Yuto glanced down at Hiruzen's body lying at his feet, a faint flicker passing through his eyes.
No matter what, those words Hiruzen had thrown at him before he died had stirred a trace of unease deep in Yuto's heart.
Just from this Shin Susenju (True Several Thousand Hands) that never appeared in the original story, it was clear that Hashiboy really had prepared things specifically with him in mind.
As for this Shin Susenju, it was probably something Hashiboy had tossed down "casually" back then.
After all, a single Shin Susenju wasn't enough to deal with Yuto.
Boom. Boom.
With Hiruzen's death, Enma, whom he had summoned, dissolved into white smoke with a face full of unwilling rage.
The enormous Shin Susenju beneath Yuto's feet likewise unraveled into a massive cloud of smoke, apparently because Hiruzen had torn the scroll.
Yuto's body dropped from high in the air, plummeting toward the ground. With a thought, a chakra chain spilled from his body and wrapped around Hiruzen's corpse.
Falling from several hundred meters up, the speed was terrifying, yet when Yuto landed, he didn't make a sound.
All the impact and the energy of that landing was completely absorbed into his body.
It was as if he had merely alighted lightly on the ground.
Retracting the chain, Yuto set Hiruzen's body gently on the earth.
"Whether what you said was true or not… I have to admit, you win."
"I'm not backing off because I'm afraid of whatever Hashiboy left behind. It's because I know that if I get sealed again, there might never be a second chance."
Yuto spoke quietly as he looked down at the corpse.
Then he lifted his head and gazed toward Konoha, though the massive smoke cloud from Shin Susenju's dispersal blocked his view.
Because of that same smoke, Konoha couldn't see him either.
He hadn't fully achieved every goal this time, but overall the harvest wasn't small.
The forces Iwa, Kumo, and Suna had sent were almost entirely wiped out. Konoha had taken even heavier losses—not only had half the village been destroyed, they had also lost a Kage in the process.
After this battle, Kiri's strength had effectively risen into the upper tier of the Five Great Villages.
The other villages would likely suspect Kiri—after all, Kiri had taken the least damage, and Yuto had personally intervened.
But suspicion was still only suspicion.
And now Konoha had exposed Shin Susenju, a technique with terrifying power that restrained tailed beasts so effectively.
Compared with worrying about Kiri's schemes, the other villages would definitely be more wary of Konoha.
Who knew if Konoha had more techniques like Shin Susenju hidden away? If they did, then from the other villages' perspective, Konoha's threat level had just shot straight up.
On top of that, anything about Yuto himself was taboo information to the shinobi world. The number of people who knew he hadn't died but had only been sealed away was vanishingly small.
"This operation is bound to expose a lot of flaws. But honestly, if there were no issues at all, that'd be the real problem."
A playful gleam flashed in Yuto's eyes as he muttered to himself.
Unless Orochimaru resurrected and announced to the world that Yuto was alive, the other villages would, at most, move quietly in the dark.
And for Orochimaru to revive, someone would have to help him and satisfy the requirements of his resurrection ritual.
"I almost forgot about you, Kabuto."
Realization crossed Yuto's face.
Before the smoke had fully cleared, his form blurred and vanished from where he stood.
When he appeared again, Yuto was already beside the wooden prison that bound the three tailed beasts.
Seeing the three jinchuuriki, all in a state that looked like sleep, Yuto had to admit Hiruzen did have some skill.
But he couldn't allow these three to stay locked up like this.
Whoosh—
Several chakra chains shot out, stabbing into the bodies of Gyuki and Kokuo.
In the next moment, a portion of the Eight-Tails' and Five-Tails' chakra was peeled away and drawn easily into Yuto's body.
"Now… there's just one last step."
Yuto looked toward the thick smoke in front of him and stretched his arm out toward Konoha. His five fingers twitched slightly.
Five chakra chains snapped out from his fingertips, streaking toward the village.
Meanwhile, on Konoha's side—
The earlier joy at watching Shin Susenju crush the four great villages had long since vanished.
"Hiruzen… actually lost?"
Homura's voice trembled, his face full of disbelief.
They hadn't seen clearly what had just happened in the battle, but the way Shin Susenju had dissolved into smoke told them plainly that Hiruzen had most likely been defeated.
That was the First Hokage's technique—something that could stand toe-to-toe with tailed beasts—yet even with that, he had still lost.
A mysterious shinobi…
And then there was the Uzumaki clan's unique jutsu, Kongou Fuuin (Adamantine Sealing Chains).
Danzo's expression had gone stiff.
Hadn't the Uzumaki clan been wiped out? Since when did such a powerful Uzumaki appear?
Just then, several sharp whistling sounds cut through the air.
Five strands of Kongou Fuuin erupted from the lingering smoke, whipping toward the Konoha shinobi.
Many ninja attacked or tried to block them, but the chains were incredibly agile.
Simple Doton (Earth Release) walls were pierced through with ease.
"Kongou Fuuin of the Uzumaki clan…"
Jiraiya's face was solemn and confused. One Rasengan (Rasengan) smashed into one of the chains, shattering it.
Tsunade rushed out from the side and drove a fist into another chain, breaking it apart as well.
The Konoha jounin moved almost as one, striking in quick succession to smash two more of the chains.
"Not good, those chains are aiming for… Naruto!"
Kakashi's expression changed as he saw the last chakra chain arrowing straight toward Naruto.
But by the time he reacted, the chain had already wrapped itself around Naruto and was yanking him in the direction of Yuto.
"No, the target is the Nine-Tails! Stop him!"
Danzo shouted, his face twisting.
Naruto struggled desperately, but it felt as if his chakra had been locked down. He couldn't muster any strength at all.
He didn't notice at all that the Kongou Fuuin binding him was pumping a special chakra continuously into his body.
It was the pure, unique chakra of the Uzumaki clan—the same chakra Yuto had taken from Kushina.
As that chakra flowed in, Naruto suddenly felt the power inside him, originally sealed and suppressed, begin to stir.
A roar tore out of his throat.
Boom. Boom. Boom.
Before the stunned eyes of the Konoha shinobi, a terrifying chakra erupted from Naruto's body, and several strands of Kongou Fuuin burst out from within him!
//Check out my P@tre0n for 20 extra chapters on all my fanfics //[email protected]/Razeil0810