At the edge of the dense forests of the Land of Fire, the once peaceful afternoon was torn apart by bloodshed and maniacal laughter.
Mangetsu Hōzuki carried the famous Hiramekarei on his shoulder. The blood covering the blade had not yet dried and slowly dripped from its sharp edge, staining the green grass with patches of dark red.
He licked the corner of his mouth and revealed a cruel yet delighted smile as he looked at the group of subordinates behind him.
"Konoha's defenses are even weaker than I expected."
His voice carried the dampness unique to the Land of Water, yet it was icy cold.
"It looks like they've sent everyone who can fight to the north. These pieces of trash they left behind will make perfect sacrifices for our blades."
Behind him, a shinobi from the Kaguya Clan burst into wild laughter as he thrust his arm forward.
A pale bone spike instantly pierced through the chest of a Konoha shinobi trying to escape. He then violently swung his arm, smashing the corpse against a tree trunk until it became a bloody mess.
"Not enough! Not enough! Konoha's bones are too soft!"
He roared, his eyes filled with nothing but a desire for slaughter.
On the other side, a shinobi from the Yuki Clan expressionlessly raised his hand.
The moisture in the air instantly froze, and several ice senbon shot forward.
They pinned a trembling civilian farmer hiding behind a tree to the spot. His blood froze before it even had a chance to flow out.
"Annoying."
He spoke calmly as if he had merely brushed some dust from his clothes.
This strike squad, made up of Kirigakure prodigies and powerful Bloodline Limit users.
Was like a group of demons returning from hell as they slaughtered everything along the border of the Land of Fire.
Wherever they passed, nothing living remained.
The small Konoha guard units left behind, along with the unfortunate civilians they encountered, were completely unable to put up any meaningful resistance.
They did not even have the chance to send out a proper warning before becoming sacrifices for the squad's brutality.
"Look! Konoha is right ahead!"
A Kirigakure shinobi stood on high ground and pointed excitedly toward the huge outline visible in the distance.
Mangetsu narrowed his eyes as chakra gently flowed through Hiramekarei, revealing the excitement hidden within him.
"So this is the village that claims to be the strongest in the shinobi world. It's nothing special."
"Once we charge in, we'll burn those Hokage Rock faces to the ground and let the entire shinobi world know the terror of Kirigakure!"
His voice suddenly rose, filled with fanatical excitement.
"Hahaha! I'll build a bridge out of their bones!"
"Their blood must be nice and warm. It'll make the most beautiful ice sculptures."
"..."
The others also shouted one cruel declaration after another.
The air was filled with sickening excitement and complete disregard for life.
They were completely immersed in the pleasure of killing and their anticipation for even greater destruction.
Their vigilance had already dropped to its lowest point.
In their eyes, Konoha's main forces were all fighting in the north.
Only the old, the weak, women, and children remained behind.
There was nothing to fear.
Just as this frenzied atmosphere reached its peak.
"Fire Style, Great Fireball Jutsu!"
A cold female voice suddenly cut through the noise.
A massive fireball roared out from the forest to their front left.
It shot straight toward the center of the Kirigakure formation.
"Hm?!"
Mangetsu reacted instantly, bringing Hiramekarei in front of himself.
However, his subordinates behind him fell into brief panic.
"Water Style, Water Formation Wall!"
Several Kirigakure shinobi hastily formed hand seals as several walls of water rose from the ground, barely forming a defensive barrier.
The enormous fireball violently crashed into the water walls, producing a loud hissing sound.
Large amounts of white steam instantly exploded outward, covering an area several yards wide and completely obscuring everyone's vision.
"Something's wrong!"
Mangetsu frowned.
He sensed that the chakra contained within the fireball was far more condensed than anything an ordinary Jonin could produce.
Furthermore, the attack had come too suddenly and too accurately.
As the steam gradually dispersed, the Kirigakure shinobi finally saw the attacker.
Long black hair flowed behind her like a waterfall.
Three tomoe rotated slowly within her Sharingan.
She wore the Uchiha Clan's signature dark blue high collared outfit, outlining her slender yet upright figure.
Her beautiful and gentle face was now covered in icy coldness.
It was as though she no longer possessed any human emotions.
Simply standing there naturally released an aura that kept everyone away.
She was Uchiha Mikoto.
"Someone from the Uchiha?"
Surprise flashed through Mangetsu's eyes.
It was quickly replaced by deep contempt.
"Just one woman? Is Konoha out of people? Hahaha!"
The Kirigakure shinobi behind him also reacted and burst into even louder laughter.
"Tsk, she's pretty cute. I wonder if her blood tastes sweet."
"An Uchiha woman? Those Sharingan will make an excellent addition to my collection."
"Leave her to me. I'll make a new dagger out of her bones."
"..."
A shinobi from the Kaguya Clan licked his bone blade, his eyes filled with lust.
One filthy insult after another echoed through the air.
Yet in the face of threats and humiliation that would have broken an ordinary person.
Uchiha Mikoto did not even frown.
Her gaze remained as cold as eternal ice.
Beneath that frozen surface, however, molten fury seemed to be quietly rising.
Her silence and calmness instead caused the laughter of the Kirigakure shinobi to gradually become forced.
At that moment.
One figure after another silently emerged from the shadows of the forest behind her.
Many shinobi from Konoha's great clans had gathered there.
There were even numerous civilian shinobi with determined expressions.
They held kunai and ninja swords in their hands.
There was no fear in their eyes.
Only the determination to stand together against a common enemy.
Although they might not have had the advantage in numbers, the desperate resolve of people prepared to fight to the death instantly crushed Kirigakure's previous arrogance.
Mangetsu's smile disappeared.
He realized that something was wrong.
These people did not look as though they had rushed here to defend themselves.
Instead...
It seemed they had been waiting here all along.
"Stop putting on an act!"
Suppressing the uneasiness in his heart, he shouted coldly.
"No matter how many of you have come, you'll all die today!"
"Kill them!"
The Kirigakure shinobi shouted once again as they prepared to attack.
But at that very moment.
Uchiha Mikoto moved.
She formed a hand seal with one hand and slightly opened her mouth.
"Fire Style, Great Dragon Fire Jutsu!"
Three fire dragons, far larger and far more solid than the previous fireball, roared forward.
But that was not the end.
The instant the dragons left her.
Her dark eyes suddenly changed.
Against their crimson background, the three tomoe spun wildly.
Then they instantly merged and transformed into a four leaf clover pattern.
The crimson color became even more enchanting.
An icy, sinister, yet overwhelmingly powerful eye technique burst forth.
"Those eyes...?!"
Mangetsu cried out in shock as a chill shot from his spine to the top of his head.
Then something even more horrifying happened.
The three blazing fire dragons charging forward.
The moment the Mangekyō Sharingan appeared.
Countless strands of black flames suddenly erupted across their enormous bodies.
The black flames made no sound.
Yet they radiated an aura capable of destroying everything.
As though they had come from the depths of the underworld itself.
The flames of Amaterasu!
The Amaterasu flames instantly dyed the fire dragons black.
The violent power of Fire Style and the absolute destructive force of Amaterasu fused together perfectly.
Their power increased several times over.
Fire Style, which had originally been countered by Water Style.
Had now completely changed in nature.
The three gigantic black flame dragons twisted and expanded.
They instantly intertwined into a giant web of death that covered the entire field of vision, burning with black flames.
The air twisted from the unbearable heat.
The grass and trees beneath them vanished before they even had the chance to burn.
This web of destruction descended upon the horrified Kirigakure shinobi with unstoppable speed and overwhelming force.
"Impossible! What kind of jutsu is this?!"
"Stop it! Hurry and stop it!"
"Water Style! Use Water Style!"
"..."
The wild laughter of the Kirigakure shinobi instantly turned into terrified screams and desperate cries.
They desperately unleashed Water Style techniques.
Massive water dragons and thick water walls surged forward once again.
It was completely useless.
The huge torrents of water, enough to extinguish a forest fire, actually caused the black flames to grow even larger the moment they touched them.
The black flames seemed to possess a life of their own.
They clung to the Water Style techniques.
Absorbing them completely.
The black flames swelled even further.
Then they rushed back toward the very shinobi who had cast them.
"AAAAAH!"
Heart wrenching screams instantly echoed across the battlefield.
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