. He began forming hand signs.
"Fire Style: Vanishing Blaze Jutsu."
A wave of roaring flame engulfed the battlefield.
Insects screeched and burned. The fire crackled.When the smoke cleared, the last Root shinobi's corpse lay blackened on the ground.
[Victory over Root Ninja – Chakra +75][Victory over Root Ninja – Chakra +50][Victory over Root Ninja – Chakra +75]
The system messages flashed across Naraku's vision.
And then—Multiple chakra signatures rapidly approached.
Leading them was a powerful presence.
Sarutobi Hiruzen. The Third Hokage.
The elderly man landed with surprising grace, his expression stern.
"You… who are you?! Why are you attacking Konohagakure's shinobi—?"
He stopped.
His gaze fell on the battlefield.
Ashes. Burned trees. Three Root corpses.And at the center—Naraku.
Calm. Unflinching.
The Third Hokage's voice faltered.
Naraku raised his eyes slowly and met his gaze.