"The Hozuki clan's Hydrification Technique?"
Uchiha Fugaku sneered. "Perfect for demonstrating the results of my training."
The sound of a thousand birds chirping rang out as Uchiha Fugaku was enveloped in lightning.
Chidori Stream!
Struck by the Lightning Release, the Hozuki ninja's body stiffened instantly.
Fugaku swung his long sword, slicing the ninja before him in two.
At the same time, two grim-faced Konoha ninja surrounded Fugaku, one in front and one behind.
"Hyuga clan ninja, huh..."
"You think the two of you can stop me?"
Hearing this, the two Hyuga ninja sneered. "This is our home turf. Today, we'll use your life to prove that the Hyuga clan's Byakugan is the strongest Kekkai Genkai!"
The Sharingan was strong, but under the obstruction of the Hidden Mist and the swarm of ninja, how much power could it really display?
Their Byakugan, however, was completely unaffected!
Looking at the confident Hyuga ninja, Uchiha Fugaku threw his head back and laughed. "Hahahaha... Then let me see if your strength is as hard as your talk."
Fugaku charged forward on his own initiative, locking in combat with the two Hyuga clansmen.
On the other side of the battlefield.
Hatake Sakumo leaped continuously through the crowd, dodging the Shadow Paralysis Jutsu cast by the Nara clan ninja on the ground.
At the same time, he had to watch out for the Yamanaka clan's Mind Transfer Jutsu, which eyed him hungrily from the sidelines.
On a battlefield like this, once controlled—even for a second—his life would be instantly forfeit.
Hatake Sakumo wanted to kill the Nara and Yamanaka ninja first, but Akimichi ninja, having consumed their secret pills, blocked his path at the front.
On the periphery, nearly a hundred ninja gathered together, protecting them heavily.
Aside from them, there were also experts of the Shikotsumyaku who could cover their bodies in bone.
Although he continued to harvest enemy lives, Hatake Sakumo could feel the encirclement around him slowly tightening...
"Summoning Technique!"
Poof!
As a huge plume of smoke rose, Manda's massive body appeared beneath Orochimaru's feet.
Manda shook his head in annoyance and boomed, "Orochimaru, this great lord was sleeping. You've disturbed my sweet dreams again!"
"I know. I will satisfy your demands."
Hearing Orochimaru's guarantee, Manda nodded in satisfaction. "By the way, what did you summon me for?"
"Go hold off the Eight-Tails."
"..."
After Orochimaru promised double the sacrifices, Manda finally twisted his massive body and charged toward the Eight-Tails.
Seeing Manda temporarily entangling the Eight-Tails and preventing it from firing Tailed Beast Bombs, Orochimaru withdrew his gaze.
Just as he was about to support the shinobi alliance, he felt someone watching him.
Orochimaru turned his head and saw Uchiha Yuzuru sitting on a platform dozens of meters high, his pitch-black eyes looking incredibly profound.
Orochimaru used the Body Flicker Technique and quickly appeared in front of Uchiha Yuzuru.
Yuzuru offered a greeting. "Orochimaru, we meet again."
Orochimaru's eyes were full of curiosity. "Yuzuru-kun, I'm becoming more and more interested in you."
"Even the Third Raikage is charging personally down below, yet you're able to sit here leisurely."
"It wouldn't seem out of place to say that you are the true Kage of Kumogakure."
Hearing this, Uchiha Yuzuru spoke plainly. "Not all Kage are as greedy for life and fearful of death as Sarutobi Hiruzen."
"As the village's strongest combat asset, isn't it normal to charge on the front lines?"
"Yuzuru-kun, surely you aren't saying all this because you still fantasize about me becoming your subordinate?"
"It is not a fantasy; it is a reality that will inevitably come to pass."
Hearing this, Orochimaru extended his tongue to lick his face, his expression gradually turning cold.
"Yuzuru-kun, I admit you are crazy, daring even to kill a daimyo openly."
"But excessive conceit will eventually demand a price."
"Like right now. Bring out your full power. I will defeat you, and then make you realize what so-called reality is."
Sensing the fighting intent radiating from Orochimaru, Uchiha Yuzuru sighed.
"Really, there's always someone wanting to taste the flavor of defeat."
"Since that's the case..."
Uchiha Yuzuru's pitch-black eyes turned into scarlet Mangekyo Sharingan. "Then I shall satisfy your wish."
In an instant, a cold chill rose in Orochimaru's heart.
The intuition honed by hovering on the edge of life and death countless times made his body instinctively want to dodge.
But before he could make a move, he felt a tearing force on his arm.
In the next second, his left arm fell directly to the ground.
"Don't move. Or next time, the part separating from your body will be your head."
Uchiha Yuzuru's voice remained flat, but it instantly caused Orochimaru to break out in a cold sweat.
What exactly happened just now?
Why did his arm get severed directly when the opponent clearly made no movement and he sensed nothing?
Was this the power of the Mangekyo Sharingan?
It was too domineering!
"Orochimaru, release Manda's summoning."
Uchiha Yuzuru spoke as if ordering his own subordinate, his tone carrying a flavor that brooked no question.
Orochimaru paused for a moment, then, with an ugly expression, slammed his remaining right hand onto the ground. "Summoning Technique: Release!"
Manda's massive figure vanished instantly. The Eight-Tails scratched its head in confusion, then resumed firing Tailed Beast Bombs at the shinobi alliance.
"Why didn't you kill me?"
Orochimaru's voice became even hoarsier.
Although Uchiha Yuzuru's power shocked him, he was more perplexed as to why Yuzuru didn't strike to kill when they were clearly enemies.
"For a special talent like you, I am willing to have a little more patience."
Seeing that Uchiha Yuzuru really didn't intend to kill him, Orochimaru felt slightly more at ease.
He stared tightly at Uchiha Yuzuru with his vertical pupils. "Yuzuru-kun, the day you left Konoha, we were destined to walk different paths."
"My teacher is the Hokage, and I am destined to become the Hokage."
"And you... are a Konoha rogue ninja."
Uchiha Yuzuru chuckled and shook his head. "Orochimaru, you aren't necessarily going to become Hokage, and I am not necessarily a Konoha rogue ninja."
Orochimaru didn't quite understand Uchiha Yuzuru's meaning, so he continued to ask, "I want to know, what exactly do you see in me?"
Hearing this, Uchiha Yuzuru stood up from the ground.
After patting the dust from his clothes, Yuzuru cast his gaze toward the battlefield below.
"Life is too fragile, and this shinobi world is a bit too boring."
"I want to reshape the shinobi world into the form I desire. A research-oriented talent like you is exactly what I need."
After exchanging a few words, Orochimaru was no longer as terrified as he had been at the start.
"Perhaps."
Uchiha Yuzuru clapped his hands. "Third Hokage... ah, Third Raikage, played enough yet?"
As Uchiha Yuzuru's voice fell, the Third Raikage's figure instantly appeared beside him.
"It's been a long time since I've slaughtered like this. I feel like I'd need to fight for another two days and nights to be satisfied."
After speaking, he saw Orochimaru nearby, and his aura immediately became violent.
"Why are you here?"
"Third Raikage, let Orochimaru leave. I have my plans."
Having been through so much, the Third Raikage was full of trust in Uchiha Yuzuru. He didn't ask further questions and simply nodded. "Then I won't bother with him."
This scene made Orochimaru's jaw drop once again.
Even with his relationship with Sarutobi Hiruzen, he couldn't make the man ignore a Kage-level powerhouse from an enemy village with just a single sentence!
As the two spoke, Hatake Sakumo, A, Killer Bee, and Uchiha Fugaku all returned to Uchiha Yuzuru's side.
Their condition wasn't as good as the Third Raikage's; after nearly half a day of high-intensity combat, they all looked somewhat exhausted.
"Yuzuru, are you ready to proceed with the next step of the plan? The comrades in the village must be getting impatient."
"No, I've changed my mind."
Uchiha Yuzuru shook his head.
Originally, he planned to have the Third Raikage, A, Hatake Sakumo, Killer Bee, and Uchiha Fugaku completely disrupt the shinobi alliance's formation before letting the Cloud ninja take over the battlefield.
But watching until now, he had become somewhat excited himself.
The bloodlust in his veins made him not want to care about those messy details anymore.
Uchiha Yuzuru leaped directly from the high platform.
In the next second, ocular power surged wildly from Uchiha Yuzuru in mid-air.
A pitch-black demonic statue, towering a hundred meters high, appeared in front of the shinobi alliance.
Uchiha Yuzuru's voice echoed in everyone's ears.
"This is the Third Power. Susanoo—the power of the Uchiha clan's god!"
The massive Susanoo appeared before the shinobi alliance like a legendary demon god.
Every step it took caused the earth to tremble continuously.
Seeing this scene, the ninja of the alliance were dumbfounded.
"Third Power? Susanoo? Is this really a power a ninja can control?"
"Why does it feel even more oppressive than the Eight-Tails? Uchiha Yuzuru was hiding such power?!"
"Hehe... surely this is a joke."
"I don't believe it. It must be some genjutsu trick designed to scare us off. Don't engage in wishful thinking!"
"Everyone, don't give up! Attack together, victory definitely belongs to us!"
"That's right, prepare to intercept immediately! Kill!!!"
After experiencing the initial shock, the ninja of the alliance began to shout frantically.
No matter how powerful Uchiha Yuzuru looked before them, in the end, the opponent was just one man.
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