This, is Art!

"Destroying my village, taking away the Tailed Beast, and leaving after spouting a bunch of inexplicable nonsense—is that really it?"

Ōnoki hovered in mid-air, his aged face twisted as he raised his hands high.

In his palms, three types of chakra surged, fused, and condensed in a manner so exquisite that even a Mangekyo Sharingan could not copy it:

"Fifth Hokage, what kind of joke are you playing? Go to hell, you old fool!!"

This technique possessed immense power; few in the current Ninja World could take it head-on. The Tsuchikage, having squeezed his chakra to the absolute limit, was full of confidence, yet he fell from the sky before he could even witness the result.

He was only caught steadily by his son, Kitsuchi, who used a clay hand to break his fall.

Under the witness of three thousand Iwagakure ninja, a thick, pure white beam of light tore through the air, charging straight toward the thin golden film enveloping the Fifth Hokage and his party.

Hyuga Tokuma felt a surge of instinctive fear.

Can it block that?

That is one of the strongest attacks in the Ninja World.

The moment the beam struck the Negacion, the answer was revealed—there was no expected thunderous explosion, nor could one even hear the sound of surface matter being decomposed.

The Particle Style was like a stone sinking into the ocean, swallowed whole by the Negacion.

Jiraiya saw clearly that, about three meters away from him, the thin film of light merely trembled slightly before returning to calm.

It was as if this attack, capable of destroying a mountain, were nothing more than a gentle breeze brushing past it.

Truly incredible.

Fifth, you hide too many secrets.

Could it be that you are the Child of Prophecy the Great Toad Sage spoke of, the one who will bring true change to the Ninja World?

A mystic has a mystic's way of overthinking.

By contrast, Shisui appeared exceptionally calm, though he continued to shed tears of blood.

"Obito's resistance to genjutsu is incredibly high. My ocular power has dropped significantly; this Kotoamatsukami Eye on the left will need at least ten years to cool down. Sigh, if I use these eyes like this two more times, I'm afraid they'll be ruined."

"How will I be able to protect you by your side, Lord Fifth, and serve as the captain of the Shadow Guard?"

Uchiha Xiu, having guessed what was on Shisui's mind, said casually:

"It's fine. Just take them out and let me wear them while I sleep for a few nights; they'll recover partially."

At worst, he could return to the space and let the Main God's Great Light Sphere heal them.

Healing had nothing to do with side-story plots!

It only required the payment of reward points based on the level of life-force elevation and the severity of the trauma.

"How is this possible!"

Ōnoki, helped up by a medical kunoichi, saw this scene and couldn't help but doubt his own reality.

He didn't believe it.

It's a dream, right? Everything tonight is just Kyōka Suigetsu.

Particle Style was the ultimate ninjutsu he had spent the better part of his life researching, building upon the foundation laid by the Second Tsuchikage—the only remaining Kekkei Tōta in the Ninja World!!

The old man, whose back felt like it was about to break, refused to accept it. He tried to weave hand signs again, but his chakra was exhausted. He immediately spat out a mouthful of blood, even his large red nose losing its color, and collapsed into the arms of a medical ninja, forced to accept various treatments.

"What... what kind of technique is this?"

Behind Ōnoki, the Jonin commander Kitsuchi also wore a look of disbelief. He had never seen such a bizarre barrier ninjutsu; even his father's Particle Style couldn't break through it.

What else could possibly shatter this film?

Facing the gaze of thousands of eyes, the mockery of the Fifth Hokage, Uchiha Xiu, came again:

"Sayonara, everyone in Iwagakure~"

Under the full-force treatment of three medical Jonin, Ōnoki, having just caught his breath, suddenly raised his hand and roared at the Iwagakure army: "All forces, attack! Synchronized assault! Break this damn thing for me!"

"Shatter it."

"Kill the Hokage. Think of your fallen comrades, your loved ones... let these Konoha animals see our Will of Stone."

Before his words even faded, thousands of Iwagakure ninja wove hand signs in unison.

Earth Style: Earth Flow Wall.

Earth Style: Earth Dragon Bullet.

Earth Style: Earth Rising Spears.

Earth Style: Golem Technique...

Dozens of different forms of Earth Style ninjutsu bloomed at the same moment. The ground shook violently as thousands of earth dragons, rock pillars, and stone spikes surged toward the Negacion from all directions.

Following that, gale-force winds, raging flames, and flashes of lightning intertwined. After all, Iwagakure was a large village with over ten thousand registered ninja; how could they all be practitioners of a single chakra attribute?

A torrent of ninjutsu that seemed to be Shrouding the Heavens descended, as if to fill the entire sky.

The momentum was so vast that Uchiha Xiu suspected it could level a small-to-medium-sized ninja village in an instant.

"Tsk, the Third Raikage who 'received his lunchbox' was quite the character. To be able to hold off an army of ten thousand Iwagakure ninja and fight for three days and three nights."

That is what he said, yet he did not even blink.

When the level of power is insufficient, what use is there in sheer numbers? Faced with the Negacion originating from the world of the Soul Reaper, any ninjutsu that collided with it appeared utterly powerless.

It was the same even for a thousand-meter-tall stone giant!

It had been created by five hundred elite Iwagakure ninja, yet when it threw a punch, the damage dealt was not even as high as that of Particle Style.

Boom—

Boom!!!

"It's a pity I don't wear glasses; it lacks a certain flair."

"Besides, my hair texture isn't really suited for hair gel."

Uchiha Xiu watched the Iwagakure ninja outside attacking frantically in a fit of impotent rage, the corners of his mouth curling upward.

In a situation like this... should he let out a signature maniacal laugh?

The thought flashed through his mind.

As the group ascended to a height beyond the field of vision, golden light flickered.

The Konoha party, led by the Hokage, made a perfect withdrawal!

The moment the Negacion vanished, the attacks ceased accordingly.

Dead silence shrouded the ruined Iwagakure.

Stone pillars were embedded in the ruins, burning houses billowed with black smoke, and the ground was riddled with craters of varying depths, filled with molten lava and scattered with human remains.

Cries rose one after another.

As the Tsuchikage, Ōnoki was drowned in a profound sense of powerlessness.

Just because the Iwagakure ninja had grown up in a poor environment and were capable of enduring hardship, did that mean they had to keep eating dirt forever?

Furthermore, the two Jinchuriki of Iwagakure, whose fates were now uncertain—not to mention the cost of their training, the Tailed Beasts within them... had been purchased at a high price from the First Hokage, Senju Hashirama, back in the day.

For the merchant to come knocking to repossess them was simply too untrustworthy!

"Lord Tsuchikage, my, my home is gone, the entire block is gone, wuwuwuwu."

Ōnoki landed slowly, staggering as he leaned against a rock nearby, muttering to himself: "What exactly can these hands of mine protect?"

"Lord Tsuchikage, what should we do? To prepare for the war, the village's treasury has already been exhausted."

"The Daimyo already said that until the village expands its territory and achieves clear results, he and the court nobles will not grant another single ryo. How are we to rebuild our homes and compensate the families of the fallen..."

Upon hearing a ninja mention money, the little old man, unable to find an answer, felt his body go limp and simply fainted.

Only one blonde, wicked-looking youth stared at the burning village in a trance, whispering:

"This is art."

"Explosions are art, and so is burning."

"And the exit is even more so... standing above the heavens, it's just too cool!"

Uchiha Xiu did not know that he had provided new inspiration to the demolition expert Deidara.

He had gained one fanatical fan.

North of the Land of Fire, at the border with the Land of Fields.

Inside an inconspicuous cave.

At this moment, several figures appeared abruptly.

Before he could even scout the surroundings, Shisui knelt on the ground, saying powerlessly: "Xiu, my lord, I can no longer maintain the genjutsu controlling the Five-Tails and Han."

"It's fine, I'll take over." Uchiha Xiu's tone was relaxed.

As expected, without Hashirama Cells to support him, and lacking the fusion of Mangekyo Sharingan of the same origin, it was all too easy to become a blind Uchiha.

Just like Sasuke of Team Taka when they first debuted in the original plot, who felt like he had to hit every stray dog that passed by with an Amaterasu, rapidly overdrawing his vision and nearly suffering the consequences.

"Son Goku, Kokuō, which one should I seal into my body?"

"Lacking the Demonic Statue of the Outer Path, I can only make a choice for now."