Land of Water, Kirigakure.
In the basement of the Mizukage building, Madara Uchiha, his hair completely white, leaned against a stone chair. He was gripping the armrests tightly while bowing his head and breathing heavily.
His labored breathing sounded like a broken bellows being pulled with difficulty—intermittent and weak, as if it might stop at any moment, ending his life abruptly.
Clearly, the death of the Elephant Path had indeed impacted Madara's original body to some extent.
At this point, he couldn't help but admit—he had underestimated Konoha. Even without Uzumaki Heiyan, the village's high-level combat strength was still enough to pose a deadly threat to him.
"Grandfather Madara, are you alright?" Nagato stepped forward, supporting Madara's frail body with concern written across his face.
"I'm fine," Madara waved him off, his expression darkening.
This operation could only be described as a complete failure—he hadn't captured the Nine-Tails jinchuriki nor destroyed Konoha's fighting forces. Instead, he'd lost his Elephant Path there.
Now, Madara no longer had the energy to create another Elephant Path. His remaining chakra reserves simply wouldn't allow further depletion.
Although, within this very basement, relying on the power of Rinnegan and the Demonic Statue of the Outer Path, he remained invincible and didn't need to fear any counterattacks from Konoha. But right now, Madara was a frail, dying man barely able to move. Lying in the chair waiting for death seemed to be all that remained.
Madara refused to accept this fate.
Suddenly, a thought flashed through his mind.
Right.
Impure World Reincarnation!
He suddenly remembered the forbidden technique recorded in the Scroll of Seals. Although he hadn't brought the scroll back with him, having read it once already allowed him to remember the principles and sealing formulas involved in Impure World Reincarnation.
There were two particularly difficult aspects to this technique—the process of summoning souls from the Pure Land of Death, and preparing appropriate sacrificial vessels for resurrection.
Meeting these two conditions would maximize the technique's effectiveness, enabling resurrected individuals to possess strength approaching their peak living form.
Madara suddenly realized this forbidden ninjutsu created by Tobirama Senju was practically tailor-made for his Rinnegan.
Rinnegan.
Just from its name, one could tell it contained Six Paths reincarnation power. Summoning spirits from the Pure Land of Death was practically effortless.
Furthermore, using the power of the Demonic Statue of the Outer Path combined with Yin and Yang Release, Madara could produce high-quality White Zetsu clones to serve perfectly as sacrificial vessels for the Impure World Reincarnation.
Madara realized that in his hands, this forbidden technique could reach its ultimate potential, surpassing even Tobirama Senju's original version.
A stunning vision appeared in his mind:
Not far into the future, an army composed of the strongest ninja in shinobi history would emerge from this very basement. Hashirama Senju, Tobirama Senju, and many of Madara's former rivals would all stand among them.
They would serve under Madara, capturing tailed beasts, destroying various ninja villages, until finally toppling the entire world of shinobi.
Thinking about this—
"Hahahaha!"
Madara burst into loud laughter, dispelling his previous gloom. In front of a startled Nagato, he raised his head proudly and let out a wild laugh, baring his sharp white teeth.
The endless laughter echoed through the vast underground chamber...
Outside the Hidden Leaf Village,
In a forest halfway down the mountainside, Heiyan had witnessed the entire battle between Tsunade's team and Madara Uchiha. Throughout, he held himself back, resisting the urge to reveal himself in a moment of impulse.
In truth, Madara would never succeed.
Because Heiyan had already made preparations. If absolutely necessary, he could remotely activate the Demonic Statue of the Outer Path to ambush Madara's original body directly.
Heiyan ran through the possibilities—he could seriously wound Madara by using the Demonic Statue now, but killing him outright would be difficult.
Once Madara recovered, he would use his Rinnegan to reclaim control of the statue, undoing all of Heiyan's careful planning.
But now, it seemed Heiyan wouldn't have to go that far.
He lingered for a while, watching the celebrations unfold across the village and hearing the cheers echoing from the streets. Then, he turned his gaze toward the direction of the Fire Daimyo's Mansion.
It was time to make good on what he had said during the Five Kage Summit.
With that thought, Heiyan turned and, like a hawk taking flight, disappeared into the distance.
Mount Myoboku.
Gamamaru stared at the crystal ball, stunned.
He hadn't expected that not only did the Konoha ninja successfully defend their village, they actually defeated Madara Uchiha. These shinobi seemingly no longer needed him as their savior.
Tsunade, Fugaku Uchiha, Hiashi Hyuga... Could their strength really all be attributed to Uzumaki Heiyan?
Sigh...
After a long silence, Gamamaru let out a soft sigh.
At this point, there was nothing left to do but wait patiently and look for another opportunity to intervene.
One day later.
Following the end of the Five Kage Summit clash and the Konoha siege, the news spread rapidly among the great ninja villages, escalating quickly into a massive upheaval that shook the entire shinobi world.
In Sunagakure, the entire village mourned upon hearing of the Third Kazekage's death;
In Kumogakure, internal chaos erupted once again, leading to a coup d'état;
In Kirigakure, perhaps due to having experienced too many Mizukage deaths and endured Madara's oppressive rule for so long, the ninja had become numb; Iwagakure suffered the least damage, but as the initiator of the Five Kage Summit, Onoki's reputation within the village had taken a severe hit after failing both at the negotiation table and on the battlefield.
However, compared to the other ninja villages, the greatest loser in this war was undoubtedly the Fire Daimyo's Mansion.
"Dan'zō, what exactly is going on?! Why did this so-called Protective God you spoke of slaughter our soldiers indiscriminately?"
Inside the Daimyo's Mansion, the Fire Lord lost his composure completely, roaring furiously at Danzo.
Just twenty-four hours earlier, Madara Uchiha's actions on the battlefield had caused the Daimyo's prestige within the nation to plummet to an all-time low.
Now, the Daimyo not only had to face retaliation from Konoha but also quell rebellions initiated by powerful noble families.
A thousand years of rule by the Daimyo's Mansion was now on the verge of total collapse.
"My Lord Daimyo, please hear me out..."
Danzo tried to explain with words, but his feet were already stepping backward one by one—clearly preparing to flee.
"Seize him!"
The Daimyo burned with rage, pointing his finger directly at Danzo and shouting loudly.
Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!
At his command, twelve figures suddenly burst forth from all directions. Some positioned themselves in front of the Daimyo while others tightly surrounded Danzo.
These individuals were elite Jonin-level ninja carefully selected from every corner of the Land of Fire, each fiercely loyal to the Daimyo. Though dressed in varied attire, each bore a waist sash engraved with the character "fire."
The Twelve Guardian Ninja.
Danzo's expression changed dramatically. Facing overwhelming odds and fully aware of his hopeless situation, he could only submit temporarily and allow himself to be captured.
"Transport him to the Land of Grass and lock him up in Hozuki Castle Prison! Tell the warden there I want this man to experience every punishment imaginable until he grows old and dies inside that prison!"
The Daimyo coldly declared. He didn't want to kill Danzo outright because that would be too merciful—he wanted the latter to suffer torment after torment, growing old and eventually dying in loneliness and pain.
Upon hearing this, Danzo feigned deep despair, but inwardly rejoiced. As long as the Daimyo hadn't executed him on the spot, he still had a hundred opportunities to escape during the journey to Hozuki Castle.
"Immediately contact Konoha Village. I want a video call with the Third Hokage—I'm inviting him for peace negotiations."
After dealing with Danzo, the Daimyo's gaze sharpened as he continued issuing orders.
He had no intention of sincerely seeking peace with Konoha; the negotiation was merely a delaying strategy.
His real objective was to stall Konoha while secretly contacting the other four great nations and their ninja villages, asking them to send armies into the Land of Fire and launch a joint attack on Konoha.
This time, he swore to completely destroy Konoha Village and execute every single Konoha ninja.
As the Daimyo of the Land of Fire, he was even willing to open the country's gates to foreign powers to accomplish this.
"You may all leave now. I need some rest."
After issuing his orders, the Daimyo slumped onto a chair, massaging his temples with an expression of visible fatigue.
In the past, his life had been simple, dull, and monotonous—eating, drinking, playing mahjongg (a traditional Chinese tile game) all night, and sleeping until afternoon.
The sacrifices of millions of common folk and Konoha ninja sustained the luxurious and decadent lifestyle of the Daimyo family.
But now, times had changed.
To maintain control over the country and continue exploiting its people, he was willing to pay any price—even ceding portions of his land to foreign powers.
Just then, something unexpected occurred.
Buzzzzz.
Inside the Daimyo's Mansion, the Murakumo Sword hanging on the trophy wall suddenly began vibrating violently, emitting a metallic ringing sound.
This sword had once been wielded by Uzumaki Heiyan. After his death, it was confiscated by the samurai clan of the Land of Iron and presented to the Daimyo's Mansion.
Displaying it here was both an act of showing off and intimidation, meant to warn those with treacherous ambitions what fate awaited traitors.
"What's going on?"
Everyone present looked at the Murakumo Sword with shock and confusion.
Swoosh!
Suddenly, the Murakumo Sword floated upward. In everyone's horrified gaze, its tip automatically locked onto the Daimyo and quickly flew toward him.
"Protect Lord Daimyo!"
A monk among the crowd shouted fiercely while forming a golden barrier with hand seals, shielding the terrified Daimyo behind him.
This man was the leader of the Twelve Guardian Ninja group, the head monk Tansen of the Fire Temple.
At the order of Tansen, several guardian ninjas rushed forward together, swinging their weapons toward the Murakumo Sword.
Dang! Dang! Dang!
The intense sounds of clashing weapons echoed inside the Daimyo's Mansion. The flying swords destroyed many seats and pieces of furniture, quickly turning the area into a chaotic mess.
Not only was the Murakumo Sword extremely sharp, but it was also very flexible. It darted up and down, weaving back and forth, launching surprise attacks from every unexpected angle.
In comparison, even if the guardian ninjas managed to strike the Murakumo Sword, they could only push it back temporarily instead of destroying it completely.
For the guardian ninjas' side, this situation was clearly extremely unfavorable.
"Arggh!" "Ah!"
Soon, two guardian ninjas screamed in pain as they were beheaded by continuous attacks from the Murakuko Sword, blood splattering everywhere.
"We won't make it at this rate!"
Beside them, a sensor-type guardian ninja warned. "Someone is hiding nearby, manipulating this sword remotely using chakra. We must find that person, or we'll all be killed sooner or later."
When Danzo heard this, his expression became even more astonished.
Isn't this Uzumaki Heiyan's sword? Could he still be alive?
Impossible. Uzumaki Heiyan had clearly self-destructed on the snow-covered plain in the Land of Iron, and Madara Uchiha himself confirmed it.
Although momentarily confused, Danzo noticed that three members of the Twelve Guardian Ninja had rushed out to search for the enemy, leaving another three entangled with the Murakumo Sword. Apart from the two corpses on the ground and the two guards near the Daimyo, there were only two guarding Danzo left.
His chance had come.
Realizing this, Danzo's eyes flickered. Without hesitation, he initiated a Wood Release technique through concealed hand seals.
[Wood Release: Exploding Spear Tree!]
Boom.
Two trees burst from Danzo's arms, impaling the two guardian ninjas before him with lightning-fast precision.
After eliminating the two during the chaos, Danzo sneered coldly and fled through the door without looking back.
However, just as he was about to rush out of the courtyard gate, freedom finally within reach—
Peng!
While running at full speed, Danzo suddenly slammed into an invisible air wall. The impact sent him reeling backward, lights flashing in his vision, before crashing to the ground, dazed and helpless.
At this moment, the 'air wall' gradually revealed its true form. It turned out to be a tall man wearing gray steel armor with wings on his back. Somehow, he used invisibility and deliberately waited in the courtyard for Danzo to run straight into him.
Uzumaki Heiyan lifted his foot and directly stepped on Danzo's chest. The immense force shattered his ribs, crushing his ribcage inward.
"Ss s s…"
Danzo gasped for breath, letting out a muffled cry of agony, almost passing out from the pain.
He stared at the armored figure in sheer terror, voice shaking as he stammered,
"You... who are you?"
"I? I'm a friend of Uzumaki Heiyan. I've come to help him avenge himself and reclaim his sword."
Heiyan looked down at Danzo and spoke in a low, metallic voice.
Right after he finished speaking—
Whoosh!
Inside the room, the Murakumo Sword disengaged from its clash with the guardian ninja, soared straight toward Heiyan, and fell into his hand.
A swishing sound cut through the air as Heiyan brought the blade to Danzo's nose. The latter immediately turned pale, cold sweat pouring from his body, soaking through his clothes as though he had just been pulled from water.
What was going on?
After arriving at the courtyard, the Twelve Guardian Ninja witnessed this scene and exchanged glances. Following Tansen's silent signal, they did not act rashly but instead fanned out around the courtyard, surrounding both Heiyan and Danzo.
Heiyan paid no heed to the Twelve Guardian Ninja's encirclement. Instead, he moved the sword tip toward Danzo's right eye. With a quick flick, the bandage was torn away as the latter stared at him in horror.
Sure enough, beneath the bandage lay [the Uchiha clan's advanced eye technique]—Kagami Uchiha's triple-tomoe Sharingan. It pulsed faintly with ocular power, seemingly ready to release a certain jutsu at any moment.
"So, you were planning to use [Izanagi—a forbidden technique that bends reality to create illusions of life and death] to fake your death and deceive me?"
Heiyan said with a teasing tone.
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