Danzō's reaction was exceptionally fast. Even though Uchiha Izumi's Infinite Tsukuyomi activated without any warning, the moment he saw the flare of her ocular power, he immediately formed hand seals and cast a genjutsu-release technique.
However…
The instant he closed his eyes and cast Genjutsu Release, he reopened them to find himself standing in the middle of a vast, endless green meadow.
The sky was perfectly clear. A gentle breeze rippled across the waist-high grasses like waves over the sea. It was breathtakingly beautiful.
Danzō could even feel the wind brushing across his skin, smell the faint sweetness of the grass—everything felt utterly real.
But he knew it was impossible.
"Still trapped in a genjutsu? Impossible! Release!!"
Danzō put everything he had into breaking the illusion, but it accomplished nothing. Worse—his face contorted in fear when he realized that the Kage-level chakra in his body had completely vanished. Not a trace remained.
Just as he was trying every method he knew to break free, a faint rustling—sasa… sasa…—came from every direction. Instantly alert, Danzō shifted into a battle stance.
"Who's there?! Come out! Uchiha brat—if you have the guts, face me head-on! Don't skulk in the shadows like a coward! This kind of trick won't scare me!"
Danzō remained calm. While he didn't hold any academic title like "Ninja Professor," as the head of Root he had witnessed countless jutsu and secret arts. He understood well that most genjutsu relied on fear—creating horrifying illusions to break the target's mental defenses. At their core, these techniques were simply spiritual attacks.
When a genjutsu couldn't be dispelled, the best countermeasure was keeping calm. Refuse to be influenced, and the illusion would collapse on its own.
A correct strategy
but only against ordinary genjutsu.
Tsukuyomi was not an illusion. It was reality enforced by the caster.
As the rustling grew closer, Danzō finally saw the source.
Tens of thousands of cockroaches crawled out from between the grass, surging toward him.
Most scuttled across the ground, some even took flight—dense, writhing, overwhelming. Just looking at them stirred a primal sense of terror.
Danzō flinched, then coldly snorted.
"This all you've got? The Aburame are Root's elite—bugs don't scare me."
He moved to jump away
and froze.
His expression twisted. He couldn't move.
He could feel everything—the breeze, the ground beneath his feet—but not a single muscle obeyed him.
All he could do was watch as the first wave of cockroaches crawled over his boots, into his pant legs, and deeper inside.
A chorus of tiny, frantic gnawing sounds filled his ears as sharp mandibles tore through his skin.
First his flesh split apart.
Then the muscle beneath was shredded.
Some of the roaches burrowed deep inside, crawling along major arteries, moving upward.
"AAAAAAAH!!"
Even someone as cold-blooded as Danzō couldn't endure it. His screams echoed across the illusion.
More and more roaches piled onto him, joining the feast.
Half an hour passed. Danzō screamed until his voice failed. And then—
His mouth suddenly opened wide, stretching unnaturally.
A jet of cockroaches burst from his throat—gushing upward like oil from a ruptured well.
The sight would've been restricted even in a horror film.
Another thirty minutes passed.
By then, Danzō had been hollowed out completely—nothing remained but a bloody skeleton.
Strangely, even reduced to bones, he did not die. As the cockroaches retreated, thin strands of flesh began to regrow.
Slowly, more and more tissue formed, organs regenerated, muscles returned.
But while his body re-formed… the bone-deep itch and agony returned as well.
Suddenly his hands could move again. He immediately clawed at his regrowing flesh, desperately trying to tear away the unbearable sensation.
Each swipe ripped huge chunks of meat from his body, exposing raw bone.
Yet his regeneration now rivaled Hashirama Senju—new flesh regrew instantly, only to be torn off again and again.
And so the cycle repeated.
Another hour passed.
Danzō finally regained a human form—his regeneration outpacing his self-mutilation.
As the regeneration completed, the itching vanished. Danzō collapsed, panting heavily, nearly unconscious.
But then—he laughed.
"Hah… is that all? Impressive genjutsu—a perfect simulation of all five senses. Truly worthy of Mangekyō Sharingan. But defeating me? Not nearly enough!"
Izumi appeared before him. Danzō tried to counterattack—but found himself immobilized once more.
"Uchiha brat," he snarled, "use whatever tricks you want! Once I break free, your eyes will be the first things I rip out!"
Izumi smiled sweetly.
"Danzō, as expected of Root's leader. Out of the two hundred trapped in my Tsukuyomi, your mental endurance is the highest. You should last the next three days and nights."
The cockroaches appeared once more.
Danzō screamed and cursed endlessly as Izumi turned and walked away.
Just before she vanished, she added:
"Oh, by the way—I should tell you. Everything you just experienced?
It was only one minute in real time.
You still have two days and 1439 minutes to go.
Good luck—I believe in you♡"
Danzō's face twisted in horror.
Tsukuyomi was entirely under Izumi's control—time, space, all of it. What Danzō had perceived as hours had been less than a minute.
If not for the strain on her own eyes, Izumi could trap him forever.
All the other trapped shinobi suffered the same fate.
After only half a day, one-third of the Kumo shinobi collapsed—mental breakdowns, brain hemorrhages.
After another day, ninety percent of the Cloud ninja and half of Root were done for.
Two and a half days later, everyone except Danzō was dead or brain-dead.
Finally—three days passed.
Izumi's Mangekyō reverted back to three tomoe. Sweat beaded on her forehead, her breathing uneven.
And in reality… only one second had passed.
Rokuro lightly placed his hand on her shoulder.
"You okay?"
"I'll manage. It was my first time using Infinite Tsukuyomi in real combat. I wasted more chakra than I should've. But it was more than enough for this lot."
On the battlefield, aside from Rokuro and Izumi, no one remained standing.
Every shinobi except Danzō lay collapsed like dead fish—breathing, but soulless.
Danzō himself sprawled on the ground, drenched in cold sweat, convulsing uncontrollably. He tried several times to stand—his limbs refused to obey.
Rokuro dispelled Susanoo and approached him.
Danzō raised his head with difficulty, glaring at Rokuro and Izumi.
Suddenly, he clawed open his shirt, revealing the Reverse Four Symbols Seal carved into his chest. He began channeling chakra into it—ready to drag them all into death with him.
But before it activated, Rokuro tapped several points on his chest with blinding speed.
Danzō's eyes widened
the sealing formula vanished.
"Danzō… did you forget? Sealing techniques are my specialty. A minor jutsu like the Four Symbols Seal? Unlocking it is like opening my own door. Your final trick is useless."
"You won't dare kill me! If I die, Konoha will purge the Uchiha! No matter how strong you are, you can't fight the entire village!"
Rokuro burst into laughter.
"Danzō… you've spent your whole life plotting. How can you not realize that this entire battle was my trap from the very beginning?"
Danzō's expression stiffened.
He thought back—details he had overlooked. Why Rokuro used Susanoo openly inside the Uchiha compound. Why nothing had leaked earlier.
Rokuro could have set up a barrier. Could have tested his powers outside the village entirely. Everything pointed to premeditation.
But blinded by his inherited hatred from Tobirama, Danzō had misjudged everything.
"Danzō, since I arranged all of this, why would your survival matter to me? And considering how you've targeted me nonstop—I owe you nothing. The only disappointment is that some of the bigger fish were too cautious to take the bait."
Rokuro grabbed his hair and lifted him.
"You… what are you planning…?"
Those were Danzō's final words.
Rokuro wasn't the type to humor a dying man.
A flash of his hand
and Danzō's head fell.
The stench of the "Shadow Hokage's" life ended instantly.
Rokuro sealed the corpse into a scroll—it still held value.
"What about the others? Leave them? They won't survive long, but… should we just ignore them?" Izumi asked softly. She had killed many today, but these people were already living corpses—she didn't want to strike them again.
"Your Infinite Tsukuyomi is strong, but not unbreakable. If their bodies are recovered, someone might analyze information about it. Ninja intel is priceless. Leave it to me."
Black Susanoo manifested again—this time in its fourth form, with wings spread over two hundred meters and a towering Tengu mask.
It soared upward. At five hundred meters altitude, Rokuro drew the bowstring.
A colossal arrow—a technique rivaling Indra's Arrow—fell upon the fishing village.
BOOOOOOM!
Stronger than a Tailed Beast Bomb, the blast erased the entire village—buildings, harbor, and every corpse evaporated into ash.
"Let's go. Back to Konoha. Time for the next act."
They soared toward the Land of Fire.
Moments later, from a lone surviving tree, Black Zetsu emerged. Space twisted—Obito appeared via Kamui.
"Madara was right not to intervene. Those two Uchiha wield power beyond your current level," Zetsu chuckled.
Obito's exposed eye darkened as he gazed at the thousand-meter-wide crater from Rokuro's strike.
"Go retrieve your left eye. The Sharingan reaches full power only as a pair. With one eye, you're no match for them."
"You're lecturing me?" Obito growled, killing intent seeping from him.
Unfazed, Zetsu continued.
"That girl used Tsukuyomi—group Tsukuyomi at that. Genjutsu is your natural weakness. Your Kamui only negates physical attacks—mental attacks bypass it.
And that boy—Uchiha Rokuro—his blade is dangerous. We don't know its abilities yet, but it sliced through the Fourth Raikage's Lightning Cloak with ease. Another deadly threat."
From far away, Obito and Zetsu had watched the entire fight through telescopes—far enough that Rokuro and Izumi couldn't sense them.
Izumi's Infinite Tsukuyomi was recognizable even from a distance.
But Rokuro's Dimensional Blade, an unprecedented Mangekyō ability, was too fast and too close-range. They saw only its destructive power—none of its mechanisms.
Even so, Obito grew wary.
In the original timeline, Obito feared Sasuke for a reason—both of Sasuke's Mangekyō abilities countered Kamui.
Amaterasu ignited the moment the target entered his line of sight. Kamui, being an active ability, required reaction time.
If someone's speed surpasses Obito's reaction time, striking him before he can phase—then Kamui's intangibility simply cannot activate in time.
Minato Namikaze's Flying Thunder God: Second Stage, which severely injured Obito, served as clear evidence of this point.
If Kamui's intangibility were a passive ability, then even if Obito failed to react, it should have automatically triggered and nullified Minato's Rasengan. But it didn't.
He took the hit head-on—and lost control of Kurama because of it.
Amaterasu, too, activated almost instantly. One glance, and the flames erupted. Obito didn't have time to react to that either.
As for Tsukuyomi… even less needs to be said. It outright ignored Kamui. As long as the eyes met, the victim fell instantly.
And now Uchiha Izumi was using a group Tsukuyomi—far beyond Sasuke's single-eye version.
"In short, if you want to carry out the Eye of the Moon Plan and create your ideal world, you must defeat that pair of Uchiha. Whether you retrieve your left eye or not—decide for yourself."
Black Zetsu's expression was dark. After finishing his warning, he sank back into the tree trunk and vanished.
Obito stared for a long time at the massive crater left behind by Indra's Arrow. Only after a long silence did he activate Kamui and disappear…
Meanwhile, on Rokuro's side
A journey that would normally take two full days by boat took Susanoo only four hours of flight.
The black Susanoo dissipated as Rokuro and Uchiha Izumi descended into a quiet forest within the Land of Fire.
Night had already fallen, and Rokuro's Susanoo was black to begin with, so they had slipped past Konoha's border patrol unnoticed.
"Whew… flying nonstop for four hours pushed me to my limit."
Rokuro wiped the sweat from his forehead. His vision felt slightly dry, but thankfully there was no bleeding—otherwise, he would've seriously overdone it.
"How about you, Izumi? How much of your ocular power has recovered?"
"About sixty percent. I still can't use Infinite Tsukuyomi, but single-eye Tsukuyomi is fine."
Izumi took out some rations and water, handing them to Rokuro. The two sat on a tree trunk, replenishing their strength.
As they ate, they discussed and analyzed the battle that had just taken place.
Especially Izumi. Until now, she had only sparred with Rokuro—intense training, yes, but training is still training. It could never match the brutality of real combat.
Today's battle shook Izumi deeply. When Rokuro was sealed inside the Amber Purifying Pot, she had been left alone to face the assault of over a hundred jōnin. If not for Susanoo's absolute defense, even with her super–Kage-level strength, she might have suffered a disastrous defeat.
One unfamiliar situation after another had left her scrambling. Now that she had time to reflect, she realized she had overlooked countless better counterattacks—resorting instead to the most brute-force solutions.
Rokuro gently reassured her:
"Izumi, this is nothing unusual. Unless they're born warriors, everyone goes through this—first-time confusion, then gradually learning to respond efficiently. I was the same. Your strength gives you room to make mistakes—that's your advantage. Use it well, and you'll break your limits again and again, becoming a true powerhouse."
As Rokuro offered guidance and shared his own experience, Izumi suddenly lifted her head, her expression serious.
"Rokuro… tomorrow we carry out the second stage of the plan, don't we?"
Rokuro bit into a piece of jerky, his expression hardening as well.
"Of course. This was decided long ago. Are you wavering?"
Izumi shook her head—then hesitated and nodded.
"I… I'm not sure. I just keep wondering… isn't it too cold? They're still Uchiha. If everyone just sat down and talked—"
Before she could finish, Rokuro cut her off with a wave.
"If talking could solve it, do you think I'd have waited until now? It's useless, Izumi. Once a person's values solidify, they almost never change—especially those with strong will and firm conviction. You couldn't move them with the force of nine oxen."
Seeing her hesitation, Rokuro sighed.
"Forget it. I'll handle everything tomorrow. You don't have to get involved. Once we return to Konoha, you can accompany my mother."
Izumi jerked her head up, biting her lip—hurt and frustrated.
"So that's how you see me? You don't trust me at all?"
"How could I not trust you? If not for you just now, I might not have wiped out Danzō's forces at all. I just didn't want to put you in a difficult position. After all… this is still killing our own clan."
Izumi clenched her teeth, stood up abruptly.
"No! We follow the original plan. I won't hide, and I won't run. I gave my word—I'll see it through!"
Rokuro also stood, staring at her for a full minute.
"Think carefully. Every time you sleep from now on, you may dream of their final moments. Are you prepared for that burden?"
Izumi's fists tightened until her nails dug into her palms.
"If that happens… then I'll kill them again in my dreams."
Rokuro smiled faintly.
"In that case, get some rest. Tomorrow will be a tough fight. In terms of danger, it'll be worse than the battle just now. After all, he's the third Uchiha with a Mangekyō Sharingan—and he awakened his eyes earlier than either of us. Don't underestimate him."
The night passed quietly.
At dawn the next day, Rokuro summoned his Complete Susanoo once more, taking Izumi with him as they streaked toward Konoha at high speed.
But unlike last night, it was broad daylight now. With no concealment and Susanoo's beast-sized silhouette soaring across the sky, it didn't take long for Konoha's border guards to spot them.
Messenger hawks were dispatched immediately—but even their speed couldn't compare to Susanoo's.
Only two hours later, the colossal black Susanoo was hovering above Konoha. Without the slightest concern for the sensory barrier, it crashed straight into it and descended toward the Uchiha district.
Such a high-profile entrance was impossible to miss. Every Konoha shinobi still in the village—the clan heads, the remaining ninja, even Sarutobi Hiruzen—saw the overwhelming form of the Complete Susanoo.
Among them, Nara Shikaku recognized the truth the moment his eyes fell upon it.
"…Something catastrophic is about to happen."
END OF CHAPTER
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