Did they really think he was bored enough to be chatting with them all this time?
Kaede sneered inwardly.
Besides the hundred or so Chūnin and Jōnin-level Uchiha clansmen standing behind him, there were still hundreds of ordinary clansmen—elders, women, and children.
He had already arranged for them to move to the outskirts of Konoha.
All of this was to take advantage of the current chaos, allowing those with no combat power to slip away quietly.
At this point, the Grand Elder had already led them more than ten miles outside the village.
As long as Kaede could stall a bit longer and let them reach true safety—
Then, he could begin the massacre.
Because the Uchiha's enemies weren't just Sarutobi and the other elders.
All those Konoha civilians who were misled into hating the Uchiha—weren't they also enemies?
If they hadn't willingly gone along with Sarutobi's actions over the years, would he have dared to strike so cruelly?
At that moment, Koharu, having successfully reawakened the Konoha ninja's fighting spirit, let out a breath of relief.
With a wave of her hand, she roared, "Attack!"
"Ohhh!"
The entire force of Konoha's shinobi responded in unison, their pressure surging toward Kaede's group.
"If you're all enemies now, then I'll hold back no longer."
Kaede sneered and raised his hand to his mouth.
"Katon: Gōka Mekkyaku!" (Fire Release: Majestic Destroyer Flame)
In an instant, a sea of fire engulfed the area within a hundred meters, surging ferociously toward the Konoha forces.
Homura snatched up Sarutobi and vanished with a shunshin.
Koharu shouted, "Defend—now!"
Dozens of Water Release users rushed forward.
They rapidly formed hand seals. "Suiton: Suijinheki!" (Water Release: Water Formation Wall)
With their combined effort, they managed to create a wave force strong enough to barely match Kaede's flames.
The wave and fire collided violently.
"Zzzzzz!"
The sound of steam hissing filled the battlefield, and thick mist quickly blanketed the entire area.
Using the cover of the mist, the Konoha shinobi attempted to swarm the Uchiha from all sides with sheer numbers.
The next second—
BOOOOM!!
A massive explosion echoed in every ninja's ears.
They saw only the flash of an enormous sword sweep—and then came the screams of dozens of shinobi.
Kaede had made his move.
With a single sweep of the sword in his Susanoo's hand, he obliterated dozens of ninjas.
Another swing—another several dozen fell.
Two strikes.
Nearly a hundred lives lost.
"Watch out for Uchiha Kaede! Don't group up!"
"Scatter! Everyone, spread out!"
Veteran shinobi shouted commands, and the formerly tight formation of Konoha's army dispersed across the battlefield.
Within moments, the area for several miles around was filled with scattered Konoha forces.
Kaede and the Uchiha were now completely surrounded.
"Fūton: Daitoppa!" (Wind Release: Great Breakthrough)
A group of Wind Release users followed up, clearing the fog from the battlefield.
They finally understood the difference in power.
In the mist, they stood no chance against Kaede and his fully armored Susanoo.
Only by keeping a clear line of sight and using their numbers could they hope to confront him directly.
As Kaede observed their wary expressions, he chuckled coldly.
"In the face of absolute power, numbers mean nothing."
His Susanoo raised its arm, and massive spinning magatama formed in its palm.
"Yasaka no Magatama!" (Yasaka Beads)
With a single swing, the spinning projectiles rained down across the battlefield.
The Konoha shinobi scrambled to dodge.
Those confident enough formed quick Earth Release defenses.
But the moment the magatama hit the ground—BOOM!
BOOM!
One explosion after another.
In seconds, another few dozen shinobi were killed.
Had they not scattered earlier, the casualties would've easily doubled.
In just two attacks, nearly two hundred people had fallen.
The sheer brutality stunned everyone.
All the shinobi gulped.
"He's a monster…"
"Can we really even fight something like that?"
"This is another Nine-Tails Disaster!"
"Dear gods… Is there no one in Konoha who can stop Uchiha Kaede?!"
"Don't panic!" Koharu stepped forward again.
She pointed at Kaede and shouted, "No matter how powerful he is, his chakra is limited!"
"If we all attack together and stay defensive, he'll run out of chakra soon enough!"
Kaede gave her a withering look. "Annoying fly…"
She wasn't wrong—powerful techniques did consume vast amounts of chakra.
And Kaede had already fought Tobi, Danzo, Sarutobi, and Itachi.
After all that, those two recent attacks had nearly drained him dry.
But so what?
He had his cheat!
The Hōgyoku appeared in his hand once more.
In an instant, it devoured the souls of everyone Kaede had slain thus far.
Kaede nodded with satisfaction. "Much stronger than last time."
With the protection of his Susanoo, Kaede began his next evolution.
A brilliant blue light enveloped him once again.
"Charge!"
Naoto and the others didn't sit idle—they rushed toward the nearest group of Konoha shinobi.
The ANBU who had seen this scene before shouted, "Stop him! He's recovering his strength!"
Panic spread, and everyone launched their strongest jutsu toward Kaede.
In an instant, dazzling ninjutsu of all types rained down on Susanoo.
The explosion was deafening, and the smoke covered the battlefield.
"Did we get him?!"
All eyes were fixed on the dust cloud.
They had attacked with the strength of over a thousand shinobi—surely even Kaede couldn't survive that…
But when the smoke cleared—
Susanoo stood completely unharmed.
Everyone fell into despair.
Even a coordinated strike from over a thousand shinobi couldn't breach Kaede's defense.
What now?
Behind the main battle line, the clan ninjas of Konoha watched coldly.
The Nara clan members even sneered.
Thousands of flashy techniques may look impressive—
But most of them had overlapping elements that canceled each other out.
With proper guidance, they could have amplified each other instead, maybe even overwhelmed the Susanoo.
But they didn't plan to lift a finger.
Koharu's speech may have rallied the ordinary ninja—but not them.
They'd long seen through the political games of the high command.
Even if Kaede was repelled, the elders would never truly be punished.
At most, they'd retire, only to replace themselves with other puppets.
The power would remain in their hands.
Just like how Sarutobi had once installed Minato.
These clan members' apathy only deepened the despair of the common shinobi.
But then, something happened that left everyone stunned—
Uchiha Itachi appeared at Kaede's side.
He had walked straight through Susanoo.
...
(End of Chapter)
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