"L-Lord Kai isn't planning to capture all of them… is he?"
Looking at the massive crimson barrier that resembled a gigantic spatial seal, Shikaku Nara swallowed hard.
Inside his heart, waves of shock—and wild excitement—rose together.
Yes.
This was exactly how it should be.
Two hundred laborers had already been enough to build another main district of Konoha.
But if there were four thousand laborers working day and night…
Forget another district.
They could rebuild an entire new Konoha.
"No… the Konoha district plan I made earlier is too small."
Shikaku rubbed his chin.
"I need to think bigger."
At that moment he suddenly remembered something Kai had once told him.
"Think long-term."
So that was what he meant.
Standing beside him, Choza Akimichi scratched his head and laughed.
"Yeah… if only Kirigakure had come too."
"With their Water Release helping, laying the foundations would've been even faster."
Choza didn't like war.
But right now…
War didn't seem that bad.
Not far away, Kakashi Hatake stared at the four thousand trapped elites inside the barrier.
There was no pity in his eyes.
Only admiration.
"With manpower like this…"
"Konoha can save a lot of effort."
Beside him, Might Guy nodded vigorously.
Indeed.
With so many workers—
Konoha's reconstruction would progress far faster.
Even the original two hundred captured laborers stopped working and stared at the barrier.
"Told you."
"They insisted on fighting."
"In the end they're still here to carry bricks."
"Exactly. Should've just come directly. That would've saved forty years of hard work."
"Hey! These are our comrades, you know!"
A Kumogakure elite jōnin sighed.
"If they join us… would they count as our juniors?"
"Does that mean we get promoted to supervisors?"
Thump.
The moment those words were spoken—
All two hundred laborers' eyes lit up simultaneously.
In their own villages they never thought about hierarchy.
But here—
A strange idea quietly appeared in their minds.
—
Inside the barrier.
CLANG!
Four massive black chains stretched across the sky.
Between them, crimson energy walls formed.
Within a radius of several kilometers, every allied shinobi was trapped.
One Iwagakure sealing squad gulped nervously.
They exchanged glances and began forming hand seals.
A powerful sealing technique erupted as they tried to break out.
But—
Even after draining every drop of chakra in their bodies—
The crimson wall didn't move at all.
The allied forces' mood darkened.
Were they…
Now trapped beasts?
"Hmph! It's just an energy wall!"
A Kumogakure brute gritted his teeth.
Lightning chakra surged through his body.
CRACK!
In an instant, Lightning Armor covered him.
Stimulated by the electricity, his exhausted body forced itself back to its peak.
Without another word—
He dashed forward.
Using pure physical force to crash through the barrier.
WHOOSH—CRASH!
His speed was terrifying.
But the barrier didn't move at all.
Instead—
His organs shifted violently.
Bones in his shoulder and arm snapped with a clear crack.
PUFF!
Before he could even scream—
His Lightning Armor suddenly caught fire.
Black flames.
Unquenchable.
Terrified, the ninja tore off his armor and fled.
In the next instant—
The armor burned completely to ashes.
Amaterasu.
Black flames clung to the barrier.
The legendary fire that would burn until its target was reduced to nothing.
After seeing that—
The four thousand trapped shinobi no longer dared test the barrier.
What now?
What should they do?
Panic spread.
Slowly.
Quietly.
Inside the allied army.
The once-solid unity began to fracture.
"Haah… haah…"
At that moment Huangtu and a freshly treated Killer B stepped forward.
"Konoha…"
"Perhaps we should talk."
"If this continues… both sides will only suffer."
They were ready to admit defeat.
They couldn't win.
They couldn't escape.
So what was the point of staying?
Be roasted alive?
Unfortunately—
Kai ignored them completely.
Instead—
He raised his hand.
Now you want to negotiate?
Too late.
I, Uchiha Kai—
don't eat beef anymore.
WHOOSH!
WHOOSH WHOOSH!
From the four massive chains above—
Countless smaller chains suddenly descended.
Like black vines falling from the sky.
THUD—PIERCE!
THUD—PIERCE!
Each chain skewered a Kumogakure or Iwagakure shinobi.
Then another.
And another.
As more bodies were pierced—
The chains grew longer and longer.
Some stretched over thirty meters.
Others only ten.
From outside—
It looked like a giant game of snake.
But inside the barrier—
It was the scythe of death.
Every falling chain harvested another life.
The army collapsed into chaos.
"AHHH! WHAT THE HELL IS THIS?!"
"Earth Release! Use Earth—"
"AAAH! RUN!"
Screams erupted everywhere.
A Kumogakure elite jōnin burst with lightning chakra, trying to steady the situation.
But behind him—
A chain silently descended.
He dodged.
The chain pierced empty air.
Just as he sighed in relief—
Another chain erupted from the ground beneath his feet.
"What the hell?! Above AND below?!"
He panicked.
Trying to run.
But escape was impossible.
THUD!
Two chains pierced through his Lightning Armor.
One into his shoulder blade.
One through his neck joint.
The pain silenced him instantly.
His chakra collapsed.
But something even worse happened.
From the chains seeped a cold, viscous chakra—
Numbing.
Sealing.
It spread through his entire body instantly.
Scenes like this spread across the barrier.
Half an hour later—
Hundreds of "human balls" hung from the chains above.
Looking at them, Kai walked forward with a grin.
"Now then."
"Does anyone still oppose becoming laborers?"
"Don't worry."
"If you disagree, speak up."
"Silence will be taken as agreement."
"Mmmph! Mmmph!"
Their only response was muffled noises.
Every vocal cord had already been sealed.
Kai waited quietly for three minutes.
Then suddenly laughed.
"Hahaha! Good!"
"Looks like everyone has excellent awareness."
"In that case…"
"For the next period of time…"
"Konoha Industrial Zone…"
"I'll leave it to all of you."
After saying that—
He bowed deeply.
Polite.
Very polite.
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