Strength Shattered the Frame-Up, Sasuke Awakened the Mangekyō Sharingan
The drawbridge crashed down, and the gates of the Land of Iron's Fortress City swung wide open. The wind and snow were kept out by the thick walls, but the atmosphere inside was even colder than the icy landscape outside.
Mifune stood before the heavily armored samurai arrayed in formation, his hand on his sword hilt, his voice stern. "Gentlemen, now that you've entered the Fortress City, you must abide by the rules of a neutral nation. During the Five Kage Summit, the active release of Chakra is strictly prohibited within the fortress. All heavy ninja tools and Explosive Tag you carry must be handed over to the Sealing Squad for registration."
Raikage A crossed his arms, the azure arcs of electricity slowly receding from his skin. He glanced at the Hidden Leaf team beside him, a cold smile playing on his lips, "Rules are good rules, but I'm afraid some people talk a good game but don't follow through."
Naruto glanced at the Raikage, not even bothering to retort. He untied his ninja tool pouch from his waist, along with several specially made Flying Thunder God Kunai, and tossed it onto the registration table.
"Check it out." Naruto clapped his hands. He rolled his eyes inwardly. What good was this old man with muscles in his brain, besides spouting sarcastic remarks?
Naruto looked at Mifune and said calmly, "I follow the rules I set, not who shouts the loudest. If we're going to investigate, let's all be open about it."
The Raikage snorted coldly and gestured for Darui and Samui to hand over their extra ninja tools.
As the group prepared to head to their respective inns, a piercing scream suddenly shattered the tranquility within the Fortress City.
The sound came from the supply warehouse on the west side.
"Something's happened!" Mifune's expression changed drastically, and he rushed towards the source of the sound.
The Raikage and Naruto exchanged a glance, then each led their men and quickly followed.
The warehouse door was ajar, and the pungent smell of blood seeped out through the crack. Mifune kicked the door open, and the sight before him instantly turned the eyes of all the warriors of the Land of Iron red.
A heavily armored samurai on guard lay in a pool of blood, his eyes wide open, dying with unresolved grievances. A black Kunai was stuck straight into his chest.
Everyone present recognized the design of the Kunai.
"Hidden Leaf standard Kunai!" a samurai captain shouted, drawing his long sword from his waist with a backhand motion, the tip pointing directly at Naruto group. "Hidden Leaf bastards, you still dare to say you're innocent!"
"Swish, swish, swish!"
In the blink of an eye, dozens of samurai swords were drawn simultaneously, surrounding the Hidden Leaf delegation.
The Raikage stood outside the encirclement, cracking his neck as he twisted his knuckles. "Naruto Uzumaki, now that you've been caught red-handed, how are you going to cover that up with your sharp tongue?"
Karin was so angry that she gritted her teeth and was about to step forward to argue, but Naruto raised his hand to stop her.
Naruto didn't even glance at the gleaming blades around him; his gaze remained fixed on the corpses on the ground. He knew all too well that explanations were futile, especially in situations like this.
Explain what a load of rubbish.
"A brain is a good thing, it's a pity you didn't bring it with you when you went out," Naruto sighed.
The next second, the stone slab beneath his feet shattered with a crash.
Several golden Chakra Chains shot out from the ground like venomous snakes, precisely wrapping around the wrists of dozens of samurai. Before they could react, Naruto swiftly tightened his grip.
Clang! Clang!
Dozens of samurai swords fell to the ground in unison, and all the samurai were thrown over by an irresistible force, tumbling into a heap of haphazardly.
"You dare to use force within the city!" Mifune roared in fury, his Chakra surging, and he gripped the hilt of his sword, ready to draw it.
"Shut your men and get out of the way. I'm teaching them how to save their lives." Naruto's tone was cold and hard. He kicked aside the samurai's long sword blocking his way and walked straight to the corpse.
Kakashi stepped forward in Kunai handle with his gloved right hand, and pulled hard.
Blood splattered out, and Kakashi flipped the Kunai, wiping the blood from the handle with his fingertip. A string of tiny, indented numbers was revealed.
Sasuke had been silent all along, stepped forward, the Three-Tomoe Sharingan in his eyes spinning rapidly. He stared at the string of numbers, his voice icy cold. "Old Anbu number, A-317. This is inventory from the Root's warehouse, which has already been disbanded in Hidden Leaf."
Upon hearing this, the air in the warehouse suddenly froze.
"The Root?" Mifune frowned.
"I Danzo that old dog Danzo, and his Root was uprooted long ago." Naruto stood up, his gaze sweeping around. "Someone took advantage of Hidden Leaf's purge to steal the scrap metal from Root and came to the Land of Iron to frame me."
Raikage's sneer remained undiminished, "Who knows if you're the ones crying wolf?"
"Using common kunai Kunai kill someone, and then deliberately leaving it for you to see." Naruto pointed to the victim's wound. "This sword technique slopes upwards, piercing the heart. Such a clean and efficient killing method, yet he doesn't even bother to dispose of the body. The Masked Man's methods are truly getting worse with age. He thinks he's worthy of establishing a new order with such despicable tricks?"
Sasuke suddenly tightened his grip on his left eye, and a surge of violent Lightning Release Chakra once again overflowed from between his fingers.
"Sasuke?" Kakashi lowered his voice.
Sasuke didn't answer; he stared intently at the shadowy corner of the warehouse. Just a moment ago, the Three-Tomoe Sharingan in his eyes had once again sent that deadly resonance through him. It felt as if someone was pricking his optic nerve with the tip of a knife.
"Stop hiding." Naruto followed Sasuke's gaze, a cold, sharp smile playing on his lips.
He suddenly raised his hand, and a golden chain, in a blur, smashed several wooden crates in the corner of the warehouse.
Amidst the flying sawdust, a figure clad in Land of Iron samurai armor suddenly darted out, attempting to smash through the window to escape.
"Trying to leave?" Naruto snapped.
Karin swiftly Hand Seals: "Mind's Eye of the Kagura - Lock!"
"Left!" Karin shouted.
Kakashi's figure left a blur, and the ear-piercing shriek of the Chidori instantly echoed throughout the warehouse. He stood in front of the window, his lightning-infused hand precisely gripping the man's shoulder, slamming him heavily to the ground.
The samurai's helmet rolled off, revealing a pale, bloodless face. Even more bizarrely, half of his body had taken on a strange, plant-like form; instead of bleeding from the spot where he had been struck by the Chidori, green sap was oozing out.
"What kind of monster is this!" the warriors of the Land of Iron exclaimed in shock.
"White Zetsu." Naruto stepped forward and stomped on the chest of the White Zetsu Clone.
He lowered his head, his eyes icy. "A hundred thousand soldiers aren't enough for you to build, so you send a defective one to disgust us?"
The White Zetsu Clone grinned a twisted smile, "Naruto Uzumaki... you're too slow... the show has begun..."
Before he finished speaking, the White Zetsu Clone's body suddenly expanded rapidly, and the Chakra within it exhibited destructive fluctuations.
"He's going to self-destruct!" Kakashi shouted.
"Playing with bombs in front of me?" Naruto sneered.
He placed his right hand on White Zetsu's abdomen, and Pure Yang Chakra poured in like a flood. The violent self- Chakra was instantly subsided as if doused with a bucket of ice water. Immediately afterwards, a complex black jutsu seal appeared in Naruto's palm.
"The Five Elements Sealing!"
Black runes spread from Naruto's palm to White Zetsu's entire body, completely locking him in place and turning him into an immobile wooden sculpture.
The entire room fell silent.
The Raikage's eyes twitched a few times. He hadn't even seen how Naruto suppressed that self-destructing Chakra. This clean and decisive sealing technique was even more ruthless than his own powerful Lightning Release.
Mifune stared at the White Zetsu on the ground, his face ashen. The fact that a neutral country had been infiltrated by such an inhuman monster was even more unbearable for him than having Hidden Leaf riding on his neck.
Naruto ignored the shock of the crowd. He closed his eyes and activated the Great Evolution Divine Soul Art at full speed.
His divine sense followed the Chakra Threads remaining in White Zetsu's body, flowing upstream like lightning, directly breaking through the barrier of the Fortress City and rushing towards the domed tower at the highest point of the Land of Iron stadium.
In his mind, two forces collided violently.
Naruto opened his eyes, a purple-gold light shimmering within them. He raised his head, his gaze seemingly piercing through the thick walls.
"That's too crude a trick. If you want to play big, then get down here and take your beating." Naruto said to the void, his voice not loud, but it was full of absolute arrogance.
Above the dome of the tower.
Amidst the wind and snow, ripples suddenly appeared in space. Obito, wearing a tiger-skin mask, slowly emerged from the Kamui Space.
He looked down at the direction of the Fortress City, the only Sharingan beneath his mask radiating a scarlet light.
Just then, in the snow behind Obito, a mass of black mud slowly formed, and Black Zetsu's chilling voice rang out. "White Zetsu's test subject has been captured. That brat's Chakra is becoming increasingly glaring."
"It's alright," Obito's voice was hoarse. "It's just a way of saying hello."
Obito raised his right hand, holding a test tube that reeked of blood in his palm. "Danzo may be dead, but the things he left behind are still quite useful."
At the same time, inside the warehouse.
"Ah--!"
Sasuke suddenly let out a painful roar, covered his left eye with both hands, and his body uncontrollably collapsed to his knees.
Strands of blood trickled down between his fingers and dripped onto the stone slab.
In his left eye, the three Tomoe were spinning and pulling at an extremely frantic speed, finally connecting together to form a complex and sharp six-pointed star pattern.
Mangekyō Sharingan, awaken!
What triggered all of this was not hatred, but a sentence that suddenly exploded in Sasuke's mind. It was Itachi Uchiha's voice, carrying an unprecedented weakness and anxiety.
"Sasuke... don't come to Naka Shrine... this is a setup..."