The Akatsuki's split came to an end

First comes the Quake, then the shock waves, followed by high-pressure, high-temperature airflow, and finally the storm of flames.

Rock melted, magma evaporated, and torrential rain poured down, the raindrops themselves radiating an orange glow from the magma.

The Konoha Ninja initially huddled against the Rock walls, avoiding the direct impact of the shockwaves and high-temperature air currents. Later, they were forced to dig holes in the Rock to escape the torrential lava flow.

In the midst of this cataclysmic disaster, the Ninja huddled like quails in their caves, anxiously awaiting the end of the calamity.

Because there was no high-energy radiation, the Fifth Hokage's [Mantra] was able to function normally. He could see that his subordinates were safe and sound, and he could also see that all the buildings of the Ancient Kingdom of Roran had disappeared.

He also saw the magnificent and splendid "dragon," which, after the black sun erupted, gently twisted its body, deflecting the impact of boundless light and heat, and even swallowing a considerable amount of energy in return.

Then, the enormous dragon, whose head and tail were nowhere to be seen, seemed to have eaten its fill. After wriggling slightly, it lay back down and slowly fell silent.

Seeing that the Dragon Vein had returned to calm and the purpose of demolishing the buildings had been achieved, Shazo Zuo began to repeatedly use [Water Release: Great Exploding Water Colliding Wave] to cool down Rōran by artificially bringing rain.

A massive amount of water vapor evaporated and erupted, rising with the hot air and catching up with the huge orange-black mushroom cloud, merging with it.

Sensing the temperature drop and the magma downpour subsiding, the Konoha Ninja emerged from the caves in the rock wall, jumped onto the crumbling Rock wall, and looked towards the Ancient Kingdom of Roran.

A waterfall cascaded down from the sky like a ribbon, while white mist rose from the ground, forming an incredibly thick column of white smoke, topped by an enormous canopy overhead.

Aoba Yamashiro murmured, "A white stem, a black cap, and orange accents—what a towering, deadly poisonous mushroom!"

Another Konoha Jonin remarked, "It's just demolishing a building, but the Fifth Hokage did it with such gusto!"

The Konoha Ninja, who revered violence, cheered. "So intense! So powerful! Truly worthy of the Fifth Hokage!"

"No wonder the Lord Hokage isn't afraid of the Four Great Ninja Villages ' blabbering. If I had that kind of power, I'd definitely swat anyone who dared to mess with me."

"That's right, the Fifth Hokage is invincible, he can do whatever he wants!"

"Hahaha!"

Actually, the other Konoha Ninja also liked it, but because they were getting older, they had to maintain a so-called mature image and couldn't jump around like young people.

This is their Fifth Hokage. I've always heard that he's the strongest Ninja in the Ninja World, but I've never seen him in person. It always gives me a sense of unease.

Now they witnessed a small country, much larger than Konoha, being instantly destroyed by the Fifth Hokage.

Not only did the towering buildings disappear completely, but the ground itself sank at least 50 meters, turning into a huge lava lake.

No matter which ninja village it was, if the Fifth Hokage had done that, they would have been completely wiped out.

Having witnessed the power of the Fifth Hokage firsthand and learned just how strong he was, the Konoha Ninja were filled with pride and gained boundless confidence.

[Our Konoha possesses the strongest violence in the Ninja World!]

The strongest Ninja World, supported by this concept, is so profound and solid.

For decades, the Third Hokage promoted himself as the "strongest Hokage of all time," yet he was obsequious to foreign Ninja, which completely dispelled the unease and guilt that Konoha Ninja felt.

At this moment, standing on the massive but dilapidated Rock wall were not only Konoha Ninja.

Ninjas from the Mist Ninja, Iwagakure Ninja, Cloud Ninja, and Sunagakure Ninja were all present, with the Sunagakure Ninja having the most, and even a few scattered Ninja from Shinobu villages such as Hidden Grass Ninja Village, River Ninja, Star Ninja, and Stone Ninja Village.

Faced with this devastating sight, the Konoha Ninja were overjoyed, while the Ninja from other villages were ashen-faced, as if their own village were beneath that giant mushroom.

A few days later, the mushroom cloud had long since disappeared, the lava lake on the ground had cooled down, the surrounding Rock walls had become neat again, the blocked underground water channels had been cleared, and the infrastructure construction of the Country of Roran had officially begun.

The Konoha Ninja have now discovered that they can no longer see Ninja from other villages spying on them.

Having witnessed the Fifth Hokage's violent demolition methods, the various ninja villages naturally interpreted it as a warning.

Otherwise, why didn't the Fifth Hokage, who was most skilled in Wood Release, use [Wood Release: Deep Forest Emergence] to demolish the ruins of Rōran?

When he used Wood Release to replace the buildings in Sunagakure, it was quick, efficient, and safe.

Therefore, this must be a warning. The Fifth Hokage is telling all the ninja villages: This is Konoha's territory. Anyone who dares to spy on us will be crushed by this forbidden technique.

Having witnessed the power of forbidden techniques firsthand, who would dare risk their family's survival?

Perhaps other Ninja will come to spy, but Ninja who dare to risk coming must be the most powerful Ninja, or the most skilled in reconnaissance and concealment, the kind that ordinary Konoha Ninja Jonin detect.

The weakest is Gaara from Sunagakure.

Taking advantage of a natural sandstorm, he lurked in the strong winds and approached Rōran, where he saw the enormous explosion crater that covered a small country.

Gaara glanced at him once, and tears streamed down his face in anguish, completely abandoning any thought of avenging his father.

The stronger one is Deidara, who returned to the Akatsuki.

Upon hearing about this unprecedented explosion, this explosion art fanatic immediately set off, riding his giant bird to the Land of Wind.

Deidara, positioned near Shazo, had a commanding view of the entire explosion.

He saw many sights that could only be seen at an altitude of tens of thousands of meters, such as the shadows of skyscrapers that remain to this day under the intense light radiation, and the desert waves that extend thousands of kilometers away.

Deidara shouted excitedly, "I'm impressed! The Fifth Hokage is amazing!"

"Indeed, explosions are art!"

"The Fifth Hokage's art far surpasses mine!"

"I will not admit defeat! I will study diligently, I will train wholeheartedly, I will explode like the Fifth Hokage, I will explode even more fiercely!!"

Two people floated beside Deidara: the paper angel Konan and Nagato himself. They had come along to witness the display of the Fifth Hokage's power.

Originally Konan and Nagato hadn't flown this high; they were only a few hundred meters above the ground when they felt an immense sense of awe.

Only after hearing Deidara's fanatical shouts transmitted through the ring did they fly to an altitude of ten thousand meters and witness the full extent of the destruction of the nation by the explosion.

Not only was Konan stunned, but even Nagato was speechless. He even felt that the Demonic Statue of the Outer Path could not have launched such a terrifying attack.

For a moment, Nagato felt somewhat disheartened and couldn't help but doubt whether he was truly destined to save the Ninja World.

If he can't even defeat the Fifth Hokage, how can he possibly save the Ninja World?

After returning to Amegakure, Nagato went to his room, closed the door, and fell into deep thought, without even noticing Konan.

After a long while, a spiral Spiral appeared in Nagato's room, Obito Uchiha emerged from Spiral.

Meanwhile, in the corner of the room, a black and white mimosa plant sprouted, and Zetsu appeared in front of Nagato.

Nagato looked coldly at Obito Uchiha, who was still wearing his mask, and said, "You coward who claims to be Madara Uchiha."

"I heard you got a severe beating from the Fifth Hokage. Are you completely desperate, which is why you've swallowed your pride and come to see me?"

"Even now, you still won't take off your mask and face me with your own face?"

Obito Uchiha hoarse voice, "Nagato, you're right. I've been driven to a dead end by the Fifth Hokage's dominance."

He raised his hands and removed his mask, revealing a face that was half normal, half distorted and discolored, and missing an eye.

Obito Uchiha said, "Let's formally introduce ourselves. My name is Obito Uchiha, and I am the successor of Madara Uchiha."

Nagato examined her carefully for a long time, then turned to Zetsu and asked, "And who are you?"

Black Zetsu detached himself from White Zetsu in front of Nagato and said, "I am Madara's creation. Nagato- sama, you can call me Black Zetsu."

Nagato sneered, "A very fitting name. So, this pale-faced person is called White Zetsu?"

Black Zetsu respectfully replied, "Nagato, you guessed correctly, they are White Zetsu."

Nagato pondered the name for a moment, then asked again, "White Zetsu —the cells that were injected into my body, were they the cells of this thing?"

Obito Uchiha replied, "Yes."

Nagato turned back and asked, "Are Black Zetsu and White Zetsu related to Madara Uchiha?"

Obito Uchiha replied, "Black Zetsu is Yin Release Chakra creature created from the soul by Madara Uchiha using the power of his Mangekyō Sharingan. It excels at infiltration, stealth, and Genjutsu, and while intelligent, it lacks substantial offensive power."

"White Zetsu are Yang Release Chakra creatures created by Madara Uchiha using the flesh and blood of the First Hokage, Hashirama Senju. They are skilled in Wood Release, Taijutsu, and Self-Healing. Although they are not very bright, they possess considerable combat power."

"Of course, the greatest value of White Zetsu lies in its Self-Healing ability."

Obito Uchiha pointed to his half-body and said, "I was seriously injured in the Land of Rivers and lost half of my body. I survived only because of the White Zetsu half-body transplanted by Madara."

"Your physical disability was also cured by White Zetsu Cells."

Nagato sneered, "So, I should thank you, huh? You waited for me for five or six years, and finally decided to heal me."

Although he was sneering and his words were very harsh, his tone had softened considerably, which made both Obito Uchiha and Black Zetsu quietly breathe a sigh of relief.

They are truly at their wits' end.

They had previously learned about Shazo's trap, the "Konoha Crush Plan," and unfortunately became the Bad Luck into it.

Uchiha Itachi was alright; he was only ganged up on by Uchiha Izumi and Jiraiya, and his injuries weren't serious.

But Obito Uchiha much worse.

His heart was shattered by Shisui Uchiha; this was his plan—to use Shisui Uchiha's hand to destroy the talisman seal controlling the heart.

Even with half his neck severed by Uchiha Izumi, Obito was still able to withstand it thanks to his Self-Healing abilities.

But the final blow from the Fifth Hokage Shazo, to the sole of his foot was extremely powerful; it nearly cost him his life.

That unprecedented torrent of Chakra surged along the meridians in his legs all the way to his chest and abdomen before spreading out and pulverizing his body.

Before Obito Uchiha could react, half of his body was sliced to pieces, and even his bones were shattered.

Fortunately, he was not destined to die; the Fifth Hokage struck half of the White Zetsu, which is why he didn't die immediately in the Kamui Dimension.

The corrupted Obito Uchiha was an extremely ruthless person. Despite losing half of his body, he not only did not lose consciousness, but also actively promoted his plan.

Obito gritted his teeth and tore off the shattered pieces of Shisui Uchiha's heart. Seeing the Runes appearing on the newly grown heart, he immediately cut it off, forcing his body to regenerate the heart.

After cutting off his own heart five times, Obito finally saw a clean heart without any sealing Runes on it, and only then did he faint in relief.

Relying on the remaining White Zetsu Cells and utilizing the residual flesh and blood that had fallen into the Kamui Dimension, Obito Uchiha's lost half of his body gradually grew back.

The entire process lasted three days and three nights before the ruthless Obito Uchiha finally stood up again and burst into maniacal laughter.

He felt that his luck had turned around; not only had he survived the Fifth Hokage's trap, but he had also used Shisui Uchiha's hand to resolve the hidden danger to his heart.

But what he didn't know was that his ordeal was far from over; on the contrary, his most dangerous moment was about to arrive.

Overcome with excitement, Obito Uchiha didn't thoroughly examine the Kamui Dimension and failed to find the Metal Card covered in blood before hastily reopening Kamui Dimension.

After the Spiral gate opened, the Fifth Hokage Shazo, sensed his Flying Thunder God Beacon.

The next second, on the Metal Card in the Kamui Dimension, countless Runes unfolded into Summoning Array.

Under Obito Uchiha's dumbfounded gaze, a cloud of white smoke exploded on the Summoning Array, and the Fifth Hokage's Wood Clone appeared.

Wood Clone Shazo grinned. "Finally caught you, Obito Uchiha!"

He picked up the Metal Card from his feet and said with a smile, "You're quite lucky. The moment you activated it just happened to coincide with a crucial point in my grand scheme, leaving me with very little Chakra to deal with you."

"Otherwise, the Wood Clone you're seeing now is definitely not just me."

Wood Clone Shazo comforted Obito, saying, "Don't look so desperate, like you're about to die. I already told you, you're very lucky."

"This body only possesses the power of Wood Release Kekkei Genkai, which doesn't qualify it as Super Kage Level combat strength. You have a very good chance of defeating me."

Shazo's words of comfort were meaningless. The moment Obito Uchiha saw him, he felt his scalp tingle and his whole body felt like it was floating.

Madara Uchiha's name was his most trusted source of confidence, intimidating countless powerful Ninja.

Now that Shazo's Wood Clone had exposed his attack, Obito Uchiha felt as if he had been suddenly stripped naked, and his fear exploded uncontrollably.