Chapter 462: Backup Plans Everywhere
Land of Water, the first place where the fighting began, was also the first to experience a sudden change.
The chaos began when a figure in a green jumpsuit charged back and forth through Kiri's Third Unit, letting out strange battle cries.
Seeing this thick-eyebrowed Konoha ninja, countless Kiri ninja recalled an unbearable, humiliating memory.
The first generation of the Seven Ninja Swordsmen had ambushed Konoha, only to be nearly annihilated by a single Konoha Genin. Four of them died, one defected on the spot, and only Suikazan Fuguki and Kurosuki Raiga, their fighting spirit shattered, managed to escape back to the village.
Later, intelligence confirmed that the ninja who set that record was named Might Duy. He couldn't use ninjutsu, only taijutsu. He was a laughingstock in Konoha, known for training in that green jumpsuit.
Legend had it... that Might Duy had a son, who trained just like him.
So when Might Guy flamboyantly announced his title as "Konoha's Blue Beast, Might Guy," the morale of the Kiri army almost collapsed.
Their own commander (Mangetsu Hōzuki) was a new Swordsman wielding the Longsword Nuibari. Their Mizukage (Kisame) was a new Swordsman wielding the Great Sword Samehada.
How could they fight? Even if this Might Guy wasn't as strong as his father, were they somehow better than the original Seven Swordsmen they were replacing?
Fortunately, at this moment, Shinya Matsutani stepped forward, engaging Might Guy with his elite jonin strength. Under Shinya's guidance, Might Guy was led to the edge of the battlefield.
The situation escalated when Might Guy opened the Eight Inner Gates. Kakashi, knowing Guy's technique couldn't last long, proactively sought out Mangetsu Hōzuki, who was wielding Nuibari. The two of them also tacitly moved to the edge of the battlefield to "play."
As Ishiro's disciple, Shinya knew the characteristics of the Eight Inner Gates Formation very well. The moment Guy activated it, Shinya immediately chose to enter Sage Mode.
Meanwhile, not far away, Mei Terumī also ran into trouble.
As she was fighting Ryosuke, someone ambushed her from the flank.
It was Ebizō.
Ebizō hadn't been seen in public since he was severely wounded in the Third Great War. Most villages assumed he was dead. Originally, Ebizō was retired; in the original timeline, he and his sister Chiyo lived peacefully until Naruto grew up.
But this world was different. Chiyo was dead. When Rasa's orders came down, Ebizō had no standing to refuse. Furthermore, with Chiyo gone, his life had lost much of its meaning.
Ebizō had come here prepared to die.
When he charged out of the shadows with no regard for his own life, Mei Terumī was nearly caught.
Luckily, Takuhiro Uchiyama and Akio Wada intercepted Ebizō's attack. Himeki Suda also wanted to move, but Takuhiro stopped her with a look. The Kiri army wasn't at its breaking point yet; Himeki could still conserve her strength.
But the situation changed again, this time from the First Unit's battlefield against Kumo.
The fight between the Fourth Raikage and Kisame was intense, but it wouldn't be decided quickly. Kisame was on the defensive from the start, but his resilience was incredible. The Raikage couldn't finish him easily.
The variable came from the main armies. A Kumo elite jonin suddenly used the Summoning Technique.
A giant turtle appeared in the midst of the Kumo army.
This wasn't the Turtle Island, but it was likely one of its children.
In a battle between regular ninja, a single giant summon is enough to change the tide. Kiri's First Unit had to fight while retreating. Thankfully, the turtle was slow, so they didn't suffer immediate, heavy losses. But if this continued, a rout was inevitable.
Fortunately, Kiri held on until the tables turned.
Himeki Suda, having received the news, rushed over under the protection of an Iwa Anbu squad. She bit her thumb and performed her own Summoning Technique.
She summoned the Giant Panda.
That's right. The Giant Panda that had been living in Iwagakure for years had finally agreed to sign a summoning contract with Himeki Suda. The price Iwagakure paid was: helping the panda train in senjutsu.
It was precisely because Himeki had this trump card that she had been temporarily assigned to the Kiri front as Iwa's hidden ace.
Kirigakure was unlucky. Konoha, Suna, and Kumo had all seen them as the breakthrough point. All three had arranged a backup plan: Might Guy, Ebizō, and the giant turtle were all forces capable of changing the battlefield.
Fortunately, Iwagakure had reinforced Kirigakure. The ninja Iwa sent weren't numerous or famous, but they successfully blocked all three of the enemy's backup plans.
With Iwa's intervention, Kiri managed to stabilize the front lines. The allied forces' strategy of a quick victory had failed. Both sides were dragged into a war of attrition that neither of them wanted.
Konoha, Suna, and Kumo were all bogged down, yet each was hoping their allies would be the ones to break the stalemate. If they knew that their allies' trump cards had also been neutralized, they might have chosen to retreat.
But they didn't know. This was the Land of Water, after all. Their communication lines were not as smooth as Kiri's.
And so, the Land of Water front descended into a grueling stalemate.
Konoha Village. Uchiha Clan Grounds.
Everywhere Shisui Uchiha went among his clansmen, he received only indifference, exclusion, and sometimes even hatred.
Only little Itachi, his "little brother," could understand him. Only Itachi had also inherited the Will of Fire. Only Itachi understood how much Shisui had sacrificed to mediate the relationship between the clan and the village.
As expected, after the waves of angry clansmen left, Itachi appeared.
The two like-minded brothers spoke frankly for a long time, reaffirming their shared beliefs before Itachi finally left.
But Shisui was now a traitor to the entire Uchiha clan, a public enemy.
Naturally, some didn't want Itachi to be corrupted by him.
So when Itachi left Shisui's house and was walking home, some "well-meaning" Uchiha members stopped him to offer advice.
"Itachi, stay away from that man. He's a traitor to our clan."
"That's right. Shisui is unworthy of the Uchiha name."
"Itachi, you're a genius of our clan too. When you grow up, you must defeat Shisui."
"Itachi, I heard you joined Root. You should quit immediately."
"Right, Root is nothing compared to our Police Force. The Police Force is the pride of the Uchiha."
"Yeah, Root was ready to move against us last time!"
"Itachi, you're still young. You should listen to the clan elders. Don't be brainwashed by the village leadership like Shisui."
"The village leadership is no good, not a single one. Don't let them fool you."
Itachi hadn't wanted to bother with these ordinary clansmen.
Grandpa Third (Hiruzen) was right. These people are fated to never become Kage. Some won't even make Jonin. Their weakness and mediocrity limit their vision!
Only geniuses like Shisui and I can transcend the limits of the clan, understand the Will of Fire, and see the problem from the village's perspective.
The village isn't just the Uchiha's village. Everyone in the village must earn their position through their own efforts.
Only our Uchiha clan gets to hold positions in the Police Force just by being born. The village has been benevolent to us, yet these ungrateful clansmen still shout about rebellion.
The village leadership knows the Uchiha want to rebel, yet they haven't exterminated us. They still hope to change the Uchiha through Shisui and me. The village is trying to maintain peace, to avoid a civil war. But my clansmen? They cause trouble every day.
Ignore them. Don't listen to what they say! Itachi told himself repeatedly.
"Itachi, you have to be a role model for Sasuke! Don't let Sasuke be ashamed of you!"
A voice suddenly reached his ears.
Sasuke? My dear little brother? Are they going to pollute my brother with their narrow-minded ideas?
Suddenly, Itachi, who had been walking quickly toward home with a stoic expression, stopped.
He suddenly activated his Sharingan—three tomoe in both eyes!
"Woah, Itachi, you've awakened the three-tomoe? That's great! You really are a genius! You'll definitely surpass Shisui! In the future, you must cleanse the clan of its traitors!" one of the clueless clansmen babbled on.
Thud, thud, thud!
Itachi couldn't hold back any longer. With several quick strikes, he sent the three closest, completely unguarded clansmen flying.
Itachi shouted angrily: "The Uchiha clan, the Uchiha clan! That's all you know!"
"You blind fools, obsessed with so-called 'clan honor'! You don't understand what a family is, or what a village is!"
"You have no idea what Shisui has sacrificed for the relationship between the clan and the village!"
"It's precisely because of arrogant people like you, who only see the clan and the village as separate, that the clan has been isolated by the entire village!"
"And yet you still have the nerve to talk about 'clan honor'! Do we deserve it? Are you truly determined to force the clan down a dead end? Do you really want to force the village to use violence against us?"
After shouting himself hoarse, Itachi finally felt a sense of relief.
Then, while everyone was still in a state of shock, Itachi ran off without looking back.
After he left, a strange silence fell over the street.
They weren't angry at Itachi; he was just a child, deceived by the village elders.
They were angry at Shisui Uchiha. He had not only fallen himself but was now corrupting the children. They were angry at the village leadership, who specialized in targeting their geniuses.
Suddenly, a voice rang out: "Why? Why has another of our clan's geniuses been brainwashed by the village elders?"
"The village leadership wants us Uchiha to kill each other so they can reap the rewards!"
"We can't let the village leadership keep doing whatever they want!"
"Right! We must take action, or sooner or later the village will tear our clan apart!"
"Rebel! While the village is weak, let's seize power!"
"Yes, now is the perfect opportunity! Even if that traitor Shisui betrays the clan, the village only has Tsunade left!"
"Right! We have Lord Fugaku and Izumi! And we still have... Izanagi."
Hearing the word "Izanagi," the street went silent for a beat, and then many more voices chimed in: "That's right. We still have Izanagi."
Gradually, the voices unified. More and more Uchiha clan members joined the frenzy.
This agitation spread throughout the Uchiha grounds, finally alerting Shisui Uchiha and Fugaku Uchiha.
The two of them arrived on the street, one after the other, and took in the scene.
Fugaku Uchiha frowned, exasperated by his clan's periodic descent into madness.
Shisui Uchiha, however, looked sorrowful. He felt his clansmen's ideology was becoming more and more extreme.
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