Konan's body instantly split into countless paper fragments. She twisted in midair, borrowing momentum as she leapt higher, paper spears firing like rain and knocking the kunai off their trajectories.
"Mind Body Switch Technique!"
A sudden shout rang out.
Konan's body stiffened. Her eyes went blank, and her body spun violently in the air—she flung Nagato with all her strength straight toward the pursuing enemies.
"Yamanaka clan!"
Yahiko's pupils shrank. He had spent enough time in Konoha to instantly recognize the Yamanaka clan's secret technique!
The next moment, Konan's eyes regained their clarity. When she saw Nagato falling through the air, her face turned pale with panic, and she immediately flew toward him.
"Fire Release: Great Fire Dragon Technique!"
"Wind Release: Great Breakthrough!"
Sarutobi clan shinobi formed seals at once. Several dragon-like torrents of flame intertwined with violent gusts of wind, surging straight toward Konan!
Konan's fingers trembled slightly. She had no choice but to halt her pursuit and hastily condense a thick paper wall. In an instant, the paper barrier was torn apart by the blazing fire dragons. The shockwave blasted her back several meters, her clothes whipping violently as shredded paper scattered like snow.
She gritted her teeth, stabilized herself, and stared unblinkingly in the direction where Nagato was falling—then charged forward again.
But at that moment, several kunai ripped through the air, sealing off her path.
Yahiko was surrounded by Mito clan shinobi and couldn't break free to help at all!
Just then—
"Water Release: Great Shark Bullet Technique!"
A massive water shark formed in midair and slammed forward, instantly swallowing the flying kunai and shuriken. The water shark didn't stop there—it crashed straight into the enemy formation, forcing several shinobi to retreat.
As they fell back, a figure carrying a massive blade charged straight into the crowd—
It was Kisame Hoshigaki!
"Well, well… so Konoha isn't all that peaceful either," Kisame sneered, cleaving a ninja's neck in one strike. His small, bead-like eyes brimmed with mockery.
"Kisame-san! Please protect Nagato!" Konan shouted.
"No problem!" Kisame grinned viciously, blood splashing as his blade swept through another enemy. He then turned and dashed toward where Nagato had fallen.
Seizing the opening, Konan rushed forward again, paper spikes forming at her fingertips before she unleashed a storm of them toward the enemy ranks.
But then—something unexpected happened.
Nagato, who had been falling, suddenly opened his eyes.
The concentric ripples of the Rinnegan spread outward like waves. An invisible repulsive force erupted from Nagato as the center, the ground cracking apart as if the earth itself were surging.
"Shinra Tensei!"
In an instant, all attacks were crushed into dust. The shinobi were flung away like broken kites, the sounds of snapping bones echoing one after another.
Konan and Yahiko were not spared.
Kisame reacted the fastest, instantly raising Samehada in front of himself—but even so, the overwhelming force blasted him away.
Nagato slowly descended to the ground, his Rinnegan coldly surveying the surroundings. Shattered rocks floated in midair, an oppressive pressure filling the battlefield.
But that state lasted only a few seconds.
His eyes rolled back—and he collapsed unconscious.
A shinobi burst up from the ground beside Nagato.
It was Yamanaka Fū!
He reached out toward Nagato's eyes—
Flash!
Pshhk—
Yamanaka Fū felt his vision engulfed in golden light. The next instant, a sharp pain tore through his neck, and darkness crept over his sight.
Namikaze Minato's golden hair fluttered in the wind. He pulled a specially made Flying Thunder God kunai from Yamanaka Fū's throat, his gaze sweeping across the battlefield like lightning.
With one hand, he grabbed Nagato by the back of the collar and said coldly,
"I am the Fourth Hokage, Namikaze Minato. All of you are to immediately cease all actions. Otherwise, you will be treated as traitors and executed on the spot!"
The battlefield fell dead silent. Dust drifted slowly in the air.
Konan dropped to one knee, her paper wings shattered and hanging loosely, yet her eyes remained locked on Minato.
Yahiko struggled to his feet, hope igniting in his gaze.
Kisame leaned on his blade, a cold grin on his face as blood slid from the corner of his mouth.
The surrounding shinobi exchanged looks. They knew the mission had failed. Facing the Yellow Flash of Konoha, surrender was their only option.
Minato lightly tapped the ground, appearing in a flash beside Konan and Yahiko. He gently placed Nagato beside Konan and pressed his hand to Nagato's chest, imprinting a Flying Thunder God formula.
He then appeared next to Kisame and spoke softly,
"Thank you for your help, Kisame-san."
Kisame hoisted Samehada onto his shoulder and laughed harshly.
"Since I'm a Konoha ninja now, protecting the village is only natural."
Soon, ANBU arrived to seal off the area. Medical teams rushed in to treat the wounded, while all the attacking shinobi were taken away to the interrogation division.
Meanwhile, at the edge of the village—
Uchiha Fugaku stood respectfully behind Sarutobi Hiruzen.
Beside Hiruzen stood a Sarutobi clansman. One of his eyes was a Mangekyō Sharingan, while the other had turned a dull gray—clearly blind.
Shisui's corpse lay discarded in a corner. The wound on his neck was unmistakable, silently recounting his final struggle.
"To waste one on Fugaku…" Utane Koharu said with clear dissatisfaction.
"The original plan was one for Minato and one for Wen Lan. Who would've thought it'd be wasted like this."
"The plan deviated, but the Uchiha's power has been successfully planted in a critical position," Hiruzen said in a low voice, his eyes unmoving.
"Minato thinks like a Hokage, but in the end, he's too gentle with the village. As long as Wen Lan is controlled and forcibly suppressed, he'll have no way to resist."
"Judging by Wen Lan's speed, he should be back in the village the day after tomorrow," Mito Homura said from the side.
"If this happens inside the village, we'd be facing Minato along with numerous jōnin—even Kage-level threats.
And if Wen Lan learns that the Uchiha compound was attacked, his first reaction will be to rush back in rage. In that state of fury and chaos, controlling him won't be easy.
I suggest we ambush him halfway, take advantage of the terrain, and use Kotoamatsukami to control him!"
Hiruzen thought for a moment, then slowly nodded.
"Very well. We'll do it that way.
As for Minato… let him cool off for a while."
Minato did not return home. Instead, he went straight back to the Hokage's office.
At that moment, the clan heads and ANBU were already assembled.
Minato's face was dark as he looked down at the ten ANBU kneeling before him, his voice cold:
"Sarutobi, Mito, Utane, and Shimura clans left their compounds. Why didn't you report it?"
The ten ANBU trembled violently.
"We detected no one entering or leaving the four clans' compounds. There must have been secret tunnels!"
Minato's eyes narrowed. He did not doubt their loyalty—otherwise, he would never have assigned them to monitor the four clans in the first place.
Nara Shikaku spoke slowly from the side,
"Wen Lan left just earlier, and the Third Hokage couldn't wait to make his move. This has everything to do with him.
But this is not something you can handle."
Minato frowned and looked at Shikaku, who continued without pause:
"You are the Hokage. If you besiege the Third Hokage right after taking office—even if it's true that they attacked fellow villagers—you'll become a laughingstock in the ninja world. It'll damage your reputation.
This… has to be done by Wen Lan."
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