A flash of golden light streaked through those blood-red Eternal Mangekyo eyes. In an instant, they radiated the terrifying pressure of an emperor's wrath, making Orochimaru feel like duckweed without roots, filled with an intense unease toward Jinghuo Uchiha that he could not control.
But a second later, everything vanished.
The stone pillar was gone. The killing intent was gone. The raging waves were gone. The emperor's wrath was gone.
Only the terror of being rootless duckweed continued to spread and intensify in his heart, never ceasing.
Jinghuo Uchiha said nothing more.
He turned and left, leaving behind only one sentence.
"I look forward to your answer."
Orochimaru stood there, his expression shifting unpredictably.
The moment Jinghuo Uchiha returned to the village, intelligence about him spread throughout the ninja world—"Jinghuo Uchiha kidnapped Sunagakure's Jinchūriki."
Sarutobi Hiruzen panicked over this.
He directly ordered Jinghuo Uchiha to report to the Hokage Building.
Jinghuo Uchiha was already planning how to kill him. How could he possibly go over just to be scolded?
And after the villagers learned of it, the goodwill they had built up toward the Uchiha Clan over the past two years instantly collapsed.
"I knew the Uchiha were no good!"
"They actually kidnapped someone else's Jinchūriki!"
"They want Konoha and Sunagakure to go to war!"
"The Uchiha are rotten to the core!"
"Hand Jinghuo Uchiha over to Sunagakure!"
It was not just them. Some ninjas spoke up as well.
"If war breaks out, let the Uchiha Clan fight!"
"Exactly! The trouble caused by the Uchiha Clan should be settled by them!"
"I absolutely won't risk my life over something the Uchiha caused!"
The Sarutobi Clan was delighted by this.
At last, the villagers were no longer watching them!
But Nara Shikaku had a splitting headache.
He knew this news