The Great Elder, pinned under Utatane Koharu's foot, gritted his teeth.
As he looked up at her, his anger surged to its limit.
"I… an old man… being humiliated by a woman?! How could I… be stepped on like this?!"
With a furious roar, he forced his body upward, breaking free from her foot and rising to his feet.
Koharu hadn't expected him to resist.
Caught off guard, she was shoved back two meters.
"You damn woman! How dare you humiliate me?! Even if I die, I will never accept being trampled by you!"
With that, the bound Great Elder charged straight at her.
"You're courting death!"
Enraged, Koharu raised her kunai and aimed it directly at him, convinced he would stop.
But he didn't.
Without hesitation—
he ran straight into the blade.
The kunai pierced his chest.
Koharu froze in shock, releasing the weapon as she stumbled back and collapsed to the ground.
"Great Elder!!!"
Isamu shot forward instantly.
"Father!!!"
Somehow finding strength, Uchiha Zhan staggered to his feet and rushed forward as well.
Despite the wound, the Great Elder did not fall immediately.
He straightened his back and looked at the bound Uchiha around him.
"Clan members… the final moment has come."
"We must not become a burden to the Clan Head."
His voice grew firm.
"Use our blood… to awaken his fighting spirit!"
"Let our enemies see—"
"Even in captivity, the Uchiha are never afraid of death!"
"Not afraid of death! Not afraid of death!"
The bound clan members roared in unison.
They understood.
This… was their final stand.
"Good… very good."
"I am proud… to have clan members like you."
With that—
the Great Elder bit down on the poison hidden in his mouth.
Blood spilled from his lips as he collapsed.
"Great Elder—!!"
One after another, the other Uchiha followed.
They bit down on their own poison—
and fell.
Only three small children hesitated.
Too afraid… too young.
The surrounding Konoha shinobi instinctively stepped back, shaken by the scene.
Even Homura Mitokado and Koharu couldn't hide their shock.
Senju Hashirama's expression changed drastically.
No… this is bad.
If they all died—
Isamu would completely lose control.
He immediately rushed forward.
Among the Allied Forces, the moderate Uchiha faction, led by Uchiha Mori, lowered their heads in silence.
They asked themselves—
Could we have done the same?
And deep down…
they knew the answer.
Inside the cave, Uchiha Madara watched quietly.
Then, he nodded.
"Uchiha Shinyō… I didn't expect this from you."
"To lead your people to death without hesitation… you've got guts."
He narrowed his eyes.
"Tian Qi… let me see what you'll do now."
"NO!!!"
Isamu's speed exploded.
In an instant, he reached the Great Elder and caught him.
Green Chakra surged from his hands.
"Don't die! Hold on—I'll save you!"
The Great Elder smiled weakly.
"Don't… waste your effort…"
"I've already reached… the end…"
"Seeing you… lead the clan like this… I'm satisfied…"
"Don't say that!"
Isamu poured more Chakra into the Mystical Palm Technique, desperately trying to heal him.
"It's useless…"
"I took… strong poison…"
"You can't save me…"
His voice trembled faintly.
"But… I was right…"
"You… are a worthy Clan Head…"
At that moment, Zhan arrived and collapsed beside him.
"Father! Father! Tell me—how do I save you?!"
The Great Elder's vision blurred.
"…Zhan… is that you…?"
"Yes! I'm here!"
"Good child…"
"You and Isamu… are both good children…"
"To see you grow… to fight bravely…"
"My life… was worth it…"
He struggled to speak his final words.
"Zhan… support Isamu well…"
"The future… belongs to you…"
"And Isamu…"
"Go… do what you believe is right…"
"Lead the Uchiha… to the peak…"
"…and don't forget…"
"…save those children…"
With that—
his eyes closed.
Forever.
"Great Elder!!"
"Father!!"
Zhan broke down, clutching his father.
And for Isamu—
it felt like something inside him shattered.
Slowly, he turned toward the three remaining children.
His voice softened.
"Don't be afraid… I'm here."
"No one will hurt you."
"Come here."
He walked toward them carefully.
Too carefully.
Afraid they might do something reckless.
The children looked at each other.
Then—
their fear vanished.
Replaced by resolve.
"Brother Clan Head… we were just scared before…"
"But we're not afraid of death."
"We can't bring shame to our parents… or the clan."
"We believe in you."
Before Isamu could react—
they bit down on the poison.
"NO—!!"
He lunged forward and caught them as they fell.
"Why… why would you do this…?"
"If you believed in me… you should've lived…"
"I said I could protect you…"
He wiped the blood from their lips—
his hands trembling.
Hashirama arrived moments later.
"Isamu—give them to me! I might still be able to save them!"
But Isamu didn't respond.
He slowly stood up—
holding the children in his arms.
All around him—
were the bodies of his clan.
Their voices echoed in his mind.
"Clan Head… we believe in you…"
"You will lead us to glory…"
"We're not afraid of death…"
"Brother Clan Head… we believe in you…"
The words repeated.
Over and over.
His vision blurred.
"Is this… the Ninja World…?"
"Is this… the place I once loved…?"
"No…"
"This is hell."
"This is hell."
"Great Elder… everyone…"
"Wait for me…"
"I'll create a world… where we can all live again…"
Standing among the corpses of his people—
Isamu began to break.
Completely.