Uchiha Shisui analyzed the situation.
"The previous Nine-Tails jinchuriki was Senior Kushina, but Senior Kushina is already dead."
"When a jinchuriki dies, there are usually two possibilities for the tailed beast. One is that the tailed beast dies along with the jinchuriki, then revives and reappears after a period of time."
"The other is that before the jinchuriki died, the tailed beast had already left the jinchuriki's body."
"The Nine-Tails was most likely the second case."
"At that time, the Nine-Tails had already broken free from Senior Kushina's control."
"Senior Minato used the Dead Demon Consuming Seal to seal the Nine-Tails. Given the situation at the time, Senior Minato had very few choices. An ordinary person simply could not have endured it."
"…"
Orochimaru did not question Uchiha Fugaku's explanation. He merely nodded faintly.
"So that is how it was."
"For Teacher Sarutobi to send you here, Fugaku, has helped me greatly. Sunagakure's shinobi are not weak, especially with the existence of superior Devil Fruits. They can even strengthen jonin."
"I am being held back by Pakura, and the other shinobi cannot step forward."
"Now that you have arrived, things are much better."
"Tonight, I will arrange an opportunity for a raid. Fugaku, will that be a problem?"
Uchiha Fugaku shook his head.
"Everything will follow your arrangements, Lord Orochimaru. We did not expend much strength on the way here. Resting until tonight will be enough."
"Good."
Night fell.
Under Orochimaru's command, Konoha's army began to move.
"Kill!"
The Hyuga shinobi confirmed the situation ahead.
After determining there were no traps, the second to appear were the shinobi of the Nara clan.
"Mind Body Switch Technique!"
The technique landed, instantly placing the Sunagakure shinobi under control.
At first, the Suna shinobi could not break free. And by the time they reacted, Konoha's second wave of control had already arrived—launched by the Nara shinobi.
"Shadow Possession Technique!"
Then came the other shinobi specialized in attack.
They closed in at the fastest possible speed, driving the sharp blades in their hands into the vital points of the Sunagakure shinobi.
"Pfft!"
This entire process had already become extremely practiced for Konoha.
Ino-Shika-Cho formed a trinity. They had cooperated for many years.
But while Konoha was skilled, Sunagakure was not ignorant of this either.
At Pakura's command—
"Move according to plan!"
"Yes, Lady Pakura!"
Very quickly, the Suna army pretended to retreat.
They fought while withdrawing.
Uchiha Yaku came to Uchiha Fugaku's side.
"Lord Fugaku, what should we do?"
"Go all out."
Uchiha Fugaku knew that Hiruzen Sarutobi had not truly set his mind at ease regarding the Uchiha clan. It was merely because Konoha was genuinely short on manpower that he had thought of the Uchiha.
If the Uchiha gave their all and earned merit, they might not receive the reward they deserved.
But if the Uchiha shirked their duty, they would definitely be punished.
"Yes, Lord Fugaku!"
The Uchiha squad charged at the very front.
As Uchiha Fugaku ran, he formed hand seals.
"Fire Release: Great Fireball Technique!"
A massive fireball flew out, blasting toward the Sunagakure shinobi ahead.
"Boom!"
Countless tongues of flame scattered outward.
This caused no small trouble for the Suna shinobi.
The surrounding Konoha shinobi looked over.
"Whatever else you say about the Uchiha, they do have strength. Unfortunately, their personalities are problematic, and their ambitions are too great. Otherwise, the village could have accepted them."
"They walked down the wrong path themselves, and even brought trouble to the village."
The remaining three Uchiha also went all out.
For a time, quite a few Sunagakure shinobi were dragged into trouble.
Pakura's eyes flickered.
"Hiramekarei! Release!"
A chakra sphere containing Scorch Release blasted forward, forcing Uchiha Fugaku and the other three to pause. But very quickly, Orochimaru's figure appeared, restraining Pakura.
"Pakura, your opponent is me!"
Pakura's expression darkened.
On the other side, Tatsuya wanted to provide support, but he was also entangled by Akimichi Choza.
Suddenly, a bad premonition rose within Uchiha Fugaku.
He instinctively turned his head—and saw a fiery-red figure approaching him at terrifying speed.
"Fire Release: Great Fireball Technique!"
Uchiha Fugaku subconsciously released a Fire Release technique.
But the other party neither dodged nor avoided it, charging directly into the flames.
It smashed through the Great Fireball head-on without slowing in the slightest, rushing straight toward Uchiha Fugaku.
Only then did Uchiha Fugaku clearly see the other party's appearance.
A huge, fiery-red rat.
"Rat-Rat Fruit: Fire-Robe Rat Form!"
It slammed fiercely into Uchiha Fugaku.
Uchiha Fugaku raised both arms to block in front of him, gathering chakra into them.
"Bang!"
With a violent impact, Uchiha Fugaku's body was sent flying backward.
"Lord Fugaku!"
Uchiha Yaku and the other two had a change in expression and hurried to support him.
But this time, they were the ones being restrained. The surrounding Sunagakure shinobi gave them no chance to leave.
After the Fire-Robe Rat landed, it charged at Uchiha Fugaku again.
Man and rat clashed rapidly.
Uchiha Fugaku's expression turned somewhat grave.
"Another superior Devil Fruit?"
News about superior Devil Fruits had already become known across the shinobi world. Unlike ordinary Devil Fruits, these were excellent items capable of raising even a jonin's strength.
That made the other shinobi villages even more envious.
After all, in this era, jonin were already elites among elites for the vast majority of shinobi villages.
The value of a superior Devil Fruit far exceeded that of an ordinary Devil Fruit by more than ten times.
"And not only that, this Fire-Robe Rat also counters me."
"Fire Release causes extremely little damage to him. The fur on his body can withstand flames and high temperatures."
"And he's fast!"
"He was hiding in the dark earlier precisely to wait for an opportunity and deal me a heavy blow."
Uchiha Fugaku felt the pain coming from his arms. That collision just now had been far too powerful, and because it had come too suddenly, he had not made the best response.
It had already been a sneak attack, yet the enemy had directly charged into his Great Fireball Technique without dodging, forcefully smashing through it.
"One arm is fractured. The other has a crack in the bone!"
Uchiha Fugaku's face turned ugly.
With this kind of performance, Fugaku felt that it would likely be difficult to satisfy Hiruzen Sarutobi. In that case, the days ahead for the Uchiha in Konoha would only become even harder.
"Did Sunagakure know I would come to the front line? Did they deliberately arrange such a shinobi?"
"Or is my luck simply that bad?"
Just then—
"Lord Fugaku, be careful!"
Hearing the voice, Uchiha Fugaku quickly came back to himself.
Three tomoe spun in his eyes.
"Genjutsu: Sharingan!"
But before that, the Fire-Robe Rat had already lowered its head, avoiding eye contact with Uchiha Fugaku. It raised its claws and dug into the ground, its entire body burrowing beneath the surface.
Uchiha Fugaku felt a tremor beneath his feet and hurriedly leapt upward.
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