A Brutal Insult Breaks His Composure!

Before anyone present could react—Second Gate, Gate of Healing, open!

The flow of Chakra inside Yongye surged again. Power thundered through his meridians like a flood bursting its banks, smashing through one restraint after another that had limited his body's output.

Yongye's muscles swelled slightly, and a faint redness spread across his skin as his capillaries filled with blood under the strain.

Then came the Third Gate, the Gate of Life. The Fourth Gate, the Gate of Pain.

By the time Yongye opened the Fourth Gate, the air surging around him had become a visible pale-green whirlwind, whipping the clansmen's robes around them.

Cracks spread across the ground from where he stood, forming a spiderweb. Tiny stones were swept into the air, then reduced to dust by the heat!

The Anbu Ninja who had been about to attack stopped in unison.

They stared at the figure wrapped in green energy, shock plain in their eyes. They had seen a Chakra burst of this magnitude, this terrifying Taijutsu presence, from only one person.

And that person stood behind them now, dressed in green tights and staring at Yongye in disbelief.

The Root ninja stopped too. They weren't afraid to die, but they weren't fools. Charging into that would be suicide.

The Uchiha clansmen grew restless again.

Some gripped their Kunai tighter. Others activated their crimson Sharingan. The fighting spirit Danzo had just suppressed flared back to life at Yongye's display.

The humiliation of having eight comrades taken away was still fresh, and now Danzo wanted to seize a ninth. That ninth was telling them with his fists: I'm not putting up with this.

Standing at the center of the green energy, Yongye tilted his head toward Hiruzen Sarutobi and pressed him again. His voice reached every ear present.

"Lord Hokage, I'll ask you again. What is the penalty for openly framing a fellow village ninja?"

Hiruzen Sarutobi's expression had turned grim. He clenched his pipe between his teeth and remained silent for a long while before speaking.

The authority in his voice was gone, replaced by the coldness of a man backed into a corner.

"The culprit who attacked the ANBU and Root can use powerful Fire Release. You Uchiha are highly suspect."

"Highly suspect?" Yongye repeated, then threw back his head and laughed.

Eight Gates Release—Fifth Gate, Gate of Limit, open! Sixth Gate, Gate of View, open! Seventh Gate, Gate of Wonder, open!

A violent wave of force exploded outward from Yongye like a solid shockwave!

Broken stones were hurled more than ten meters into the air. Nearby trees bent backward under the blast, creaking under the strain.

Green energy shot skyward, forming a pillar of light visible against the night!

Everyone's eyes widened.

But it wasn't just the sheer violence of that power that shocked them. It was Yongye's condition.

His body had barely changed!

His muscles weren't bulging, his veins weren't standing out, and his skin hadn't split to release blue steam.

His build was still lean, his skin unbroken. He stood inside green energy fierce enough to tear an ordinary ninja apart, looking as relaxed as if he were soaking in a hot spring.

Might Guy stood among the ANBU, his eyes nearly popping out of his head.

What happened when he opened the Seventh Gate?

His muscles tore, his skin bled, and every inch of him felt as though it were being sliced apart!

But this Uchiha boy looked completely fine!

That was the endurance of his doubled physique. That was the protection of the Indestructible Golden Body. Even with the Seventh Gate open, Yongye had strength to spare.

He stood at the center of the storm, looked at Hiruzen Sarutobi, and spoke again, his words dripping with malice.

"Lord Hokage, my sow was squealing in the middle of the night."

"That old dog Danzo has the equipment to commit the crime—"

"So he's highly suspect!"

The entire scene seemed to freeze.

The Anbu Ninja's shoulders began to shake as they fought back laughter. One young ANBU couldn't hold it in and let out a snort, then quickly lowered his head and pretended to cough.

The Root ninja, meanwhile, turned livid. One of them cursed outright:

"Bastard! How dare you insult Lord Danzo like that!"

"Kill that son of a bitch!"

The Uchiha clansmen reacted most openly. Some doubled over laughing and slapped their thighs. Others pointed at Danzo, laughing too hard to speak. Even Uchiha Fugaku, who had kept a stern face throughout, couldn't stop the corner of his mouth from twitching.

A sow had squealed in the night. Danzo had the equipment, so he was a suspect. It was exactly the same logic Danzo had used to accuse the Uchiha.

The Fire Release had been powerful. The Uchiha could use it, so an Uchiha must have done it.

The sow had squealed at night. Danzo had the equipment, so Danzo must have done it.

Uchiha Yongye had thrown that same rotten logic back at him in the crudest, most vicious way possible.

Just then, a cold system notification sounded in Yongye's mind.

[Ding—target Shimura Danzō detected. Moderate mental break!]

[Heartbreak points threshold reached. Reward obtained: Two-Tomoe Sharingan!]

The next instant, warmth flooded Yongye's eyes.

He could clearly feel his one-Tomoe Sharingan evolving at astonishing speed. His ocular power doubled, his perception of movement sharpened, and the paths of Chakra flow became clearer than ever.

He blinked. In his crimson eyes, two Tomoe slowly revolved.

Hiruzen Sarutobi said nothing.

He stared at Yongye, his gaze turning utterly cold.

This Uchiha was too dangerous. Not because he was strong, but because he couldn't be controlled. An uncontrollable Uchiha was even more troubling than an uncontrollable Tailed Beast.

He stayed silent for a long time. When he finally spoke, his voice was low and hoarse, every word heavy with pressure.

"Uchiha Yongye—are you going to rebel and become a rogue ninja?"

Yongye looked at him with undisguised disgust, as though he were looking at a mangy dog by the roadside.

"Rebel? Become a rogue ninja?"

He shook his head, as though correcting a child who didn't know any better. "Lord Hokage, you've got it wrong. I'm not rebelling. I'm defending my lawful rights!"

Before he finished speaking, he vanished from where he stood. The next second, he appeared in front of Yamanaka Fū.

Yamanaka Fū's pupils contracted. He didn't even have time to react.

Yongye had caught him off guard and kicked him away earlier. He had only just received emergency treatment; his chest still throbbed, and his fighting strength had plummeted!

Yongye swept his leg across, his instep slamming into Yamanaka Fū's neck!

Crack!

Bone snapped. Yamanaka Fū's head tore free of his neck and flew away in a spray of blood, then rolled to a stop at Danzo's feet!

His dull gray eyes were still open, his face frozen in terror.

Dead silence fell over the crowd. Then all hell broke loose!