It seems the Uchiha have finally taken this irreversible path.
Hiruzen Sarutobi stood atop the Hokage Building with his hands behind his back. He gazed at the distant sky, which was illuminated by the glow of rising flames.
Beside him, Danzo let out a cold snort. "I told you that boy Itachi couldn't complete such a heavy task."
It was clear that Danzo distrusted all Uchiha equally, even if that person was Itachi Uchiha.
Hiruzen Sarutobi shook his head. "I believe in Itachi's abilities. There might be some hidden difficulties. However, since the Uchiha coup is now irreversible, we must harden our hearts and deal with it."
Danzo looked at his old friend and sneered. "Leave the Uchiha matter to me."
"Mm."
The Third Hokage did not object this time. After all, he also wanted to know exactly how strong Danzo had become after using that special method to absorb Yi. He wondered if Danzo would become a threat to him.
Under the Third Hokage's complex gaze, Danzo burst forth with a speed unfitting for his age. Surrounded by Root ninjas, he dashed toward the area where the flames of war were spreading.
The fire had already reached the entire Uchiha district. The air was thick with a foul stench—a mix of blood and burning, the smell known as war.
Numerous Uchiha elites struck out wildly. Like sharp blades, they pierced through the cage the village had set for them and spread the conflict into the village itself. The encounter transformed from a forest skirmish into urban street warfare!
Furthermore, this meant the ensuing battles would inevitably lead to significant civilian casualties, directly or indirectly. Of course, the Uchiha members were currently caught in a frenzy. Since they had chosen a coup, they didn't care about a little collateral damage.
"Clan Leader, enemies are approaching at twelve o'clock, seven hundred meters away."
In an alleyway formed by two rows of buildings, a sensory-type Uchiha ninja issued a warning.
At this moment, Fugaku Uchiha was leading a decapitation squad of nine hand-picked Uchiha elites. They were breaking through the encirclement, intending to strike the Hokage Building and take down the leadership directly.
However, the Anbu would naturally not allow them to break through so easily. Despite being some distance from the enemy, Fugaku Uchiha quickly sensed something was wrong.
"Scatter!"
The men following Fugaku were all Uchiha elites. The moment they heard the command, they surged apart. Suddenly, a swarm of black insects exploded beneath Fugaku's feet.
Conversely, if not for Fugaku's warning, at least two people would have been instantly devoured by these bugs!
"It's the Aburame Clan."
Fugaku Uchiha looked toward the end of the alley while the others stood as if facing a great enemy. Sure enough, a man wearing a gray trench coat and sunglasses appeared there.
"I didn't expect you to choose a coup, Fugaku. What a pity."
The man who came to stop them was a former teammate of the Fourth Hokage and currently the strongest member of the Aburame Clan—Shibi Aburame.
Despite this, what concerned Fugaku most was that Shibi Aburame was not wearing an Anbu uniform. This meant he was participating in this internal strife as an active-duty ninja of the Hidden Leaf. It signaled that the village was not just deploying Anbu to deal with this fight; other ninjas were starting to react and joining the battle under orders.
This was not good news for the Uchiha, who sought a quick victory.
"Since you've joined the fray, where are the others?"
Fugaku Uchiha was not naive enough to think Shibi Aburame would come alone to block so many Uchiha elites.
"I really didn't want to become enemies with the famous Uchiha, but there's no other way, Fugaku."
A lazy voice rang out. The Hidden Leaf's Jonin Commander and leader of the Nara Clan, Shikaku Nara, appeared before the Uchiha.
Seeing Shikaku appear, Fugaku's eyes narrowed. He immediately looked at the buildings on both sides. They were currently in a very narrow terrain.
"Damn it, retreat!"
Fugaku Uchiha realized something was wrong almost instantly. Wherever the Nara Clan appeared, members of the other two clans of the Ino-Shika-Cho trio would surely follow. Such narrow terrain was perfect for maximizing the advantages of the Akimichi Clan!
Fugaku Uchiha had collaborated with the Jonin Commander Shikaku more than once or twice. He had a clear understanding of Shikaku's intellect and would never foolishly assume this was just a coincidental encounter. With Shikaku's intelligence, their marching route might have been under his control for a long time.
Is someone from the Yamanaka Clan behind this?
Fugaku's face was quite ugly, but there was no time to think.
"Seen through, huh? What a drag."
Seeing the Uchiha retreating, Shikaku shook his head with some annoyance. Suddenly, a massive figure leapt out from behind Shikaku. It was the current head and strongest combatant of the Akimichi Clan—Choza Akimichi!
He leapt over Shikaku's head. After expanding his body several times over, he curled into a ball. His hair lengthened like sharp spikes, completely covering his body.
"Human Bullet Spiked Tank!"
Spinning at high speed, Choza Akimichi resembled a powerful tank, rolling toward the group with unstoppable force! In this narrow terrain, he was truly invincible!
Thanks to Fugaku Uchiha's immediate warning, the Uchiha ninjas reacted quickly. They used chakra to stick their feet to the walls and ran toward the rooftops at top speed.
But how could Shikaku's plan be so simple?
The moment Choza attacked, a flash bomb Shikaku had prepared exploded. The intense light caused his shadow to instantly stretch out. Simultaneously, his hands quickly formed signs.
"Shadow Possession Jutsu, success!"
His shadow branched out like tree limbs and firmly connected to two Uchiha. This left them unable to move, forced to stare at their impending fate of being crushed.
"Boom!"
Choza's terrifying impact shattered and collapsed the surrounding walls. However, the expected scene of the two Uchiha being turned into meat paste did not occur.
Within the slowly dispersing dust, a massive blue skeletal frame stood on the battlefield like a god of war. It used just one hand to firmly block Choza's attack. The two Uchiha controlled by the Shadow Possession Jutsu were now gasping for air within the protection of the skeleton.
Just a little more, and they would have been meat paste!
It's all thanks to the Clan Leader!
At this moment, the Fugaku Uchiha they were so grateful toward stood steadily in front of them. Chakra surged from his body, constructing the terrifying skeletal frame outside. His original Three-Tomoe Sharingan had long since transformed into the intricate patterns of the Mangekyo Sharingan.
He controlled Susanoo to swing its hand. The tank-like Choza was swatted aside, crashing through another building.
Shikaku stared intently at the chakra giant. "Fugaku, you really were hiding a Mangekyo," he said solemnly.
Fugaku asked in return, "Really? Does that mean you've been doubting the Uchiha for a long time, Shikaku?"
Shikaku's expression was grim. "Although doubting a comrade is wrong, given the current situation, the Uchiha don't exactly seem like comrades of the Hidden Leaf."
Fugaku sighed. "The village forced our hand, Shikaku."
"Enough, Fugaku. At this point, there's no need for more words."
Uchiha Taka, standing beside Fugaku, stepped forward and interrupted them. Fugaku Uchiha nodded. "Indeed. At this point, let our strength do the talking."
As Fugaku erupted with a powerful battle intent, the massive skeletal frame moved accordingly. Its massive arm, as solid as steel, struck out toward the crowd.
"Scatter!"
The Hidden Leaf ninjas successfully dodged, but the building behind them turned into ruins under that casual strike. Shattered stones flew out like shrapnel, demonstrating the power of the blow.
A casual strike causes such shocking destruction? No wonder the higher-ups are so wary of the Uchiha, Shikaku analyzed quickly.
After suffering the attack, the Hidden Leaf ninjas counterattacked while dodging. Two ninjas hidden behind Shikaku suddenly appeared and launched ninjutsu at Fugaku simultaneously.
"Fire Style: Great Flame Technique!"
"Wind Style: Great Breakthrough!"
The hurricane carried the terrifying fire, instantly turning into a pillar of flame that crashed heavily against the skeletal frame protecting the Uchiha.
"Boom!"
The explosion once again produced thick black smoke. But this time, the smoke lasted only a short while because the blue skeletal frame condensed a chakra blade in its hand. A casual slash created an air current that completely cleared the surrounding mist.
"It didn't take any damage at all?"
Shikaku looked at this scene in shock. He hadn't expected the Uchiha Clan's Mangekyo Sharingan to be so terrifying. While possessing immense destructive power, it also held such incredible defensive capabilities.
"The house-playing ends here!"
Uchiha Taka spoke coldly. He and the other eight Uchiha then ran out of Susanoo's range, performing ninjutsu together.
"Fire Style: Majestic Destroyer Flame!"
Although Majestic Destroyer Flame was only a B-rank ninjutsu, nine Uchiha elites proficient in Fire Style used it at once. It immediately formed a terrifying sea of fire.
"Earth Style: Mud Wall!"
A lone mud wall rose up, but it collapsed after buying less than two seconds under the scorching heat. All the Hidden Leaf ninjas were forced to retreat quickly to create distance.
Just then, a massive fire dragon struck from the side. Its target was not the Hidden Leaf group, but the most conspicuous target on the battlefield.
Fugaku Uchiha's Susanoo!
This sudden attack caused the Uchiha's offensive to come to an abrupt halt. Fugaku hurriedly controlled Susanoo to swing its chakra blade, splitting the incoming fire dragon in half. At the end of the fire dragon's path, a youth wearing an Anbu uniform appeared.
"Itachi! What are you doing?!"
Uchiha Taka, acting as an elder, spoke with great pain and anger toward the youth. This boy was one of the vital combatants for the Uchiha coup and the genius they placed the most hope in—Itachi Uchiha, who, like his father, had awakened the Mangekyo Sharingan!
Although Itachi's failure to appear earlier in the mission had made Uchiha Taka suspicious, seeing Itachi clearly standing against the Uchiha still left him disappointed and enraged.
"Father, please surrender. The village must not be driven toward a future of destruction because of the clan's selfish desires."
Itachi ignored the anger of the other Uchiha. He focused his persuasion only on Fugaku, the Clan Leader. To be honest, the only person Itachi was wary of was Fugaku, who also possessed the Mangekyo. The others were like mere clay chickens or pottery dogs before his Mangekyo.
Fugaku looked at his incredibly talented son, a certain special emotion welling up in his eyes. "Itachi, it's too late. There is no turning back for the Uchiha now."
If it were before the coup, Fugaku might have let Itachi choose the path for the Uchiha's future. But now that the coup had officially begun, there was no possibility of retreat.
Itachi didn't say anything more. He simply closed his eyes with regret and pain. "In that case, I am sorry, Father."
When his eyes opened again, they were in the shape of the Mangekyo Sharingan! Itachi stared at Fugaku's terrifying Susanoo with his own Mangekyo. "Only a Mangekyo can deal with a Mangekyo. You all just handle the others."
He said this to the Hidden Leaf group.
"I understand."
As a member of the upper echelons, Shikaku naturally knew about Itachi. In this situation, he chose to trust him automatically. Given the previous circumstances, Itachi could have easily ambushed them; there was no need for such an unnecessary gesture.
Hearing Shikaku's words, the injured Choza beside him breathed a sigh of relief. "He's just a kid, but the aura he's giving off is very powerful. If he were on the other side, the Hokage might have had to step in personally," Choza noted fortunately.
Unlike the relief of the Hidden Leaf ninjas, the Uchiha members' faces were full of rage.
"Itachi, you damn traitor!"
"Have you forgotten the glory of the Uchiha?"
"I will kill you with my own hands, Itachi!"
Facing this rage and these accusations, a rare trace of disgust appeared on Itachi's face. "If not for your arrogance, I wouldn't have had to make such a decision to maintain the last bit of the Uchiha Clan's glory."
Itachi's words instantly made the already furious Uchiha find it even more unbearable. They were about to rush forward to fight this traitor to the death, but Fugaku immediately stopped them.
"You all go deal with the others. I will personally handle the traitor Itachi."
As fellow owners of the Mangekyo Sharingan, Fugaku and Itachi shared a rare consensus: Only a Mangekyo can deal with a Mangekyo! Using ordinary Sharingan against Itachi would be like delivering a meal; a single genjutsu could take them out of the fight.
Thus, Itachi's opponent could only be himself. This meant there were only two possible outcomes today. Either his son would die by his hand, or he would die by his son's hand.
Fate is sometimes just that cruel.