Burning

The eerie, wildly proliferating dead trees around Danzo seemed to possess lives of their own, continuously spreading toward every corner of Konoha.

Twisted branches and dense roots rapidly spread like a massive net, gradually shrouding the entire village in shadow.

Following Danzo's orders, the Root members swiftly and orderly withdrew to the rear, leaving only the core members behind to hold their ground with him.

Konoha's ninja from both inside and outside the village also arrived one after another to provide support. Led especially by Tsunade, they launched attack after attack, trying to destroy the madly growing dead trees.

Tsunade's fists carried terrifying power. Blow after blow crashed into the dead trees, each strike leveling an entire area.

Yet the dead trees grew far faster than she had imagined. They recovered almost instantly, becoming even denser than before, and Tsunade's efforts gradually seemed futile.

At that moment, the countless Sharingan on Danzo's body continuously emitted an evil, shudder-inducing crimson glow from within the core region of the dead trees.

Even Senju Tobirama felt a chill from the violent aura surging within those pupils...

His expression was grave...

An instinctive reaction...

The current Danzo might be performing an extremely terrifying jutsu...

One related to these withered trees...

Meanwhile, seeing that Hiruzen had completely lost his fighting spirit, Senju Tobirama no longer hoped for his assistance.

He took a deep breath, his expression becoming colder and more resolute as his hands rapidly formed seals...

Mutually Multiplying Explosive Tags!

Countless densely packed explosive tags appeared out of thin air, instantly clinging to Danzo from head to toe like a torrential downpour and completely surrounding him.

Clearly, he had just completed a whole series of preparations...

Immediately afterward, Tobirama used Water Release once more. Sharp water blades crisscrossed through the air, sealing off Danzo's every avenue of movement like a deadly grinder.

He had no time to hesitate any longer. He had to end this battle quickly and eliminate the threat posed by the disciple he had once taught.

Yet Danzo did not look at Tobirama at all. His gaze remained fixed on Hiruzen Sarutobi.

He slowly stepped forward, walking toward Hiruzen one step at a time, completely ignoring the deadly water blades and explosive tags closing in on him.

"Hiruzen..."

Danzo's voice was low and hoarse...

"Hokage, did we really believe that it meant burning ourselves to illuminate all of Konoha?"

"But now... you do not even have the courage to kill me."

Hearing those words, Hiruzen Sarutobi raised his head and looked at the companion who had once stood beside him...

"Danzo..."

Danzo slowly approached him, extending the withered wooden blade in his hand...

Its tip pointed downward, as though inviting Hiruzen to end his life with his own hands.

"Kill me, Hiruzen."

"You are the Hokage. Teacher Tobirama is merely a resurrected dead man..."

Hiruzen Sarutobi's gaze trembled violently as countless scenes from the past flashed through his mind...

The wars he and Danzo had endured together, their struggles for peace, their political battles, and the bond and friendship that had always been so difficult to sever.

The Sharingan in Danzo's palm suddenly opened, staring fixedly into Hiruzen's eyes.

At that moment, Hiruzen Sarutobi finally understood that he could no longer retreat.

Tears streamed down his face, but an will woven from resolve and pain finally rose within his heart.

At this moment, Hiruzen took up his duty as Hokage once more!

"I am sorry, Danzo..."

The moment the words fell, Hiruzen suddenly seized the withered wooden blade Danzo had offered him!

With one decisive slash, he swiftly and precisely severed Danzo's head...

Hiruzen closed his eyes...

His heart was filled with unbearable pain...

The instant blood burst forth, Danzo's life abruptly ended...

Perhaps for only a single second.

Yet within that brief second, the entire Shinobi World seemed to tremble.

Two Sharingan on Danzo's body closed...

Far away, Kakashi, who had just returned to the village with Jiraiya, suddenly felt his heart pound violently, as though something inside him was frantically stirring.

And in the even more distant Land of Fields, Uchiha Obito felt the same violent pounding in his heart...

He took out the bottle...

And observed Uchiha Yuan's Sharingan...

At this moment...

That Sharingan...

Actually began spinning rapidly, releasing an unprecedented and terrifying power.

The words Uchiha Yuan had spoken on the night of the clan's massacre once again rang clearly in Obito's mind:

"When the owner of a Mangekyō Sharingan enhanced by my left eye dies, the concepts and wishes he possessed in life will permanently transform into an ability of my right eye..."

Danzo had died.

Even if it had only been for a fleeting second, the truth of his death had already been established.

In that second, the eerily proliferating dead trees within Konoha instantly surged with mad growth. In the blink of an eye, they covered more than half the village, completely swallowing all light and sound.

At the same time, a strange and clear line of text appeared once more on an assignment sheet Uchiha Yuan had once left behind in the archive room of Konoha's Ninja Academy:

Danzo and Hiruzen were both people who hoped to become Hokage and illuminate the entire village...

The shadow of fire would shine upon the village, and new leaves would sprout once again...

That was every Hokage's dream...

The pen fell...

Disaster arose...

A terrifyingly intense heat suddenly erupted from the center of Konoha. Like wrathful flames that would destroy everything, it instantly engulfed streets, houses, and lives, plunging the entire village into a brutal, hopeless vision of hell.

The blazing heat instantly set those dead trees ablaze, turning the entire village into a sea of fire. Terrifying shockwaves tore apart the earth and buildings, while panicked cries and despairing screams rang out everywhere.

In the distance, Kakashi stared at the scene before him in shock, his heart filled with indescribable fear and awe.

"Th-This... what exactly is happening?"

At the moment Danzo died, his wish to become Hokage...

Had been permanently transformed into a terrifying power within Uchiha Yuan's right eye!

Right eye...

Was the one in my hand the left eye or the right eye?

Obito could not quite remember...

The only thing certain was that his and Kakashi's Sharingan seemed to have received another massive boost...

This strange support ability really was...

But...

To achieve a world with only Rin, such improvements were necessary...

Hiruzen Sarutobi collapsed to the ground, staring blankly at the burning village before him, his heart filled with immense pain and despair.

He had personally ended the life of his lifelong companion and rival, yet he had also personally triggered this disaster.

"Danzo..."

His voice was low and sorrowful, filled with regret and grief. "What exactly... did you do?"

At that moment, all of Konoha had become a hellish world of blazing flames.

The Hokage's light that had once illuminated Konoha had now become the fire that destroyed it.

Then, on the outskirts of the village, Danzo appeared once more...

Watching the burning village in the distance, he seemed lost in thought...

The Root ninja around him all appeared, gathering there...

The Sharingan had consumed two eyes...

Looking at his subordinates, Danzo said calmly, "Let us go. We will leave Konoha for now. One day, I will return, as Hokage..."

Elsewhere, Kakashi murmured, "The shadow of fire will shine upon the village, and new leaves will sprout once again..."