"What did you just say!!"
A furious roar suddenly resounded throughout the towering Kumogakure mountain ranges.
A, who had just returned to the village following Crocodile's orders, received a piece of news that left him utterly shocked.
The daimyō of the Land of Lightning… was dead!
What's more, all his blood relatives, personal guards, and even the Kumogakure shinobi stationed there had been slaughtered overnight.
It was said that every single one of them had bled out completely.
The most horrifying part was the daimyō's room—every tatami mat had been soaked in blood.
Even veteran shinobi who arrived at the scene reportedly couldn't hold back their vomit.
Some of the maids and officials who witnessed the carnage had been scared into insanity on the spot.
"Cough, cough, Lord A, based on our investigation, this was likely the work of the Chinoike Clan."
"But we still don't know how they managed to bypass the outer perimeter and infiltrate the castle."
"Our findings suggest the daimyō and his wife were the first to die, followed by his children and extended family."
"Only afterward did the samurai and shinobi notice something was wrong, due to the heavy stench of blood."
The Kumogakure jōnin, who had personally gone to investigate the capital of the Land of Lightning, recounted the incident in a grave tone as he faced A—and the young Killer Bee beside him.
"The Chinoike Clan..."
A muttered to himself, trying hard to recall what he knew about them.
"Lord A, the Chinoike Clan originally hailed from our Land of Lightning during the Warring States Period."
"They possessed a dōjutsu kekkei genkai known as the Ketsuryūgan, whose abilities—primarily genjutsu and blood manipulation—were said to rival the Uchiha's Sharingan."
"However, the daimyō of that era exiled the entire clan to the 'Valley of Hell' in the Land of Hot Water, and even hired the Uchiha to guard over them."
After hearing this detailed account, A finally understood the gist of the situation.
"So for some reason, the Chinoike Clan managed to escape from the Valley of Hell and infiltrated the capital for revenge, killing the daimyō... Have we tracked them down?"
A asked with a grim face, silently cursing the foolishness of the daimyō from a century ago.
A clan with abilities rivaling the Uchiha was locked away for hundreds of years?
And all because of some baseless charge that their Ketsuryūgan was 'ominous'?
Idiotic!
Of course, A only dared to think such thoughts in his head.
The Kumogakure jōnin replied, "Among the shinobi guarding the castle, only three of the enemy were successfully killed. The remaining four or five fled in the direction of the Land of Demons."
"The Land of Demons?"
A raised an eyebrow in surprise.
"How many did we lose?"
The jōnin's expression turned sour. "Of the two jōnin squads assigned to protect the daimyō, only Jōnin Matsui survived. But he's in critical condition and is currently undergoing a blood transfusion at the hospital."
"So, with comparable numbers, they lost three, and we only had one survivor!"
A ground his teeth in fury.
His disdain for that ancient daimyō deepened, and he was now starting to feel frustrated with all the daimyō who had succeeded him.
For decades, Kumogakure had been striving to surpass Konohagakure and become the most powerful shinobi village in the world.
And yet these daimyō had completely ignored a clan with such a powerful kekkei genkai!
"They deserved to die!!!"
A couldn't hold back and shouted the words aloud.
"Brother, what's gotten into you?"
Killer Bee looked up at A in confusion, while the jōnin nearby was visibly startled.
"Uh—I meant those three Chinoike shinobi who died! Served them right!"
A quickly tried to explain away his outburst, then immediately switched to a serious expression and gave an order: "In any case, send intel on the Chinoike Clan and the Ketsuryūgan to Iwagakure."
"Yes, sir!"
The Kumogakure jōnin promptly stepped out of the Raikage's office upon receiving his orders.
As for how to handle the daimyō's assassination...
No one brought it up.
A, who was already aware of the truth behind the World Government, had a vague feeling that it would be best not to get too involved in this matter.
It was better to let the future World Government decide how to deal with it.
"Bee, get ready. We're taking 3,000 troops to the Land of Iron!"
"Got it, Brother!"
...
Land of Fire – Konohagakure.
Ever since Aramaki took control of the village, numerous changes had inevitably occurred.
In terms of the general environment—
The wall and buildings facing the main gate, still in ruins after being destroyed, remained unrestored.
In addition to that—
Konohagakure was now filled with heavily armed army soldiers in black uniforms and army officers cloaked in long black coats.
It seemed they had already taken over all patrol and security operations in the village, replacing the shinobi.
At any given time, one could see squads of soldiers marching through the streets with blank expressions.
They paid no attention whatsoever to the hostile and fearful eyes peeking out from houses on either side.
At that moment, Senju Tobirama stood alone in the top-floor office of the Hokage Building, his deep gaze fixed on the sky.
The events of the past few days had felt more thrilling and surreal than anything he had experienced in life.
The World Government's invasion, his elder brother Hashirama's defeat, the fall of Konohagakure—and just recently, the reports of the Ghost Army from the Land of Demons and the White Beast Army from the Land of Iron…
If he had to sum it all up with one word—
Chaos!
To respond to the unfolding crisis, Konohagakure had formed two separate units.
The first was a diplomatic delegation led by Senju Hashirama, Orochimaru, Nara Shikaku, Namikaze Minato, Kushina, Queen Sara, and two elder representatives from the Hyūga clan.
They would accompany General Aramaki to Rōran for talks with the World Government.
As for Minato's legs—
They had already healed with the help of a military alchemist embedded with the army.
And the Nine-Tails had, at Aramaki's persuasion, temporarily returned to Kushina's body—awaiting the day when the World Government would completely free it.
The second unit was a 5,000-strong shinobi force led by Jiraiya and Uchiha Fugaku as commander and deputy commander.
Their mission: head to the Land of Bears.
There, they would relieve the Fourth Kazekage Rasa and the Sunagakure shinobi, joining forces with Iwagakure to halt the advance of the Ghost Army.
Once the handoff was complete, Rasa would then lead the Sunagakure shinobi to the Land of Marshes to support Chiyo, Pakura, and the others—
In stopping Satori from merging Mōryō's soul with its physical body.
...
Land of Swamps.
[BOOM! BOOM!]
Suddenly, deafening blasts echoed across the sky.
Two nearby volcanoes erupted simultaneously.
At that moment, countless figures were locked in fierce combat high in the air, circling a seemingly ordinary active volcano.
On one side were numerous 'Rōran Puppets', firing off crimson energy blasts while trailing scarlet flame-like tails, constantly shifting forms and launching red volleys.
Opposing them were shinobi of the Sky Ninja, equipped with unique single-person flight gear, soaring at high speeds using electric current and blue chakra.
They attacked using auto-triggered kunai launchers.
Every passing moment saw more puppets and Sky Ninja falling from the air—
Only to be swallowed by the searing lava below.
Among them,
One creature stood out the most—a monstrous being the size of a giant summoning beast, pitch-black from head to toe, and winged.
Despite its massive size,
This 'black beast' moved with uncanny agility.
Under a hail of concentrated attacks from all directions,
It darted through the intersecting red barrages with astonishing speed and unpredictable movements,
So effortlessly that it seemed almost divine.
Even when some of the energy blasts were unavoidable,
They were either obliterated midair by the shockwaves from its wings,
Or struck its body without causing the slightest injury.
[Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!]
As it weaved through the onslaught, the black beast suddenly flung its wings forward.
Dozens of jet-black feathers shot forth like arrows,
Piercing through more than twenty 'Rōran Puppets'.
"Hahahahahahaha!"
Suddenly, the black beast burst into maniacal laughter in a human voice.
"This is the power of darkness!"
"Even if all of you come at me at once—you cannot stop me from doing as I please!"
In the distance, Chiyo and the current One-Tails jinchūriki, Monk Bunpuku,
Watched with heavy hearts.
The surrounding Suna shinobi wore anxious, bewildered expressions.
Over two-thirds of the 'Rōran Puppets' they had brought had already been destroyed—either by the so-called 'Demon Jinchūriki', the Sky Ninja leader,
Or by those suicide-charging Sky Ninja who had seemingly lost all reason.
"Bunpuku."
Chiyo turned calmly toward the monk.
He nodded, his tone equally composed: "This humble monk can release Shukaku at any moment."
"Then don't wait—let him out. We're no match for that monster on our own," Chiyo sighed.
"Very well."
Meanwhile—
A more brutal battle was unfolding before the entrance of a cave beneath that very volcano.
On one side was a squad of elite Suna shinobi led by Pakura, numbering around twenty.
Their enemies included a twisted coalition of Chinoike clan members with their Ketsuryūgan,
Half-finished experimental subjects from the Cult of the Evil God,
And several White Zetsu who possessed far stronger Wood Release abilities than ordinary ones.
But at that moment, Pakura's eyes were fixed not on them—
But on the terrifying creature standing across from her, whose entire body had turned deep crimson,
And from whose back extended seven blazing red tails.
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