Chapter 185: The Battle Begins
The standoff was shattered by the arrival of more Konoha shinobi. Leading them was a figure Ren knew all too well—Hatake Kakashi. The Copy Ninja's single visible eye widened almost imperceptibly as he took in the scene: the colossal form of the Nine-Tails, and the young man standing calmly atop its head.
"Uchiha Ren," Kakashi stated, his voice carefully neutral, though a storm of questions raged behind his mask.
"Kakashi," Ren replied, his tone deceptively light, as if they were meeting by chance on a street corner. "It's been a long time."
But Kakashi's mind was racing. The chakra... it's unmistakably the Nine-Tails. But how? Naruto is the Jinchuriki! Has something happened to him? And Ren... the reports from Kumogakure were true. He commands this power. But the level of control... it's absolute.
"Uchiha Ren," Kakashi called out, his voice hardening. "What is your purpose here? And what have you done with the Nine-Tails?"
A cold, mocking smile played on Ren's lips. "I told you I would return to Konoha. Not in chains, but for vengeance. Today, I am simply keeping my word. As for the Nine-Tails... why don't you ask it yourself?"
On cue, the beast beneath him roared, a sound of pure malice. It raised a massive front paw, the shadow it cast engulfing Kakashi and the shinobi around him. The air pressure alone was suffocating.
Kakashi's reflexes were legendary for a reason. The moment the paw began its descent, he was already a blur of motion, leaping sideways with explosive speed. The other shinobi scattered in a panic.
*BOOM!*
The ground where Kakashi had been standing ceased to exist, replaced by a crater ten meters wide. The shockwave sent lesser-trained shinobi tumbling to the ground, the earth trembling beneath them.
"I am here to erase Konoha from the map," Ren declared, his voice cutting through the chaos, laced with a killing intent so sharp it felt like a physical blade. "If you wish to stop me, then try. But know this: I will show no mercy."
The Nine-Tails, feeding on his rage, roared again. Its tails lashed out like colossal whips, uprooting ancient trees and sending them crashing through the forest. A vortex of malevolent chakra swirled around it, a visible aura of destruction.
"Really? You're excited too?" Ren mused, patting the demon fox's head. "Then let us destroy this place together. Forward! Tear your way into the heart of the village! Let Konoha become the second Kumogakure! Let them all feel the pain—the injustice they heaped upon the Uchiha, the agony branded into my soul! They will repay it all today!"
"Uchiha Ren, stop this at once!" Kakashi yelled, having landed safely a distance away. He had caught the edges of Ren's words—the mention of the Uchiha clan's suffering. A cold dread settled in his stomach. Does he know the truth? Is that the source of this hatred?
His plea was ignored. Instead, it seemed to incense the beast further. The Nine-Tails raised its paw again, intent on crushing the Copy Ninja into paste.
"Damn it!" Kakashi swore, his body moving on instinct once more, darting away just before the impact cratered the earth again.
"Stop the Nine-Tails! Don't let it advance!" a jōnin commander screamed.
A volley of kunai, shuriken, and elemental ninjutsu—Fireballs, Water Dragons, earthen spikes—soared towards the titanic fox. They were like pebbles thrown at a fortress. The attacks exploded harmlessly against its chakra cloak, not even leaving a scratch.
Seeing that words were useless, Kakashi knew there was only one path left. He reached up and slowly pushed the forehead protector up, revealing the eye he had kept hidden for so long.
The Sharingan was active, but it was no ordinary three-tomoe pattern. It had evolved. The tomoe had connected, forming a complex, sharp-edged design—a Mangekyō Sharingan.
"Hmph," Ren scoffed, a grim smile twisting his features. "An outsider, yet you've raised the Sharingan to such a level. Impressive. You haven't disgraced the name of this kekkei genkai, 'Copy Ninja' Kakashi. But this is as far as you go."
The battle for the soul of Konoha had truly begun. On one side stood the village's greatest defender, armed with a stolen eye and unwavering resolve. On the other stood a prodigy of the clan Konoha had betrayed, commanding the very beast that had once nearly destroyed it.
The air crackled, thick with chakra and hatred. The first move was yet to be made, but the outcome would decide the fate of the entire village.
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