Aburame Torune immediately realized that the two people standing in front of the secret chamber were anything but ordinary.
Without hesitation, he pulled off his gloves and extended both hands.
In an instant, dense swarms of poisonous insects poured out from his body. Some were so tiny that their shapes were barely distinguishable, while others were grotesquely large, their appearances enough to make one's scalp tingle.
Uchiha Ran's expression darkened.
He rapidly formed hand seals in the sequence Snake → Sheep → Monkey → Boar → Horse → Tiger, then shouted:
"Fire Release: Great Fireball Technique!"
Before the jutsu was fully released, Ran swung the Uchiha Flame Fan in a wide arc.
The Great Fireball instantly expanded several times over, completely filling the entrance of the secret chamber and roaring straight toward Aburame Torune.
Torune's face changed drastically.
Damn it—this kind of Fire Release… what about my insects?!
A violent sizzling sound echoed through the corridor.
In an instant, tens of thousands of poisonous insects were incinerated.
Aburame Torune spat out a mouthful of blood, his vision blurring as he stared at the massive fireball rushing toward him. He slowly closed his eyes, waiting for death.
Suddenly—
Someone grabbed the back of his collar and yanked him backward at high speed.
Torune was stunned.
Before he could react, he was thrown violently into the hall.
He looked up—and saw Fū Yamanaka, expressionless, gloves still on his hands.
"Lord Danzō!" Torune struggled to get up, panicked, trying to rush back.
Fū shot him a cold glare.
"You idiot. Do you even know who that man is?"
"That person is the current head of the Uchiha Clan—Uchiha Ran."
"His chakra is absurdly powerful. Even if a hundred of us attacked together, he could wipe us out in a single breath! And you still dared to confront him head-on?!"
Fū's scolding hit Torune like a hammer.
Only now did he truly realize how terrifying Ran was.
That Fire Release earlier—he had seen it with his own eyes. Ran hadn't even used his full strength, yet sixty percent of his insects had already been annihilated.
Torune's face was pale, blood draining from it, but he still forced himself to stand.
"Fū… then tell me. What should we do?"
They had all been branded with Danzō Shimura's Tongue Curse Seal, and coupled with years of indoctrination, their minds were filled with a single thought—
Protect Lord Danzō at all costs.
"We can't confront him directly," Fū said, frowning.
"That won't save Lord Danzō—and it won't help us either."
"For now, we wait."
"Wait?!" Torune roared.
"That man's chakra is overwhelming! If we wait, Lord Danzō will be beaten to death!"
Fū immediately slapped him hard across the face.
"You idiot! I meant wait three minutes after they enter the chamber."
"Then we strike together—from both sides—along with Lord Danzō. How could we not severely injure him?"
"Think about it. If we cripple Uchiha Ran, not only do we save Lord Danzō, but we might even secure him an even stronger Sharingan."
"Wouldn't Lord Danzō value us even more then?"
Torune's eyes lit up instantly.
"As expected of you, Fū Yamanaka!"
"Alright—we'll do it your way!"
Fū glanced at him coldly, then summoned another Root operative and used the Mind Body Disturbance Technique, controlling the ninja to scout the situation ahead.
---
Entrance to the Secret Chamber
Uchiha Ran turned around—only to find that the person behind him had already done the same.
Seeing the gentle expression and the rectangular glasses, Ran recognized him immediately.
"Yakushi Kabuto?"
Kabuto froze for a moment, then removed his cloak and gave a faint smile.
"I didn't expect Your Excellency to recognize me."
After witnessing Ran's Fire Release and seeing the Uchiha Flame Fan—the symbol of the clan head—Kabuto had already put the pieces together.
This was the recently famous head of the Uchiha Clan.
Uchiha Ran.
And the moment his identity was confirmed, Kabuto's lips curled upward.
If Ran was involved in assassinating Danzō Shimura, the success rate jumped instantly—from the 30% he had calculated earlier… to 100%.
No one understood Ran's strength better than Kabuto.
A white snake Orochimaru had given him had been stationed near the Naka River, and through it, Kabuto had witnessed everything—including Ran burning a vast stretch of the riverbanks to ash.
Ran, meanwhile, was momentarily surprised.
He knew Kabuto from the manga—but Kabuto clearly didn't know him that way.
Kabuto soon clarified:
"I had the privilege of witnessing you set the mountains ablaze during the battle at the Naka River."
Only then did Ran realize that he and Hyūga Hiashi had been so focused on Danzō and Root that they hadn't noticed anyone else nearby.
Or perhaps Kabuto had been disguised as Root.
Either way, it no longer mattered.
"You know how to open this door, right?" Ran asked calmly.
Given Kabuto's relationship with Danzō, if he were here to protect him, that would be laughable.
Kabuto bowed slightly.
"Lord Uchiha Ran, I can open it—but I have one condition."
"Oh?" Ran's expression cooled.
"You think you're in a position to negotiate with me?"
Kabuto quickly continued, sweat forming at his temples.
"My condition is simple. After you capture Danzō Shimura… leave him to me for interrogation."
His eyes turned bloodshot, veins crawling from the corners toward his pupils.
Raw killing intent spilled out.
Ran understood immediately.
He suppressed his own aura and nodded.
"Fine. Open it. The fighting here has probably already alerted him. He may still be swapping Sharingan inside."
Kabuto nodded and stepped forward.
He rotated the vase exactly as Danzō had earlier.
Boom.
The stone gate slowly opened.
Ran rushed in first, Kabuto following closely behind.
With Ran present, Kabuto no longer needed to cautiously dismantle traps one by one.
Less than ten steps in—
Click.
A floor tile sank slightly.
In the next instant, countless senbon shot out from both front and rear!
Ran activated Susanoo immediately, the massive chakra avatar enveloping both himself and Kabuto.
Kabuto's pupils shrank violently.
So this is Susanoo…
The legendary power once wielded by Uchiha Madara himself.
The senbon were dark purple, clearly coated in lethal poison. Even a single scratch would have meant instant death.
Yet when they struck Susanoo, they merely clanged and shattered into dust, scattering uselessly across the ground.
Kabuto's body trembled uncontrollably.
Such power.
Such overwhelming, absolute strength.
He stared at Uchiha Ran with undisguised awe.
He didn't share Orochimaru's obsession or Danzō's twisted ambitions.
He was simply drawn—utterly captivated—by strength.
To be protected by someone like this, especially on their first meeting…
Kabuto felt something stir deep within his chest.
------
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