As soon as the third batch of shadow clones discovered the "big fish," they all willingly dispelled themselves, vanishing into clouds of white mist.
"Finally… found it. Not easy at all!"
The moment Haruma's true body received their memories, he immediately changed direction and flickered toward the Hokage Building.
With his entire body rendered transparent, Haruma easily infiltrated the building.
But instead of heading to the upper floors or the Hokage's office, he sought out a concealed door and slipped into the underground base.
This underground facility, much like Root's hidden complex, was a place reserved for weapons of slaughter unfit for the light of day.
Those "weapons" referred, of course, to the Anbu Black Ops.
Konoha's Anbu were unique even among the Five Great Nations because, unlike others, the Leaf had two separate Anbu organisations. One serving directly under the Hokage, and another under the Hokage's adviser, Root.
Members who entered Anbu temporarily gave up their names, being known only by codenames. They obeyed the Hokage alone, carrying out missions when called, guarding things tied to the Hokage when idle.
Protecting villagers from invasion was the duty of shinobi. Protecting the village's leaders, their clans, and the Hokage's workplace, that was the Anbu's responsibility.
Thus, it was rare to see Anbu active outside. The greatest gathering of them now was at the Four Purple Flame Formation, where they contained Orochimaru's battle with the Third Hokage.
And the "big fish" Haruma sought was none other than an Anbu operative, The strongest member of the Hokage's Anbu, the sole survivor of Orochimaru's Wood Release experiments.
Tenzo.
Before he joined the Hokage's Anbu, Tenzo had been in Root, where he was known as "Kinoe." If Haruma had not interfered in this timeline, Tenzo would one day step into the light and be known widely as Yamato.
With the aid of his byakugan, Haruma quickly located his prey. Cloaked in transparency, short sword in hand, he silently flickered toward Tenzo, who was in the middle of issuing orders through a headset.
As he closed in, the scarlet glow of three-tomoe sharingan replaced Haruma's pale eyes beneath the mask.
Just like when he had annihilated the Yamanaka and Nara clansmen earlier, Haruma unleashed his deadly combo.
Sharingan Genjutsu + Binding Illusion + Restraining Curse.
Slash!
The genjutsu took effect but just as Haruma was about to sever Tenzo's limbs in a swift strike, wooden branches erupted from Tenzo's body like serpents, intercepting the blade.
A flash of steel, Haruma's sword sliced cleanly through the withered wood and pressed onward. But that heartbeat's delay was all Tenzo needed to snap out of the illusion and leap away.
"You're the intruder who snuck into the tower?" Tenzo's eyes widened in shock beneath his mask. His voice dropped, "three-tomoe sharingan… You're an Uchiha survivor!?"
It was natural to assume this masked man was a remnant of the Uchiha. Haruma didn't answer. Short sword in one hand, he formed seals with the other.
In an instant, two clones appeared at his sides, not dispersing into mist but existing like real afterimages, charging alongside him toward Tenzo.
"Phantom Shunshin? You… you're Uchiha Shisui!" Tenzo gasped in disbelief.
Flash!
As if to confirm his terror, three scarlet lights glimmered in the dim underground chamber. For a moment, Tenzo lost control of his body, wracked by searing pain as if flames licked at his skin.
Though he managed to break free quickly from Haruma's Binding, that delay was enough. Haruma and his two phantom doubles surrounded him in a triangular formation, each weaving hand seals. Their masked mouths opened in unison,
"Fire Release: Majestic Destroyer Flame!"
Boom!
Though two of them were intangible phantoms, three roaring torrents of fire surged forth, engulfing Tenzo from three directions.
"Water Release: Violent Water Wave!"
Forced onto the defensive, Tenzo spun his chakra, forming a 360-degree water vortex to block the incoming inferno. The clash of fire and water thundered through the chamber, filling it with steam until half the base was cloaked in dense mist.
When the fog thinned, Tenzo stood unharmed, but his eyes betrayed fear. His body moved against his will, walking toward a shadowy figure, his voice trembling, "Nara clan's Shadow Imitation… Who in the world are you!?"
Indeed, a thin black line stretched from his feet to the stranger's shadow. His movements weren't his own, but forced mimicry.
Tenzo knew the Nara clan's techniques well. But what horrified him was that this supposed "Shisui of the Body Flicker" could wield their secret arts on top of the sharingan.
At minimum, this man possessed two kekkei genkai and one clan secret technique. The possibility of him being Shisui all but vanished.
Who was this masked enigma, wielding such an impossible mix of powers?
Tenzo would never learn the answer.
Haruma stepped forward, hand clamping around his throat. Under Shadow Imitation, Tenzo mirrored the motion, grabbing Haruma's neck.
But when a flood of black mist poured from Haruma's palm, engulfing him, the suction of a collapsing void twisted Tenzo's body and dragged him into the endless void of the devouring hand.
Within that dimension, the supreme force reduced Konoha's strongest Anbu to scattered molecules, converting him into halos of green and blue energy.
Tenzo's memories, compressed into a film reel, lay in the void awaiting Haruma's review.
Outside, beneath his mask, Haruma's expression was one of bliss. In the tide of warmth coursing through body and soul, something entirely new was born within him.
That power was none other than the legendary kekkei genkai that had ended the Warring States era.
Wood Release.