Uchiha Clan Grounds, center.
Firelight reddened the night sky.
Blade flashes, Fire Release, genjutsu, and explosive tags erupted at once. The Root ninjas had barely rushed in before crashing into the Uchiha's prearranged killing formation.
Itachi Uchiha was the first to strike.
His figure flashed, and the cold gleam of his short blade swept past. Two Root ninjas had no time even to form hand signs before their throats were slit.
Shisui followed close behind.
The Body Flicker Technique activated.
His figure moved like the wind through the Root formation. Genjutsu came first, kunai finished the job, and his movements were too fast to see clearly.
"Don't clash with them head-on!"
"Their goal is to stall for time!"
Itachi warned coldly.
Uchiha Chuan burst into laughter and savagely cleaved down a Root ninja with the long blade in his hand.
"Stall for time?"
"Do they still have time?"
"If Root can leave here alive tonight, I'll cut off my own head and let them kick it around like a ball!"
Boom!
Another Great Fireball crashed into the Root crowd. Flames swept through them, and screams merged into one.
At that moment, the Uchiha clansmen had completely gone mad with killing.
They had been suppressed for too long.
They had endured humiliation for too long.
Today, it was finally their turn to strike back without mercy.
What was Root good at?
Assassination.
Ambushes.
Cutting off intelligence.
But today, all those advantages were gone.
They had charged headfirst into the Uchiha Clan Grounds, only to discover that the intelligence was false, the targets were false, the retreat route was false, and even the places where they could catch their breath were nearly gone.
The Root captain's face turned livid. He slashed through a wall of flames and roared:
"Hold the formation!"
"Don't