Chapter 74: Declaration of Destruction
Smack!
A crisp, loud sound rang out.
Two bright red palm prints appeared on the faces of Utatane Koharu and Mitokado Homura.
Everyone's eyes widened in astonishment as they watched this scene in disbelief.
They couldn't imagine that Naruto would dare to strike Konoha's elders.
These were Konoha's elders—the Hokage's advisors.
Below one person, above ten thousand.
But at this moment, they had been slapped hard by Naruto.
Everyone looked at Naruto in astonishment, not knowing what to say.
Naruto, on the other hand, looked at Utatane Koharu and Mitokado Homura indifferently, his eyes full of coldness.
At that moment, Utatane Koharu and Mitokado Homura were also full of astonishment and horror.
Shock and disbelief were written all over their faces.
They had never dreamed that one day they would be slapped by a teenager.
They were Konoha's elders—aloft and respected by tens of millions.
Utatane Koharu and Mitokado Homura had never suffered such humiliation.
The two suddenly became furious and looked at Naruto with dark, angry expressions.
They were about to yell and curse at Naruto.
But before they could speak—
Naruto glanced at them again with cold eyes and said indifferently:
"If you dare say one more word, I will kill you."
A cold voice full of strong killing intent rang out. Everyone shuddered after hearing it.
Kakashi and the others had no doubt that Naruto would strike decisively.
Because Naruto had already killed ANBU without any hesitation.
Utatane Koharu and Mitokado Homura shuddered even more when they heard it. They looked at Naruto with horror on their faces.
The two immediately shut their mouths, not daring to breathe.
After seeing this, the Third Hokage frowned, slammed the table loudly, and shouted:
"Naruto, they are Konoha's elders! You cannot be this insolent!"
Hearing what the Third Hokage said, Naruto laughed scornfully and looked at him coldly.
"Insolent?"
"I don't think I'm being insolent."
"Konoha's elders can speak freely and decide what kind of pain a person should endure?"
"Konoha's elders can decide life and death—decide that I should bear this endless darkness?"
"I'm not the insolent one. You are."
Killing intent flashed in Naruto's eyes.
After hearing that, the Third Hokage frowned.
He stared sharply at Naruto and asked:
"What exactly are you trying to do?"
"Do you know what you're doing right now? Killing fellow ninja and attacking Konoha's elders is enough to sentence you to death!"
"What you're doing now is no different from treason."
"Even if the elders made mistakes, you—a genin—are not the one who gets to judge them."
Naruto shook his head with a sneer and stared coldly at the Third Hokage.
Even now—the Third Hokage, Utatane Koharu, and Mitokado Homura were still looking down on him from a high position.
Even now, they still wanted to use their Hokage status to suppress him. To maintain their own dignity.
Even now, they still hadn't realized their mistakes.
What they didn't know was that in Naruto's eyes, this was truly ridiculous.
If that was the case, then Naruto was done with them.
Naruto took a deep breath.
The coldness in his eyes gradually grew stronger. His killing intent was fierce. Then, Naruto said calmly:
"What do I want to do?"
"It's very simple."
"Since you can't feel what I feel—since you don't understand what I've been through—since you don't know the dark pain of these thirteen years—"
"Then come and be like me. Be right here, in this moment, and feel that pain for yourselves."
"I'm going to destroy Konoha."
As the words fell—
Everyone's pupils suddenly contracted. Their eyes went wide.
They stared at Naruto in disbelief—unable to accept what they had just heard.
They couldn't believe those words had come from Naruto.
Couldn't believe this was Naruto's decision.
Sakura, Ino, and Kurenai covered their mouths with their small hands, panicked, looking at Naruto at a loss.
Kakashi's face was also full of complexity.
The Third Hokage's body trembled violently.
Soon, the Third Hokage realized what was happening. His aged face was full of anger and gloom. Naruto was beyond his control now, and that made him feel deeply enraged.
Then, the Third Hokage stared darkly at Naruto and said:
"Do you know what you're saying?"
"Are you planning to betray the village—to become a rogue ninja?"
Naruto sneered, stared at the Third Hokage without fear, and said calmly:
"Betray? Heh. I've wanted to become one for a long time."
Utatane Koharu and Mitokado Homura opened their mouths in shock after hearing Naruto's words.
But they quickly realized the enormous threat. They pointed at Naruto and shouted at Sarutobi Hiruzen:
"Sarutobi! Kill him now! You can't let this traitor live!"
"Kill him!"
The Third Hokage was already thinking the same thing. He stared gloomily at Naruto.
He would never allow anyone to destroy Konoha.
Even if that person was the Fourth Hokage's son.
Even if Naruto had turned out this way because of their mistakes.
Then, the Third Hokage took a deep breath and immediately shouted to the crowd:
"Seize Uzumaki Naruto!"
After hearing the Third Hokage's words, Kakashi and the others were stunned.
Everyone looked at Naruto's figure, not knowing what to do.
While Kurenai Yuhi, Sakura, and Ino were hesitating and struggling—
Dozens of figures suddenly appeared around the Hokage's office.
Kakashi and the others might hesitate and struggle, but that didn't mean others would.
Those dozens of figures were all wearing black combat uniforms with fox masks on their faces.
It was ANBU.
After hearing the Third Hokage's order, ANBU immediately mobilized.
They moved to capture Naruto.
But before they could make a move—Naruto suddenly snorted coldly.
Then, everyone saw it.
The ANBU ninjas immediately stopped moving. Each one maintained their original attacking posture, standing perfectly still but unable to move.
They tried to struggle, but it was useless.
No matter how hard they struggled, they couldn't move at all.
It was genjutsu.
Kakashi and the Third Hokage, noticing the chaos among the ANBU, immediately understood why they were frozen.
That's right—genjutsu.
And not only that. Naruto had used a combination of Bakudo abilities and his Sharingan's powerful illusions.
In an instant, he had bound all the ANBU.
After the Third Hokage snapped out of it, he snorted in anger and prepared to take action himself.
But then something even more shocking happened.
Before the Third Hokage could make a move—there was a loud poof.
Naruto's body turned into a puff of smoke and disappeared.
Seeing that cloud of white smoke, everyone's pupils trembled.
That wasn't Naruto's real body.
It was Naruto's Shadow Clone.
With just one Shadow Clone, he had thrown all of them into chaos—and subdued the ANBU.
It was astonishing.
Where had the real Naruto gone?
Everyone thought in shock.
But before they could react—
Suddenly.
An absolutely terrifying surge of chakra descended from above their heads.
It was erupting from above the Hokage building itself.
This chakra fell from the sky like a divine pressure—like a dragon waking from an ancient abyss. It was absolutely terrifying.
It made people feel an overwhelming urge to submit.
Then, all of them rushed to the window.
Looking out the window, they saw Naruto's figure.