Uchiha Shisui had long noticed something off about Ōnoki. Despite the Tsuchikage's evasive posture, Shisui didn't dare lower his guard. In this entire battlefield, the person he feared most wasn't the Raikage—it was Ōnoki.
Because if there was one thing everyone in the shinobi world agreed on, it was this: once you're caught by Ōnoki's Dust Release, you're dead. The jutsu was the shinobi world's equivalent of a nuclear bomb. And even if he hadn't used it yet, as long as it remained a possibility, no one could relax.
"Alright, the farce ends now."
The voice boomed across the entire battlefield.
Heads turned upward. Every Uchiha in the area recognized him instantly. Even Tsunade and Jiraiya, though shaken, showed traces of disbelief.
"Oi, brat, who the hell are you to speak so—"
The Raikage's mouth moved faster than his brain.
"Shut up."
In an instant, Su Xiuyu appeared in front of him and flicked the Raikage's forehead with a single finger.
CRACK!
The Raikage flew hundreds of meters, crashing through stone and steel like a ragdoll, disappearing into a pile of rubble.
"Brother!"
"Let's go!" Killer Bee cried, preparing to act.
"Stop, you idiot! You want us both to die?" the Eight-Tails growled in his mind.
Even Yugito hesitated, Nibi whispering urgently in her consciousness.
"Don't resist, Yugito. If we don't fight back, we might live. But if you move, we're dead."
"What happened to him?"
"That man's chakra... it's comparable to the Sage of Six Paths. You think I'd joke about that?"
"The Sage of Six Paths? That's a myth!"
"No. I'm dead serious. That man is Uchiha Xiuyu—just as legendary as the First Hokage. Even decades ago, no one here could've matched him."
Killer Bee instantly understood the gravity of the situation.
But Ōnoki had him beat.
Floating down from the sky, the aging Tsuchikage landed with a trembling bow.
"Lord Xiuyu... you're still as handsome as ever."
Even Kitsuchi nearly fell over. Was this really the father he looked up to? The unshakable Tsuchikage... groveling?
But Ōnoki's actions weren't without consequence. Roshi and Han immediately stopped their advance.
Xiuyu looked him over and gave a small chuckle.
"Ōnoki? Hah. Look at you. Just a few years, and you're already an old fossil. Iwagakure still hasn't found a successor?"
He remembered the boy with the oversized nose who had once faced Madara and been humbled. Xiuyu had even offered him comfort back then.
Truthfully, of all the Kage, Xiuyu always felt Ōnoki had the strongest sense of responsibility. He was a survivor—tenacious and practical. Even in the original timeline, Ōnoki had carried Iwagakure through war after war without a worthy heir.
He even stood against Madara in the end.
"People age, Lord Xiuyu. Unlike you, we aren't blessed with immortality," Ōnoki said humbly, still bowing.
Around them, the atmosphere shifted. The battlefield froze—not from fear, but awe. They were watching a former rival Kage reminisce with someone clearly beyond mortal rank.
But not everyone was so tactful.
BOOM!
The One-Tail fired off another wild shot, raging blindly now that no one paid him any mind.
Xiuyu sighed. "Mito. Teach him a lesson."
Mito nodded.
"Adamantine Sealing Chains!"
Three thick chakra chains shot from her back, extending across the battlefield in a flash. They pierced the air and wrapped tightly around Shukaku's hulking form, binding him like a captured beast.
The massive tail flailed once—then shrank.
In the blink of an eye, it compressed into a ball the size of a fist and dropped harmlessly in front of them.
"Little Shukaku," Mito said with a small smirk. "It's been a while."
The One-Tail shuddered. "N-No way... It's you?"
He turned his head—and saw them.
Uchiha Xiuyu. Uzumaki Asaoka. Uchiha Chisato. Senju Hashirama. Senju Tobirama.
Shukaku went stiff. It was like a childhood trauma resurfacing.
Back then, when Hashirama brought the tailed beasts to Konoha, Mito had fought him—and won. He'd been kept as a pet, bullied into obedience. Everyone beat him back then: Hashirama, Tobirama, Xiuyu, Madara, Izuna, Asaoka, and Mito herself.
Now, with all those people standing right in front of him again, the old fear surged back.
"L-Long time no see... Mito," Shukaku stammered. "Haha... maybe starting with the Adamantine Chains was a little... aggressive?"
"Look who's behind me," she said coolly.
Shukaku turned pale. "Y-You're joking, right? You brought everyone?!"
As he shrank back with an exaggerated grin, the battlefield's tension turned almost comical.
Just then, the Raikage, bruised and cracked, finally made it back—only to be held down by Killer Bee and Yugito.
"Brother, don't move!" Bee whispered.
"Take a look at the battlefield. Uchiha Xiuyu is here... and the Eight-Tails just told me—he's stepped into the realm of the Sage of Six Paths."
The Raikage, usually so brash, went completely still.
Even he wasn't arrogant enough to fight a living god.
"Wait—are Kumo, Iwa, and Suna really attacking Konoha?" Xiuyu asked casually.
Ōnoki bowed again, trembling.
"Lord Xiuyu, you misunderstand! I was only acting. We in Iwagakure haven't harmed a single Konoha ninja!"
Did he think Xiuyu couldn't see through him?
Everyone knew Ōnoki was betting that Xiuyu was too disinterested to bother killing him.
But Xiuyu hadn't forgotten how much fear Madara instilled in the old Tsuchikage. And he could see Ōnoki's desperation.
"If Iwagakure falls, it's because of me," Ōnoki thought grimly. Still... if there's even a sliver of hope, I have to take it.
"Ōnoki, you always were persistent. Let's see just how much you've grown."
Xiuyu raised a hand casually.
"Use your Dust Release on me. Full power."
The entire battlefield froze again.
Ōnoki's face paled. "L-Lord Xiuyu... I-I dare not..."
Xiuyu smiled. "What, afraid your technique won't scratch me?"
Ōnoki swallowed. "Then... forgive me, Lord Xiuyu...!"
-------------------
"My sincerest apologies, Lord Xiuyu! Dust Release: Detachment of the Primitive World Technique!"
A brilliant white light surged in Ōnoki's palms and shot straight toward Uchiha Xiuyu. The destructive beam of Dust Release—capable of erasing anything at a molecular level—blazed across the air in an instant.
But Su Xiuyu didn't even flinch.
He calmly extended his right hand, and the formidable Dust Release technique vanished—silently, effortlessly—like a candle snuffed in the wind.
Ōnoki stood frozen.
He had expected to fail, but to see his most powerful technique absorbed so casually… Even the Third Raikage, known for his impenetrable defense, had never dared face Dust Release directly.
But Xiuyu? He caught it like it was child's play.
Ōnoki composed himself quickly. What was I thinking? There's no comparison. But now everyone has seen the difference in power. There's no shame in surrendering to a god.
"You're still as unstoppable as ever, Lord Xiuyu," Ōnoki said with a crooked smile, casting aside pride entirely.
All around them, Uchiha clansmen cheered in unison.
"Long live our ancestor!"
Ever since Uchiha Xiuyu had arrived, the battlefield had come to a complete halt. The Five Kage stopped fighting. The tailed beasts fell silent. Even the wind seemed to hold its breath.
"Now then," Xiuyu said, "clean up the battlefield and tend to your wounded. We'll reconvene at the Hokage Building."
He paused, voice sharp.
"Any objections?"
"None, Lord Xiuyu!"
And just like that, the war that nearly engulfed the shinobi world ended.
Konoha remained mostly unscathed. Thanks to Itachi's advance evacuation plan, most civilians had already fled. Only a few unlucky souls near the initial clash had been injured or killed.
Kumogakure, however, suffered heavy casualties.
Sunagakure lost many, including their Kazekage.
Iwagakure was surprisingly intact—thanks to Ōnoki's early warning and order to prioritize defense. Their survival was less a testament to power and more to the art of tactical retreat.
And Kirigakure?
They were the luckiest. Mei Terumi hadn't participated at all, and now that decision looked prophetic.
---
The Hokage's office had never been so crowded.
With the exception of the now-deceased Kazekage, representatives from every major village were present. And with how large the Raikage and Killer Bee were, they practically took up two seats each.
Mei Terumi, while not officially the Mizukage, was widely expected to inherit the role once she returned. She held her head high, aware of her good fortune.
"Since everyone is here," Xiuyu began, standing before them, "I'll make my declaration. Don't bother raising objections. This isn't a discussion."
His eyes swept across the room. Every Kage felt the pressure behind those words.
"I am not Senju Hashirama," he said plainly. "I don't argue. I don't negotiate. And I don't hand out favors."
"Hey, hey, come on, Xiuyu!" Hashirama chuckled awkwardly from the corner. "I'm right here! Don't throw me under the bus in front of everyone."
"Tch. He's right, brother," Tobirama muttered. "You embarrassed us all back then."
"Even you, Tobirama?!" Hashirama sighed, retreating into a gloomy corner.
It was only now that many finally realized: the First Hokage, revered across the world, was also... kind of a goofball.
Only Tsunade stayed beside him, patting his back. "It's okay, Grandpa…"
"Let's get back to business," Xiuyu said. "First off—Sand Village. You will pay Konoha seventy million ryo in reparations. It's not much, mostly because you're poor. Any objections?"
Jōnin Maki, heavily bandaged and barely able to stand, shook his head.
"No objections. We accept."
With the Kazekage dead and the village in ruins, what choice did he have?
"Kumogakure will pay five hundred million ryo," Xiuyu continued. "I also want two-fifths of the Land of Lightning's territory... and the Raikage's right arm."
The room went silent.
"Impossible! I'd rather die!" Raikage roared, slamming the table and rising to his feet.
Before he could attack, a narrow portal of space opened before him—cleanly slicing off his raised arm at the shoulder.
SLASH.
He fell back, stunned.
Killer Bee and Yukito tackled him immediately, restraining his movements.
"I-I'm sorry, Lord Xiuyu! He lost control!" Killer Bee shouted, panicked.
"I apologize too!" Yugito added, face pale.
Xiuyu's expression didn't change.
"A, consider yourself lucky to have such a loyal brother. If he hadn't held you down, it would've been your head that fell instead."
Everyone shuddered.
Turning to Mei Terumi, he gave a small nod. "You chose wisely by staying out of this. That's why, moving forward, Kirigakure will be allowed to... drink soup with us."
"Thank you, Lord Xiuyu," Mei replied smoothly, bowing slightly.
Xiuyu turned to Ōnoki.
"And since you showed some sense... I'll throw you a bone too."
A glowing orb of green light appeared in Xiuyu's palm. Before Ōnoki could react, it gently touched his chest and vanished.
"What was that—?"
But he didn't finish. Kitsuchi stared at him in shock.
"Father... you look... younger."
Indeed, the wrinkles around his eyes had faded. His back straightened. His movements became fluid.
Ōnoki blinked, stunned.
"Yang Release," Xiuyu said calmly. "It restores vitality. Just a little reward for your humility."
Ōnoki knelt.
"Thank you, Lord Xiuyu! This gift... is priceless."
Now Iwagakure had its reputation intact—and their Kage was ten years younger.
Suddenly, the future didn't seem so grim.
Once again, the world had returned to a familiar state:
Only Kumogakure and Sunagakure were left licking their wounds.
Xiuyu raised a hand, calling for silence.
"I now have one more announcement. Listen well—it concerns all of you."
"This one isn't mandatory," he said. "You can refuse if you wish."
"I need manpower. A lot of it. If your villages are willing to contribute, I'll reward you accordingly—more than you can imagine."
"I'll be blunt: I intend to explore a new world."
He paused, letting the words hang in the air.
"When I eat meat... you will drink soup. But make no mistake—that soup comes from my table. You understand?"
<><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><>
Check my Pâtreon for (40) advanced chapters
Pâtreon .com/Fanficlord03
Change (â) to (a)
<><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><>
https://discord.gg/MntqcdpRZ9