Thinking it over now, it all made sense to Nara Shikaku. The founding of the Sunagakure Federation, the Uchiha incident, and Tsunade's recent changes—Hyuga Mirai had been behind all of it.
In an instant, Shikaku felt as though everything clicked into place, followed by a wave of helplessness. How could they possibly win against an opponent with overwhelming strength who had been planning from the shadows this entire time?
"Mikoto, Shukaku, Kurama—I'll leave the rest to you."
Hyuga Mirai spoke to those behind him. Hearing this, Uchiha Mikoto manipulated her Susanoo, forming a massive Yasaka Magatama in its giant hand. If anyone resisted, she wouldn't hesitate.
After injecting the substance Mirai had given her, Mikoto felt no strain using her Mangekyō Sharingan. There was no pain, and even her chakra recovered quickly.
"Hyuga Mirai."
Shikaku managed a strained smile, but before he could continue, Mirai pulled out a capsule and tossed it into the air. It burst open, releasing over a hundred puppets—gleaming metallic under the sunlight.
These puppets carried chakra-sealing chains. One per person—barely enough for all the shinobi present.
The mechanized puppets immediately spread out, ready to lock the chakra chains onto the Allied shinobi.
"What the hell are these things!? What are you trying to do!?"
The first chosen Cloud ninja kicked a puppet away and drew the short blade on his back, ready to destroy it. But before he could charge forward, an orange chakra blade pierced straight through him, cutting him cleanly in half.
Seeing this, Shikaku urgently told Yamanaka Inoichi, "Inoichi, use your jutsu. Tell all Konoha shinobi not to resist!"
Inoichi understood the situation. Even though covering so many people could drain his chakra, there was no time to worry about that. After swallowing two soldier pills, he immediately used his clan's secret technique.
Within moments, his mental energy covered all Konoha shinobi within several kilometers, relaying Shikaku's orders and a brief explanation.
The Konoha ninjas lost all motivation to resist. They might have been able to charge forward under four Kage if it were just one or two massive threats—but now their own Hokage stood on the enemy's side. What could they possibly do?
"Damn it!"
Bam!
Another Cloud ninja shouted angrily, only to be sliced in half by a chakra blade—Uchiha Mikoto again. Among everyone present, she was the most suited for precision kills.
With the Mangekyō Sharingan's insight and the chakra blades fired through Yasaka Magatama, she could strike a two-meter zone with perfect accuracy.
"Damn monster—!"
BOOM!
Shou-shou, the massive purple serpent, heard the shouting below. It opened its jaws and lunged downward. Its belly generated a powerful suction—no one knew how many people were swallowed in that instant. When it shut its mouth and flicked its tongue, a large section of the battlefield had been cleared of human presence.
"Hehehe… are we supposed to fight that thing…?"
Some Cloud ninjas with weaker mental fortitude nearly snapped. When the serpent's head descended, it felt like a mountain coming down on them. Resistance was impossible. By the time they came to their senses, dozens of comrades were gone.
What were they supposed to do now?
Seeing the Cloud ninjas' plight, the Stone ninjas immediately understood their own situation. Faced with the mechanized puppets, they followed Konoha's example and raised their hands, no longer resisting.
Against Tailed Beasts, a giant serpent, Susanoo towering like a mountain, and a barrier sealing all exits… they had no idea how to fight back.
"These chains can seal chakra. Once they're on, you can't refine chakra at all."
A Konoha ninja whispered to his companion. Whenever he tried gathering chakra, the chains blocked it—and the harder he forced it, the weaker he became.
Another Konoha ninja nodded. "It looks sturdy. Keep watch for me. I'll try breaking it with a kunai."
He was Taijutsu-type—strong even without chakra. He wanted to try brute force.
But just as he pulled out a kunai, an explosion echoed from the distance. Everyone looked toward it.
Someone had actually tried resisting. Bold, but foolish.
After checking the scene, the mechanized puppets broadcast a warning:
"Alert: The chakra chain contains a self-destruction function. Attempts to destroy it will trigger an explosion."
After the announcement, the puppets continued securing chains on the assembled shinobi.
"Shikaku-san, distribute these yourselves. The puppets are too few; they might not reach you."
Mirai handed several chains to Shikaku. His face darkened instantly.
He actually expects us to put the restraints on ourselves?
Shikaku took a deep breath, turned around, and reluctantly handed the chains to those behind him.
When he reached Mabui and Samui, the two women silently used Shikaku's body as cover and tried forming hand seals.
"Cloud ninja will neve—"
Bam!
Before Mabui could finish shouting, an invisible force swatted both her and Samui into the air. They flipped several times before crashing to the ground. Neither moved—they were either unconscious or worse.
Shikaku sighed. Why bother?
He raised the chains to the remaining Cloud ninjas and asked, "Do you want them or not?"
The Cloud ninjas trembled with fury. This humiliation was unbearable. But they were shinobi—shinobi endure what others cannot.
They instinctively looked toward the Raikage—he was their final hope.
Even Sasori detached from his puppet and walked to Mirai's side, watching the distant battle between Tsunade, the Raikage, the Mizukage, and Hiruzen. He complained:
"You promised to leave the Fourth Raikage for me so I could test my combined puppet's durability."
"I planned to," Mirai replied, clapping his hands. "But after seeing Tsunade… I realized something. Why use the Raikage as a test subject when Tsunade is clearly superior? There's no point using an inferior sample."
…Is that so?
Sasori glanced at the battlefield. Even with the Third Hokage and Fifth Mizukage covering him, the Fourth Raikage was still being kicked dozens of meters by Tsunade.
Mirai had a point—Raikage was a subpar test subject in comparison.
"You're right. No need to waste it on an inferior sample. But—"
"Relax, Sasori. I'll talk to Tsunade for you. Your project is the second most important thing in the organization."
Mirai patted his shoulder. Hearing this, Sasori's lips curled slightly.
"Fine. We'll do it your way."
(End of Chapter)