Chapter 33 — Mikoto Awakens
Iruwa Yoshi—who should have already been dead—suddenly sprang up.
His fist tore through the air, chakra wrapped tightly around it, the momentum terrifying as his jet-black hair whipped wildly in the wind.
The punch shot straight toward Uchiha Mikoto.
His gaze was cold and ruthless, chilling to the bone. Lightning flickered around his fist as if a thunder spirit had descended upon the battlefield, surging with boundless fury and violent electric power.
The punch was too fast.
Like a flash of white light erupting from the deepest night, it tore across the sky and arrived in an instant.
"Watch out!"
Kinoshita Hikaru roared, his eyes splitting with fury.
Uchiha Mikoto's pupils shrank violently. Her mind went completely blank as she froze in place, her body refusing to move. She didn't even think to dodge—she simply stood there, stunned.
Is it… over?
The Uchiha… Father… Mother… Grandpa…
Everyone…
Hikaru-kun…
My name is Kinoshita Hikaru, the man who will become Hokage.
"I really want to see you become Hokage!"
A trace of regret surfaced in Uchiha Mikoto's heart, yet she had already accepted the fact that her life was about to end.
But in the next instant, her vision suddenly darkened.
A thin figure stepped in front of her, blocking her sight.
His arms spread wide, preparing to use his own body as a shield.
Mikoto forced her eyes open, desperately trying to see the person standing before her. The lightning was too blinding for her to see clearly—but that familiar back…
She would never mistake it.
At that moment, her voice broke into a cry filled with despair.
"Don't—!"
An overwhelming strength seemed to erupt from within Kinoshita Hikaru.
With his arms spread wide, he used his body to block the attack.
The fist carried monstrous power, thunder roaring and lightning flashing as it slammed brutally into Hikaru's body.
BOOM!
A deafening explosion erupted as the two collided. Violent shockwaves spread outward in every direction.
The terrifying strike was forcibly stopped by Hikaru's body.
"Wah—!"
Hikaru instantly spat out a large mouthful of blood. His eyes bulged, the whites showing as his consciousness rapidly faded into chaos.
Is there a kind of belief that makes us live for it… and die for it?
His legs were planted deep into the ground.
He didn't retreat even half a step.
Facing Iruwa Yoshi's attack, Hikaru had not hesitated for even a moment. His body moved instinctively, rushing forward to intercept it.
At this moment, the only thought remaining in Hikaru's fading consciousness was:
Don't retreat.
Absolutely do not retreat.
All the moments they had spent living and training together flashed through his mind.
These people had long since taken root in his heart.
They were the ones he cherished… the ones he would protect with his life.
Even if he were to die in the next moment—
He would never step back.
Iruwa Yoshi had not expected his full-power strike to be blocked by a mere brat.
A trace of admiration appeared in his heart.
What a powerful conviction. To stand firm without retreating even a single step… such belief deserves respect from the bottom of the heart.
"Brat… I acknowledge you."
But at this moment, he was no longer the jōnin who once loved to waste time talking after casting genjutsu.
Without the slightest hesitation, he clenched both fists and launched another barrage of attacks.
Bang! Bang! Bang!
His fists fell rapidly and relentlessly like a violent storm.
Every strike was meant to kill.
He intended to beat Kinoshita Hikaru to death.
Hikaru swayed like stubborn grass in a raging wind. Blood sprayed everywhere, and faint cracking sounds of breaking bones could be heard.
Drip.
Dark clouds gathered across the sky.
A single raindrop fell to the ground.
Then suddenly, a torrential downpour descended.
Blood mixed with rainwater as it soaked into the earth. Yet Kinoshita Hikaru did not retreat even half a step.
He stood there, unmoving.
Slowly and stiffly, he turned his head and saw that Mikoto was safe.
The corner of his mouth twitched upward.
"Run!!!"
…
"Hikaru!"
Seeing their close friend being brutally beaten to death before their eyes, everyone erupted in fury and shock.
One after another, they launched ninjutsu toward Iruwa Yoshi.
Namikaze Minato, who had been lying on the ground pretending to be dead, was even more enraged.
Gathering the last remaining chakra in his body, he formed a Rasengan in his hand.
"Bastard! Let him go!"
After losing his parents, Minato's world contained only two people left—an older brother and a best friend.
They were his only remaining family.
He charged forward like a madman.
Tactics, strategy, intelligence—
At this moment, he cared about none of it.
There was only one thought in his mind.
Save Kinoshita Hikaru.
Meanwhile, Uchiha Mikoto stood there, completely unaware of everything around her. She simply stared blankly at the scene before her as tears streamed endlessly down her face.
"These are… tears?"
"Am I crying?"
Mikoto-chan, don't be deceived.
Eyes cannot see the true essence of things. Only the heart can perceive everything clearly.
That is why the Sharingan is called the Eye of the Heart.
—Mom
She raised her hand, catching the falling tears.
Memories of the time she had spent with Kinoshita Hikaru surfaced in her mind.
"I want to eat meat!"
"Mikoto-chan's cooking is so delicious."
"Live together, die together. Never abandon each other."
"Because we're partners."
"My ninja way is to protect the people I cherish… and you are those people."
"Hikaru—!"
Uchiha Mikoto screamed, her voice hoarse with desperation.
Her eyes spun rapidly.
Chakra erupted violently as Yin Release chakra gathered into her pupils.
At last—It formed a single tomoe.
Under the intense emotional shock, the Sharingan awakened at this very moment.
Like someone possessed, Uchiha Mikoto leapt into the air and slashed forward with her blade.
"Adamantine Sealing Chains!"
As the princess of the Uzumaki Clan, her Sage lineage was pure, and she had long since awakened the Sage Body.
At this moment—
Kushina unleashed a secret Uzumaki technique.
Four chakra chains burst forth from her back, wrapping tightly around Kinoshita Hikaru and dragging him back to her side.
…
Meanwhile.
Hokage Tower.
With the plan proceeding smoothly, Hiruzen Sarutobi was in a very good mood. He summoned the ANBU.
"Go retrieve Iruwa Yoshi's body. Leave no trace behind."
"Yes!"
"Let me check the location of those kids first. Just follow the route afterward."
Hiruzen used the Telescope Technique, but the crystal ball showed no image.
A bad premonition suddenly rose in his heart.
The Telescope Technique worked by using the crystal ball to remotely monitor a specific individual. To do this, one had to grasp the unique chakra signature of the target.
He had planted a genjutsu within Iruwa Yoshi earlier, which meant his chakra remained inside Iruwa Yoshi's body.
With that connection, he could monitor the situation in real time—even after Iruwa Yoshi died.
But now the technique failed to activate.
There was only one possible explanation.
Iruwa Yoshi had somehow broken the genjutsu through a method Hiruzen didn't know.
At that realization, Hiruzen Sarutobi's expression changed drastically.
He couldn't even imagine the consequences if those children were all killed.
"Quick! The plan has changed. Hurry and support Kinoshita Hikaru. Absolutely do not let anything happen to them!"
"Yes!"
The ANBU captain responded immediately. As an elite jōnin, his speed was extraordinary—his figure vanished in a flash.
Hiruzen sat back down and took several deep puffs of his pipe, deeply irritated by this unexpected development.
He stood up and began pacing back and forth.
Although Sarutobi Jin, as an elite jōnin, should have no difficulty dealing with another jōnin, Hiruzen still felt uneasy in the end.
He left the Hokage Tower and headed toward the outskirts of Konoha.
Hiruzen had already realized something.
Since Iruwa Yoshi had broken the genjutsu, if he said something he wasn't supposed to…
Everything would fall apart.
Children might be pure-hearted, but they were also extremely sensitive. If suspicion took root among them, this entire scheme could end up backfiring spectacularly.
Just as Hiruzen stepped out of the Hokage Tower, informants from the major clans immediately noticed him and quickly reported the movement to their respective clan leaders.
When the intelligence reached the clan heads, each of them frowned deeply, pondering the implications.
Had something gone wrong?
Did Hiruzen Sarutobi lose control of the situation?
With that thought, the calm they had just regained vanished again.
Almost simultaneously, they stepped out of their homes and hurried toward the outskirts of the village.
By the time they reached the Konoha Gate, the clan leaders ran into one another.
They exchanged glances.
Every face turned grim.
Without another word, chakra erupted from their bodies as they dashed forward at full speed.
The Uchiha Clan Head was especially furious. His three-tomoe Sharingan spun rapidly.
If all the clans hadn't been involved in this matter, he might have suspected that Hiruzen Sarutobi was deliberately targeting the Uchiha.
This was the Uchiha Clan's opportunity.
He would never allow anyone to ruin it.
…
Meanwhile.
On the battlefield deep within the forest, everyone had been knocked to the ground.
A jōnin who had consumed a forbidden secret medicine and unleashed its power to the extreme was simply something these children couldn't resist.
All of them were severely injured and unconscious.
Iruwa Yoshi's eyes glowed with excitement and bloodlust as he slowly walked toward Hyuga Hiashi.
"Kid… I'll be taking those eyes of yours."
Even though he was about to die, as long as he could gouge out Hyuga Hiashi's Byakugan and send them back to the village using a summoned beast—
Then his sacrifice would have meaning.
Lord Raikage… this is the only thing your subordinate can still do.
Hyuga Hiashi was completely unable to resist.
His arm hung limp against his chest, already broken. He could only watch helplessly as Iruwa Yoshi approached.
Don't underestimate the resolve of the Hyuga Clan.
Even if I die, you won't obtain our clan's bloodline.
He quietly gathered strength, preparing to destroy his own eyes with his remaining left hand.
"Second Gear."
By using the hands and feet as pumps to forcefully accelerate blood circulation, the body's strength and speed increase dramatically.
This technique drastically boosts speed and power.
It was originally a move unique to rubber-bodied fighter. If an ordinary person attempted it, the immense blood pressure would cause their blood vessels to rupture, resulting in death.
When activated, the user's skin turns red and steam rises from the body—like someone injected with an extreme stimulant.
At this moment—
Kinoshita Hikaru appeared beside Hyuga Hiashi in an instant.
"Hiashi… leave the rest to me."
It was only a simple sentence. But it carried boundless trust.
Hiashi, who had been about to destroy his own eyes, slowly relaxed his hand.
"Yeah… I'll leave it to you."
After saying that, he collapsed backward onto the ground.
Kinoshita Hikaru raised his head, his gaze icy as he stared at Iruwa Yoshi.
"Anyone who hurts my companions…"
"I will never forgive you."
(╬‾᷅皿‾᷄╬)