Flower Blooming in Hell

Despair, thick as ink, completely drowned Uchiha Genki's consciousness.

He squeezed his eyes shut, every muscle in his body stiff with extreme fear, waiting for the wooden spikes to pierce his flesh, waiting for the end of his life.

But the anticipated touch of death didn't come. Instead, a dull, teeth-grinding sound suddenly exploded in his ears—

"Thwack—"

The sound of a sharp spike brutally tearing through flesh and blood, clear as if right beside his ear.

Immediately after, a spray of warm crimson splashed everywhere, exploding like shattered red plum blossoms in the night.

A single drop of scalding liquid first landed on his cheek, its sticky texture and rich smell of blood slowly sliding down his skin.

Following close behind, two drops, three drops, four... warm blood fell one after another, striking his forehead, eyelids, and the tip of his nose, making his cold skin tingle.

The long-awaited pain never came, causing Uchiha Genki's body to stiffen, a tiny crack appearing in his taut nerves.

Something's wrong... the temperature of this blood, this familiar scent of blood, it's not mine!

"Wh-what's going on?" His voice trembled uncontrollably, like withered leaves caught in a gale, carrying a tremor he hadn't even noticed himself.

He mustered all his strength, little by little, and shakily lifted his heavy eyelids. His blurry vision gradually focused through the crimson haze, and the sight that met his eyes instantly emptied his mind, all his breath caught tight in his throat.

Two sharp wooden spikes, less than two centimeters from his head.

Fresh flesh and blood still clung to the splintered tips, and a cold killing intent almost licked at his skin.

But this mere two-centimeter gap had become an insurmountable chasm.

The other end of the wooden spikes pierced through two familiar figures.

Uchiha Hazuki was slightly hunched, using her broad back to shield him. The fatal wooden spike had pierced through her chest, crimson blood continuously gushing along the grain of the wood, soaking her clothes and forming a glaring pool of blood on the ground.

Her body leaned limply against Genki, her once warm palm now cold and powerless, hanging at her side.

Beside Hazuki, Uchiha Izumi's small body pressed tightly against her. Another wooden spike had pierced her chest, blood staining her light-colored sleeves.

Her head lolled weakly, tear tracks still wet on her cheeks. Her eyes, which always held a gentle smile, were now tightly shut, never to open again.

"No... no... it can't be..."

An unbelievable tremor squeezed out of Genki's throat, faint as a mosquito's hum, yet filled with heart-wrenching panic.

His body began to tremble violently, uncontrollably, his teeth chattering. Tears surged out like a bursting dam, mixing with the blood on his face, streaking down his cheeks like crimson rivers.

He slowly raised his head, his gaze passing over the two figures shielding him, and saw Uchiha Itachi's shocked, frozen face in the distance. He had just dealt with the White Zetsu blocking his path and was now sprinting towards them, his Mangekyo Sharingan filled with disbelief, his steps suddenly halting at this scene.

The two small figures stood like two towering mountains, fiercely protecting him, using their lives to block the fatal attack. The wooden spikes had pierced their flesh but could go no further.

"No... no... NOOOO—!!!"

A heart-rending cry finally broke free from his throat, like the wail of a wounded young beast, echoing madly in the silent alleyway.

Despair and pain surged like a tsunami, instantly engulfing and swallowing Uchiha Genki, making even his breathing feel like a knife cut.

"Mother! Sister!"

He reached out, wanting to touch the two figures growing cold, but as his fingers brushed their clothes, he snatched them back as if burned.

The bone-chilling cold mercilessly told him the reality before him—they were dead, killed protecting him, right in front of him.

"No!! This isn't real! No!!"

He shook his head frantically, falling to his knees, his hands gripping his hair tightly, his knuckles turning white from the force, almost tearing his scalp.

I did it!

I made a deal with Uchiha Itachi!

Just a little more, and Mother and Izumi could have lived!

Why?

Why did it turn out like this?

"I didn't do anything..." His voice was low and despairing, filled with endless self-loathing. "I swore I would protect them... I clearly swore... but I couldn't do anything..."

Just then, a searing pain suddenly exploded from his eye sockets!

Immediately after, crimson blood poured out of his eyes like a torrent, not tears, but pure blood!

"Bzzz—!!"

A vast, boundless domain, centered on Uchiha Genki, instantly spread out, sweeping across the entire Uchiha compound like a tide!

Where the domain passed, the air instantly froze, the howling cold wind abruptly stopped, leaving only a suffocating pressure of despair, as if even heaven and earth trembled under this power.

The pain of despair completely consumed Uchiha Genki's will. His consciousness flickered on the verge of collapse, but his body uncontrollably unleashed terrifying power.

Illuminated by the scarlet blood staining the sky, a pair of brand new Mangekyo Sharingan in his bloodshot eyes bloomed with an eerie and terrifying light!

This was no ordinary Mangekyo form—three black patterns resembling Reaper's Scythes spun slowly within his pupils, their edges sharp as blades, carrying a deathly stillness that harvested life;

Four pitch-black Magatama were embedded at the junctions of the three scythes and the center of his pupils, emitting a dark luster that devoured everything.

"Magatsunokami—"

"Ōkuninushi--"

Two ancient and obscure titles, like whispers from the abyss, exploded in the depths of Uchiha Genki's collapsing consciousness.

The voice carried a soul-piercing chill, each word etched with the majesty of a deity—one was the god of hell who ruled the underworld purgatory, the other was the god of souls who commanded the myriad soul mansions!

Magatsunokami could summon the power of the netherworld, opening the Yomi Domain that covered heaven and earth.

Any soul that stepped into the domain, regardless of strength, would be forcibly stripped from its body by an invisible gravitational pull, dragged into the core of the domain, and transformed into a completely controlled puppet, unable to even cry out on its own.

Ōkuninushi, on the other hand, could melt all these devoured souls into his own body. Not only could he plunder the opponent's lifelong memories, rich Soul Power, and immense Chakra, but he could also directly inherit the essence of their Kekkei Genkai's ocular power, truly achieving "devouring all things and making them his own"!