Forceful Assault

"What... what exactly happened?"

Clan Leader Tsugawa Taishi stood by the window, observing the visible chaos, commotion, and disorder unfolding outside. He couldn't help but murmur to himself.

Facing an unseen enemy, his heart also grew restless.

A very bad premonition kept surfacing in his mind.

As expected, his premonition was soon confirmed when a Reconnaissance Ninja rushed in.

The Reconnaissance Ninja quickly focused on the Clan Leader and spoke rapidly, "Clan Leader, this is terrible! Elder Xiu Ping, while patrolling the village, suddenly went berserk and attacked Captain Keihisa."

"After suffering severe injuries, Captain Keihisa barely escaped, and when Captain Morita came to his aid, he was suddenly struck with inexplicable terror and irrationally killed Captain Morita."

"Captain Keihisa then fled again."

"Currently, both Captain Keihisa and Elder Xiu Ping have disappeared..."

Tsugawa Taishi blinked. First, he doubted his ears, then he began to doubt his mind.

What was this guy talking about?

By the time Tsugawa Taishi's mind finally caught up and understood the meaning of the intelligence, he felt his veins bulge and his temples throb.

"Why... what happened?"

Despite receiving the latest intelligence, he almost subconsciously repeated his earlier question.

Immediately after, he thought of the most logical explanation, though one that contradicted the facts: someone in the clan had been controlled by an enemy's Genjutsu. Only someone whose mind had been invaded would suddenly attack their own kin.

But this speculation was quickly disproven by new information.

Another ninja approached him and said, "Clan Leader, we've found Captain Keihisa's body. Based on his movements after being injured..."

"Based on what?"

"Based on the assumption that Captain Keihisa was already dead before attacking Captain Morita. His body was discovered in an alley between the deployment points of the two teams."

"Huh?"

Tsugawa Taishi felt his mind turn into a muddle again, his thoughts becoming increasingly chaotic: "Keihisa died before Morita, so how did Morita die? Who killed him?"

At this moment, a third ninja, panting heavily, quickly arrived before Tsugawa Taishi. His face was etched with anxiety, confusion, and even fear as he said, "Clan Leader, we found Elder Xiu Ping's body in the residence of the deceased Captain Daisuke. Judging by the corpse, the Elder likely died about a day ago."

After a pause, he added, "It's highly probable he died around the same time as Captain Daisuke."

Tsugawa Taishi no longer felt dizzy; a chill ran down his spine.

Elder Xiu Ping had died long ago. So who had been attending the meetings here from yesterday until this morning?

Cold sweat trickled down Tsugawa Taishi's temples. At this moment, he felt enveloped by an endless darkness... Could the enemy transform into his own clansmen without leaving a single trace?

Could they perfectly mimic even their Chakra signatures?

The thought sent a shiver down his spine. Tsugawa Taishi subtly moved away from the three ninjas who had brought him the latest news.

This meant that from now on, no ninja within the clan could be trusted. Anyone could suddenly attack him.

"What... what are we fighting against?"

The Clan Leader's current mood was far more intense than the calm before a storm. He felt as if the entire Ninja Clan was standing on the edge of a cliff, with utter destruction awaiting a single misstep.

After burning two warehouses, killing several ninjas, and putting on a rather wild performance, Yuzhen temporarily retreated from the village.

His feelings were complex. Just a few months ago, the Tsugawa Clan had been an insurmountable behemoth to him. When the Hagane Clan's village was breached, any resistance he offered then would have seemed like a futile effort.

Yet, in such a short period, their positions had completely reversed.

The powerful Tsugawa Clan had become the vulnerable party.

On one hand, his strength had advanced significantly after his physique and Chakra were enhanced, and he became proficient in the infiltration abilities of White Zetsu. On the other hand, the offensive and defensive dynamics between the two sides had fundamentally shifted.

Yuzhen had a realization: ninjas were indeed a profession that emphasized extreme offense, perhaps even requiring proactive attacks.

His actions had gone so smoothly that a common analogy could be used: a single rotten apple spoils the whole barrel.

Though a rotten apple is small, it certainly has the power to disgust.

After rejoining the other two, they each reported their progress.

Uchiha Nanami and Fūma Kotarō had not only ambushed several ninja squads but also incidentally eliminated a Combat Captain, which could be considered an unexpected bonus.

"What about the enemy's Clan Leader?" Uchiha Nanami asked Yuzhen.

Yuzhen took a long swig from a water flask, then let out a long breath before replying, "According to the plan, we've kept him safe for now."

It wasn't that they intended to keep the Clan Leader alive, but rather, according to Yuzhen and the others' strategy, it would be best to deal with him at the very last moment... Once a ninja clan had endured enough psychological pressure, the death of their Clan Leader would serve as the final trigger for their collapse.

"So... the enemy's high command now consists of only one Clan Leader, one Elder, and one Combat Captain," Fūma Kotarō calculated on his fingers.

Yuzhen nodded.

"Are we going to attack the village according to the plan?" Uchiha Nanami asked again.

Their ultimate goal was to disperse this Ninja Clan, so it was impossible not to make a big scene.

"According to the original plan, we need to leave enough time for fear to spread, so we'll make our move after three days… By then, our main force will be just catching up, and we'll have enough manpower to clean up the battlefield."

Moldy things, when covered up, become even more sour and smelly.

At this point, the Tsugawa Clan would never believe that the attack they suffered was retaliation from an unknown, insignificant Ninja Clan they had destroyed. They would only think that they had offended some major power in the Ninja World at some point, and that power was now toying with them and destroying them.

Slightly extending the attack deadline would put immense strain on their psychological resilience.

Yuzhen wouldn't be idle during these three days either. He would periodically infiltrate the Tsugawa's village, either assassinating people or setting fires. In short, he would keep the enemy on edge, never allowing them a moment's respite.

Time flew by, and soon it was the evening of the third day.

The assault on a Ninja Clan by just three people was about to begin.

According to the plan, Yuzhen would infiltrate the village and execute a "center bloom" operation, while Uchiha Nanami and Fūma Kotarō would attack from the outside in.

Uchiha Nanami and Fūma Kotarō ceased hiding. After an explosion sounded from within the village, the two of them swaggered directly towards the village gates.

At the same time, Uchiha Nanami began to form hand seals at a leisurely pace.

Perhaps because her ninjutsu's origin had been misunderstood by Yuzhen before, she decided to make a distinction this time, letting him understand that different Uchiha ninjas had different Fire Style ninjutsu.

Even though they were still quite far from the village walls, Uchiha Nanami had already completed the seals, so she paused her steps.

But at this distance, it was impossible for ordinary Fire Style ninjutsu to reach…

Uchiha Nanami's nostrils flared as she took a deep breath:

"Fire Style: Great Fire Annihilation."

Hmm…

This was Madara Uchiha's ninjutsu.