Slaughter

"Help! Help!"

Naruto's cries grew weaker and weaker. Fists, feet, and clubs rained down on him, blood seeping from the corner of his mouth, his eyes swollen shut.

But he was still calling out.

"Police Force... help..."

Would the person who said he would save him come?

Just as Naruto was gradually giving up hope, his eyes suddenly lit up.

"Big Brother Zhengye..." Naruto reached out, trying to grasp at the figure ahead.

A wooden club beside him struck his hand.

Naruto screamed and fell to the ground.

"Courting death!"

A terrifying killing intent descended from above.

Surging Chakra radiated outward like waves under its master's furious emotions.

The villagers beating Naruto suddenly froze, their bodies trembling uncontrollably.

Especially the burly man who had struck Naruto with the club. The deepest terror rose within him.

He only had time to turn around and take one look.

All he saw was a bright flash of blade light!

Squelch!

A head flew into the air, blood spraying out like a fountain.

The hands of the nearby villagers began to shake. They wanted to run, but their legs would not obey them.

"Ah... ah...!"

Only when blood poured down over them did the villagers let out terrified cries. "It's... it's Uchiha Zhengye!"

At that moment, the twelve ANBU surrounding the Police Force saw that Zhengye had arrived and immediately killed someone. They were both shocked and enraged!

They decisively abandoned Soji and the others and surrounded Zhengye instead.

Soji led his squad and immediately flashed over to Zhengye's rear.

"Uchiha Zhengye, ANBU is taking over here. You cannot—"

Before Mikawa Ze could finish speaking, he heard his teammate's teeth chattering.

"C-Captain... the Nine-Tails... the Nine-Tails..."

Only then did he realize that Zhengye was not looking at him at all, but at Naruto.

Naruto had already lost consciousness. From the body sprawled on the ground, a violent, frenzied, oppressive Chakra was spreading.

Glug, glug.

Bubbles continuously rose from the crimson Chakra cloak.

Though no tails had formed and it was only a thin layer of Chakra,

it still made everyone present pale.

The villagers who had just beaten Naruto had their legs go weak and collapsed to the ground, their pants soaked through.

"The D-Demon Fox is transforming!"

"Run!"

Squelch! Zhengye slashed the shouting villager beside him in two, splattering himself with blood.

You think you don't have to take responsibility for beating someone up?

He shouted, "You attacked the Nine-Tails Jinchuriki, intending to trigger another Nine-Tails Attack and bring disaster upon Konoha!"

The Mangekyō Sharingan patterns in his eyes slowly stopped spinning.

Damn Nine-Tails. It wouldn't release Chakra until it saw the bait. It only acted after seeing me arrive.

"You even obstructed the Police Force from rescuing people. Looks like you really are spies from another village!"

The ANBU were stunned as well. They had been assigned to monitor Naruto for years, yet they had never seen Nine-Tails Chakra leak out before.

They suddenly began to panic!

They had been arranged by the Third Hokage to watch over Naruto. Now that Nine-Tails Chakra had leaked out, they would bear the greatest responsibility!

At that moment, two figures rushed over from afar!

Shisui! Itachi!

Uchiha's top combat forces!

"Zhengye!"

"Senior Zhengye!"

Zhengye pointed at the ANBU. "They obstructed the Police Force from rescuing the Nine-Tails Jinchuriki. They are suspected spies from another village. Capture and kill them all!"

"Yes!"

Boom!

Just as Zhengye finished giving the order, two villagers beside him suddenly exploded.

Their bodies exploded, turning directly into a mass of mangled flesh.

The nearby villagers were dumbfounded. Only when flying chunks of flesh struck them did they let out terrified screams.

"Ah... ah..."

Zhengye looked at the two people who had been blown to pieces.

His pupils contracted slightly. It was obvious—they had been silenced.

He gave Soji a look.

"Arrest all those villagers! If any resist, kill them without mercy!"

Itachi and Shisui lunged at the ANBU.

Soji, Akimichi Mountain Range, and Yamanaka Saki went to arrest the villagers.

Zhengye flashed to Naruto's side and picked him up.

The five-year-old's body was covered in bruises. His swollen eyelids could not open, and his body was covered in fist marks, slap marks, and footprints.

These villagers are addicted to bullying people, aren't they? They think they can bully Naruto without paying the price!?

What does silencing people amount to? Today, I'll show you that the living have their uses, and the dead have theirs!

Thoughts raced through Zhengye's mind, ruthlessness flashing in his eyes as he suddenly waved his hand.

"All those villagers are spies. Don't spare any of them. Kill them all!"

Soji froze for only a moment before a savage grin appeared on his face. He turned his blade from its flat to its edge.

With a squelch, he beheaded a villager who had just beaten Naruto, and the head rolled across the ground.

The people nearby cried out in terror, "No! I only came to watch!"

Soji ignored him completely and slashed at his chest, nearly cutting him in half.

Blood sprayed all over Soji's face.

Akimichi Mountain Range and Yamanaka Saki hesitated briefly, but they merely severely injured the others and left Soji to finish them off.

The villagers who had just been striking Naruto with their fists and feet became one corpse after another beneath Soji's blade.

On the other side, Itachi and Shisui's battle with the ANBU was far more intense.

Shisui had awakened his Sharingan years ago. When he went all out, he was terrifying.

He brought his hands together, unleashing his ocular power without holding anything back!

The greatest genjutsu master in the shinobi world made his move, and seven of the twelve ANBU instantly collapsed.

Seeing this, the ANBU were terrified out of their wits. "The Uchiha are rebelling! Quickly notify Lord Hokage!"

Shisui's body flickered and split into four, chasing after four of them.

Itachi, meanwhile, faced Mikawa Ze.

Though Mikawa Ze was an elite jonin, Itachi had awakened the Mangekyō Sharingan.

Mikawa Ze had some experience fighting Uchiha. He did not dare look Itachi in the eyes at all.

He only dared look below Itachi's neck.

Itachi had only recently awakened the Mangekyō Sharingan, but his physical abilities had also improved tremendously.

Combined with the fact that his opponent did not dare meet his eyes, Itachi quickly gained the upper hand.

He held his sword in one hand while rapidly forming seals with the other.

Using the blind spot in his opponent's vision, he unleashed a Great Fireball while moving at high speed.

By the time Mikawa Ze saw the firelight, he was already a step too late. He rapidly dodged to the side.

But Itachi was already waiting for him, blade light flashing!

Itachi's sword pierced through Mikawa Ze's right shoulder, stabbing straight through him.

"Mm!" Mikawa Ze grunted. His body was restricted, leaving him no time to defend himself. Itachi had already grabbed his arm as a pivot and leaped into the air, kicking him in the side of the face.

Bang!

A dull impact rang out as Mikawa Ze's head took a heavy blow.

His vision went black, and he fainted.

At the same time Itachi dealt with Mikawa Ze, Shisui had already taken care of the other ANBU.

Of the four ANBU who fled, one escaped while Shisui killed the other three on the spot.

Shisui did not pursue the one who escaped. Zhengye's intention was to let him go report the news.

Of the twelve ANBU, one escaped, three died, and the remaining seven along with their captain were taken down.

Zhengye looked at Mikawa Ze and the others who had been brought down by genjutsu.

"Leave only that ANBU captain alive. Kill all the rest."

"Yes!" Shisui hesitated for a moment, but Itachi immediately answered and began carrying out the order.

He walked up to an ANBU who had been taken down by genjutsu and swung his long blade, slicing open the man's throat.

Shisui let out a breath and stepped forward to help.

The seven ANBU who had been brought down by genjutsu were slaughtered like chicks, utterly unable to resist.

There were more than thirty corpses at the scene when the ANBU and the villagers who had beaten Naruto were added together.

The pungent smell of blood drove the other Konoha villagers far away.

But even more gazes watched from the distant rooftops. They belonged to members of the other shinobi clans.

Information about what had happened here was spreading at an astonishing speed.

Their faces were filled with fear, but not because of the corpses. It was because of the crimson Nine-Tails Chakra on Naruto's body.

Zhengye examined Naruto's external injuries. As the Nine-Tails Chakra leaked out, those injuries were rapidly healing.

Taking advantage of the opportunity, he invaded Naruto's mindscape once again.

Zhengye's vision shifted.