Danzo Shimura watched the battlefield unravel with a face ashen as death.
Hidden Mist Anbu and Biwa Jūzō's forces collided head-on, neither side holding back in the slightest. Water Release Ninjutsu surged again and again, flooding streets, tearing apart buildings, and turning the capital into a churning sea of chaos.
This wasn't a skirmish.
It was a collapse.
Root was finished.
Completely finished.
His last usable subordinates—his final reserve—were being swallowed by the chaos below. Danzo lowered his head, teeth grinding so hard his jaw ached, then turned without hesitation and slipped away from the capital, melting into the darkness.
He never noticed the pale, distorted silhouettes quietly emerging from the earth behind him.
Only after leaving the city far behind did Danzo finally stop.
His breathing was ragged. Veins bulged along his temples as he abruptly formed seals, unleashing several Wind Release techniques in succession. Blades of compressed air tore through the forest, flattening trees and shredding earth until a wide clearing lay in ruins.
Only then did his emotions stabilize—barely.
He couldn't remain near the Land of Fire's capital. Once the Hidden Mist incident spread, once it became known that the Daimyo had harbored renegade ninja, Konoha would inevitably investigate the Fire Daimyo himself. Staying meant death.
Returning to Konoha was impossible.
Danzo scanned the darkness around him, and for the first time, the realization struck with crushing clarity—
The Ninja World was vast, yet there was nowhere left for him.
Was he truly reduced to fleeing into obscurity? To hiding in some nameless village and waiting to rot?
His expression twisted.
No.
He refused.
He paced in tight circles, mind racing, weighing one nation after another.
The Land of Demons was impossible. Shrine Maidens possessed abnormal precognition, and without ninja, inspections by the Five Great Villages would be relentless.
The Land of Snow was too poor, too isolated. Even if he controlled it, rebuilding Root would take nearly a decade—and discovery was inevitable.
Takigakure in the Land of Waterfall was out of the question. A village with a Tailed Beast would notice him immediately.
The Land of Iron was locked down after recent purges. His bases there had already been destroyed.
What he needed was a place untouched by the Five Great Nations, with resources, but without powerful ninja.
Danzo's eyes narrowed.
The Land of Tea.
Decision made, he turned back toward the Land of Fire—there were still equipment caches and researchers to retrieve. He would not abandon them.
The Sacrificial Shop might sell Spirit Bones capable of awakening Wood Release, but Danzo trusted one thing more than any artifact.
The power of the First Hokage.
If he could truly recreate that strength through Edo Tensei, then returning to Konoha was still possible.
There was still hope.
He repeated it again and again, clinging to the thought like a lifeline, no longer bothering to erase the traces he left behind.
Beneath the soil, White Zetsu followed silently.
Meanwhile, the battlefield outside the capital reached its peak.
Water Release techniques crashed endlessly against one another, waves colliding with waves as the fight spilled beyond the city limits.
Yet despite their ferocity, Biwa Jūzō and Zabuza were being pushed back.
Suikazan Fuguki and Kuriarare Kushimaru weren't just numerous—their combined strength eclipsed them.
The moment blades crossed, both sides realized the truth.
They had cultivated similar paths.
No advantage. No surprise.
"This is turning bad," Biwa Jūzō said sharply. "Prepare to withdraw."
Zabuza responded instantly, weaving seals as thick mist spread across the battlefield.
But Suikazan Fuguki was ready.
A massive Water Release surged forward, intending to overwhelm the fog through sheer pressure—
Only for an eight-colored light to flash across the battlefield.
Wind howled.
Flames erupted.
A spiraling inferno formed midair, perfectly locking onto the Water Release through precise mental guidance. Fire and wind intertwined, crushing the water head-on and filling the sky with blinding steam.
"It's Spirit Masters—from the Sacrificial Shop!" Biwa Jūzō shouted, recognition and relief flashing through his voice.
Zabuza seized the moment. "Hidden Mist doesn't want the bounty! We only want the renegades—let's cooperate!"
"Deal."
Feng Xiaotian and Huo Wu stepped forward as the flames subsided.
Kuriarare Kushimaru sneered. "So confident? You think this corners us?"
Huo Wu didn't bother replying.
She raised her hand.
Feng Xiaotian grasped it instinctively.
Their Spirits surged—wind and fire roaring into alignment.
"Ning Rongrong."
"Got it."
The Eight Treasure Glazed Tile Pagoda bloomed with light, its brilliance enveloping the pair. Under the guidance of the Glazed Heart Eye, their energies synchronized, merging cleanly, forcefully—
A towering elemental giant formed.
Five meters tall.
Wind and flame flowed across its body like living armor.
"Spirit Fusion Technique?!" Xie Yue gasped.
Ning Rongrong smiled faintly. "With my amplification, success was inevitable."
The giant clapped its hands.
A Domain unfolded.
Temperature skyrocketed within a hundred meters. Moisture vanished. Mist evaporated instantly. Even Water Release techniques collapsed under the oppressive heat.
This wasn't raw firepower.
It was absolute suppression.
Suikazan Fuguki's face twisted in alarm as the giant raised a wall of fire, sealing the battlefield completely.
Trapped.
The renegades attacked desperately, but every strike only scattered flames that regenerated instantly.
The heat became unbearable.
Suikazan roared, drawing chakra from Samehada—only to freeze.
The sword betrayed him.
Instead of feeding him chakra, it devoured it, desperately resisting the heat.
His skin cracked.
His body dried.
In moments, resistance became meaningless.
He and his subordinates were reduced to scorched husks.
Kuriarare Kushimaru lasted seconds longer.
Then silence.
The barrier faded.
The giant dissolved.
Only Feng Xiaotian and Huo Wu remained, breathing hard.
Gao Feng knelt, touching the melted earth, expression heavy. "I can't break this."
"It's normal," Qian Renxue said quietly. "Fire isn't your core."
Huo Wu didn't hide it. "Break the barrier, or disrupt our concentration. Otherwise, death is guaranteed."
Gao Feng nodded slowly.
He needed to get stronger.
Order was restored.
While assisting Hidden Mist in cleanup, they found something unexpected.
Aburame parasites.
And in the vault—six intact corpses.
"Root ninja," Biwa Jūzō confirmed grimly.
Qian Renxue pieced it together quickly. "Danzo was here. He intended to loot the treasury and ran straight into your trap."
Ning Rongrong's eyes lit up. "Then he escaped recently."
Zabuza didn't hesitate. "Search everything within ten miles."
Minutes later, traces were found.
Ning Rongrong focused, then opened her eyes sharply.
"Wind Release residue."
"It's Danzo."
The hunt resumed.
[my internals are over so i will post consistently
and i would like thank all of you who supported me i just got myself a nice pair of head phones{Momentum force 4}]
_____________________
https://[email protected]/mrSOMEONE01234? [replace @ with a]
>>>>>I'm a student, and I'll try my best to keep uploading chapters regularly <<<<<
thanks for your support
[[READER TIER 1: translates stories {15$} ]] { RECOMENDED }
[[READER TIER 2: translated & original stories {20$} ]]
[[[[Please at least visit my patreon so I can have some traffic]]]]]