The Uchiha Were About to Face a Great Calamity

Mask fragments spun through the air, making a soft clink as they fell to the ground.

Obito Uchiha stood where he was, his right arm and half his shoulder gone, yet little blood flowed from the wound.

His right arm had originally been grafted from White Zetsu, as had most of his shoulder. It was quite different from a normal human body.

The face exposed before everyone was even more horrifying. The right half was covered in scars, its skin shriveled and twisted, as though it had been crushed beneath something heavy before being haphazardly grown back together.

The left half of his face, however, was perfectly normal—young and intact.

The contrast between the two sides gave his face two completely different looks.

Obito Uchiha made no attempt to hide it.

At this point, there was no meaning in hiding anymore.

His mask was broken, his identity exposed, and his arm severed. What else could he do? Would covering his face make it seem as though none of this had happened?

His gaze remained fixed on Genkawa Uchiha.

The emotions burning in those eyes were incredibly intense.

Anger!

Unwillingness!

Humiliation!

And killing intent, desperate to tear his opponent into pieces.

If looks could kill, Genkawa Uchiha would have been pierced through hundreds of times by now.

Genkawa Uchiha ignored that stare completely. After landing, he merely watched Obito with a faintly mocking smile.

A sharp whoosh cut through the air.

Fugaku Uchiha appeared at the edge of the battlefield, his Three-Tomoe Sharingan spinning rapidly as he stared at the exposed face.

The twisted right half was ugly and unfamiliar.

The intact left half was young and familiar.

Something suddenly exploded in his mind.

He was about the same age as Genkawa.

That outline... those eyes and brows...

Fugaku Uchiha's pupils abruptly constricted as a name surfaced from the depths of his memory.

"Obito?"

His voice was not loud, but many people present heard it clearly.

"You're... Obito Uchiha?"

Obito Uchiha shifted his gaze away from Genkawa Uchiha and glanced at Fugaku Uchiha.

His lips moved. First, he pulled out an extremely faint smile. Then it gradually widened, finally becoming a burst of laughter.

"Hahaha... Hahahahahaha!"

That laughter echoed across the ruins, carrying a hint of madness, a hint of mockery, and something else impossible to describe.

Then the laughter came to an abrupt halt.

Obito Uchiha looked straight at Fugaku Uchiha, both eyes reflecting the figure of the Uchiha Clan Head.

Genkawa Uchiha, however, saw it clearly. Both of Obito's eyes were normal at the moment, except his right eye was a Mangekyō, while his left was merely an ordinary Three-Tomoe.

On second thought, it became clear. The Sharingan in his left eye had either come from Madara Uchiha, or it had been part of Madara Uchiha's original stockpile.

As the former Uchiha Clan Head before the previous one, it was perfectly normal for him to have some private reserves.

After all, Izanagi required them.

At that moment, Obito Uchiha spoke.

"Clan Head Fugaku, now that you've seen my true face, do you regret it?"

Fugaku Uchiha's expression turned exceptionally ugly. He clenched his fists until his knuckles whitened and asked what was on his mind.

"Were you behind the Nine-Tails Incident?"

"I was."

Obito Uchiha answered cleanly and without hesitation.

Fugaku Uchiha took a deep breath, his voice trembling. "Why did you do this? You were clearly... clearly such a good child before. Obito, what happened to you?"

"Why?"

Obito Uchiha repeated the question, as though savoring its absurdity.

"All of this is because of war, because of the stupidity of people like you, because of the distortion of this world itself."

His voice gradually rose, revealing a nearly obsessive rage.

"War makes ninja slaughter one another. It makes loved ones lose those they cherish. It turns friends against each other. Rin died, Kakashi was ruined—everyone struggles in pain, everyone barely survives in this hellish world."

"So I will destroy all of it."

He stared fixedly at Fugaku Uchiha.

"I will create a perfect world. A world without war, without pain, without tears. There, everyone can find what they want."

Fugaku Uchiha opened his mouth to speak, but no words came out.

He did not know what Obito Uchiha had gone through to become like this. He only felt cold from head to toe.

The other party was an Uchiha. The other party had caused the Nine-Tails Incident. The other party had now appeared in the village. The other party clearly bore hostility toward both the village and the Uchiha.

Especially... the other party possessed Wood Release, a Kekkei Genkai!

If you can't find the book by searching its title, try searching for the author. It may have simply been renamed!

Every reality pointed to one conclusion: the Uchiha... were about to face enormous trouble.

Meanwhile, on the outskirts, Mitokado Homura and Utatane Koharu had completely stopped caring about appearances.

Their eyes were fixed on the wooden spikes remaining on the battlefield, those sharp Wood Release constructs that had burst from the earth and wrapped around the Susanoo Armor.

"Wood Release..."

Mitokado Homura's voice trembled. "That is Wood Release!"

Much of the color drained from Utatane Koharu's face as well. "Impossible... Wasn't Wood Release already lost? After the First Hokage, no one could..."

Wood Release.

That was the power of the First Hokage, Senju Hashirama—the power that could suppress the Nine-Tails and pacify an age of chaos.

And now, that power had appeared in the hands of an Uchiha.

The two exchanged a glance, both seeing unease in the other's eyes.

This could not continue. Wood Release absolutely could not be allowed to spread, much less remain in the hands of the Uchiha!

Though neither said a word, their long-standing tacit understanding let them both grasp the other's thoughts. Their expressions darkened at the same time.

The surrounding ninja all reacted differently.

Some stared wide-eyed, their mouths open but no sound emerging.

Some unconsciously took two steps back, as though the wooden spikes might suddenly come alive and pounce on them.

Others dropped the kunai in their hands with a clatter without even noticing.

Their shock was no less than that of Mitokado Homura and Utatane Koharu.

That was Wood Release—the legendary Kekkei Genkai wielded by the First Hokage, Senju Hashirama, the power that had suppressed an entire era of the Ninja World.

And now, Wood Release had appeared right before them.

How could they not be shaken?

At the same time, on the other side, Orochimaru stood hidden in the shadows, his golden vertical pupils shining with a terrifying brightness.

His body unconsciously leaned forward. His tongue slowly licked across his lips, and even his breathing became heavier.

"Wood Release... It's actually Wood Release... Hehehe."

His voice was so low it was almost inaudible, but the excitement and desire within it were so intense they nearly overflowed.

Shimura Danzō, standing beside him, had completely lost his usual composure.

His body suddenly leaned forward, one foot already stepping out of the shadows where he hid, as though he were about to charge out directly.

"Lord Danzo."

Orochimaru reached out and grabbed his sleeve.

But Danzo seemed not to hear him. His exposed eye stared fixedly at the Wood Release on the battlefield, his pupil dilated as his entire body fell into a nearly frenzied state.

Wood Release...

This was Wood Release...

If this power could belong to me...

If I could possess both Sharingan and Wood Release like that man...

His breathing grew heavier and heavier. The fingernails of his tightly clenched fist had already dug deeply into his palm, drawing blood.

Everyone on the battlefield harbored different thoughts. Fugaku Uchiha was about to say something else when Genkawa Uchiha interrupted him.

"Clan Head, don't deceive yourself in a situation like this. And don't think a few words can change his mind. He's a textbook Uchiha. How do you think he awakened his Mangekyō?"

Fugaku Uchiha's expression froze.

That was right.

The Uchiha... had always been like this, hadn't they?

At that moment, he felt inexplicably dejected.

Genkawa Uchiha raised his hand, and the bright yellow half-body Susanoo Armor raised its hand as well.

"Oi~! Is there anything else you want to say?"

Obito Uchiha sneered. "You think you've got me completely cornered?"

Genkawa Uchiha raised a brow and glanced at the ground beneath Obito's feet.

There was an incredibly faint chakra signature there.

If not for the ability of these eyes, which were extremely sensitive to space, he would have almost certainly failed to detect that something was there.

White Zetsu!

It had appeared in the earth beneath Obito's feet at some unknown point.

"Stop!"

At that moment, Mitokado Homura and Utatane Koharu arrived together. The former immediately said, "He is the criminal responsible for the Nine-Tails Incident and should be dealt with by the village."

No matter how wary they were of Genkawa Uchiha's Susanoo Armor, with Wood Release now revealed, they still chose the course most beneficial to the village.

They had to bring Wood Release under the village's control.

Clearly, they did not want Genkawa Uchiha to continue attacking.

Although they knew Genkawa Uchiha's temperament, the two were confident that with so many people watching, he would not go too far. That was why they chose to speak up.

Their thoughts were not exactly wrong, but Genkawa Uchiha's expression became extremely strange, as though he wanted to laugh but held it back.

He first looked at Obito Uchiha, then at Mitokado Homura and Utatane Koharu.

"Are you sure?"

Likewise, Obito Uchiha looked toward the two of them. Seemingly reminded of something extremely amusing, he laughed again.

"Hahaha... This is Konoha. Truly interesting."