Shukaku

Corpses lay everywhere in the Hyuga District.

Two girls knelt before a headless corpse, weeping uncontrollably.

"Big Sister Hinata, why? Why did it turn out like this..." Hanabi was still so young that she could not understand what lay before her. She only knew that the father who had loved her was never coming back.

Hinata was equally lost. From the fragments she had seen before losing consciousness, she had already guessed something, yet she still did not dare believe it.

There was no denying that Hinata was a kind-hearted girl. Even though she knew that the next time she met Neji, they would become enemies locked in a fight to the death, she could not help empathizing with him now. When Hizashi Hyuga died, Neji must have suffered just as much.

No wonder Neji had always looked so bitter and burdened. Only today did Hinata finally understand: only those who had endured the same tragedy could truly empathize. An onlooker's insignificant comfort was no different from farting.

—If anyone dared prattle on about forgiveness in Hinata's ear at a time like this, even if it were Naruto, Hinata might have slapped him hard across the face. Only those who had experienced the murder of a parent knew how deep that pain ran.

Soft footsteps came from behind them, and Hinata and Hanabi instinctively turned around.

"Big Sister Ayame? Why are you here?!" Hinata stared at the newcomer in shock, her face full of vigilance.

Ayame surveyed the surroundings, her tone slightly displeased. "Honestly, I knew Neji would go soft and leave behind unnecessary survivors."

The moment she heard that, Hinata's pupils shrank. Without another word, she scooped Hanabi up and ran outside.

"Don't bother struggling, and don't think about asking the village for help. The higher-ups gave the order to wipe out the Hyuga." Ayame calmly revealed the "truth."

"The higher-ups had long been displeased with great clans like yours. First the Senju, then the Uchiha. Now it was the Hyuga's turn. More people will be sent down to join you afterward..."

"No, that's impossible!" Hinata refused to accept such a terrifying truth, but deep down, she had already begun to waver. The Uchiha clan massacre had been suspicious enough, and now something so terrible had happened to the Hyuga, yet the village's reinforcements still had not come...

Hinata did not know how chaotic Konoha was at the moment. It simply could not spare any attention for the Hyuga, which undoubtedly led to this misunderstanding.

Hinata fled desperately with Hanabi, but Ayame was not the only one pursuing them. A tall figure blocked their path.

"Uncle Teuchi, even you..." Hinata despaired.

"We are Konoha Root agents hidden among the civilians, sent by order of the higher-ups to eliminate the remaining Hyuga." Teuchi firmly pinned the blame on Konoha's higher-ups.

"Uncle Teuchi, can you let Hanabi go? She's only a child. Didn't the Uchiha have one survivor back then too..." Hinata collapsed to her knees and begged, but unfortunately, she faced two utterly inhuman executioners.

Two more corpses were added to the Hyuga clan.

"The children who had not yet been branded with the Caged Bird, along with some fish that slipped through the net, have all been dealt with. Things like this should be eradicated at the root. Otherwise, were they supposed to wait eighteen years for someone to come seeking revenge?"

"How are we supposed to explain this to Neji?"

"Later, we'll dump all the bodies in Root. Neji will naturally deduce who was behind this!"

Teuchi and Ayame exchanged smiles. Everything was understood without words.

After leaving the Hyuga District, Sasuke headed straight for the enormous tanuki-like monster.

Shukaku was wildly firing Air Sand Bullets, feeling utterly exhilarated. It had not come out in a very long time.

No, to be precise, Shukaku had not been conscious in a very long time.

It did not know when it had begun living in a muddled, hazy state, unable to tell what year it was. Now that it had finally emerged, it only wanted to vent its emotions.

Temari and Kankuro had been standing there in a daze since earlier. It was not merely because Gaara had unleashed a Tailed Beast at the slightest disagreement, but because of the way the Tailed Beast had appeared!

Shukaku had not emerged from Gaara's body. Instead, Gaara had thrown out a strange half-white, half-red sphere. Amid a burst of brilliant light, Shukaku crawled out of the ball.

Temari and Kankuro had countless questions needing answers, but neither of them dared ask.

The crazed Shukaku suddenly sensed an evil presence invading it. When it looked up, it immediately lost consciousness again.

A person now stood atop Shukaku's head. He wore a black stand-collar shirt with a fan crest embroidered on its back. His chin was slightly raised, his foot planted on a Tailed Beast, exuding an overbearing aura as though he looked down upon the entire world.

"Sasuke Uchiha!"

The Konoha ninja who had been confronting Shukaku moments ago were overwhelmed with surprise and joy. They did not know how Sasuke had done it, but those who had lived through the Nine-Tails' Rampage had all heard that the Sharingan could control Tailed Beasts.

The Konoha ninja could not help letting out a sigh of relief. The Uchiha were a Konoha clan, and Sasuke was a Konoha ninja. It was wonderful that he had subdued the One-Tail.

The Konoha ninja looked at Sasuke with mixed emotions—happiness and delight, but also wariness and caution.

The next moment, the Shukaku under Sasuke's control stirred up yellow sand that blotted out the sky.

Sasuke had not come to save anyone.

Grains of sand continuously poured from Shukaku's body. Wherever the surrounding earth touched the sand, it rapidly turned to desert, soon spreading into a vast sea of sand.

The sight was magnificent and spectacular, yet it contained intense killing intent. The churning sea of sand slammed violently against the ground, and Konoha's walls did not last long before being eroded and destroyed.

Inside the Four Violet Flames Formation, Hiruzen Sarutobi and Orochimaru were locked in a fierce exchange. Orochimaru guarded against Hiruzen Sarutobi trying to die with him and refused to get close, relying only on long-range attacks.

The longer the battle dragged on, the more disadvantageous it became for Hiruzen Sarutobi.

"Hiruzen, this is bad!" Enma suddenly let out a terrified scream. Hiruzen Sarutobi turned and looked through the Four Violet Flames Formation, seeing a scene he could not accept.

The ideal ninja village he had spent his entire life building was facing the terrifying assault of a sea of sand!

"Bastard!" Hiruzen Sarutobi was furious. "How dare Sunagakure?"

Watching Hiruzen Sarutobi react like this, watching Konoha with his own eyes as it was about to meet its end, Orochimaru felt a strange flicker of pleasure. "The feeling of seeing something you cherish like treasure ruthlessly destroyed—Teacher, you've finally experienced it too."

Sasuke controlled the sand without restraint, drowning Konoha. The Demon had once said that if he wanted to destroy a place, he would not use such an inefficient method as matching soldier against soldier and general against general in close combat. He would use overwhelming firepower.

Fighting Konoha's ninja one by one would only exhaust him to death. If hundreds of Tailed Beast Balls came crashing down, Konoha's strong would be run ragged trying to save the village. As long as Sasuke was sane, he knew what he should do.

Countless living people became spirits in the sea of sand, yet even so, Root—the organization that claimed it buried itself underground so Konoha could flourish under the sunlight—remained completely unmoved.