Uchiha vs. Konoha

Hiruzen Sarutobi sighed and said softly, "It seems things have reached the point of no return."

"The Uchiha absolutely cannot leave Konoha. That is the one thing I cannot agree to."

"Anbu, move in."

Compared to Shimura Danzō, Hiruzen Sarutobi seemed more lenient toward the Uchiha.

But in reality, he was the highest authority in Konoha.

The Uchiha Clan had been wiped out under his watch.

Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!

Five ghostly figures appeared without warning inside the Hokage's office.

They were all elite Anbu Ninja directly under the Hokage. Each wore a different animal mask, and their auras were sharp.

And this was only the beginning.

As these five clearly captain-level Anbu elites appeared, the entire Hokage's office had already been covered by ninjutsu. The office walls, ceiling, floor... even the space outside the windows, all rippled like water.

One figure after another silently materialized, like a black tide. They swiftly and methodically claimed every corner of the room and every strategic position.

Five complete Anbu squads had arrived.

Each squad's captain was a Kage Level shinobi far above the elite Jōnin level. Each squad also had five veteran Jōnin and ten Special Jōnin.

In total, there were nearly one hundred and fifty of the most elite Anbu Ninja.

They made no unnecessary sounds and showed no emotion. They simply stood there, some kneeling, others concealed behind beams and pillars.

Each one was like a cold-blooded killing machine.

This was the true face of Konoha's Anbu. These Anbu Ninja were also the foundation of the village's reputation as the greatest in the Shinobi World.

An Anbu squad had a captain at its core to command, seasoned veteran Jōnin to support the team, and Jōnin who could set up various tactics, provide backup, and work together.

What was more, they worked together with tremendous coordination. Each squad was well-rounded enough to surround and kill an ordinary Kage Level shinobi.

In other words, the Anbu, who answered only to the Hokage, were a War Machine ready to be deployed at any moment.

Faced with such an overwhelming force, Uchiha Yashiro and Inabi visibly faltered. Cold sweat beaded on their temples as their Sharingan spun wildly, trying to lock onto every possible threat.

But there were too many enemies. They were too strong, and their coordination was too tight.

They had no doubt that if a fight broke out, they and the acting clan head, Elder Qiantang, would be swallowed up completely in the first wave of attacks.

The wrinkles on Uchiha Qiantang's impassive face seemed to deepen. He slowly surveyed the suddenly appearing Anbu force and could only sigh in resignation.

Even after the Nine-Tails Incident, with countless elite shinobi dead, Konoha's War Machine was still running like clockwork.

And with the immense force of the Anbu elites on full display, Hiruzen Sarutobi, as Hokage, seemed to radiate an overwhelming pressure.

Surrounded by layers of Anbu Ninja, Hiruzen Sarutobi addressed Uchiha Du Yang.

"Even now, I'll let you take back what you said earlier. As long as you don't bring up leaving Konoha, I'm still willing to negotiate with the Uchiha."

"I can swear on my name as Hokage that as long as the Uchiha remain loyal, I will absolutely ensure your safety."

Hiruzen Sarutobi said no more. He wanted Du Yang to face reality.

The elite Anbu force before them, powerful enough to destroy several small or medium-sized shinobi villages in an instant, said everything that needed to be said.

This wasn't a negotiation. It was a final warning.

Konoha would never allow the Uchiha to leave. The Uchiha rebelling would be trouble enough for them.

Even if the Uchiha didn't want to follow them, they still couldn't let the clan leave.

If they insisted on leaving, then the only option was to kill them all and prevent the Uchiha bloodline from spreading.

That was how important a Kekkei Genkai was.

Konoha had nearly gone to war with another powerful shinobi village over the Byakugan.

The office fell utterly silent. Countless cold gazes fixed on the four Uchiha, the pressure enough to drive an ordinary shinobi to a mental breakdown.

Yet Uchiha Du Yang remained unfazed and spoke. "As expected of the Anbu. You have quite a number of elites."

"And this doesn't even include the power of Konoha's great shinobi clans and its many other shinobi, does it?"

"It seems all those years of educating people in the Will of Fire have been very successful."

Hiruzen Sarutobi's authority ran deep. Combined with the ruthless Danzō, one order would be enough to destroy any shinobi clan in Konoha.

But this was Du Yang's response:

"Hiruzen Sarutobi, my answer is... don't even think about it. The Uchiha will leave Konoha, no matter what."

Seeing him act this way, Hiruzen Sarutobi's brows furrowed sharply, and alarm bells rang in his mind.

Danzō's single eye narrowed at once. He shouted, "Take them all down immediately!"

But it was already too late.

Uchiha Du Yang slowly turned around and spoke as if to himself.

"The Uchiha have no other path. There's only one possible fate for the Uchiha if they stay in Konoha: to be drained dry and wiped out completely."

"Hiruzen Sarutobi, I saw through your hypocrisy long ago. Your so-called promises aren't worth a thing."

"Do you pity the Uchiha? No. You just want us to keep wagging our tails and begging at your feet."

"Arrogant fool. Kill him!"

Danzō could no longer hold back. He pointed with his cane, and the Root shinobi behind him, along with some Anbu who leaned toward him, erupted into action.

Kunai, Shuriken, and the gleam of ninjutsu wove into a net of death, descending on the four of them.

Hiruzen Sarutobi tried to stop them, but it was too late.

Uchiha Yashiro and Inabi roared. Their Three-Tomoe Sharingan spun madly as they prepared to charge forward and hold off the attack, even at the cost of their lives.

A sharp glint flashed in Uchiha Qiantang's cloudy old eyes, and his withered hand rose.

Yet Uchiha Du Yang moved faster than anyone could react.

And all he had done was activate his Mangekyō Sharingan.

The depths of those black eyes were no longer ordinary black. The Mangekyō pattern had appeared within them.

Du Yang finally used the Mangekyō Sharingan's ocular technique, known as Cicada Song.

The instant Du Yang killed an opponent, this ocular technique inscribed the Seal of Cicada Slough with ocular power and embedded it in the opponent's body. It overturned the paradox of life and death, forcibly separating them from the state of death and restoring the very concept of life.

The moment they came back to life, the revived person's memories would be thoroughly altered to a certain extent.

Their existence depended on the caster's ocular power.

At the same time, two figures appeared on either side of him.

The person on the left had black hair and eyes, a young, stern face, and wore an Anbu uniform. A short sword hung naturally from his hand. It was none other than Itachi Uchiha.

However, this was not the Itachi Uchiha of the past. His memories had been completely altered.

The Itachi Uchiha of today hated Konoha, the Third Hokage, and Danzō to the core.

The person on the right was tall and imposing, with a dignified face. He wore the dark clothes of the Uchiha Clan Head.

He was none other than Uchiha Fugaku.

Like his son, Itachi Uchiha, his memories had been altered. He hated Konoha to the core.