Wen Lan was sleeping in his room when—
An ANBU suddenly landed in the courtyard, shouting without regard for etiquette:
"Advisor-sama, something's happened!"
That single sentence jolted everyone awake.
Wen Lan, Tsunade, Shizune, Hikari, and Pakura all rushed out.
"What happened?" Tsunade asked urgently.
The ANBU spoke quickly:
"Our third ANBU squad was monitoring the Cloud delegation. Suddenly, one of them turned into lightning and disappeared—it was a Lightning Clone."
"Then the entire delegation rushed out at high speed. We chased them immediately."
"At first we were confused how one person became a clone…"
"But before we could react, they stopped—and we found one of them dead at the hands of the Hyūga!"
Everyone except Wen Lan was shocked.
A foreign envoy dying in another village—
If this spread, Konoha's reputation would plummet across the ninja world.
Wen Lan let out a cold laugh.
"As expected… giving you a chance was useless."
He strapped on the Kusanagi sword.
"I'll go."
With that—
His body turned into a streak of lightning and shot out.
A flash of gold tore across the night sky.
Tsunade and the others quickly followed, leaping across rooftops.
Arrival at the Scene
Two flashes of light appeared—
Wen Lan and Minato arrived simultaneously.
The scene was tense.
Kumo and ANBU stood opposing each other.
Hiashi and Hizashi stood beside the corpse—
Hinata still in Hiashi's arms.
Before Minato could speak—
Dodai stepped forward aggressively.
"Hokage-sama, is this how Konoha treats its guests?!"
"We came in good faith to negotiate peace—and you murder our envoy?!"
"Do you think Kumogakure is easy to bully?!"
Minato's expression stiffened.
He hadn't expected things to spiral this far.
Just as he was about to speak—
Wen Lan raised a hand to stop him.
Then calmly asked:
"So what does Kumogakure want?"
Dodai's voice turned cold:
"Hand over the murderer."
"And give us 30% concessions in the treaty."
"Otherwise—Kumo will declare war."
At that moment, Tsunade and the others arrived—
All of them inhaled sharply.
Hiashi stepped forward urgently.
"Hokage-sama, Advisor-sama! They infiltrated our clan and kidnapped my daughter! We only killed him while pursuing—"
Wen Lan raised his hand.
"Enough."
His voice turned icy.
"Thirty percent?"
"You really think I don't know your little scheme?"
"The Hyūga are Konoha shinobi."
"Even if punishment is needed, it's our internal matter."
"What are you, Kumogakure, to interfere?"
Dodai's group stiffened.
They hadn't expected Wen Lan to be this unyielding.
Hiashi and Hizashi both felt a weight lift—
They understood.
Wen Lan had chosen to protect them unconditionally.
Dodai's expression darkened.
"You would start a war… over a murderer?"
Wen Lan stood with hands behind his back, gaze sharp as blades.
"Today, I don't care whether you kidnapped a Hyūga child—"
"Or whether the Hyūga killed your man intentionally."
"One sentence."
"The Hyūga—"
"I, Uchiha Wen Lan, will protect."
"Let alone killing your envoy in Konoha—"
"Even if I slaughter you in front of the entire ninja world—"
"So what?"
War on the Brink
Dodai trembled with anger, then laughed coldly.
"Good! Very good!"
"Uchiha Wen Lan—you truly think nothing of Kumogakure!"
"Then don't blame us for being ruthless!"
"I'll report to the Raikage—and spread news of this across the world!"
His chakra surged—
Preparing to leave.
At the same time—
Tsunade, Hikari, and ANBU all gathered chakra.
But Wen Lan's voice cut through:
"You think… you can leave?"
Golden lightning erupted around him.
"Killing you here—who would know you didn't die in Konoha?"
Those words—
Froze everyone.
Even Minato, Tsunade, and the ANBU were stunned.
Even Uchiha Hikari looked at him in shock.
There was a rule in the ninja world:
"Do not kill envoys."
An iron law since the Warring States era.
Never broken.
Dodai's pupils shrank.
Then he roared:
"Uchiha Wen Lan!"
"Envoys are untouchable—that's a rule of the entire ninja world!"
Wen Lan slowly drew the Kusanagi sword.
"Rules…"
"Exist to be broken."
"In this world—"
"My rules are the rules."
"And since war is inevitable—"
"Then let it be a fight to the death."
"Why should I follow your so-called rules?"
Minato wanted to stop him.
If this spread—
It would shake the entire structure of ninja warfare.
But Wen Lan didn't care.
The Two-Tails Appears
"Fine! Very fine!"
Dodai shouted.
"Don't think cutting a Tailed Beast Bomb makes you invincible!"
"You've never seen a true tailed beast!"
"Yugito!"
"Understood!"
Yugito immediately released her seal.
Crimson chakra erupted—
Her body expanded rapidly.
A massive blue-flamed, black-patterned Two-Tails appeared.
"ROAR—!!!"
The beast's cry shook the entire village.
Fortunately—
The Hyūga district was on the outskirts.
Otherwise, civilian casualties would already be catastrophic.
Lights lit up across Konoha.
Civilians trembled.
Shinobi rushed out half-dressed.
Dodai glared at Wen Lan.
"I'll give you one last chance."
"Let us leave."
"Let you leave?"
Wen Lan sneered.
His eyes shifted—
Mangekyō Sharingan activated.
"Seems you've never understood… the true power of the Uchiha."
Susanoo Descends
A massive golden skeletal giant erupted from the ground.
Bones.
Muscles.
Armor.
Rapidly forming.
In an instant—
A towering Susanoo stood before the Two-Tails.
A blade hung at its waist.
Wen Lan stood within the crystal at its forehead—
Like a god descending upon the battlefield.
The sudden scene made every Kumo ninja's pupils shrink.
Even the Two-Tails cried out:
"Susanoo?!"
—------------------------------
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