In no time, Gento caught up to the frantically fleeing Mabui.
She was running in the middle of the formation, the front of her body bouncing continuously with her movements.
Gento landed directly in front of her, causing Mabui's steps to halt abruptly.
She knew very well how powerful Gento was.
So she understood that there was no way she could escape.
Gento gave her no time to react.
The shadow beneath his feet stretched outward like a living creature, transforming into two pitch-black tentacles that rapidly wrapped toward Mabui.
Mabui tried to dodge, but the speed of the shadow tentacles was astonishing.
The first tentacle wrapped around her left ankle, and the second immediately followed, coiling around her right ankle.
The shadow tentacles crawled upward along her calves, knees, and thighs.
Then they lifted her entire body off the ground.
Mabui's body was suspended in midair as the two shadow tentacles spread apart.
They fixed her into an extremely humiliating position.
Mabui's body was forced into a slight backward arch.
Surprisingly, even in this situation, she neither screamed nor cursed angrily.
She merely bit her lip and stared at Gento.
Gento looked over the dark-skinned beauty with great interest.
"You're the Raikage's secretary, Mabui?"
Before she could answer, Gento had already condensed a crimson lightning-fire bullet and hurled it toward a Hidden Cloud shinobi who was frantically fleeing nearby.
That shinobi didn't even have time to scream before the lightning-fire bullet pierced through his chest.
Flames and lightning intertwined, blasting a charred hole through his body as the corpse collapsed heavily to the ground.
Without even glancing at the corpse, Gento stared into Mabui's eyes and said:
"Submit, or die!"
"I will submit!"
To Gento's surprise, Mabui barely hesitated.
Gento raised a brow, a trace of confusion flashing through his eyes.
Mabui then took the initiative to explain:
"Hidden Cloud shinobi have always respected strength above all else."
"Lord Raikage is the strongest person in the Hidden Cloud Village."
"Now that you have defeated Lord Raikage, it proves that your strength is even greater."
"I am willing to submit to you."
"I have confidence in my own abilities."
"If you are willing, I can leave the Hidden Cloud and remain in Hidden Gento Village as your secretary."
"You should already understand my abilities."
Hearing this, Gento was overjoyed.
This woman was not only beautiful, but also the Hidden Cloud's finest intelligence analyst and tactical advisor.
Heavenly Transfer Technique, intelligence processing, logistical coordination...
She was proficient in all of them.
Unlike Pakura, this secretary was genuinely capable!
He immediately agreed to Mabui's request. The shadow tentacles slowly loosened and lowered her from the air.
When Mabui's feet touched the ground, she stumbled before quickly regaining her balance.
With remarkable self-awareness, she immediately stepped into the role of secretary and stood beside Gento.
Gento reached out and unceremoniously wrapped an arm around her waist.
Mabui's body trembled.
Though she did not avoid him. She merely took a deep breath and silently endured it.
With Mabui in his arms, Gento walked over to the Raikage, who was pinned to the ground by the Truthseeker Orbs.
The Raikage's limbs had been pierced through by the black spikes, rendering his entire body immobile.
When he saw Gento approaching while holding his secretary, his eyes nearly burst with fury.
"Mabui! How could you!"
The Raikage's voice was filled with rage.
Standing beside Gento, Mabui looked at him expressionlessly and said nothing.
There was no guilt or reluctance in her eyes.
Only complete acceptance of reality.
Gento looked down at the Raikage on the ground.
Seeing the man's powerless fury, a satisfied smile rose at the corner of his lips.
The once-arrogant Fourth Raikage could now only lie on the ground like a dead dog, unable even to protect his own secretary.
That feeling truly brought pleasure to both body and mind.
"Lord Raikage, your secretary belongs to me now."
As he spoke, Gento deliberately squeezed Mabui's body several times.
"Don't worry. I'll take very good care of her."
The Raikage could only let out a furious roar of helplessness:
"Gento Uchiha! You've gone too far!"
Gento no longer paid him any attention. Holding Mabui by the waist, he turned and walked away.
The Uchiha shinobi behind them would naturally take care of sealing the Raikage.
...
On the battlefield, the fighting quickly approached its conclusion.
Without the Raikage and Killer B, the Hidden Cloud shinobi collapsed like a crumbling mountain.
Some Hidden Cloud shinobi, driven into desperation, had their fighting spirit ignited and turned back to make a final stand.
But under the suppression of experts like Shisui and Itachi, these people were all easily dealt with.
Large numbers of Hidden Cloud shinobi were slaughtered, their blood dyeing the earth red.
More Hidden Cloud shinobi chose to surrender instead, throwing down their weapons and kneeling to beg for mercy.
The Uchiha Anbu gathered them together under guard, using sealing formulas to lock away their chakra.
After the battle, however, there was not much loot to be found.
Gento frowned and walked into the tent where the Raikage was being held, directly asking:
"Raikage, where have all the spoils you've plundered from the Land of Fire over the years been hidden?"
The Raikage snorted coldly, turned his head away, and said nothing.
At the side, Mabui took the initiative to speak:
"Lord Gento, all the spoils plundered from the Land of Fire over the years were sealed into scrolls by me and then transported back to the Hidden Cloud Village using the Heavenly Transfer Technique."
"Lord Raikage's orders were to use those supplies to nurture the next generation of shinobi."
Hearing this, Gento became quite dissatisfied.
After all that effort, he had ended up gaining nothing?
His gaze fell upon the Raikage as he sank into thought.
Now that the A-B brothers had been captured, directly killing them would be too wasteful.
Feeding them to the Divine Tree would provide some nourishment, but the return was far too low.
Releasing them in exchange for ransom?
That didn't seem quite right either.
Suddenly, a thought flashed through Gento's mind.
He called Shisui over.
After so many years, Shisui's Kotoamatsukami had long since finished cooling down.
He immediately ordered Shisui:
"Use Kotoamatsukami on the Raikage. Alter his perception so that he maintains his former behavior and personality, but obeys my commands unconditionally. I want him to become my absolute puppet!"
Shisui did not hesitate and walked over to the Raikage.
His Mangekyo Sharingan activated, blood tears flowing from his left eye.
"Kotoamatsukami!"
The Raikage's eyes instantly became vacant, his entire body standing motionless like a puppet.
Shisui's low voice echoed through his mind:
"You will forever remain loyal to Lord Gento Uchiha and obey all of his commands unconditionally, without the slightest resistance."
"Aside from that, all your actions, personality, and habits will remain unchanged."
A moment later, clarity returned to the Raikage's eyes.
He blinked, looked toward Gento, then knelt on one knee and respectfully bowed.
"Lord Gento."
Gento looked at him, a smile rising on his lips.
The Raikage, who had once wanted nothing more than to tear him to pieces, was now treating him with complete respect.
And the man himself felt that there was absolutely nothing wrong with it.
"Rise."
Gento raised a hand.
"Tell me, who is managing the Hidden Cloud Village right now?"
The Raikage stood up and answered honestly:
"Darui."
"Before I departed for war, I handed the village's authority over to him."
Gento nodded and said to Shisui:
"Contact the Hidden Cloud Village and tell them to prepare ransom in exchange for the Raikage and Killer B."
"At the same time, have the Raikage cooperate. Once he returns to the Hidden Cloud Village, he is to keep everything exactly as before and await my instructions."
Shisui nodded.
"Understood."
Gento then looked toward the Raikage.
"Did you hear everything clearly?"
The Raikage answered respectfully:
"I heard clearly. Your subordinate will fully cooperate."
Satisfied, Gento nodded. He then walked out of the tent and looked up toward Killer B, who was still sealed within the Chibaku Tensei in the sky.
Raising his hand, he abruptly released the gravitational force of Chibaku Tensei.
The gigantic rocky sphere began collapsing apart, countless stones raining down from the sky and crashing into the ground with thunderous booms.
Killer B broke free from the rubble and crashed to the ground in a miserable state.
He raised his head and saw Gento standing not far away, fury flashing through his eyes.
"Gento Uchiha! Go to hell!"
Just as he was about to charge forward, the Raikage raised a hand to stop him.
"B, stop!"
Killer B froze.
"Big Brother? This guy did this to us, and you..."
"I said stop."
The Raikage's voice turned cold, carrying unquestionable authority.
Killer B opened his mouth, but in the end, he still held himself back.
He suspiciously looked at the Raikage, then at Gento, feeling that something was wrong but unable to figure out what.
Gento no longer paid attention to them and instead turned toward Itachi.
"Itachi, take the Anbu and transport all the corpses from this battlefield to Hozuki Castle to feed the Divine Tree."
Itachi nodded.
"What about the prisoners?"
Gento had already made his decision.
"Feed them too!"
"Understood!"
Unlike corpses, living shinobi bound by the Divine Tree's roots would not die immediately.
For a period of time, they would remain alive while continuously having their life energy absorbed by the Divine Tree, providing it with the highest-quality nourishment.
These prisoners, together with the corpses of the fallen, would be enough to greatly accelerate the Divine Tree's growth.
Itachi led the Anbu into action, cleaning the battlefield and escorting the prisoners away.
Those matters would still require some time to deal with, and they could simply be left to the shinobi under them.
Gento did not remain any longer.
He decided to return first to Hidden Gento Village and thoroughly get to know his newly acquired female secretary.
He stretched out a hand and wrapped it around Mabui's waist.
"Flying Thunder God!"
Space twisted, and the two figures vanished from the battlefield.
In the next instant, Gento appeared inside a bedroom within the Hidden Gento Village palace.
He began looking at Mabui's curvaceous and seductive figure.
It was finally time to enjoy the rewards of victory from this great battle.
---
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