"Lord Aizen."
"It's already begun over there."
Under the night sky, Yakushi Kabuto's face still wore that mask-like smile as he softly asked, "Do we need to make our move now?"
Aizen Sōsuke stood quietly in front of the experimental bench, observing the subtle changes in the culture dish. Hearing Yakushi Kabuto's words, his expression showed no abnormality, and his tone was calm: "Since some people have willingly jumped out of the shadows, why not let them dance a while first."
"At least, let's see how many surprises he can bring to everyone, shall we?"
Yakushi Kabuto walked into the laboratory, skillfully brewed a cup of black tea, and asked, "Is this the variable you spoke of, Lord Aizen? What are they planning to do this time?"
"I don't know, Kabuto-kun."
Aizen Sōsuke's voice remained gentle as he calmly replied, "Right now, I am merely an ordinary person, not a god from the heavens."
"How could a mortal predict everything that will happen in the future?"
"But Lord Aizen already predicted they would make a move tonight, didn't you?" Yakushi Kabuto, holding his teacup, came to his side, tilting his head as if puzzled.
"That's merely a deduction based on human nature."
"When pushed to this extent, if the Shinobi Clans still don't make any moves to resist, their internal morale will probably collapse."
"However, I'm very curious about why they left the Village."
"After all, that Lord has been lurking for so long, observing for so long. I wonder how far his first move can go."
As Aizen spoke, he took off his gloves, accepted the teacup from Yakushi Kabuto, and gently blew on the hot liquid.
Yakushi Kabuto, however, looked at him in confusion: "That Lord?"
"Yes."
Aizen turned to look at him, his eyes holding a hint of anticipation, and spoke gently: "That one, Lord Orochimaru."
""
Yakushi Kabuto was startled, the cup and saucer in his hand shaking involuntarily. His pupils, rarely, tightened for a fleeting moment before he quickly regained control.
Orochimaru?!
He didn't die that night?
"This... Lord Aizen..."
Yakushi Kabuto was uncharacteristically flustered. At this moment, even he didn't know what expression was on his face. He could only force himself to calm down, seeing the almost imperceptible look of satisfaction on Aizen Sōsuke's face, and quickly managed a somewhat strained smile.
This Aizen Sōsuke, he must have wanted to see this reaction, right?
This man is truly an utterly despicable bastard!
"Thank you for the black tea."
"It's delicious."
Aizen Sōsuke quietly looked at him, slightly raising his teacup, causing Yakushi Kabuto to momentarily swallow the words he was about to speak.
This was clearly a dismissal.
"It is my honor to receive your praise."
"Lord."
With those words, Yakushi Kabuto quickly exited the room.
Aizen Sōsuke walked back to his desk, slowly sipping his black tea, his mind constantly pondering.
Plans and accidents; in the end, accidents always came first.
Although it didn't come as a complete surprise, it was still somewhat unpleasant.
Fortunately, it didn't disrupt the progress of the plan.
Originally, in his estimation, this cleansing operation was merely an opportunity to leverage the conflict between the Shinobi Clans and the Hokage to gain power, seize control of Root from Danzo Shimura, and allow him to command Root to act freely from the outside.
If things proceeded as planned, he would first use Root's power to find the energy and materials to create a world capable of sustaining his entire soul.
However, since Orochimaru was more impatient than he expected, he had no choice but to activate the backup plan.
"The Hollow Plan."
Aizen's fingertip tapped on a file name on his desk, his gaze slightly profound.
If the World Creation Plan was primarily about laying a solid foundation for him to release more power,
Then this Hollow Plan was more aggressive and proactive.
A long time ago, Aizen noticed that after people died, their souls would be actively absorbed into an environment commonly known as the "Pure Land."
Although he still hadn't found a passage to the Pure Land, using this placeholder name for now was fine.
The main purpose of the "Hollow Plan" was to contend with the Pure Land for souls, collecting power for him.
The initial seed of the entire plan had already been planted within Uchiha Obito.
However, Aizen Sōsuke had not yet finalized how to make this plan more complete.
He had collected a lot of data and pre-set research directions related to negative energy, primarily from the Tailed Beasts, the legends of the Land of Demons Priestesses, the legends of immortal gods, and the source of the third power of the Mangekyo Sharingan.
Their common characteristic was that they themselves possessed extremely vast and negative energy sources.
Now, Orochimaru, whom he had expected to hide for much longer, had reappeared in his sight.
Given his personality, it was absolutely impossible for him to appear before him without absolute confidence.
Therefore, there was only one method left—to let those desperate Shinobi Clans help him transport a "weapon" with sufficient deterrent power.
This was similar in principle to the materials Aizen needed for the "Hollow Plan."
Not only did it not hinder this plan, but it could even accelerate his original plan to take control of Root.
It was precisely for this reason that he waited so calmly.
Aizen Sōsuke put down his teacup, his gaze fixed on the whirring machines in the distance, his fingertips gently caressing the paper, filled with anticipation.
"Lord Orochimaru."
"I hope... you can make me more amused."
"Partial Expansion Jutsu: Super Open Hand!"
The giant palm, suddenly inflated like a balloon and supported by Chakra and muscles, slammed forward like a battering ram amidst the roaring airflow.
Several figures attempting to block the approaching person were swatted away like flies by this giant palm, crashing against the tree trunks behind them with bangs, spitting blood.
The owner of the giant palm, after clearing the obstacles, quickly leaped out of the forest with a flexibility unbefitting his size, attempting to break through the encirclement.
"Ninja Tool Manipulation: Iron Blade Net!"
However, before his figure could leap over the branches, two figures below simultaneously pulled levers and steel wires, unfurling a large net covered with fine blades, attempting to ensnare the person above.
Akimichi Todo, facing such an obstruction, didn't even look, immediately casting another jutsu.
"Partial Expansion: Human Bullet Tank!"
In an instant, his suddenly inflated torso transformed into a sphere, crashing forward with the impact force brought by its increased weight.
The friction between his body's muscles and the iron blade steel wire net produced a series of fine sizzling sounds.
Just as the two were desperately trying to hold onto the net and stop the approaching person, they heard a cold shout from behind them: "Secret Jutsu: Poison Dust Jutsu!"
The two interceptors felt a chill in their hearts and instinctively looked behind them.
They saw that the forest behind them, under the night sky, was already enveloped in a large area of purple dust mist, making a faint rustling sound.
Just looking at the color made their hearts feel as if they were being squeezed, and they instinctively wanted to avoid this cloud of dust.
However, the mist caught up with their figures at an incredible speed, and the moment it made contact with them, it quickly climbed onto their limbs.
Paralysis, poisoning.
In the blink of an eye, the two turned into purple-skinned corpses.
Aburame Shigehira looked at the two with a cold expression, then turned to continue moving forward.
"Shadow Imitation Jutsu!"
But before he could walk a few steps, he heard Nara Suzaku's voice from the distant jungle.
Aburame Shigehira's gaze paused, and he looked towards the distant jungle, where a figure ambushed among the grass had already been strangled to death by the shadow lurking in the dark.
"Be careful, there are many of them."
Nara Suzaku stepped out from behind a large tree and warned Aburame Shigehira.
"Thank you."
Aburame Shigehira nodded slightly to him.
"Hoo, hoo..."
At this moment, Akimichi Todo had also torn open the steel net wrapped around him and strode towards the two, complaining softly, "These guys are really going all out to kill us."
"Even though we're from the same Village."
"Todo."
Nara Suzaku lowered his voice, displeased: "What time is it, and you're still treating them as your own?"
As he spoke, he cautiously gestured towards Aburame Shigehira in Akimichi Todo's direction.
The Ino–Shika–Chō trio had cooperated for many years, and often only small gestures were needed to understand each other's meaning.
Soon, Akimichi Todo quieted down.
That's right.
There was still a victim here whose biological son had been kidnapped by Root.
Aburame Shigehira saw all of this but said nothing.
In the current situation where the Shinobi Clans were surrounded on all sides, these individuals, belonging to different clans and having fought each other for countless years during the Sengoku period, had unexpectedly begun to unite as never before.
In a way, this could be considered a dark joke.
Aburame Shigehira shook his head, clearing his mind of distractions, and asked Nara Suzaku, "How far is it to the designated location?"
"And where did these ambushers come from?"
Nara Suzaku unfolded a map and scanned it, judging: "About two or three kilometers, there's a large tree with a distinctive landmark, and below it is the hidden base's passage."
"As for these Ninja, they should be border troops summoned from the surrounding area by the tracking unit via radio."
"Hopefully, we can avoid them as much as possible from now on."
Aburame Shigehira, responsible for sensing, nodded slightly and said in a deep voice, "I'll do my best."
From the moment they broke through the encirclement outside the Village and ran to this vicinity, the few small teams that set out with them were basically wiped out. There might still be a few survivors constantly fleeing in the dense forest, but their fate would likely not be much better.
Now, they were the only team left.
Aburame Shigehira looked at the gradually brightening sky in the distance, secretly clenching his fists.
Whether for Torune, or for the grievances his family had suffered these past days, he had to make these fools from Root pay the price.
The Shinobi Clans were the foundation of the Ninja Village.
They were the true masters of this Village.
Aburame Shigehira thought this to himself, exhaled a long breath, and formed hand signs, quickly releasing the nanobots from his body into the surroundings.
Soon, the swarm of nanobots, having received their command, found an ancient tree with blue fruits in the nearby forest.
This three-person team, led by him, arrived at the Roots of this ancient tree, opened the passage with the pre-arranged cipher, and went straight to the deepest part of this secret base.
The entire base was empty, clearly having been cleared out beforehand.
Only a huge box was placed in the center of the base's main hall.
"This must be it, right?"
Akimichi Todo walked up boldly, patted the box twice, and tried to lift it, finding nothing unusual.
He turned his head to Nara Suzaku behind him, puzzled: "Suzaku, can this thing really have the effect the clan heads talked about?"
"There isn't even a trace of Chakra."
"If this box is empty, our losses this time will be too great."
"Don't worry, Todo."
Nara Suzaku looked calmly at the box in front of him, then at Aburame Shigehira beside him, and said calmly, "I'm afraid it will be something extraordinary."
"Hmm."
Aburame Shigehira remained silent like all his clansmen, but his brows were tightly furrowed.
Through the sensory abilities of his insects, he could clearly perceive that there must be some incredible monster hidden inside this box.
Just by getting within ten meters, the nanobot swarm inside him had already begun to stir uncontrollably, manifesting as a thin, agitated purple mist on his body.
"Let's go."
He said this, then turned and walked out of the base first.
Akimichi Todo, as always, took on the strenuous task, tying the box to his back with a thick rope and lifting it with a thud.
However, the moment the three walked out of the base, their pupils all involuntarily contracted.
Appearing before them were Root Ninja, densely spread throughout the entire forest.
Danzo Shimura stood in front of everyone, looking at the three of them with his usual coldness, and calmly said, "Put that thing down."
"If you obey, this old man can still spare your lives for now."
As he spoke, his single eye lingered on the box behind them, pondering in his heart.
Fortunately, that Aizen fellow was vigilant enough to bring the information to him first, allowing him to track down these rebellious Shinobi Clans.
If not for that, this great achievement would probably have slipped through his fingers.
Thinking this, Danzo Shimura's lips curved slightly upward.
However, the three Shinobi Clans Ninja in front of him exchanged smiles and all gave him a mocking look.
"Goodbye, Lord Danzo."
The next moment, with a soft 'whoosh'.
The figures of the three suddenly vanished from before him.
Danzo Shimura was startled at first, then stunned.
"Damn it, Summoning Jutsu?!"
After a momentary dizziness, the figures of the three appeared in the center of the entire Village through a pre-arranged summoning barrier.
Everyone around them looked at them with invigorated expressions.
Under the surrounding gazes, Aburame Shigehira involuntarily puffed out his chest.
"Gentlemen."
"The time for our revenge has come!"