"Hado #31: Azure Fireball Crash."
Ninjutsu—an art Kawaki Aoba hadn't used in a long time. Ever since awakening the Tenseigan and completing the transformation of his Saiyan bloodline, his means of destruction had evolved into something far beyond traditional shinobi methods. Ninjutsu, once his bread and butter, now felt primitive—outdated.
But with his rising power, even outdated tools could still cause unimaginable devastation.
Case in point: a low-level fire-style ninjutsu, cast silently, without incantation—Hado #31: Azure Fireball Crash. A move so simple, yet, in his hands, cataclysmic.
Waves of azure flame tore across the battlefield, igniting the earth itself. Explosions rang out like the roar of dragons. Entire segments of the terrain turned into a living purgatory. Flames devoured everything. Bodies incinerated before they could react. A moment ago, it was a squad of hardened mercenaries—now, just ashes caught in the updraft.
Even Kakuzu, the infamously immortal bounty hunter of the black market, known for harboring five hearts and escaping countless assassination attempts, could not withstand the blast.
So what if he had five lives?
He couldn't withstand even one of Aoba's attacks.
As for retreating? That was just wishful thinking.
Kawaki Aoba had once said: "If you can run faster than my attack, I'll let you go."
And no one ever ran fast enough.
The infamous Kakuzu died without ceremony, and the rest—well, Aoba didn't even bother to learn their names. Even if a few were Jōnin-ranked shinobi—what did it matter? To Aoba, they were insects beneath a falling meteor.
With those nuisances dealt with, Kawaki Aoba slowly turned his gaze across the battlefield.
Opposite him stood a battalion of Cloud shinobi—elite Kumo-nin who moments ago had been prepared to fight to the death.
But now?
They stood paralyzed.
The moment had silenced their courage. They had expected a strong opponent. But this? This was beyond comprehension.
Gulp.
The Cloud commander swallowed audibly, and the rest followed suit. Their eyes trembled as they stared at Aoba—not as a man, but as a demon.
A God of Shinobi—that's what they saw now.
Even the figure hiding in the shadows, who had been quietly preparing his backup plan, was shaken. He bit his finger hastily and slammed his palm down.
Summoning Technique!
A puff of smoke revealed a trembling ninja hound—one previously captured, but now freed in a last-ditch attempt.
The man exhaled in relief.
That was close.
Too close.
If Aoba had aimed even a degree more toward their flank, the summoning wouldn't have completed in time. He would've been reduced to ash before finishing the hand seals.
Little did he know, Kawaki Aoba had seen it all. If Aoba had chosen to launch a wide-area blast instead of a focused strike, none of them would have survived.
But he didn't—because now, a new phase was beginning.
Aoba raised his hand again. Just like before.
"Next," he said coldly, "it's your turn. Are you ready to greet death?"
The Cloud shinobi braced for annihilation.
They had already transmitted intel back to Kumo. Their value was gone.
'It's over. I'm going to die. I'm really going to die.'
The commander's pupils dilated. He had always expected death on the battlefield—but to die without resistance? It was too pitiful.
No. He had to stall. Delay Aoba, give his comrades time, maybe lure the monster into curiosity.
He had to try.
"Wait!" he shouted. "I still have value! I can tell you Takumi Village's greatest secret—something tied to resurrection. They're working on world domination! They've developed ninja tools unlike anything you've seen. If Konoha obtains them, its power will multiply!"
It came out in a desperate flood, but the words hit their mark.
Aoba stopped, his palm still raised. He stared at the trembling commander.
Had he taken the bait?
Would the hidden truth of Takumi Village interest a being like Aoba?
Of course not.
Aoba, well-read in the history of the world, already knew of the Takumi Village—an obscure group from the Land of Rivers. Their weapons could indeed grant power, and yes, they once resurrected a long-dead shinobi using forbidden tools.
But to Aoba, their creations were child's play. Nothing compared to the Divine Craft of his own design. Even their resurrection techniques couldn't bring back someone on his level.
No—the reason he stopped wasn't because he was intrigued. It was because he wanted to play their game against them. He would let them delay themselves.
But then, something unexpected happened.
One of the Cloud shinobi suddenly lunged—and pierced the commander through the chest.
"You damn coward," the attacker growled. "How dare you betray the village."
"Danzo: You wouldn't want that either..." he muttered cryptically before collapsing.
It became clear that most of the squad hadn't been told the full mission. To them, they were simply allies of Takumi Village—cooperating against Konoha. The idea that their own leader would defect, strengthening their enemy, was unforgivable.
For them, betrayal meant death.
So they acted.
The commander died, eyes wide with disbelief. Misunderstood. Wronged. But in the end, his death achieved its goal: he had bought more time.
"What are you waiting for?!" the attacking ninja roared. "Let's kill this traitor together! Even if we die, it's for the village!"
Some shinobi hesitated. Others looked confused.
But a few moved.
A spark of unity flickered, misguided though it was.
In their final moments, they would fight—not against Kawaki Aoba—but each other.
Aoba just watched.
Smiling.
On the other hand, Kawaki Aoba simply crossed his arms, observing the unexpected drama with great interest.
Instead of getting involved with these fools, wouldn't it be more entertaining to watch them tear each other apart?
Meanwhile, the Allied Shinobi Forces had begun executing their plans.
The first to be implemented was Danzo Shimura's contingency strategy. Although many within the Alliance harbored intense hatred for Danzo—some even wishing he could die a second time—his plan offered the fewest casualties, making it a practical choice.
However, they couldn't trust Danzo to act alone.
Thus, elite operatives from the Five Great Shinobi Nations were sent to accompany and monitor Danzo as he infiltrated Konohagakure.
"Though I'm supposed to be dead, many Root operatives still remain loyal to me," Danzo said smugly as he regrouped with several former Root members hidden within the village.
The Alliance ninja exchanged glances until one stepped forward and asked, "What's the next move? Do we head straight for the Nine-Tails' jinchūriki?"
Danzo shot the ninja a cold glare. If it weren't for the delicacy of their mission, he would have had him executed on the spot.
Before he could respond, a former Root member intervened. "The jinchūriki is constantly under watch. A direct move would provoke an immediate and powerful reaction from the village. We must first sow chaos."
He continued, "There's a detailed plan. The village prison holds several dangerous criminals—one of them is Uchiha Obito. We have someone embedded in the lab who secretly swapped his Mangekyō Sharingan with an ordinary three-tomoe Sharingan."
He pulled out a test tube containing a Sharingan. "If we return this to him, considering his hatred for Konoha, he might cause the kind of disruption we need."
Although this wasn't Danzo's idea, he approved the plan in the end. Despite his reluctance to part with such a powerful dōjutsu, he couldn't wield it himself in his current state—and the bigger objective, the Ten-Tails, demanded sacrifices.
A ninja beside him voiced concern. "Obito's Mangekyō grants space-time abilities. But isn't Konoha protected by a barrier that blocks such techniques?"
Another Root member replied, "Correct. The village barrier suppresses space-time ninjutsu. However, after Root was disbanded, many of us were reassigned to manage Konoha's defenses. Our operatives can briefly disable the barrier's space-time suppression without dismantling the whole thing."
The questioning ninja narrowed his eyes. "If you can do that, why not just shut down the barrier entirely?"
The Root ninja answered coldly, "Because the Fourth Hokage, Minato Namikaze, was also a master of space-time ninjutsu. The suppression layer is only a component of the entire barrier system. Disabling the full defense would require coordination among several specialized squads. Our agents have infiltrated, but not gained complete control."
"Hmph." Danzo snorted. "Enough of this probing. My patience is not infinite."
The shinobi backed down, silenced by Danzo's presence.
Konoha's prison was no ordinary facility. Only high-value threats were kept here—dangerous ninja who still held strategic worth. Its defenses were formidable, but with inside help, the infiltration team had detailed maps, patrol rotations, and more.
One by one, the prison guards were eliminated in well-coordinated, lethal ambushes.
Even if this were just theater, blood had to be spilled to make it convincing. A mission this complex could not proceed without sacrifice.
As the last guard fell, a strange phenomenon occurred. Their souls, instead of vanishing to the Pure Land, hovered in place—suspended by an unknown energy.
Unless someone had mastered the Spirit Transformation Technique, even skilled sensory types would fail to detect these spirits.
"When you enter," Danzo warned, "control the inmates. If anyone resists, eliminate them. There's a pair of twins in there—strong, but unstable. Feed them first. That usually calms them down. They'll stir up plenty of chaos when we release them."
Danzo stepped forward, holding the test tube containing Obito's Mangekyō Sharingan. He entered the deepest chamber where Uchiha Obito was held.
"Obito," Danzo said sharply, "do you want your power back? Do you want revenge against Konoha?"
Obito sat in silence, as if Danzo didn't exist.
Danzo narrowed his eyes, then spoke again, "I brought you your Mangekyō Sharingan. Help me bring chaos to the village—and I'll return it to you."
This time, Obito raised his head. Though his vision was gone and his lips stayed shut, the change in his expression was unmistakable.
Danzo smiled faintly. "Restrain him. I need to apply seals."
Even Danzo knew Obito could not be controlled by words alone. Just like Madara Uchiha once placed safeguards on Obito, Danzo now planned to mark him with sealing techniques—cruder, but effective.
Obito didn't resist. He couldn't. He was too weakened to fight back.
Once Danzo was finished, a medic-nin carefully restored the Mangekyō Sharingan into Obito's eye socket.
Danzo had briefly considered giving the eye to another subordinate—but even if they were compatible, the Mangekyō's true power could never be unlocked by anyone but its original bearer.
In the end, entrusting it to Obito was a necessary evil.
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