Kill!

Yongye did not stop.

He wove through the ranks of Root ninja like a ghost. Each flicker of movement brought a scream and a spray of blood.

One Root ninja had just finished his hand seals, but before he could breathe out his flames, Yongye appeared behind him and snapped his neck with a knife-hand strike.

Another drew a kunai to block. Yongye crushed his knee underfoot, then drove an elbow into his temple, shattering it.

A third, a fourth, a fifth...

Yongye moved too fast for ANBU to intervene, too fast for Root to form hand seals. By the time Danzo raised his cane, Yongye's foot had already slammed into his chest!

Bang!

Shimura Danzō, leader of Konoha's Root and Hokage Advisor, had been kicked square in the chest!

He flew backward like a kite with its string cut and crashed into the ground, throwing up a cloud of dust!

He struggled to rise, but agony tore through his chest. He spat blood and fragments of his organs, staining the unbandaged half of his face red!

The Root ninja finally reacted. Ninjutsu rained down on Yongye—Fire Release, Wind Release, Earth Release. Some even threw kunai bearing Explosive Tags.

Not a single attack hit him!

Yongye was too fast. With the Eight Gates Release opened to the Seventh Gate, all ordinary ninja could see of his movements was a blurred afterimage.

Before their Ninjutsu landed, he was gone; before their kunai arrived, he had appeared somewhere else.

Hiruzen Sarutobi's face darkened. He raised a hand, about to order every ANBU operative into the fight—then he saw the Uchiha.

Dozens of crimson Sharingan flared to life in the darkness!

The Uchiha clan members had found their fighting spirit again!

There was no hesitation or fear in their eyes now, only an eagerness to fight. They had not dared intervene when Danzo seized one of their own.

Now Yongye was overpowering Danzo and Root alone. If they still stood by, they did not deserve the Uchiha name.

Hiruzen Sarutobi's hand froze in midair. He knew that if ANBU and the Uchiha went to war, Konoha would run red with blood tonight!

And he and Danzo had pushed matters to this point.

"This is all a misunderstanding!" he shouted through gritted teeth. "Stop! All of you, stop!"

No one listened. Yongye kept killing, and Root's screams rose one after another.

"Guy!" Hiruzen Sarutobi barked. "Stop him!"

Might Guy did not hesitate. He flashed in front of Yongye and crossed his arms before his chest.

At the same time, a savage force erupted from within him—the Opening Gate, the Gate of Healing, the Gate of Life, the Gate of Pain, the Gate of Limit, the Gate of View, the Gate of Wonder.

All seven gates opened in succession!

Green energy surged from Guy's body. His muscles bulged and veins stood out as blue vapor and traces of blood seeped from his skin.

Pain twisted his face, but his gaze remained unwavering!

Bang!

Yongye's fist struck Guy's crossed arms with a dull, thunderous boom.

A shockwave spread outward from them, hurling dust and shattered stone into the air.

Guy stumbled back seven or eight steps before regaining his balance. His heels carved two deep trenches in the ground.

His arms trembled. Tiny blood vessels beneath his skin had begun to burst, beading his arms with blood!

Yongye stood where he was, unmoving. He bore not a scratch, and his breathing had not even changed.

His crimson Two-Tomoe Sharingan slowly turned as he regarded Guy calmly, as though looking at a worthy opponent—or a minor inconvenience.

Everyone's eyes moved between them. Both had opened seven gates, yet one was battered while the other stood at ease.

The difference was plain!

Might Guy's years of hard training were no match for the power Yongye had gained through his system!

"Konoha's Blue Beast of the Hidden Leaf," Yongye said evenly. "Not bad."

Guy gave no answer. He stared at Yongye as every muscle in his body screamed, but he did not retreat an inch.

He knew he could not stop Yongye. He would try anyway!

Because Lord Hokage had ordered it!

Yongye had made his point. He did not attack again.

His revenge was meant to be a slow, painful torment. He would make his enemies suffer, not drive them into a desperate last stand.

Yongye withdrew his fist. The green energy around him gradually subsided as he closed the Eight Gates Release one gate at a time, from the Seventh Gate back to the Opening Gate, until it faded completely.

He stood there with his arms relaxed at his sides, then turned to Hiruzen Sarutobi.

"Lord Hokage."

The aggression had left his voice. It was level, without the slightest inflection, and more chilling than any roar.

"What is the punishment for publicly framing and attacking a fellow village ninja? Have you thought of an answer, Lord Hokage?"

Hiruzen Sarutobi stared at him. Emotions chased across his wrinkled face—anger, wariness, fear, regret. Countless feelings churned in his eyes.

His fingers clenched around his pipe until his knuckles stood out.

He wanted to give the order to kill this lawless young Uchiha, but the dozens of crimson Sharingan behind Uchiha Yongye kept him from acting rashly.

For the first time, Hiruzen Sarutobi found the Hokage's supreme authority hollow and powerless before a young Uchiha who feared nothing.

He was used to Uchiha who gave way easily. One who stood his ground like this made him deeply uncomfortable!

And Uchiha Yongye simply watched him, open mockery curling his lips, as if he were watching a mangy dog eating shit by the roadside.

Ding—

A cold system notification rang clearly in Uchiha Yongye's mind.

[Target Hiruzen Sarutobi detected. His composure is moderately broken.]

[Heartbreak points threshold reached. Intermediate Mystery Box ×1 awarded. Open now?]

At the sound of the notification, the corner of Uchiha Yongye's mouth lifted almost imperceptibly.

Third Hokage, so this day has come for you too!

Before everyone's eyes, Yongye had killed five Root ninja, kicked Danzo to the ground, then left the old man speechless with a single question about the punishment for framing a fellow village ninja!

The old man known as the "Strongest Hokage" showed nothing on his face, but inside, his defenses had crumbled!

"Open it."

[Ding—Intermediate Mystery Box opened!]

[Congratulations, host! Reward obtained: Five Release: Great Combo Technique!]

In an instant, countless profound Ninjutsu principles flooded Yongye's mind.

Fire Release, Water Release, Wind Release, Earth Release, Lightning Release—five kinds of Chakra Nature Transformation and five entirely different systems of Ninjutsu were crammed into Uchiha Yongye's head at once.

These were not scattered individual techniques, but the Third Hokage Hiruzen Sarutobi's signature move: the Five Release: Great Combo Technique.

One person could unleash five different elemental techniques at once, bombarding an enormous area with water, fire, wind, earth, and lightning. Its reach and power made it devastating for clearing a battlefield.

In the Shinobi World wars, Hiruzen Sarutobi had earned his fearsome reputation as the Shinobi Hero with this very technique!

Uchiha Yongye blinked as the new Ninjutsu knowledge rapidly settled and merged in his mind.

Clear Sword Heart raced into motion, breaking down the five kinds of Chakra transformation, reconstructing them, and weaving them into a coherent whole.

Fire's scorching heat, water's flowing persistence, wind's sharp edge, earth's weight, lightning's violence—the five distinct powers coursed through his meridians in turn, orderly and without conflict.

He slowly clenched his fist and sneered inwardly.

Old man, your signature technique belongs to me now!

From now on, it will haunt that old dog Danzo and Uchiha Fugaku! I'll show them just how much Lord Hokage cares!