Uchiha Mikoto's newly awakened four leaf clover Mangekyō Sharingan rotated eerily amid the smoke and rising steam, as cold as if it held no warmth at all.
Her once gentle and beautiful face was now covered with an icy expression. Only merciless resolve and chilling killing intent remained.
Her hands overlapped as she rapidly formed hand seals.
Three more giant dragons wrapped in Amaterasu's black flames roared forward, swallowing the Water Style defenses the Kirigakure shinobi had hastily raised, then turning them into fuel for themselves as they grew even larger and more terrifying.
"Impossible! What kind of monster is this?!"
Mangetsu Hōzuki cried out in horror. His famous Water Style secret techniques looked completely ridiculous before those black flames of absolute destruction.
He swung Hiramekarei in panic, barely knocking away a strand of black fire.
Even the dense chakra covering the blade was burned away.
The terrifying heat almost made him lose his grip.
"AAAAAH!"
One miserable scream after another echoed across the battlefield.
The Kirigakure shinobi covered in black flames rolled frantically across the ground, but they could not extinguish the infernal fire. They could only watch helplessly as their bodies were gradually burned into ashes.
The Kaguya Clan shinobi tried to block it with their hardened bone shields.
But the flames of Amaterasu ignored all defenses, instantly spreading across their bones and turning them into screaming human torches.
The Ice Style of the Yuki Clan became even worse.
It acted like fuel, causing the black flames to spread even faster.
After only one exchange, Kirigakure's carefully selected strike force had already suffered heavy losses, and their formation completely fell apart.
"Don't panic! Spread out! Stay away from those black flames! Don't let them touch you! Attack that woman from a distance!"
Mangetsu forced himself to remain calm as he shouted his orders, trying to reorganize the team.
However, just as his command left his mouth, Uchiha Mikoto's cold voice rang out once again, calm and steady as it spread across the battlefield.
She was no longer the woman who gently asked Chiya, "What would you like for dinner?"
She was now a decisive battlefield commander.
"First and Second Squads, surround them from both flanks and cut off their retreat. Prepare the explosive tags."
"Hyūga Squad, use your Byakugan to lock onto them. Eliminate anyone attempting hand seals first."
"Yamanaka Clan, use mind interference and disrupt their coordination."
"Everyone else, cover them with ninjutsu. Suppress them."
Her commands were simple, precise, and efficient, as though they had been practiced countless times.
The Konoha shinobi behind her, who had first been enraged by Kirigakure's cruelty and then shocked by Mikoto's strength, had now found someone they could rely on.
Without the slightest hesitation, they immediately carried out her orders.
"Yes!"
In an instant, the well trained Konoha shinobi sprang into action.
The Byakugan of the Hyūga Clan observed the flow of chakra inside the Kirigakure shinobi, predicting their techniques in advance.
The Yamanaka Clan's mental attacks landed precisely on several Kirigakure shinobi attempting large scale Water Style jutsu, causing them to lose focus and fail their hand seals.
The shinobi on both flanks quickly moved into position.
Kunai and explosive tags rained down like a storm, perfectly sealing every possible escape route.
...
Perfect teamwork!
Completely different from Kirigakure's reckless style of everyone fighting on their own!
"Damn it!"
Mangetsu was both shocked and furious.
He realized that he and his men had fallen into a giant net that had already been woven.
Every move they made had been anticipated.
That Uchiha woman...
Her control over the rhythm of the battlefield was terrifying.
"Concentrate all our strength! Kill that Uchiha woman! As long as she dies, the rest of these trash are nothing!"
He roared as he pushed Hiramekarei's chakra to its limit.
Mist swirled around his body as he forcibly split open a path through the black flames and charged desperately toward Mikoto.
He knew this was their only chance to turn the battle around.
Several surviving members of the Kaguya Clan and Jonin from the Yuki Clan also charged forward with bloodshot eyes.
Ignoring their own injuries, they forced their way through the barrage of ninjutsu and followed Mangetsu in a desperate assault.
Faced with the suicidal counterattack of several elite Jonin, even the Konoha shinobi behind Mikoto felt an overwhelming sense of pressure.
However, Mikoto remained standing exactly where she was.
She did not move even a single step.
The Mangekyō Sharingan slowly rotated within her eyes.
She calmly analyzed every enemy's movement, speed, and even the exact moment their chakra would erupt.
"A meaningless struggle."
She commented calmly.
Her voice was not loud, yet it carried an authority that chilled everyone who heard it.
Just as Mangetsu's massive Hiramekarei descended with enough force to split the sea itself, Mikoto finally moved.
She did not use any powerful ninjutsu.
She simply turned slightly to the side, narrowly avoiding the deadly blade by the smallest margin.
The Sharingan had perfectly predicted every attack.
At the same time, her hands blurred as she formed hand seals so quickly that only afterimages remained.
"Fire Style, Phoenix Flower Claw Crimson!"
Countless flaming shuriken flew out.
Instead of targeting Mangetsu, they shot toward the Kaguya Clan shinobi and Yuki Clan shinobi behind him from an incredibly tricky angle.
They were forced either to block or dodge.
Their coordinated attack was instantly disrupted.
Then Mikoto seized the brief instant when Mangetsu's old momentum had ended but his new force had not yet formed.
"Genjutsu, Sharingan!"
It was not a particularly complicated illusion.
But under the power of the Mangekyō Sharingan, it became something entirely different.
Mangetsu suddenly felt his vision blur.
Mikoto's figure seemed to split into three.
Deadly kunai appeared to stab toward his vital points from three different directions at once.
"A Water Clone? No...!"
His heart was filled with shock.
He instinctively pulled Hiramekarei back to defend himself.
That single moment of hesitation.
That single mistake in judgment.
Determined the battle.
The real Mikoto appeared like a ghost at the opening on his right side, created when he raised his blade to defend himself.
Her kunai was wrapped in highly condensed chakra.
It thrust forward with perfect precision and ruthless accuracy, stabbing directly into the chakra pathway in his sword wielding wrist.
Slash!
"Urgh!"
Mangetsu cried out in pain.
Hiramekarei almost slipped from his grasp.
He did not even have time to activate his Hydrification Technique.
The Sharingan had already seen through the flow of his chakra and struck at its critical point.
Mikoto's movements flowed as naturally as water.
The instant she landed her strike, she immediately retreated.
She perfectly avoided the bone blade thrust at her by another Kaguya Clan shinobi.
She did not even look back to confirm the result.
Her icy gaze had already locked onto her next target.
"Third Squad, Lightning Style! Target the Shikotsumyaku users! Fire together!"
"Fourth Squad, Wind Style! Suppress the Ice Style shinobi on the left!"
Her command echoed across the battlefield once again.
"Lightning Style, Thunder Tiger Massacre!"
"Wind Style, Great Breakthrough!"
"..."
The Konoha shinobi, who had already been prepared, immediately carried out the orders.
The violent Lightning Style attacks struck the Kaguya Clan shinobi, whose hardened bodies conducted electricity exceptionally well.
They screamed in agony as their bodies became numb and stiff.
The powerful Wind Style techniques scattered the ice mist the Yuki Clan shinobi had tried to create and even blew their ice senbon back toward them.
Perfect command!
She had combined her own overwhelming strength with flawless teamwork.
Mangetsu's wrist had been severely injured.
He knelt on the ground, staring in disbelief at the woman moving gracefully across the battlefield like she was dancing.
Every movement she made.
Every command she gave.
Harvested the lives of his subordinates with perfect precision.
This was nothing like the helpless Konoha he had imagined.
This Uchiha woman...
She was a battlefield demon born for war.
The remaining Kirigakure shinobi completely collapsed.
Their leader had been seriously wounded.
Their comrades had been slaughtered.
Their coordination had been completely destroyed.
Their proud Bloodline Limits had been easily countered.
Even their right to die fighting had been mercilessly taken away.
The battle quickly became nothing more than a one sided massacre.
Finally, when the last Yuki Clan shinobi who attempted to blow himself up had his chakra points sealed by the Gentle Fist of the Hyūga Clan before several kunai nailed him to a tree.
Not a single enemy remained standing on the battlefield.
Mangetsu Hōzuki was pinned firmly to the ground by two Uchiha clansmen using Lightning Style to suppress him.
Only his head remained exposed in his Hydrification state.
He raised it and stared fixedly at Uchiha Mikoto as she slowly walked toward him.
"Uchiha... What... exactly are you people...?"
He asked hoarsely.
His eyes were filled with fear and confusion.
This woman's strength, mentality, and command ability were completely beyond anything in their intelligence reports.
It was as if no information about her had ever existed.
Mikoto looked down at him.
Her Mangekyō Sharingan slowly rotated, so deep that it seemed capable of swallowing souls.
There was still no expression on her face.
No joy from victory.
No disgust toward killing.
Only cold calmness.
Her voice was clear and cold, carrying unquestionable authority and power.
"Kirigakure's foolish ambitions end here."
She slightly raised her hand, stopping her subordinates from killing Mangetsu.
Chiya had already told her.
Ordinary physical attacks could not kill him.
It was better to keep him alive and gather information about Kirigakure first.
Once he had outlived his usefulness.
She could simply erase him with Amaterasu.
"Take him away and interrogate him thoroughly."
"Everyone else, clean up the battlefield and make sure no one has escaped."
"Send the highest level warning to the village."
"Place the entire village on full alert."
"Yes, Lady Mikoto!"
The surrounding Konoha shinobi answered together, their voices filled with respect and complete trust.
At this moment.
No one regarded her as merely the secretary of the Uchiha Clan Head anymore.
She raised her head and looked into the distance.
The sharpness in her expression faded away.
She returned to her usual gentle appearance.
"Chiya-nii should be back soon, right?"
After speaking.
She turned her head toward another direction.
Her brows frowned slightly.
"Shouldn't Obito be training at the training ground right now? Why isn't he..."
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