Danzo Watches the Show, Tailed Beast Bomb and Hell Dragon Break, Konoha's Countdown to Destruction

"It was my turn as his teacher!" Determination flashed in Jiraiya's eyes. "We absolutely can't let the Nine-Tails attack Konoha. We have to drag out whoever's behind this and resolve this crisis."

"Is he trying to pull away from Itachi Uchiha and attack Konoha from a distance?" Shimura Danzō narrowed his eyes, his expression grim. Uchiha Shadian's summoning of the Nine-Tails had unfolded entirely before Shimura Danzō's eyes, so he instantly understood that the Nine-Tails had been unsealed by Uchiha Shadian.

"Lord Danzo, what do we do now? Should we stop the Nine-Tails?" A Root ninja asked worriedly.

"Notify the main force. Withdraw from Konoha immediately." A sinister sneer appeared on Shimura Danzō's lips.

"The Nine-Tails is far too powerful. We need to preserve our strength and guard against enemies from the other villages."

"Leave the Nine-Tails to Hiruzen. After all, he is the Hokage."

"Yes, Lord Danzo."

Following Shimura Danzō's order, vast numbers of Root ninjas receded from the outskirts of the Uchiha Compound like a retreating tide.

"Don't think you'll get away with this." Itachi Uchiha dismissed Susanoo and raced toward Uchiha Shadian's location.

Why did he not pursue on Susanoo? Because his ocular power could not sustain Susanoo for an extended period.

There was a vast difference in ocular power between the Mangekyō Sharingan and the Eternal Mangekyo Sharingan.

A dark Tailed Beast Bomb slowly condensed inside the Nine-Tails' mouth.

"Hmph. I'll destroy those so-called Hokage statues first." Uchiha Shadian's gaze was cold. The statues of the previous Hokage were symbols of Konoha's honor; destroying them would utterly shatter that so-called honor.

Boom!

The Tailed Beast Bomb shot from the Nine-Tails' mouth like a rocket, streaking toward Konoha's Hokage Rock.

Everything in its path was crushed and destroyed. The earth shook, mountains crumbled, and rocks, trees, and grass were all ground into dust.

The moment the Nine-Tails' Tailed Beast Bomb formed, Jiraiya's expression changed drastically. He no longer cared that they were in the narrow streets of central Konoha. Biting his finger, he slammed his palm onto the ground and shouted, "Damn it, I have to stop it! Summoning Jutsu!"

The Tailed Beast Bomb was flying in, and no one could stop it. Even Itachi Uchiha was powerless now. Uchiha Shadian's terrifying sword attacks in his normal state had consumed too much of his ocular power.

Even if he forcibly activated Susanoo, he was too far away to reach it in time.

"Long-range bombardment... Why hadn't I thought of controlling the Nine-Tails like this before?" From the shadows, Obito Uchiha, posing as Madara Uchiha, watched Uchiha Shadian take control and launch a long-range Tailed Beast Bomb assault on Konoha, unable to help sighing.

"Tonight is really too entertaining. Not only did I slaughter my clan with my own hands, I can also watch Konoha face another Nine-Tails rampage. This is wonderful." A cold, exhilarated smile appeared on Obito Uchiha's lips. After falling into darkness, Obito hated Konoha to the bone. He no longer held warmth toward anything and wished for Konoha to immediately become ruins.

"Itachi, how will you take this one?"

"Minato-sensei is dead. Who else can step forward and turn the tide now?" Obito Uchiha muttered, his single Three-Tomoe Sharingan fixed on the deeply anxious Itachi Uchiha.

Boom!

A tremendous cloud of smoke rose from the streets of central Konoha, and a massive toad appeared.

"Gamaken, knock that energy ball away!"

Gamaken had not even found his footing yet. He was about to ask Jiraiya why he had summoned him to such a cramped place when he heard Jiraiya's urgent voice.

He looked up and immediately widened his eyes.

A pitch-black chakra energy sphere carrying terrifying might was hurtling toward him, and Jiraiya wanted him to block it?

Isn't that asking for a toad's life?

At this critical moment of life and death, Gamaken did not obey Jiraiya's command. Instead, he leaped straight up from where he stood, dodging the deadly strike.

With a sharp whoosh!

The Tailed Beast Bomb grazed past him, frightening Gamaken so badly that goosebumps rose all over his body.

Jiraiya stood atop Gamaken's head, his face pale. The Tailed Beast Bomb had come too quickly, leaving him no time to prepare. He had summoned Gamaken intending to use his shield to alter the Tailed Beast Bomb's trajectory, but he had not expected Gamaken to ignore his command and dodge outright.

With nothing blocking it, the Tailed Beast Bomb slammed into Hokage Rock with lightning-like speed. A massive explosion erupted, and the mountain range connected to the entire Hokage Rock was blasted into fragments, becoming a speck of dust amid the smoke and flames.

The statues of the previous Hokage turned to dust in an instant, vanishing without a trace.

The heroic spirit and exemplary legacy of Konoha's past honor vanished without a trace as well.

"A toad?"

Uchiha Shenye, standing atop the Nine-Tails' head, naturally spotted Gamaken as well.

"So Jiraiya is in Konoha too!"

"This will take a little more effort."

"But it's all trivial. Konoha is destined to become ruins tonight. Even if the Emperor himself came, he couldn't save it."

Destroying the Hokage statues was not enough. Only the complete destruction of Konoha would count as revenge fulfilled.

The Nine-Tails continued condensing a Tailed Beast Bomb, while Uchiha Shadian decided to add more fuel to Konoha's flames. As the Nine-Tails gathered its Tailed Beast Bomb, Uchiha Shadian raised Cloud-Cluster Fang in his hand.

A phantom black dragon emerged and released a soul-shaking roar. Uchiha Shadian's gaze was icy. "Hell Dragon Break."

The Tailed Beast Bomb and Hell Dragon Break, two devastating attacks, shot toward two different areas of Konoha at the same time.

Jiraiya was still trying to persuade Gamaken, telling him that his shield could block the Tailed Beast Bomb and that there was no need to be afraid.

Gamaken wore an unwilling expression. "That black sphere fired by the Nine-Tails is packed with violent chakra. If it hits me, I'll definitely become roasted frog. I may be clumsy, but I'm not a stupid frog. Jiraiya, don't think you can fool me."

"You have a shield! Is your shield just for decoration? Besides, I'll assist you from the side. How could you become roasted frog?" Jiraiya continued persuading Gamaken. Among the summoned beasts of Mount Myoboku, only this fellow was skilled with a shield. Otherwise, Jiraiya would never have been trying so hard to talk him into it.

At that moment, the two terrifying attacks came flying in once more.

"Gamaken, it's time. At the very least, we have to block one of them." Jiraiya's expression was grave.

"Why did I end up with such an unreliable partner?" Seeing Jiraiya's serious expression, Gamaken understood that this was a matter of Konoha's survival. Gritting his teeth, he charged at the Hell Dragon Break unleashed by Uchiha Shadian. Why did he choose that one? Because compared to the Tailed Beast Bomb, he felt this tornado would be easier to block.

"Is that Jiraiya?" Seeing the summoned toad, Itachi Uchiha understood who had come to support him. Watching Gamaken pounce toward the tornado, Itachi Uchiha could only go stop the Tailed Beast Bomb.

His Mangekyō Sharingan widened, blood streaming from his eyes as Itachi Uchiha summoned the crimson Susanoo once more.

"Yata Mirror, block it!" Itachi Uchiha controlled Susanoo and leaped into the Tailed Beast Bomb's path. With the Yata Mirror in hand, he struck upward from below at the incoming Tailed Beast Bomb.

He did not choose to stop the Tailed Beast Bomb with brute force. Instead, he used a glancing blow to change its direction and send it flying elsewhere to explode.

This was the method that consumed the least ocular power.

He could not force a head-on clash. He had to save enough ocular power to deal with Uchiha Shadian. As long as Uchiha Shadian was dealt with, suppressing the remaining Nine-Tails would be much easier.