Chapter 89: Danzo, let me show you what brute force is!
Deep underground. Danzo Shimura sat there quietly. A black shadow appeared before him, kneeling on one knee. Danzo's single eye slowly turned, landing on the newcomer.
"Speak."
"Lord Danzo."
"The base has been invaded."
Danzo's body swayed.
"Invaded?"
"Who would dare?"
"It's the Uchiha."
"Uchiha Akira is leading the Uchiha Clan. Currently, the first level of the base has been captured by the Uchiha!"
Danzo suddenly stood up from his throne, slamming his hand on the armrest.
Crack!
A spiderweb-like crack immediately appeared on the armrest from Danzo's strike.
"Uchiha!"
"Uchiha Akira!"
"How dare they!"
"Rebellion! This is blatant rebellion! This is open betrayal of Konoha!"
Danzo was furious, his angry roars echoing incessantly in this enclosed underground space.
Danzo had completely forgotten that not long ago, he had been plotting how to use Uchiha Itachi's hand to slaughter the entire Uchiha—from women and children to ninja—leaving no one alive.
In Danzo's logic, it was only natural for him, Danzo Shimura, to eliminate any potential threats for the "greater good" of Konoha. And for the Uchiha to dare to resist his cleansing, that was a crime punishable by death, an unforgivable act of betrayal.
Fu Yamanaka and Aburame Torune emerged from the shadows.
"Lord Danzo!"
Danzo was breathing heavily. The rage in his eyes gradually gave way to a sinister and vicious look.
"Pass on my order!"
"All combat personnel, immediately enter maximum alert status!"
"Activate all defensive mechanisms, barriers, and traps!"
"Yes!"
Fu and Torune responded in a deep voice.
"Torune, immediately select 50 elites and have them break through from Emergency Exit Number 3."
"No matter what method you use, no matter what cost, you must break through the Uchiha's blockade!"
"Go to the Hokage Building and tell Hiruzen."
"Tell him that the Uchiha Clan has rebelled! They are slaughtering the Root ninja loyal to the Hokage!"
"Have him immediately mobilize all Anbu, blockade the entire area, define the Uchiha as a rebel clan, and kill them on sight!"
What Danzo wanted was not just reinforcement. What he wanted was to push the Uchiha to the side of rebellion and then unite all of Konoha to annihilate the Uchiha.
Torune's body paused slightly, then he nodded heavily.
"Yes!"
Danzo's gaze then fell upon Fu.
"Fu."
"How many personnel do we still have at our surface disguise points?"
Fu immediately replied.
"12 squads, a total of 36 people."
"Very good."
"Pass down the order."
"Tell them not to disguise anymore, not to hide anymore."
"Ignite the forest with the largest-scale Fire Release!"
"The bigger the fire, the better!"
"I want all of Konoha to see that these Uchiha madmen have started a massive fire to burn down the Village!"
Fu instantly understood Danzo's intention. Once the fire started, with flames reaching the sky, all of Konoha would be alarmed. In such a chaotic situation, who would bother to distinguish who started the fire?
Everyone would only see the Uchiha Clan members and Root fighting in the sea of fire. They would only preemptively believe that it was the Uchiha, these arrogant and unruly individuals, who launched this terrifying attack.
At that time, public opinion would completely sever the last connection between the Uchiha and Konoha. And he, Danzo Shimura, would instead become a tragic hero who stepped forward to fight the rebels in a time of crisis.
Danzo sat back down in his seat. He could imagine Hiruzen Sarutobi's conflicted and pained old face when he received the news, yet he would have no choice but to make a decision.
"Uchiha Akira..." Danzo muttered to himself.
"Do you think you can overturn the chessboard with a little brute force?"
"Foolish. In the face of true political maneuvering, you and your clan will eventually turn into dust in history."
The wind in the valley carried the dry heat of sparks. The once tranquil forest was now being engulfed by raging flames. The soaring firelight dyed the dark night sky an ominous orange-red.
"Akira, it's Danzo's trick. They want to frame us."
"Should we extinguish the fire?"
An Uchiha Jōnin appeared beside Akira with a shunshin, his voice filled with suppressed anger.
"It doesn't matter."
"Since Danzo wants to play, then let's do it a different way."
"I originally wanted to smoke these rats out with fireworks, but now I don't have the patience!"
Akira was already tired of this cat-and-mouse game. Since the rats wouldn't come out, he would use a more violent method to force them out!
"Order all Uchiha to withdraw from the Root base!"
"Yes!"
Soon, all Uchiha Jōnin had withdrawn from the Root base. Akira's Mangekyō Sharingan began to spin.
A massive amount of chakra burst forth from Akira's body with a roar.
Boom!
First, a gigantic ribcage frame made of pure chakra appeared out of thin air, enveloping Akira. Immediately after, meridians and flesh grew wildly at a visible speed, attaching themselves to the skeleton. Finally, a samurai armor shimmering with metallic luster appeared.
Susanoo, Third Stage.
Akira stood within the diamond-shaped crystal on Susanoo's forehead. He looked down at the mountain where Root was located.
Buzz—
A Susanoo weapon formed from chakra appeared in the hand of the Susanoo giant: the Totsuka-no-Tsurugi.
Slice.
Susanoo swung the longsword in its hand. Immediately after, a terrifying sword light, like cutting tofu, sliced through the mountain where Root was located.
1 second.
2 seconds.
Crack—
A breaking sound echoed. That indestructible mountain had a gigantic, mirror-smooth crack appear in its middle. Immediately after, Akira swung the longsword again.
Cross Slash.
Rumble rumble rumble—!
Rocks crumbled. The earth trembled. Innumerable, bottomless, gigantic cracks, like a spiderweb, spread wildly across the mountain.
The entire mountain where the Root base was located began to violently shake and collapse.
Deep underground. The entire Root compound was shaking violently. Danzo Shimura's face showed an expression of unbelievable horror.
"Wh-what's going on?!"
Danzo roared, desperately clinging to a stone pillar nearby so as not to be thrown off by the violent tremors. And above Danzo's head, the ceiling, dozens of meters thick, was constantly cracking. Innumerable gravel and dust fell down.
A Root ninja scrambled into the secret room where Danzo was.
"Lord Danzo!"
"The... the mountain has collapsed!"
"The base... is going to be... is going to be buried alive!"
Before he finished speaking...
Boom—!!!
A monstrous roar, more terrifying than any before, came from above. The Root ninja looked up in horror, his pupils reflecting rapidly expanding spiderweb cracks. He opened his mouth, seemingly wanting to say something more.
Crack!
A several-ton boulder, with an aura of destroying everything, crashed down.
Pfft.
Blood instantly splattered across the entire secret room. Debris and dust, like a waterfall, poured down from the huge opening in the ceiling. The entire underground space was wailing, moaning, and heading towards complete destruction.
"Withdraw!"
"All emergency passages! Break out at any cost!"
Danzo's roar was drowned out by the rumbling of the collapsing mountain. This old man, who had been immersed in darkness his entire life, now showed no trace of his usual composure from political maneuvering. In the face of Susanoo's absolute power, his so-called political schemes seemed so ridiculous, so vulnerable.
Rumble!
Another violent tremor. Sturdy passages, like fragile biscuits, were mercilessly squeezed, twisted, and broken. Innumerable Root ninja let out their last desperate cries in the hopeless darkness.
Outside. Uchiha Akira stood quietly within the crystal on Susanoo's forehead. He looked down at the mountain that was falling apart beneath him.
Playing with human hearts? Framing and slandering?
Akira smiled.
Since the rules on the table are against me, then I'll overturn the table, along with everyone who considers themselves a player. With the purest, most absolute power. Simple. Brutal. Effective.
The Uchiha Jōnin behind Akira, looking at the mountain that was almost leveled, unconsciously swallowed.