Uchiha Hikari.
Hundreds of years ago, the Uchiha clan had created her as a living weapon to fight against the Senju.
Later, she was sealed away by the combined efforts of the Senju and Uzumaki clans.
Logically speaking, she should have only appeared decades later, in the Boruto era.
So why was she here in Konoha Year 41?
Kyūsei didn't know.
But it was certainly connected to that man—Uchiha Madara.
Moreover, judging from her appearance, she looked seventeen or eighteen years old now, completely different from the twelve-year-old girl who had once been sealed.
Clearly, she had grown over time.
"You're welcome to try."
Kaoru didn't recognize the woman before her, but that didn't affect her confidence in the slightest.
With Flying Thunder God in her hands, she would never lose.
At worst, she could take Kyūsei back to Konoha and come back for revenge later.
Uchiha Hikari narrowed her eyes as she looked at Minato Kaoru , whose beauty was no less than her own.
"Little girl, you're far too arrogant!"
As her words fell—
A terrifying aura burst forth from her body.
It was pure chakra pressure, yet it was no weaker than a tailed beast's!
Kyūsei frowned and stepped forward.
A surge of chakra equally powerful shot skyward from his body.
For a moment, the two forces collided evenly.
But clearly—
Kyūsei was slightly stronger.
After all, he had just gone through an extremely intense battle.
Meanwhile, Uchiha Hikari had been resting, still in peak condition.
The difference was obvious.
"You…!"
"It's you!"
A middle-aged man suddenly shouted in fear.
He stared at Uchiha Hikari as if he were looking at a monster.
It was the Seven-Tails' jinchūriki.
"This woman!"
"She's an Uchiha!"
"She—she controlled me with her Sharingan!"
His voice was frantic and trembling.
It was clear he had gone through something horrifying under her control.
"Hmph. Noisy."
Uchiha Hikari narrowed her eyes in irritation.
Amaterasu!
Black flames erupted instantly.
But at that moment, a golden chakra arm appeared around the Seven-Tails' jinchūriki, blocking the flames.
As the chakra dispersed, the scorching black fire fell to the ground.
"So you attack a companion who just fought for you?"
"Is that your style?"
Kyūsei sneered at her.
No matter how tragic her past might be, to him, Uchiha Hikari was an enemy.
And an enemy was an enemy.
Now everything made sense.
No wonder the timid Seven-Tails had fought so fiercely earlier.
He had been controlled by her.
"So-called companions are nothing but tools."
"Once they're useless, they should be eliminated."
Ōnoki spoke in a deep voice.
He wasn't surprised that she was an Uchiha.
In fact, he welcomed it.
Having a powerful Uchiha as an ally was reassuring.
Especially one who could manipulate the Seven-Tails against Konoha's Nine-Tails.
Calling her an undercover agent would almost be an understatement.
At that moment—
A streak of white light descended from the sky and landed in front of the Raikage.
Everyone's attention was instantly drawn.
It was Heavenly Transfer Technique…
Kyūsei narrowed his eyes.
A metal container holding a letter appeared before the Raikage.
He opened it without hesitation.
The contents made his face turn livid.
"Good! Very good!"
"Damn you, Hiruzen Sarutobi!"
The Raikage roared in fury.
"B!"
"Karina!"
"We're leaving!"
He turned to leave immediately.
"What happened, Raikage?"
Ōnoki frowned anxiously.
If they failed to kill Konoha's jinchūriki now, they might never get another chance.
"Hiruzen never went to stop our troops!"
"That old bastard took Jiraiya and attacked Kumogakure instead!"
The Raikage didn't bother lowering his voice.
To him, this battle was already over.
Five tailed beasts couldn't defeat the Nine-Tails.
And now the Seven-Tails had defected.
If they kept fighting, the outcome was uncertain.
But one thing was clear—
Kumo would suffer the most.
He knew his own village well.
Kumo's perfect jinchūriki system relied heavily on Turtle Island and the Waterfall of Truth.
If Hiruzen discovered Turtle Island, everything would be over.
That was why Kumogakure had once plotted to steal the Nine-Tails.
They believed that if they obtained Kurama, sealed it into someone, and used the Waterfall—
They could fully control its power.
No matter what, Turtle Island could not be exposed.
Ōnoki's eyes widened.
He never imagined Hiruzen would be this ruthless.
Abandoning homeland defense to launch a direct strike on Kumo.
Cutting off an arm to survive.
Besieging Wei to save Zhao.
If Hiruzen and Jiraiya had gone separately to each battlefield, they would have achieved nothing.
Instead, he gave up defense entirely and struck Kumogakure directly—
Indirectly relieving pressure on the Rain, Grass, and Frost fronts.
And judging by this—
Hiruzen had completely figured out the Raikage's personality.
As the Raikage, Killer B, and a tall blonde woman with fair skin and a generous figure left,
Kyūsei turned to look at Uchiha Hikari and Ōnoki, whose expressions had darkened.
"Well?"
"Want to try now?"
Kyūsei smiled lightly.
Uchiha Hikari frowned.
Hiruzen's move had caught her completely off guard.
She was unwilling to give up.
But then—
An aged hand rested on her shoulder.
Ōnoki shook his head slightly.
—
Watching their retreating figures, Kyūsei couldn't help sighing.
Hiruzen really was ruthless.
Abandoning domestic defense to attack Kumogakure personally.
From the moment he stepped onto the battlefield,
This war had been firmly in his grasp.
No wonder he was called the "Professor of Shinobi."
After this battle, both sides had more or less figured out each other's strength.
Continuing the war would be difficult.
Unless—
One side achieved a qualitative leap in power.
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