In the streets and alleys, after the initial shock, a suppressed cheer finally erupted.
"Good riddance! Those guys with their noses in the air finally got what was coming to them!"
"From now on, we don't have to worry about being hauled off to the Police Force just for accidentally offending them!"
"They deserved it! They were always so arrogant!"
The long-accumulated resentment towards the Uchiha Police Force's overbearing style was amplified and released at this moment.
However, not everyone was cheering blindly.
Some merchants who frequently dealt with the outside world and had broader horizons fell into deep worry after the initial shock.
In a corner of a tavern, a middle-aged merchant downed a glass of strong liquor and whispered to his companion, "The Police Force is gone... but what about the future?"
"As arrogant as the Uchiha were, they at least followed the rules and could keep the other Ninja clans in check."
"Can the future Police Force, like the old one, ignore the whims of those Ninja lords and truly protect us civilians and small merchants when trouble actually starts?"
His companion grew silent upon hearing this, uncertainty about the future appearing on his face.
Just as Konoha and even the entire Ninja World were buzzing with rumors and undercurrents due to the overnight annihilation of the Uchiha, a sudden change occurred.
In the sky, as if a giant blue canvas had been forcibly embedded with a heterogeneous "screen" by an invisible force.
It was incredibly massive, its edges shimmering with an indescribable faint light, floating quietly within everyone's line of sight.
Whether looking up from Konoha, Kumogakure, Sunagakure, or any other corner, its existence was clearly visible, as if it were inlaid into the firmament itself.
"Look! What is that in the sky?!"
On a street in Konoha, a civilian was the first to notice the anomaly, pointing at the sky and crying out in surprise.
Instantly, everyone's attention was drawn to it.
"Is it... a screen? Like the ones in movie theaters?"
"How could it appear in the sky?!"
"Is this some new kind of Ninjutsu? Genjutsu?"
Exclamations of wonder, doubt, and fear immediately replaced the previous discussions about the Uchiha.
An unprecedented spectacle that defied understanding plunged the entire Ninja World into a brief state of chaos.
Hokage Office.
Hiruzen Sarutobi abruptly pushed open the window, his pipe nearly slipping from his hand.
He gazed at the massive heavenly screen, his pupils suddenly contracting.
"Someone, come here!" The Third's voice was urgent, carrying a trace of imperceptible trembling.
An Anbu member appeared instantly via Body Flicker.
"Immediately organize a team to investigate! Find out the source, purpose, and composition of this thing! Fast!" Hiruzen Sarutobi ordered, almost shouting.
"Yes, sir!" The Anbu took the order and vanished.
But after giving the order, Hiruzen Sarutobi's heart sank.
Investigate?
Easier said than done!
The Uchiha had just been wiped out, and he had used almost all of his reliable Anbu forces to monitor the movements of the major clans and prepare for possible internal strife.
At the same time, he had to handle the aftermath of the Uchiha incident; his manpower was already stretched thin.
Diverting forces now to investigate this unheard-of "heavenly screen" was simply adding insult to injury.
The Third tiredly rubbed his brow, looking at the sky with a face full of worry.
"The Uchiha matter hasn't even settled yet, and now this... I only wanted Konoha to get through this period peacefully, why must things go against my wishes..."
The Third sighed deeply.
"Truly... a turbulent time."
Meanwhile, the other major Hidden Villages were also thrown into a massive upheaval.
Hidden Cloud Village.
Fourth Raikage A had a fiery temper; his first reaction upon seeing the heavenly screen was not doubt, but fury.
"What kind of trickery is this! Knock it down for me!" he roared.
He even went as far as to use the power of a Jinchuriki, having Killer Bee enter his Tailed Beast form. The Eight-Tails Gyūki condensed a massive Tailed Beast Ball, blasting it toward the heavenly screen in the sky with a momentum that could destroy everything.
However, the Tailed Beast Ball, powerful enough to level a mountain, seemed to hit an invisible void as it flew toward the heavenly screen. Its energy rapidly decayed and dispersed, eventually disappearing without a trace like a stone dropped into the ocean, failing to stir even a single ripple.
The heavenly screen remained high above, as if located at an infinitely distant place, unreachable by physical attacks.
"How is this possible?" The Fourth Raikage stood dumbfounded, feeling for the first time that things were beyond his control.
Hidden Sand Village.
Fourth Kazekage Rasa stood on high ground, looking at the heavenly screen with a grave expression.
He tried to sense it with Magnet Release, only to find that he couldn't perceive any physical existence of the heavenly screen; it was like a pure "image."
"Order the Anbu to be on high alert and monitor any changes in the heavenly screen around the clock! Also, strengthen the Village's defenses to prevent anyone from taking advantage of the chaos," Rasa issued the most prudent, yet most powerless, order.
Iwagakure.
Ōnoki used his Earth Release to fly high into the sky, attempting to examine it up close.
But the higher he flew, the further away the heavenly screen seemed to become, always maintaining an unreachable distance.
He even tried to decompose it with Dust Release, but that invisible boundary likewise rendered his Kekkei Tōta useless.
"This thing... is not simple." Ōnoki landed back on the ground, his old face full of gravity.
"Spread the word: the whole Village is to enter Level 2 alert status. Closely monitor the movements of the heavenly screen and the other Villages."
Hidden Mist Village.
Currently in the "village under the blood mist policy" era, the interior was in utter chaos.
Facing the suddenly appearing heavenly screen, the then Fourth Mizukage Yagura Karatachi (actually controlled by Uchiha Obito) issued no clear instructions, appearing indifferent to it.
The Village interior became even more panicked as a result, yet no one dared to discuss it openly.
The entire Ninja World, under this sudden "heavenly screen," fell into a bizarre atmosphere of tension, suspicion, and helplessness.
No one knew why this "heavenly screen" had appeared, or what it would bring.
In the Land of Rain, inside a high tower.
The cold rain beat endlessly against the world outside the tower.
Konan stood by the window, her purple paper flower hair ornament trembling slightly. She looked up at the massive and eerie heavenly screen in the sky, her clear purple eyes filled with worry.
"Nagato, what on earth is this? Some kind of Genjutsu unknown to us? Or a conspiracy by the Five Great Nations?" Her voice carried a hint of imperceptible tension.
This existence beyond her understanding made her instinctively uneasy.
Behind her, connected to the Gedo Statue in the shadows, the emaciated Nagato spoke through Deva Path Pain in a cold, emotionless voice: "No need to worry, Konan."
Deva Path Pain looked up, the purple ripples of the Rinnegan seeming to pierce through the void to look directly at the heavenly screen.