Wood Release

Uchiha Yu slowly let his ocular power fade.

He covered his bleeding left eye and felt utterly drained.

Although Uchiha Yu had the Sage Body and a natural advantage in chakra, he was only seven years old. Pushing his ocular power so hard would do nothing but make him go blind faster.

"My ocular power is still too much for me to handle."

Uchiha Yu looked at the Shuriken packed tightly across the Hokage Building and couldn't help but sigh.

Just now, he had used the power of Great Luo Heaven to control nearly a thousand Shuriken.

That was no small feat!

"Looks like I really am getting old."

Sarutobi Hiruzen was still pinned beneath the rubble, unable to move.

Only one arm stuck out.

He had lived a long life and fought in countless battles, large and small, but this was the first time a kid had cornered him so thoroughly.

A thin line of blood ran from the corner of his mouth.

He wiped a little blood from his lips with a finger and pressed it to the ground.

"Summoning Technique! Monkey King Enma!"

A summoning circle appeared on the ground in an instant.

"Sarutobi, you've gotten old."

Seeing Sarutobi Hiruzen pinned down like this, Enma couldn't help but sigh.

They'd fought countless battles together, from the Nine-Tails to all sorts of minor ninja, but Enma had never seen Sarutobi Hiruzen in such a sorry state.

Even against the Nine-Tails, he'd never lost his composure.

"I'm old. Time waits for no one."

Sarutobi Hiruzen followed Enma's lead and mocked himself.

Enma said nothing more. He smashed the rocks pinning Sarutobi Hiruzen with one punch, then grabbed him and hauled him out of the rubble.

The two walked to the roof of the Hokage Building and looked down.

A chaotic battle was still raging below.

The Uchiha Clan surrounded the Hokage Building, while the major clans surrounded the Uchiha.

Neither side could make a move.

"The casualties are too heavy."

Uchiha Fugaku was covered in wounds. His Sharingan swept over the fallen members of the Uchiha Clan around him, and he frowned.

Shisui had nearly exhausted his ocular power and had long since reverted to the Three-Tomoe Sharingan.

The Uchiha Clan was undeniably a valiant fighting force, but outnumbered this badly, they were taking devastating losses.

Panting hard, Shisui turned to Uchiha Itachi and Uchiha Yu.

"The casualties are too heavy. They'll wear us down sooner or later! We have to take out Sarutobi Hiruzen now!"

Uchiha Itachi nodded.

But if their strongest fighters left the battlefield, the Uchiha Clan would undoubtedly be overwhelmed by the Konoha Ninja.

On the roof of the Hokage Building, Sarutobi Hiruzen sat cross-legged beneath the eaves and shook his head with a cold laugh.

"Uchiha, this hasty coup of yours will only reduce you to dust in history.

"If Uchiha Itachi had listened to me and wiped out the Uchiha Clan, he could at least have kept a clean reputation. But you brought this on yourselves!"

Sarutobi Hiruzen could see that the Uchiha Clan's defeat was only a matter of time.

Unless something unexpected happened.

But he clearly hadn't expected Uchiha Yu to be the greatest surprise of all.

"Are the casualties really that bad? What if we had a medic-nin?"

Uchiha Yu looked at Uchiha Itachi beside him.

Uchiha Itachi shook his head. "Even with medic-nin, they couldn't do much in this situation. The fighting is too intense—they wouldn't get a chance to treat anyone!"

They hadn't brought medic-nin into the fight, and neither had the Konoha Ninja.

"Then what about this?"

Uchiha Yu clasped his hands together.

In an instant, most of the chakra inside him transformed into life force.

The power of Wood Release!

The battlefield's center suddenly burst open, leaving a massive crater.

The ground split apart in layers.

"What? Is that an Earth Release jutsu from the enemy?"

The Uchiha Clan members frowned, bewildered.

What kind of jutsu was digging a hole supposed to be?

While everyone was still staring in confusion, the earth suddenly cracked open, and a towering tree grew from below.

It rose almost as high as the Hokage Building!

"What is that?"

Sarutobi Hiruzen stared at the enormous tree, just as bewildered.

A faint glow surrounded its trunk. As its leaves rustled, a flood of Wood Release power surged into the Uchiha Clan members.

The wounded Uchiha were astonished to find their injuries healing!

Not just their external wounds—even their broken bones gradually knitted back together!

"My wounds are healing!"

"My bones really are mending!"

"Wood Release! That's Wood Release! Does our Uchiha Clan have a Wood Release user?"

The Uchiha Clan erupted with excitement, and the fear that had begun to creep into their hearts vanished.

If their wounds could heal, what was there to be afraid of?

They charged even harder.

The Konoha Ninja were just as astonished.

What the heck was this?

I'd just broken your leg, and now you're jumping around right in front of me!

Amid the crowd, Uchiha Yu smiled faintly.

His face was a little pale.

A Wood Release on this scale was almost his limit.

It had drained nearly eighty percent of his chakra.

That was because he wasn't simply growing a huge tree.

He was spreading Wood Release power and turning it into life force for the ninja.

It consumed more chakra than any other jutsu!

If he didn't have the Sage Body, even knowing Wood Release wouldn't have saved him from being drained dry by that move!

"Shisui, you and the others hold off the Konoha Ninja. Itachi and I will take out Sarutobi Hiruzen!"

Uchiha Yu knew he couldn't deal with Sarutobi Hiruzen alone.

But with Uchiha Itachi, it was a different story.

"Okay! Leave the front line to us!"

Uchiha Shisui confidently thumped his chest.

The numerous obvious wounds covering his body had mostly healed by now.

"Follow me."

Uchiha Itachi's figure flickered as he dashed toward the Hokage Building.

Uchiha Yu immediately followed.

Watching Uchiha Yu's retreating figure, Uchiha Fugaku smiled gently, his expression warm.

"I thought having a son like Itachi was already a blessing. But now I see that you, Uchiha Yu, are the greatest gift heaven could have given me!"

Uchiha Fugaku turned around. His expression grew stern once more as he plunged back into the enemy ranks.

"My Wood Release can last twenty minutes, and its healing effect will gradually weaken. We have to defeat Sarutobi Hiruzen within those twenty minutes!"

Uchiha Yu looked grim.

The Wood Release had drained most of his chakra.

But with the Sage Body, he didn't need to worry too much!

"Twenty minutes?" Uchiha Itachi nodded. "That's enough. Let's finish this quickly!"

The moment they reached the rooftop, both of them slowed down.

Sarutobi Hiruzen stood beside Enma, as if he'd been waiting for them.

"You're here?"

Sarutobi Hiruzen smiled faintly and tightened his Forehead Protector.

He looked at the two of them, his eyes brimming with fighting spirit.

"Come and show me whether the path I chose was truly the wrong one."