With the death of Rock Lee as the first casualty, Kanon's horrific revenge finally unveiled its curtains.
She stepped over Lee's corpse and began her march into the heart of the Hidden Leaf Village. Her eyes were pools of despair and hatred, her heart heavy with unspeakable pain, yet her expression remained one of eerie serenity, as if only the agonizing screams of Leaf shinobi could cleanse her soul.
The shinobi rushing to intercept Kanon found the terrified expressions on their faces frozen in an instant. Kanon swung her Kusanagi Sword without mercy, but this time she used the edge; every flash of her blade claimed another life.
Just as Konoha had once left her no path to survival, she would show them no quarter. If she hadn't relied on her own grueling efforts and the guidance of Konin, she would never have lived to see this day. To hell with the "Will of Fire"! Fall and die, all of you!
Before Kanon, blood splattered like falling petals as screams echoed one after another. Streets that were once bustling with life were transformed into a living hell in a heartbeat. Her heart burned with agony and rage, yet with every kill, the hatred within her remained unquenched. She looked down at the shinobi collapsing at her feet, feeling not a shred of satisfaction.
As she moved, the Animal Path crossed her path. The two merely locked eyes for a moment, exchanging a slight nod before continuing with their respective objectives.
Kanon's primary goal in coming to Konoha was the Root and Danzo.
"Kanon, how do you intend to find Danzo and the Root?" Konin's voice echoed from within her inner world. "Konoha has changed significantly. Finding them while they are hidden in the darkness will be difficult."
"Then I shall simply destroy it all," Kanon replied coldly within her mind.
Behind her, several buildings succumbed to a terrifying missile strike, reduced to rubble in an instant. A violent gale whipped past Kanon, blowing her black hair upward as she looked up at the Great Stone Faces of the Hokage, from the First to the Fifth. She then began her walk toward the central Hokage Residence.
"They're everywhere! What is happening?! Weren't there only two intruders?!" A Hyuga Chunin from the Barrier Team frowned, his Byakugan active as he sensed the chaos unfolding around them.
In a nearby corner, the Human Path reached out, ripping the soul from a victim's body. "No intelligence on the Nine-Tails?"
"Then you are useless." The man slumped to the ground, dead.
Amidst the ruins, the Naraka Path gripped two defeated Leaf shinobi by their throats. "Where is Naruto Uzumaki?!"
Konan had also begun her search, sensing the area with her paper sheets. She enveloped a shinobi in paper, asking softly, "Where is Naruto Uzumaki?"
Meanwhile, the Deva Path pierced a man with a Black Receiver, stating impassively, "This one doesn't know either?" His Rinnegan looked toward the Konoha Intelligence Division without a trace of emotion.
Elsewhere, Sakura and Shikamaru had just finished deciphering a code when they felt the village shudder violently.
"What was that?" Sakura asked, bewildered.
"Let's go," Shikamaru said without hesitation, his voice low.
In another sector, Inoichi Yamanaka had successfully initiated the Yamanaka Clan's secret technique and seemed on the verge of a breakthrough. However, outside their building, the Asura Path's head split open, firing a massive laser. In a flash, a horrific explosion reduced over a dozen buildings to ash.
This cataclysmic disturbance finally alerted everyone in the village to the severity of the situation.
Ino Yamanaka and Choji Akimichi were on the street looking for Shikamaru when the explosion stopped them in their tracks. Giant centipedes with Rinnegan eyes appeared in the sky above. Sensing the urgency, Ino shouted, "Choji! I'm going to contact the Intelligence Division!"
"Right!" Choji headed toward his father, Choza Akimichi.
As the residents of the Hidden Leaf fled in terror, the Animal Path and Kanon walked calmly behind them. A little girl stumbled and fell in the middle of the crowd. Many people saw her, but consumed by their own fear, no one stopped to help.
"Tomi-chan!" An old woman rushed over to help her up. Her kindness, however, cost her the window of escape.
The Animal Path's giant centipede summon loomed over them. Kanon and the Animal Path, both clad in Akatsuki robes, approached. The Animal Path raised a Black Receiver, clearly intending to strike down these two ordinary civilians who weren't even shinobi.
But just as the rod was about to descend, amidst the wailing of the child and the sobbing of the old woman Kanon reached out and grabbed the Receiver.
"What are you doing?" the Animal Path asked.
"The affairs of the shinobi world have nothing to do with those who are not shinobi," Kanon said indifferently.
Despite what she had become, Kanon remained her true self at her core. Her original nature was kind, though she had been forced to swallow too much malice. Even now, she had no desire to kill defenseless civilians. She knew that this old woman and child were simply those discarded by the ugliness of human nature, and those discarded were often the ones with the purest hearts.
Looking at them, Kanon saw her former self: naive and powerless.
The Animal Path and Kanon moved on, leaving the two unharmed. But behind them lay a trail of shinobi corpses. Giant centipedes crawled through the village, sowing destruction; before long, the Hidden Leaf was shrouded in thick smoke.
Sakura appeared, taking one out with a single punch of her Monster Strength before moving to treat the wounded.
"Sakura!" Iruka ran toward her from the distance.
"Iruka-sensei, what exactly is happening?!" Sakura demanded.
"I don't know, but someone is attacking the village! The situation has been reported to Tsunade-sama. An emergency alert should be issued immediately."
As she listened to Iruka, Sakura's pupils shrank. A silhouette flashed through her mind. To dare attack the village directly... the first person she thought of was Kanon Uchiha. Revenge against the Hidden Leaf had always been her goal. Was this the "true revenge" she had once spoken of?
Before she could think further, another explosion rocked the area, forcing Sakura and Iruka to their feet.
Several Chunin flickered into view. "We have to go, Iruka!"
"Sakura, get to the hospital and take care of the wounded!" Iruka shouted before rushing off.
Standing in the Hokage Office, Tsunade looked out at the fires consuming the outskirts of the village. Her expression was grim. Behind her, an Anbu operative flickered into the room.
"Report from the Barrier Team! One intruder entered through the main gate. Kotetsu Hagane, Iwashi Tatami, and Rock Lee have all fallen in battle!"
"Another intruder has infiltrated via the airspace. The barrier sensed only one person!"
"However, immediately after that, we confirmed multiple attackers within the village!"
At that moment, another Anbu appeared. "Report! Enemy combat strength is estimated to be at least three battalions!"
Tsunade crossed her arms, deep in thought. To utilize such combat power flexibly without being detected... Is it the Akatsuki after all?
Then, another operative from her personal Anbu squad appeared. "Report! We have eyewitness intel on the intruders!"
"Who is it?!"
"Black robes with red cloud patterns!"
Tsunade gritted her teeth, looking at the smoke rising from across the Hidden Leaf. "The Akatsuki are finally here!"
"Have the identities been verified?" she asked.
"According to eyewitnesses, the one who entered through the main gate is Kanon Uchiha. The others have yet to be identified."
Upon hearing that name, Tsunade's pupils contracted. She understood instantly why Kanon had come and what she intended to do. Tsunade was no fool; she realized that Kanon had likely discovered the destruction of the Hidden Sound Village and came seeking retribution.
Did Danzo fail to clean up his mess again? But what can a single Uchiha brat hope to achieve?
Despite the thought, Tsunade was overcome with regret. Perhaps it was truly because of those events that Kanon had launched this assault. She bore responsibility as well, but from her perspective, as the Hokage, she had to do what was necessary for the village. It was the Hokage's mission.
Turning her back to the gathered ninja, she issued the most logical orders. At this moment, her command was the most stable decision anyone could ask for.
"Issue an emergency state alert. And... bring Naruto back."