Mangekyo, Awaken!!!

Just as Fugaku successfully retrieved Ikezu, a sly smile of a successful scheme suddenly appeared on the face of the Sand Shinobi who had been panicking moments before.

"Pfft~"

A tearing sound rang out.

A blade suddenly emerged from Ikezu's chest, piercing through both of them in one stroke.

It turned out that long before Ikezu was captured by the enemy, someone had tampered with her body.

It was an extremely tiny Micro Puppet, originally meant for close-range protection.

But the cunning enemy had worn it on Ikezu in reverse, just to see if they could ambush Fugaku.

Without a doubt, this Sand Shinobi succeeded, but he would ultimately pay the price for his actions.

"Ikezu, don't talk, hurry, don't you know medical ninjutsu? Stop the bleeding, now!!!" Fugaku said urgently, but tears kept streaming from his eyes.

As an Elite Jonin, how could he not know that unless Tsunade arrived, this injury was beyond hope—Heavenly Spin could not reverse it.

Likewise, Ikezu, who had some knowledge of medical ninjutsu, was fully aware of her condition.

Multiple lacerations to her liver, difficulty breathing, and even more fatally, the Sand Shinobi had already planted a deadly poison inside her.

She didn't have much time left.

Already fading in and out of consciousness, Ikezu heard Fugaku's trembling voice. She struggled to lift her head, gazing at him with tender eyes, and spoke haltingly:

"Don't be sad. I... I may not be able to stay with you anymore, but I..."

"Will always... love you."

At that moment, the deadly poison the Sand Shinobi had planted inside her finally erupted completely.

In an instant, Ikezu felt as if all the blood in her body was boiling.

Pain, fear, helplessness, regret—these negative emotions had completely flooded her mind.

The agony before death had utterly clouded her consciousness.

Ikezu stared blankly at Fugaku for a moment, then suddenly tilted her head back and sprayed a face full of blood onto him, before falling completely silent.

Fugaku held her, staring blankly for a while. Then he leaned down and gave his beloved woman one last, deep kiss.

After that, he gently laid down Ikezu's body, turned, and stood up!

The Sand Shinobi had been watching him smugly, but then he felt a terrifying killing intent surging from Fugaku.

This killing intent was so strong that it made him see the moment of his own death.

Several minutes passed before he finally snapped out of the hallucination.

"Is this Genjutsu? No, that doesn't seem right—my Chakra isn't disturbed." Sweating profusely, he stared at the man before him in terror.

Fugaku's eyes, which had originally held the pattern of Three-Tomoe, had completely changed at some point.

In their place was a pattern resembling a windmill, with three pitch-black dots surrounding it.

Though this Sand Shinobi had never seen it with his own eyes, he had heard the legends about these eyes.

The source of the legend was the once-dominant powerhouse who had overwhelmed the entire Shinobi World—Madara Uchiha.

Moreover, these eyes had a very unique and pleasant name.

"The Mangekyo."

Meanwhile, several kilometers away from the battlefield where Fugaku and the others were, a group of ninjas wearing Black Cloaks and Strange Masks was hurrying toward them.

"Remember, the lives of the others don't matter, but Sama Danzo specifically ordered that Kyosuke Uchiha must be brought back alive." The Anbu leader emphasized in a low voice.

"Yes." The other Anbu murmured their acknowledgment.

"Kyosuke Uchiha, huh? What kind of charm do you have that makes Sama Danzo value you so much?" This Anbu pondered inwardly.

Because Root had never lacked "genius" ninjas, and he had never seen Danzo give special treatment to any genius before.

So, this piqued his curiosity greatly.

"I'll be meeting you soon. I'm looking forward to it."

"Don't be afraid. Even if he's awakened those legendary eyes, with his injuries, he can't possibly be my match." This Sand Shinobi forced down his fear, trying to psych himself up.

But even as he said this, the fear lingering in his heart didn't fade—it only grew heavier.

Just as his spirit was about to break, his teammate finally managed to break free from the mud.

"Phew." The Sand Shinobi breathed a sigh of relief and prepared to join forces with his comrade to attack. But then, something happened that made him stare in bewilderment.

Because the moment that Sand Shinobi, who had barely escaped, returned to the battlefield, Fugaku, who had been motionless, suddenly turned his head and glanced at him.

And then that Sand Shinobi died.

He died extremely suddenly, without a sound.

Although he could tell from Fugaku's state that he must have used some kind of Genjutsu to cause his comrade's death...

But that was a Jonin! And he just died like that?!!

This Sand Shinobi was finally completely overwhelmed by fear.

He no longer cared about the mission or any explanation to the village.

All he wanted now was to flee, to run as far away as possible.

And of course, that was exactly what he did. Though gripped by terror, his body, honed by years of training, still obeyed the commands of his will.

Chakra exploded beneath his feet, and the Sand Shinobi leaped onto a tree in a single bound. Using the terrain to his advantage, he vanished from sight in the blink of an eye.

This all-out burst lasted a full five minutes.

Only when a searing pain spread through his entire body did he finally slow his pace.

By now, his mind had gradually calmed, and he even found the nerve to mock Fugaku: "Hmph, what a load of crap this Mangekyo is. I still got away, didn't I?"

Mocking Fugaku alone wasn't satisfying enough, so he decided to take a jab at Madara Uchiha as well: "I don't see what's so great about these eyes. That Madara Uchiha was probably just a man living off his reputation."

He let out a couple of smug snorts, then began to ponder how he would report back.

But a figure suddenly appearing behind him jolted him from his pleasant daydream.

That figure was none other than Fugaku, who had somehow arrived at his rear!!!

"Ah!!!" The Sand Shinobi let out a shriek, then gritted his teeth and burst forth with all his might once more, racing into the distance.

After running for another few minutes, he couldn't help but glance back.

What met his eyes was still Fugaku's gaze, brimming with murderous intent.

Terrified, he had no choice but to accelerate again, desperate to shake off his pursuer.

But no matter how hard he tried, Fugaku clung to him like a nightmare, constantly appearing before his eyes.

He tried everything—hiding, concealing, transforming, disguising—but none of it could escape Fugaku's pursuit.

Every time he turned around, he was sure to see those eyes of Fugaku's, which filled him with deep dread.

"Ah!!!" The Sand Shinobi finally collapsed from exhaustion, and in his overwhelming fear, tears and snot poured out in streams, even flowing straight into his mouth.

But he seemed completely unaware, staring only at the demon before him, screaming in terror.

Just as his mind was on the verge of breaking, a turning point appeared unexpectedly.

A squad of about five Sand Shinobi suddenly emerged in front of him.

And every single one of them possessed the strength of a Jonin. After a fierce exchange, they successfully drove that demon back.

Seeing this, the Sand Shinobi finally regained a sliver of his senses. Just as he was about to thank them, he was stunned to find—

In the eyes of these comrades, the same pattern as Fugaku's suddenly appeared.

And then, the muscles on their faces began to twist and contort uncontrollably, until... they finally transformed into the face of that demon.

The Sand Shinobi stared blankly for a moment, then let out a piercing scream that tore through the air before collapsing to the ground.

He had been scared to death by Fugaku, alive and breathing!!!