On the battlefield, everyone stared in stunned silence at the boy who had just uttered such arrogant, world-shaking words.
But the one most shaken was the Vice-Commander of Root, Ryoma Aburame.
Topple the Five Great Nations. Unify the shinobi world.
This vision made the elder Ryoma instinctively recall a terrifying existence. Though time had passed and the history books had turned their pages, causing many to forget the horror of that "Asura," Ryoma—who had spent his life tilling the soil of the shinobi world's darkest corners—knew exactly what true darkness looked like.
The same vision, a similar hairstyle, the unerasable obsession burning in those Sharingan eyes, and above all... that utterly nonsensical, logic-defying power.
Even in its infancy, this was looking like the second coming of—
The Asura of the Shinobi World!
Madara Uchiha!
However, Ryoma didn't feel the same spine-chilling dread he got from reading the bloody archives of the original Asura. On the contrary, standing behind this boy gave him an indescribable sense of security.
They were Root ninjas—dark creatures who would discard everything for a mission. Yet, even in this suffocating darkness, a boy had suddenly stood before them and said:
'I'll buy you a chance to escape!'
He had even handed over a priceless "Artifact," a treasure of legendary proportions... the Kusanagi Sword!
Ryoma swallowed hard. For some reason, his vision blurred for a moment. He gripped the Kusanagi tightly, his teeth gritted as his entire body trembled.
Behind him, the other Root ninjas wore the same expression. They had come to save this boy. Why? Why had the situation flipped? Why was this disciple of the Sannin, a youth with a limitless future, standing so resollessly in front of them—beings whose hands were stained with filth and rot?
Why did this silhouette feel so warm, like the brilliant morning sun of early spring? Just standing behind him felt like their sin-laden souls were being washed clean.
In contrast to the Root ninjas, Mei Terumi looked at Ren with deep worry. An ominous premonition clawed at her heart—a feeling that she was about to lose this boy today.
Ren, meanwhile, focused all his attention on Yagura Karatachi, keeping Mangetsu Hozuki in his peripheral vision. He knew that while Yagura had triggered this flood, he wasn't the true culprit. Yagura bore some responsibility for hiding in Yunokage City, which drew the Hunter-nin there, but the real murderers were the Hunter-nin and the Third Mizukage behind them.
The ones who treated human life like grass—those were the ones who truly pissed him off. And they were his targets.
Ren was waiting, suppressing his rage, controlling his emotions. He was reaching his limit! Everything he had done today—the combat, the massive scale of the spectacle—was to stall for time and draw all eyes to him, waiting for those people to show up!
He had one last killing move.
This flooded city beneath his feet. The dark emotions of every soul within it! Their injustice, their anger, their sorrow, their wails, their despair!
Their justice! Ren would be its executioner!
The screams of an entire city would be transformed into a terrifying amount of chakra that even the Little Zero-Tails couldn't handle. The price would be the Zero-Tails exploding, and his own body being torn apart.
But that moment of brilliance would grant these murderers a pain they would never forget for the rest of their lives!
After a brief moment of shock, Yagura Karatachi shook his head. A trace of wariness rose in his eyes. The words sounded childish—toppling the Five Great Nations sounded like a brat's boast—but it gave him an uneasy feeling, like insects crawling up his spine.
Yagura took a deep breath. He prepared to strike, intending to wipe this kid out once and for all.
However, just then, a Mist ninja with a four-water-streak forehead protector and pale blue tied-back hair snapped out of his daze and rushed forward, shouting:
"Lord Yagura!"
"Hm?" Yagura turned, surprised. He recognized the young man; it was Ao, a subordinate from the Jonin squad. He was a skilled sensor, a bit nostalgic and obsessed with stoicism, but an incredibly reliable comrade.
"Please, look at this!" Ao said urgently, handing Yagura a scroll.
Yagura frowned. Couldn't this wait until I've finished the kid? But being good-natured, he didn't complain. He stood on his tiptoes to take the scroll and rolled it open.
With just one look, Yagura's eyes widened.
"This... how is this possible?!" He looked at Ao in disbelief. "Ao, are you sure this is real?"
Ao nodded fervently, looking like an ant on a hot griddle. "Lord Yagura, what should we do?! We must act immediately! The war... won't wait."
Yagura took a deep breath, his gaze flickering over Ren Uchiha. He struggled internally. If he let this kid go now, the cost of dealing with him in the future would be astronomical. But what was happening at the Green Ridge Reef...
Yagura made a swift decision. He looked at Mei Terumi and Mangetsu Hozuki, no longer caring about the power of the clans behind them.
"You two! There is a limit to your selfishness!" he barked. "I am saying this for the last time! Now, follow me to the Mist Main Island immediately!"
Mangetsu and Mei were stunned. Before they could react, Yagura tossed the scroll to Mangetsu and walked up to Mei. Standing at barely five feet tall, he stared at her expressionlessly like a tiny, stern adult.
Mei: (l|l☉_☉)
Mei blinked, cold sweat dripping down her back. Her act of helping Ren could technically be classified as treason, though Yagura himself was currently in a state of being both a rebel and a non-rebel.
Yagura stared at her for a long time before finally sighing. "Little Princess, the game of playing house is over. I need your help to contact Elder Genji."
"Go say goodbye to your little boyfriend," Yagura added. "The next time we meet, you truly will be enemies."
Ren sensed the shift in atmosphere. Why had the expressions across from him changed? It was as if they had been instantly distracted by something far more important.
Wait, what was on that scroll? They don't want to kill me anymore? And where the hell are the Hunter-nin I've been waiting for? With this much noise, even a marathon runner should have arrived by now!
A realization hit him. Something had gone wrong. Something had interrupted his "suicide mission" cast! He locked his gaze onto the scroll in Mangetsu's hand.
Behind him, Ryoma Aburame saw Ao's arrival and finally breathed a long sigh of relief. A mysterious "everything-is-under-control" smile appeared on his face.
Seeing Ren's "I-question-my-life-choices" expression, Ryoma felt a rare urge to be playful. He moved silently—ghost-like—right up to Ren's ear.
"Hey, junior," Ryoma whispered. "Want to know what's written on that scroll?"
Ren jumped, spinning around. How does this guy walk without making a single sound?! He rolled his eyes at Ryoma.
"Duh. It's obviously a top-secret classified document. Who wouldn't want to know? Don't tell me you know what's in it?"
Ryoma gave a shadowy, eerie smile—like a bug crawling out of hell. He reached into his cloak, pulled out an identical scroll, and slapped it into Ren's hand.
He adjusted his sunglasses with a flick of his finger and spoke with agonizing coolness:
"Of course I know."
"As for why..."
"It's because I was the one who gave it to them."