Inside the prison chamber, time seemed to freeze.
Outside, Fugaku Uchiha and the elders waited in tense silence.
Then—
A strange fluctuation of chakra rippled outward.
Fugaku's gaze hardened.
"That ocular power… is that Shuoye?!"
The elders exchanged stunned looks.
They had always known Shuoye was extraordinary.
But this—
This was something else.
The chakra within the chamber felt absolute. Controlled. Dominant.
As if everything inside existed solely within Shuoye's grasp.
—
Within the darkness of the cell, Killer B's consciousness sank deeper and deeper.
The Mangekyō Sharingan's genjutsu consumed him completely.
His awareness fractured.
His will dissolved.
He was no longer resisting—only drifting in an endless void.
Shuoye observed calmly.
Satisfied.
"Eight-Tails…" he murmured.
"You'll be delivering quite the surprise to the Hidden Cloud."
He had not yet reached the level of absolute tailed beast domination through the Eternal Mangekyō Sharingan.
But with the assistance of the unawakened Hōgyoku, his spiritual pressure overwhelmed Killer B entirely.
Crushed.
Subjugated.
Shuoye's lips curved faintly.
"This time," he thought, "the Hidden Cloud will pay for its arrogance."
—
Footsteps approached.
An Uchiha shinobi entered quickly, interrupting his thoughts.
"Shuoye-sama. A representative of the Hyūga has arrived."
Shuoye's brows lifted slightly.
So soon.
He stepped outside.
Hizashi Hyūga stood there.
Beside him—
Hinata.
Hizashi's posture was solemn.
Hinata's face was flushed, but her gaze remained steady.
"Shuoye-sama," Hizashi began, "I have come on behalf of the Hyūga clan. Hinata—"
He stopped.
Because Hinata had stepped forward.
Before anyone could react, she rose onto her toes and pressed a soft, fleeting kiss against Shuoye's cheek.
The courtyard fell silent.
Even Shuoye was caught off guard.
"Shuoye-sama," Hinata said softly, though her voice carried clearly, "thank you for everything you've done for the Uchiha. This is the Hyūga's gratitude… and a symbol of our friendship."
There was no hesitation in her eyes.
Only sincerity.
Shuoye let out a quiet laugh, then composed himself.
His gaze shifted to Hizashi.
Hizashi bowed deeply—lower than anyone had ever seen.
"The Hyūga will no longer stand aside," he declared.
"In this war, we fight alongside the Uchiha."
Shock spread instantly.
Even distant observers from other clans stared in disbelief.
The Hyūga—
Publicly aligning with the Uchiha?
"Are they truly joining forces?" someone whispered.
For years, the Uchiha had been isolated.
Now the balance had shifted.
Shuoye felt it clearly.
The board had changed.
—
Far away, in the depths of Amegakure—
A shadow stood atop a mound of pale bodies.
White forms littered the ground like discarded husks.
Obito stood alone, mask gleaming faintly under dim light.
Through the eyehole, his gaze was cold.
"White Zetsu," he said quietly, "your report was… unexpected."
"Shuoye now leads the Uchiha? And he's made quite a move."
He remembered hearing the name before.
Back then, Shuoye had been merely another rising figure on the battlefield.
Now—
Interesting.
White Zetsu's form twisted beside him like a living shadow.
"The Hidden Cloud is preparing for war."
Obito's lips curled.
"Perfect."
"The Hidden Leaf weakens. The Uchiha rise."
"All of it serves my design."
"Let the Hidden Mist join the chaos as well. The more unstable the world becomes…"
"The easier it will be to seize the Nine-Tails."
His lone visible eye gleamed faintly.
The game board was expanding.
—
Back in the Hidden Leaf—
A war council convened.
The air was heavy.
Every face bore tension.
Shuoye stood at one end of the table, composed.
"This war," he said evenly, "is not about defense."
Silence.
"We strike first."
"We eliminate the Hidden Cloud threat entirely."
The room froze.
"Shuoye-sama… eliminate the Hidden Cloud?"
"Yes."
His voice did not waver.
"Their ambition is clear. They will never stop at minor gains."
"If we leave them intact, conflict will return again and again."
"Only by destroying the threat at its root can the Hidden Leaf achieve true peace."
The words settled like falling stone.
This was no longer reaction.
This was declaration.
And Shuoye Uchiha had already chosen the path forward.
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