At the ward entrance, the standoff between Tsunade and Mori no Suke was like a bowstring stretched taut. The Hokage's authority clashed fiercely with the unyielding orders of the village leadership, and the pressure of their chakra seemed to freeze the air in the corridor.
"Lady Tsunade, please put the village's interests first!" Mori no Suke refused to yield an inch. Behind him, the special operations team had their hands on their Ninja Tool Pouches, while the Research Division scholars nervously adjusted the sealing instruments in their hands, aiming them straight into the ward.
"The village's interests? Forcibly taking away a critically ill patient who isn't out of danger and an extremely dangerous Sealed Object without my permission-that's what you call the village's interests?" Tsunade laughed in fury, the markings of the Strength of a Hundred Technique faintly emerging. "Stand down immediately! Otherwise, don't blame me for what happens next!"
Kakashi stood just behind Tsunade to one side, his Sharingan coldly fixed on Mori no Suke as Lightning Release chakra silently gathered in his palm. Conflict seemed inevitable.
Yet, at that critical moment-
Inside the ward, something suddenly changed!
Sasuke Uchiha, who had been standing rigid and motionless, began to tremble violently. The brutal truth Itachi had spoken aloud was like the cruelest curse, shattering the foundation that had sustained Sasuke for years. His hatred had lost its target, his revenge had become a joke, and an immense sense of emptiness and absurdity swallowed his reason like a tsunami.
"AAAAAH!!!"
He suddenly threw back his head and unleashed an inhuman roar filled with pain and despair! The chakra within him ran wild as never before, utterly beyond his control! Cold, savage chakra brimming with destruction burst from every pore like black flames, instantly filling the entire ward!
More terrifying still,