"Die!"
With a shout, the Root shinobi lunged forward, pressing down with all his weight, forcing the short blade down with all his might.
But the Nine-Tails chakra surrounding Naruto was like a solid shield, firmly blocking the short blade—no matter how hard he pressed, it didn't budge an inch.
The gash in Naruto's neck, once split open, now squirmed wildly with newly growing flesh; wisps of white steam rose as the wound closed in an instant.
"Roar!"
Naruto threw his head back with a thunderous roar, swinging his hand forward. A massive fox-shaped claw of energy enveloped his arm, tearing through the air with a shrill explosion, moving so fast it left only a red afterimage behind.
The Root shinobi didn't even have time to react before the fox claw pierced straight through his chest.
A blood-red heart was held in the claw's grasp, still faintly beating. After displaying it for a brief moment, the claw clenched tight.
With a wet pop, blood sprayed everywhere, splattering across Naruto's face and dripping down the chakra cloak, pooling into a small puddle on the ground.
"Awooo…" Smelling the familiar scent of blood, the Nine-Tails inside Naruto grew excited, throwing back its head and howling madly.
The roar was deafening, carrying the ancient, oppressive might unique to the tailed beasts. The trees around them shook violently under the shockwave, leaves scattering like rain.
But when it finished its howl and lowered its head, it saw a familiar pair of blood-red eyes staring coldly at it.
Within those Sharingan, the pattern of the Mangekyō was slowly spinning—like an abyss ready to swallow its consciousness whole, making it once again feel that terrifying suppression carved deep into its memory.
"Damn Uchiha!!!"
The pitiful Nine-Tails had barely roared its curse when, before it could lunge forward to fight, its vision blurred—and it found itself once again back inside its familiar cage.
"Ah… the Uchiha again!!!"
Feeling once more that crushing helplessness before the Sharingan, and the disdain and contempt reflected in those eyes, the Nine-Tails flew into a frenzy, losing all reason as it hurled itself at the gate, clawing and biting madly.
But the sealing formula flared with a blinding red light, dissolving all of its attacks into nothing, leaving only its impotent roars echoing through the mental space.
Outside, Naruto, who had lost the protection of the Nine-Tails' chakra, suffered a massive drain on his strength. His body wavered, then toppled over, collapsing into unconsciousness.
Watching the Nine-Tails' jinchūriki be subdued in an instant, Uchiha Yasuo nodded in satisfaction.
With these eyes at his command, gathering the Ten-Tails in the future would surely become much easier.
He had always known that the Sharingan of his clan countered the tailed beasts, but he had never tested it himself—now, after a small trial, he knew its reputation was well deserved.
Turning back, he looked at the fallen Yamanaka Fū ahead of him and taunted, "Hey, Yamanaka Fū, your plan wasn't bad—it saved me quite a bit of time."
"If it weren't for your help, killing all six of you would've taken me quite a bit more effort."
His voice carried a cold mockery, the Sharingan gleaming with a sinister light in the shadows, as if savoring the prey's final struggles.
The surrounding flames had yet to fully die out, casting his figure like that of a messenger from hell.
But at this moment, Yamanaka Fū could no longer respond.
After being repeatedly struck by the backlash of his own secret techniques, even as an elite jōnin, he could no longer endure it.
Now he lay on the ground, moonlight shining on his pale face; the once sharp eyes had already begun to lose focus.
His body twitched involuntarily, blood gushing continuously from his seven orifices. His breath was faint—he was already on the verge of death.
Yet Uchiha Yasuo still did not withdraw Susanoo. Instead, he raised his arm and struck down toward Yamanaka Fū from afar, while his Sharingan remained fixed on his every move, wary that he might suddenly unleash a forbidden technique like the Dead Demon Consuming Seal to drag him down together.
'Itachi, you really are cautious.'
Seeing "Uchiha Itachi" refuse to take the bait, Yamanaka Fū let out a sigh, his heart sinking into despair.
As a member of Root, he naturally did not fear death—only that it was a pity he had failed to complete his mission.
'I'm sorry, Danzō-sama. I can no longer follow you.'
A decisive glint flashed in Yamanaka Fū's eyes, and suddenly, his shinobi garb began to emit a blinding red light.
It was the glow of an explosive tag!
A flash of fire burst forth, and his body rapidly swelled, inflating into a massive fireball in the blink of an eye.
[Boom!]
The light instantly illuminated the entire night sky. The shockwave from the explosion swept outward, ripping up the very ground.
The searing heat wave carbonized the surrounding trees in an instant, and fragments of rock scattered like torrential rain.
Even the giant palm of Susanoo, as it struck down, was repelled by the blast's force, unable to achieve its result.
A few breaths later, the explosion's power subsided, leaving behind only a massive crater—Yamanaka Fū's body was completely gone, not even bones remaining.
"Tch! That's just like Root's style."
Uchiha Yasuo's gaze swept the area, confirming that Yamanaka Fū was indeed dead and not using some Substitution Technique or similar trick, before finally dispersing Susanoo's protection.
He then searched the area carefully once more but found no means of Root's information transmission.
The methods of relaying intelligence in the shinobi world were far too numerous; even within the same village, one could never fully know another's means.
Especially with Root—secrecy was their way of life, and intelligence transmission was naturally a top priority.
By Root's habits, the information should already have been sent back to the village by now, right?
Was it through insects—or a ninja beast?
Whatever.
As long as the intel was sent back, that was enough.
Now then—who would be the next to come after him?
'Heh, the Uchiha clan's ninjutsu, the Uchiha clan's genjutsu, the Uchiha clan's Sharingan, the Uchiha clan's Mangekyō, and the Uchiha clan's Susanoo—who could say I'm not Uchiha Itachi?'
This was intelligence bought with six lives—who would dare doubt it?
'Come then, Third Hokage—let me see whether you truly trust another Uchiha that much.'
Uchiha Yasuo briefly cleaned up the battlefield, then lifted the unconscious Nine-Tails' jinchūriki and continued onward toward the Land of Rain.
...
Konohagakure, Hokage Residence.
The Third Hokage sat behind the desk, brooding as he smoked.
Shimura Danzō leaned on his cane, standing opposite him with a dark expression.
Aburame Torune reported at Danzō's side.
"…In summary, Yamanaka Fū and five other Root shinobi have been confirmed killed in action; the enemy is the last remnant of the Uchiha, Uchiha Itachi."
"Uchiha Itachi, huh…" The Third Hokage's face darkened; his suspicious gaze kept flicking to Danzō.
"Danzō, since you already had the intelligence, why did you not report it to me so the village could dispatch people to pursue him, and instead privately send people to investigate?"
"Hmph!" Danzō slammed his cane heavily on the ground and snapped angrily, "Hiruzen, can you really blame me for something like this?"
"I tell you, would you even believe me?"
"If you had trusted me a bit more, you wouldn't have placed me under house arrest and sent Nara Shikaku to Root to search for some Nine-Tails Jinchūriki!"
"I've said it before—Uchiha are not to be trusted!"
"Uchiha Itachi killed Sasuke and Konohamaru, took Fugaku's Mangekyō Sharingan, and abducted the Nine-Tails Jinchūriki."
"Everything already proves it—he was clearly deceiving us before!"
"What loyalty to the village? It was all lies!"
"Once he digests the chips in his hand and becomes a Nine-Tails Jinchūriki possessing an Eternal Mangekyō Sharingan, the threat to the village will rise to an absurd degree."
"Hiruzen, stop hesitating and issue the order at once!"
"I will lead the team personally; I will surely eliminate Uchiha Itachi and rescue the Nine-Tails Jinchūriki!"
Seeing his old friend so eager and proactive, the Third Hokage grew even more wary; he snorted coldly and warned: "Hmph!"
"Don't think I don't know the little calculations you have in your heart!"
"The Nine-Tails Jinchūriki is an important asset of the village; Root must absolutely not meddle with it!"
"As for Uchiha Itachi's Mangekyō Sharingan, it will not be handed over to you!"
"I will arrange for people to go rescue the Nine-Tails Jinchūriki myself; you are to remain in the village obediently, do not go out without my order!"
"If the person who abducted the Nine-Tails Jinchūriki really is Uchiha Itachi, I will of course order his elimination."
"But you better be telling me the truth; if I discover you dared to deceive me with false intelligence, then don't blame me for showing you no mercy!"
"Hiruzen, now that things have come this far, you still doubt me!" Danzō's scheme had failed; furious, he stamped and struck the ground with his cane, the blows thudding loudly.
"You are always so indecisive, which is why the situation has fallen to its present state!"
"If the Nine-Tails Jinchūriki is lost, you must bear full responsibility for it!"
"After this incident, the Nine-Tails Jinchūriki can no longer be left out in the open so casually; handing him over to Root to manage would be most appropriate!"
"I said no!" The Third Hokage slammed his hand on the desk and suddenly stood up. "I am the Hokage!"
After glaring at the Third for a long moment, Danzō, unable to change his mind, finally left in a huff, slamming the door behind him.
"Hiruzen, you will regret this!"
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