After White Ram and the others arrived, they saw Lord Fox sitting on a pile of rocks and a human-shaped outline of charred ashes on the ground!
"Sir... is this Uchiha Madara?"
"It's Uchiha Madara," Yōkō said. "I expended so much energy, finally managing to slay an octogenarian.
White Ram, collect these charred ashes carefully. I need to find a place to rest and recover.
While I'm resting, you all cannot be idle either.
First, set up defenses around me to prevent anyone from taking advantage of my weakened state to attack.
Second, the final spectacle the octogenarian created was a bit too grand; someone will definitely come to investigate the battlefield.
You are to capture those investigators; they are likely spies placed in the Land of Rain by other hidden villages.
Thin out the spies, make the other villages bleed a little."
"Understood, Lord Fox!"
White Ram thought to himself, Lord Fox keeps calling him an 'octogenarian', but is that an ordinary octogenarian? That's the legendary Uchiha Madara.
A dying tiger can still kill those who provoke it up close.
Lord Fox is incredibly strong, to have defeated the octogenarian Uchiha Madara.
After moving far from the battlefield, Yōkō found a large tree, created a fissure inside the trunk, and slipped in.
Inside the tree fissure, Yōkō breathed a sigh of relief.
White Ram and the others hadn't noticed anything.
The person in the tree fissure wasn't Yōkō, but his Wood Clone.
The Wood Clone contained life force, so White Ram and the others detected no abnormality.
Yōkō's true self had long since vanished using the Flying Thunder God Technique.
The heavy rain continued to fall.
In the distance from the battlefield, the Pitcher Plant of Black and White Zetsu opened.
"So Lord Madara is really dead..."
"Even if he didn't die this time, Lord Madara's body wouldn't have lasted more than two months. The exact timing of his death doesn't matter."
"Let's go tell Nagato, Tobi, and little Obito. Lord Madara was killed by Konoha's Fox."
The Pitcher Plant, Black and White Zetsu, disappeared.
—
Southeast Land of Rain.
Nagato and Yahiko led the members of the Akatsuki organization, hastily leaving the town and rushing back to their hideout outside the city.
While they were in the town negotiating with the nobles, someone had attacked their hideout!
The perpetrator had kidnapped Konan and left a note, demanding that the two of them come alone to a specific location!
A member of the Akatsuki said, "Leader Yahiko, we can't just follow the perpetrator's instructions completely. Let us follow you and Nagato from a distance! We can provide support and assist you at any time!"
Obito, at the very back, frowned.
These Akatsuki subordinates are a nuisance. How can Nagato truly experience companionship and warmth with them around?
Things like companions and warmth are so false, so fragile.
Yahiko's ideals are a joke; peace in the shinobi world is impossible.
Under Yahiko's influence, Nagato's growth is too slow. Lord Madara said that only despair and hatred can spur Nagato's growth...
Yahiko said, "Konan is too important to us. I cannot add even the slightest bit of risk to her situation.
The enemy said for Nagato and me to come alone, so we will go alone.
Don't worry, Nagato and I are strong. Unless Hanzo himself comes, we will definitely rescue Konan."
Seeing their leader so insistent, the others couldn't say much more.
After Yahiko and Nagato left, Obito stood at the back of the group, looking for Tobi.
Once Yahiko and Nagato are far enough away, I'll kill all these trash Akatsuki subordinates. They're too much of a hindrance.
Yahiko and Nagato arrived near the designated location and saw a cliff face in the distance.
The person on the cliff was actually Hanzo!
Beside Hanzo was Konan, bound and restrained.
Slightly behind Konan was also Konoha's advisor, Shimura Danzō.
Yahiko scanned the enemies, roughly gauging their numbers.
Beside Hanzo stood over thirty Amegakure elites. Beside Danzō stood nine Root shinobi.
Yahiko and Nagato exchanged a glance. It was actually Hanzo and Danzō conspiring to kidnap Konan!
Hanzo, needless to say, was the Demigod of the Shinobi World, the leader of Amegakure. Shimura Danzō was also a renowned powerhouse in the shinobi world for over twenty years.
These two had acted against Konan; they didn't know how this would end.
On the cliff face, Hanzo looked down at Yahiko and said:
"Yahiko, to me, your organization is too much of a nuisance..."
—
In the distance, Uzumaki Kaichō and Uzumaki Genchō searched anxiously.
Uzumaki Kaichō said, "Danzō is being very cautious now, rarely leaving Konoha. This is a good opportunity to deal with him, but where exactly is he?"
Uzumaki Genchō stood on a tree canopy, using a telescope to search for anything unusual in the surroundings.
When he turned to look behind them, he suddenly shouted, "There's a giant summoning creature over there! A humanoid summoning creature!"
Uzumaki Kaichō climbed onto the tree canopy and saw a giant monster with nine eyes on its head and nine protrusions on its back.
Sensing the chakra intensity, Uzumaki Kaichō said, "This level of chakra... We can notify Fox now!"
He took out Fox's Flying Thunder God Kunai and threw it at a tree trunk opposite them.
The two stared at the Flying Thunder God Kunai, seeing no trace of anything, only Fox appearing instantly, defying logic.
Truly a top-tier forbidden jutsu developed by the Second Hokage. The Flying Thunder God is just too overpowered.
As soon as Yōkō appeared, he immediately looked in the direction of the intense chakra fluctuations and saw the Demonic Statue of the Outer Path.
No wonder Uchiha Madara never used the Demonic Statue of the Outer Path until his death. It seems he had already entrusted the Ten-Tails Husk to Nagato.
Yōkō said, "Kaichō, Genchō, return to the hideout. I'll handle things from here!"
Pulling out the Flying Thunder God Kunai, Yōkō vanished using Body Flicker.
Uzumaki Genchō asked reluctantly, "Brother Kaichō, can't we watch the battle between the strong from a distance with telescopes?
Fox versus Danzō, I'm so looking forward to it. I really want to see Danzō get killed with my own eyes."
"Don't complicate things. What we need to do is remain completely undetected.
If we are exposed, the intelligence that Fox used the Flying Thunder God to come here will be leaked.
Protecting Fox means protecting ourselves."
—
At the base of the cliff, Yahiko threw himself onto Nagato's kunai, committing suicide right in front of Nagato.
Nagato, driven utterly mad, summoned the Demonic Statue of the Outer Path without regard for the cost.
Danzō, seeing eight Root shinobi crushed to death by a single slap from the Demonic Statue, spoke up to stop Uchiha Mizukiku:
"Otsu, don't go. Let's observe first. The Ame-nin are more anxious than we are."
Uchiha Mizukiku saw the eight corpses of Root shinobi scattered at the base of the cliff, his heart aching intensely.
Root had worked so hard to rebuild, and had finally trained some shinobi with decent combat strength.
Yet, a single summoning jutsu from Uzumaki Nagato had instantly reduced a year of Root's accumulation to dust.
He glanced at Lord Danzō, saw his resolute expression, and quickly focused on the battle unfolding.
Tools. Root shinobi are tools protecting Konoha from the shadows. They must not be disturbed by messy emotions.
When the Demonic Statue was released Chakra Dragons, devouring the souls of the Ame-nin, Danzō waved his hand, signaling Otsu to retreat with him.
That technique is difficult to deal with... Danzō frowned. Why can Uzumaki Nagato master such a bizarre technique?
It attacks the soul directly. The bodies show no external injuries, dying as if they were vegetables.
Was cooperating with Hanzo useless after all?
The shinobi world always has these young people whose growth speed is absurd.
Uzumaki Nagato, after being chosen by Uchiha Madara, became inexplicably strong to the point where even Hanzo is at a disadvantage against him.
In just a year or two, he suddenly went from a chūnin to a Kage-level shinobi.
And then Fox, after two years of missions in the Anbu, suddenly transformed from a jōnin skilled in defensive secret techniques into a powerhouse of the shinobi world.
The talent of these young people is strong enough to make one jealous.
Uchiha Mizukiku suddenly shouted, "Lord Danzō! Tobi!"
Danzō followed Uchiha Mizukiku's gaze and indeed saw Tobi with his swirl-patterned mask.
Tobi was leaning against a large rock in the distance, observing the battle between Uzumaki Nagato and Hanzo from afar, just like Danzō.
A wooden, swirl-patterned mask. Within the eyeholes, a pair of three-tomoe Sharingan!
Danzō's expression changed abruptly, becoming sharp and greedy.
"Fox is holding back Uchiha Madara; Madara won't be able to get here anytime soon.
Hanzo is dealing with Uzumaki Nagato. This is our opportunity!
Mizukiku, let us reclaim the Mangekyō Sharingan that rightfully belongs to Konoha!"
Uchiha Mizukiku nodded and said, "Uchiha Mahiru's Mangekyō Sharingan must not remain outside, must not be held by a rogue ninja organization!"
Danzō said, "Go! Mizukiku! Be careful of Tobi's Mangekyō dōjutsu!"
Danzō thought to himself, Tobi is strong. Uchiha Mizukiku is the best means to test him.
***
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(End of Chapter)