"It's true—I harbor resentment toward Hiruzen Sarutobi. No one could endure that kind of humiliation." Shimizu spoke the Third Hokage's name outright. He had never held much goodwill toward the lofty rulers of Konoha.
Zero's three-tomoe Sharingan rotated slowly, as if judging the truth of his words.
"I agree to join Root," Shimizu declared decisively.
"Good! Welcome to Root."
Zero snapped his fingers.
Then Shimizu noticed—his body was gradually fading away.
What's happening?!
He suddenly looked up in shock and saw the entire world collapsing around him—
This was...
The world plunged into darkness.
When light returned to Shimizu's vision, he found himself still in the water!
Not far away was that large, dead green fish.
Had everything just now been an illusion?
It was genjutsu.
What a terrifyingly powerful genjutsu.
From the moment he had been dragged into that fabricated world to its complete collapse, he hadn't detected a single flaw.
No—
There had been one.
At the very beginning, he hadn't sensed anyone nearby—yet Zero had suddenly appeared before him.
That was the only crack in the illusion.
But at the time, Shimizu had assumed Zero possessed some method of masking chakra presence.
Now he looked up and saw Zero standing on the lake's surface.
Standing openly on the water.
And within his sensory range—there was no one else.
Shimizu's heartbeat skipped.
He really thought I'd agree to join Root? To be controlled by drugs or forbidden technique from then on? What a joke!
Shimizu immediately dispelled his mutated form and slowly rose to the surface.
"Incredible genjutsu," he praised sincerely.
Zero's three-tomoe Sharingan was still spinning, though more and more slowly. Clearly, dragging a jōnin-level ninja like Shimizu into such a realistic illusion consumed a great deal of chakra.
"Captain Zero, I look forward to your guidance from now on," Shimizu said, his voice carrying an unmistakable hint of excitement—
And coldness.
"Cap—" Zero didn't even have time to finish the second syllable.
Like lightning, Shimizu's combination technique—Instant Water followed by Lightning Blade Slash—appeared behind him in a single seamless motion.
Through countless real battles, Shimizu had refined the combo until the two techniques were nearly simultaneous and seal-less.
In an instant, the Sharingan spun wildly—
But it couldn't keep up with two lightning-fast, no-seal techniques unleashed in succession.
All his life, the Sharingan had been his reliance. No one could evade its perception.
But why—
Why had such a variable suddenly appeared?
In combat at such extreme speed—
How could one afford even the slightest lapse?
"Ah!"
Blood sprayed.
Zero twisted desperately to evade, but a horrific wound was carved across his left abdomen.
"You—"
Once again, Shimizu vanished from the Sharingan's sight.
Impossible.
This wasn't the Body Flicker Technique!
The crimson pupils contracted violently. The three tomoe spun to their limit as Zero attempted to drag Shimizu back into another illusion.
But from beginning to end—
Shimizu never once met his gaze.
The second Instant Water + Lightning Blade Slash combination struck.
"Ah—!"
A savage wound split open across Zero's back. Had his reflexes been half a second slower, he would have been cleaved in two.
How could anyone be this fast?
Even the "Yellow Flash" would be no more than this!
After the second strike, Zero was critically wounded. His blood-red eyes searched unwillingly for Shimizu's figure—
Like the Reaper itself, Shimizu appeared behind him for the third time, gazing at him with cold indifference as he unleashed a final Lightning Blade Slash.
Lightning flashed and the chirping of a thousand birds erupted as the blade transfixed Zero's chest.
In just two seconds: an instant kill.
"I'm curious," Shimizu said calmly, "Why do all you geniuses of the Uchiha clan love crowding into Root?"
"What did Danzo promise you? Or do you simply not realize that what he truly covets… are your eyes?"
"Don't you have even a shred of crisis awareness? Once a pawn is used up, it's discarded. Don't you think the Uchiha clan's real enemy is Danzo?"
Shimizu unconsciously projected Itachi's shadow onto Zero. Wasn't Itachi used by Danzo as a double agent? And in the end? After slaughtering his clan, what did he truly gain?
"How did Uchiha Kagami die?" Shimizu suddenly asked.
"You know… nothing… of Root's greatness…"
Zero spoke in broken breaths. Blood spilled continuously from his mouth. A ghastly hole gaped in his chest.
"The great tree of Konoha… is upheld from beneath… by the will of us… 'Root'… buried deep in the earth…"
As expected—he wouldn't answer any of my questions. In that case…
"What a joke. Take your precious will and carry it down to hell with you," Shimizu sneered.
He struck once more with the Lightning Blade...
Watching Zero's body slowly sink into the lake, Shimizu's nerves finally relaxed.
It was a pity; such a pair of eyes with powerful ocular energy... but he wasn't a medical ninja. He couldn't extract them intact.
Only now did he feel a sting in his right arm. Looking down, he saw a minor wound bleeding.
It was the exact same spot where Zero's kunai had wounded him in the illusion.
In the illusion, the injury had been severe.
In reality, it was merely a shallow cut.
Such ocular power…
To think genjutsu had already reached the point of influencing reality.
Given the right trigger, this Uchiha ninja codenamed Zero might very well have awakened the Mangekyō Sharingan.
No matter how long one remained inside a genjutsu, in reality it lasted only an instant.
That meant Danzo and the others hadn't gone far yet.
If he pursued them immediately, he could distance himself from Zero's disappearance.
Windveil's disappearance alone was already a major suspicion in Danzo's eyes.
If Zero were added to the list—
Then it would truly become a fight to the death.
Fortunately, almost no one would believe that a Konoha ANBU jōnin could instantly kill a Root elite wielding a three-tomoe Sharingan.
After all, Shimizu's ANBU file contained no record of Second Hokage–style Water Release techniques or his new Lightning Release technique.
Still—
Sorry, Sawei. I can't bring your remains home for now.
Sorry, Kosuke-sensei. I'll have to retrieve the Second Hokage's kunai another time.
And this time, he would have to reveal the new technique "Lightning Blade Slash." Otherwise, there would be no way to explain how he escaped from Nagato.
Fortunately, Kosuke-sensei could testify that he had indeed borrowed the Lightning Release chakra kunai.
At least that formed a relatively complete chain of evidence.
But if Danzo really tried to come after him—
Then he would expose everything.
And if even the Third Hokage failed to stand by him…
Sawei's Sharingan—
The Sharingan could raise his strength dramatically in the shortest time possible.
Even if it were a double-edged sword—
He would take that step.
...
Shortly after, Shimizu spotted Danzo and the others at the Root encampment established outside Amegakure. Danzo was just entering the camp; it seemed they had only just arrived.
Perfect! Almost no time gap—a nearly perfect alibi.
"Lord Danzo! The mission has failed!" Shimizu appeared before him in a flash using the Body Flicker Technique and reported.
His speed was so fast that his sudden appearance immediately put every surrounding Root ninja on high alert.
Danzo raised a hand, signaling them to lower their weapons, and asked in a deep voice, "What happened? You're alone?"
Shimizu spoke with urgency. "We encountered—"
He glanced around; several Root ninja stood nearby.
"Speak freely," Danzo said.
"We encountered the Rinnegan. That red-haired boy is the Rinnegan's wielder! Skyflame , Rockwood, and Windveil were separated from me!"
"So even you encountered the Rinnegan…" Danzo had personally witnessed the overwhelming might of those eyes. His only thought now was to withdraw as soon as possible—if the Rinnegan user pursued them, it would spell disaster.
As for Windveil—
He had already sent Zero to investigate.
Zero had never disappointed him.
Danzo turned to a Root ninja nearby. "Report the situation."
"The Eighth Division has been completely annihilated. The Seventh Division retains six full squads. The Sixth Division has seven full squads. The Ninth Division has suffered over half casualties. Captain Zero has not returned," Hachi replied.
"A miscalculation!" Danzo's expression darkened. "I did not expect to encounter the legendary Rinnegan. Even Hanzo could not match it… During the Second Great Ninja War, even the Sannin and thousands of Konoha ninja failed to shake him. This time… I fear…"
He couldn't believe Hanzo might have fallen—but the Rinnegan's power was undeniable.
Suddenly—
From another direction outside Amegakure, an immense surge of chakra erupted.
Dark green chakra shot into the sky, piercing the clouds and churning the heavens.
It was Nagato's chakra.
Everyone stared in shock at the terrifying, roiling green chakra cloud spiraling upward, gradually forming a massive vortex.
For a moment—
No one spoke.
A monster.
Chakra comparable to a Tailed Beast.
If there had once been even the slightest comparison between them—
Now they were not even on the same level.
Heh, as expected of the Child of Prophecy.
Shimizu pulled back his thoughts and said aloud, "That is the Chakra of the Rinnegan..."
This—
Was the power of the Rinnegan.
"Hachi, take one squad from the Sixth Division and remain here. Receive Zero and any other possible survivors. If the situation changes, retreat immediately!" Danzo issued swift orders.
Then he turned to the rest.
"The rest of you—depart with me at once. We return to Konoha!"
"Yes!" everyone responded.