You can call me a god

If someone asked how long a two-thousand-zhang fire dragon was...

Hongsi would tell them it wasn't very long-just over six thousand meters, nearly seven thousand, that was all.

At that moment, the fire dragon blotted out the sky. After a roar, Hongsi sent it hurtling toward Danzo.

"Scatter!"

As the dragon's head lunged toward them, Danzo shouted, and the seventeen people, along with one unconscious man, scattered instantly.

All of them were at least Special Jonin, so they were fast, but the fire dragon was faster.

After all, even when Ling Tian controlled it, Dai had barely dodged it with six gates open. The Root operatives were slower than Dai, and Hongsi's fire dragon was faster than Ling Tian's.

So, in less than a second...

With a boom, the spot where they had been standing was wiped clean. The men carrying the unconscious Shinobi took a direct hit and were reduced to ash, leaving nothing behind.

Some had only been grazed, but they were just as dead.

After that strike, dust billowed through the air, hiding the enemy from sight. Hongsi didn't launch another attack.

A long moment passed.

The dust cleared, revealing a horrifying scene.

The house from earlier, along with dozens of surrounding buildings, had vanished completely. The ground had caved in dozens of meters.

The nearby homes had only caught the shock wave from the dragon's head striking the ground, yet they had still been swept back several hundred meters.

There was no need to be surprised. Orochimaru's Kage Level battle against Naruto had been far more destructive.

Deidara's declaration that explosions were art wasn't just talk, either-he could flatten everything within a ten-kilometer radius.

As for young Nagato, whose grand ideals outstripped his intelligence, there was no need to mention him. Right now, he was busy working with his companions toward their naive ideal of peace in the Shinobi World.

Only eight people remained standing beside Danzo. Just one of them was unscathed; the others all bore injuries of varying severity.

The nine of them looked at where they had been standing, fear lingering in their hearts.

Even the Third wore an expression more grave than ever before.

Since becoming Hokage eight years ago, he had never worn such an expression-not even during his fight with White Fang just now.

As for Shishō's three-man squad, they had no idea what to do besides swallow hard.

"I have only ever seen one man unleash a Fire Style attack of this magnitude, but he is already dead. You cannot be Uchiha Island. Who are you, really?"

Shaken, Danzo couldn't help demanding an answer at the top of his voice.

His heart bled. Two-thirds of the elite Shinobi he had spent eight years cultivating had died outright. The losses were enormous.

"Uchiha Island, one of the former grand elder's guards. Ever since Fugaku gained the right to inherit leadership of the Uchiha ten years ago, you have served at his side. Only two years ago, when Fugaku became the Uchiha Clan Head, did you step out of the shadows and into the open."

The Third recited Uchiha Island's background. "You only have the strength of a Jonin. There is no way you could reach this level. Who are you, really?"

Hongsi relished being the center of attention, enjoying the way everyone looked as though they were facing a formidable enemy. He spread his arms and declared proudly, "Where the sea ends, the sky becomes its shore. At the pinnacle of Fire Style, I alone stand as the summit."

"My name is Uchiha Red Four. I'm the fourth child in my family. I don't want anyone forgetting my name again."

Then he laughed. "Of course, you can also call me a god-the god of fire!"

With that, he looked at Danzo again. "Have you prepared your last words?"

Danzo took a deep breath. "Why come after me? We do not know each other. As far as I recall, I have never even heard of you."

Hongsi nodded. "We don't know each other, but I don't like the look of you. So I feel like killing you. What, do you have a problem with that?"

A quick lesson in showing off: at the right moment, you could swagger like you were ready to screw the heavens, the earth, and the very air itself.

But at a time like this, the more casual you acted, the more impressive you looked.

This came straight from the original body's memories, but Hongsi was still putting it into practice. He wanted to test how to maximize his swagger in different situations.

So he didn't mind letting his opponent live a little longer. He could get some practice in and enjoy himself at the same time.

Danzo's eyes turned cold. "Earlier, you said that without the Hatake Clan, you would not be where you are today. May I take that to mean you acted because of White Fang? You also helped him out of his predicament just now. If I am not mistaken, your goal is to save White Fang!"

Ling Tian tilted his nose toward the sky. "Danzo, I don't like clever people, especially clever people who question what I say. Since you've annoyed me, I've decided to slaughter your Shimura Clan so they can join you in death. How does that sound?"

Danzo answered loudly, his voice dripping with scorn. "I have devoted my entire life to the village and remain unmarried to this day. Do you think you can threaten me?"

Hongsi froze at those words. That wasn't in the memories!

Wasn't there something in there about Danzo being a lecherous old bastard?

What was the line again? Shimura Danzō, still vigorous in his old age?

From the look of things, the old bastard wasn't lying!

Had the memories gotten mixed up?

Meanwhile, the Third looked at his old friend, thinking of all he had sacrificed over the years, and how he himself had long exploited him and insulted his intelligence. Suddenly, he felt deeply guilty.

Hongsi frowned. "Don't you have a whole bunch of wives?"

"..."

Danzo's expression darkened.

He didn't dare say it aloud, but inwardly he cursed, If the village didn't need me, I would make sure you stayed here today, even if I had to die with you!

Only after taking another deep breath and calming himself did he speak. "As long as you promise never to oppose the village again, I can authorize both of you to leave safely. Even White Fang's son and younger brother may remain in the village if they wish; I can authorize that as well. If they wish to leave, we will certainly not stop them."

The Third frowned at those words. He didn't think this was a good idea, but he didn't interfere.

After all, they were the ones at a disadvantage now.

In the past, there would have been nothing to discuss. Killing them outright would have been the proper course.

But now, the Sannin were absent, the Anbu were barely making an effort, Root had suffered devastating losses, and Danzo no longer dared to attack. The Third had also used up at least half his Chakra. The Uchiha's relationship with the enemy was ambiguous, the Hyuga still refused to show themselves, and the Great Ninja Clans were unwilling to come forward.

They really couldn't beat these two!

The main problem was that he couldn't use his Fire Style normally, which cut the power of his combined ninjutsu in half.

After all, even though he was the Ninja Professor, Fire Style made up both his most powerful techniques and the largest portion of his repertoire!

The Sarutobi Clan's secret ninjutsu were all Fire Style, too.

Without Fire Style, he lost at least thirty percent of his strength.

"Heh..."

Ling Tian sneered. "We wanted to leave earlier, and you wouldn't let us. Now you're telling me to go, but I no longer feel like simply walking away."

"Didn't I already tell you? I'm going to slaughter you today!"

"How about this? Let me slash you once. After that, we'll leave immediately. What do you think?"

"If you don't want to leave, then don't. You'll stay here today!"

Interrupted, Hongsi looked irritably toward the voice. When he saw who had arrived, he froze.