Uchiha Gen'yō Ye's icy voice, filled with extreme mockery, was like a final verdict, clearly echoing between heaven and earth through the Divine Kingdom's amplification system, and also slamming into the heart of the Battle Demon God, who had completely frozen in place.
"Well..."
On the aged face on the demon's chest, all the madness, all the determination, all the tragedy faded away at this moment, leaving only an endless emptiness and grayness as if the soul had been completely drained.
He risked everything, burned his soul, and sacrificed his lifelong friend. The strongest and final radiance he unleashed was not even a decent firework in the other's eyes.
It was just a somewhat noisy circus act.
He lost.
They lost from the very beginning.
From the moment he chose to believe in that false lie called " The Will of Fire," from the moment he chose to sacrifice his own people for that ridiculous "balance," he had already lost miserably.
"Puff--"
An invisible force seemed to pierce his soul, and the enormous body of the Battle Demon God could no longer be maintained.
The dark gold armor, which combined the flesh and blood of the Enma with the soul of Sarutobi, began to peel away inch by inch and shatter into pieces like weathered sandstone, turning into countless golden specks of light that dissipated into the air.
In just a few seconds, the once invincible, overwhelming fifty-meter-tall demon god completely disintegrated.
Only an old, frail figure, covered in the cracks characteristic of Impure World Reincarnation, remained, falling helplessly from mid-air like a puppet with its strings cut, crashing with a "thud" onto the ruins that symbolized the highest power in Konoha, and also the glory and sins of his life.
Hiruzen Sarutobi.
He is not dead yet.
Supported by the infinite Chakra of the Impure World Reincarnation, even if his soul was completely destroyed, his "vessel" still existed.
"Cough... cough cough..."
He struggled to lift his head from the ground, his cloudy eyes fixed on the huge curtain of light in the sky, on the god who had been lazily reclining on his throne the whole time.
A hoarse sound, like that of a broken bellows, came from his throat.
"Kill... kill me..."
His only wish now is to have a quick and decisive end to things.
He could no longer endure this endless humiliation of having his soul repeatedly crushed and his dignity utterly trampled upon.
"Kill you?"
On his throne, Uchiha Gen'yō seemed to have heard the funniest joke.
He slowly and with great interest straightened up.
" Teacher Sarutobi, you seem to have made a mistake."
"I never intended for you to die so easily from the beginning."
"Death is a relief for you, a blessing."
"And what I dislike doing most is repaying kindness with enmity."
Uchiha Gen'yō's voice turned incredibly cold, filled with a chilling malice.
"You personally orchestrated the massacre of our Uchiha, wiping our entire race from this world."
"In return, I will naturally let you witness it with your own eyes--"
"How did I erase everything you protected your whole life, bit by bit, cleanly and completely, from this world!"
The moment he finished speaking, Uchiha Gen'yō slowly raised his hand.
" Kamui - Willpower Deprivation."
Buzz--!
An invisible force of law from a higher dimension descended instantly, precisely enveloping Hiruzen Sarutobi's battered body!
"Ughh...
Hiruzen Sarutobi suddenly let out a scream a hundred times more shrill than ever before!
That's not physical pain!
Rather, it is a more fundamental, terrifying pain of existence being denied!
He could feel it clearly!
Memories of the " Will of Fire " in his mind! Every moment he spent with the First and Second Hokage! Every difficult choice he made to protect the village! The wisdom of the " Professor of Ninjutsu " he was so proud of!
Everything!
All of them were forcibly and brutally extracted, shattered, and annihilated from his soul under that irresistible force of law!
He's like a formatted hard drive!
All his "past," all his "beliefs," and all his "enlightenment" were completely wiped out in this moment!
He couldn't even remember why he was standing there!
He couldn't even remember who he was!
All that remained for him was the purest biological instinct called " Hiruzen Sarutobi " and the most primal fear of death!
"No, don't..."
He stared in horror at his own hands, which were so unfamiliar.
But this is not the end!
"Did you see that? Hiruzen Sarutobi."
Uchiha Gen'yō's voice, like a devil's whisper, rang in his ears.
"This is the will you've been upholding? It's utterly worthless."
"Next, it's your turn to protect the village."
Uchiha Gen'yō slowly turned his gaze to the ruins of Konoha beneath his feet.
He extended his other hand.
" Kamui Might - Dust to Dust, Ashes to Ashes."
Rumble rumble rumble rumble--!!!!
The entire Konoha was in ruins, the land that had witnessed countless ninjas' laughter and tears, and at this moment, it began to decompose violently and irreversibly!
Those broken walls and ruins, those shattered streets, those lands stained with blood, even that huge Hokage Rock that symbolizes the glory of the Hokage!
Under an invisible force, they were all broken down into the most basic, primordial sand and dust!
In just a few dozen seconds, the entire Konoha, along with its foundation, sank hundreds of meters into thin air!
Instead, there is a vast, boundless desert that seems to have existed there since time immemorial!
Konoha Ninja Village )
This strongest ninja village, which had stood at the pinnacle of the Shinobi World for decades, was completely wiped off the map physically at this moment!
Hiruzen Sarutobi stared blankly at all of this.
His mind went blank.
He didn't know where he was, but he could feel excruciating pain emanating from the depths of his soul!
It felt as if the most important thing in my life had been cruelly taken away from me!
"And then, there's the 'jade' you've been protecting."
Uchiha Gen'yō's voice was filled with the feeling of final judgment.
His gaze fell upon the "villagers" within the Land of Fire, who were still trembling in their shelters, watching everything through the light screen.
" Kamui: Memory Alteration."
Buzz--!
Another invisible force of law spread like ripples throughout the Land of Fire!
In the minds of all civilians, memories of " Konoha Ninja Village," " The Will of Fire," and " Hiruzen Sarutobi " were forcibly replaced, modified, and overwritten at this moment!
In their new memory, there has always been only one supreme name that rules this land—
Uchiha!
In the end, it's yourself.
Uchiha Gen'yō withdrew his hand, his cold golden eyes refocusing on the aged figure that had completely lost its soul.
He slowly snapped his fingers.
"Snap."
That "immortal body" formed from Impure World Reincarnation, possessing infinite Chakra, shattered and dissipated silently like Utakata being popped with a soft sound, turning into dust that filled the sky and completely returning to the Pure Land.
However, Hiruzen Sarutobi's soul did not dissipate.
He was bound to the spot by an invisible force, turning into a transparent spirit that could only be seen by a very few people with special Dōjutsu.
He was stripped of everything, leaving only his last vestiges of consciousness.
Uchiha Gen'yō wanted him to use his last bit of consciousness to witness the birth of a new era!
Just then, Hiruzen Sarutobi's already incredibly thin soul suddenly trembled violently!
His illusory face was once again filled with endless resentment and madness!
He used the last bit of his soul power to let out a final roar that was not human and filled with vicious curses!
" Uchiha Gen'yō... do you think you've won... you mortal who stole the power of the gods!"
"You have shattered the balance we have maintained for millennia... You have freed this world from its shackles!"
"Soon... soon you will find out just how terrifying you have unleashed!"
"You will awaken those sleeping, true 'gods'!"
"They will come! They will crush you like an insect!!"
"I will be waiting for you in the deepest part of the Pure Land... Hahahaha--!!"
With a final, maniacal laugh filled with ecstasy, Hiruzen Sarutobi's soul could no longer withstand the laws of this world and vanished completely in a wisp of smoke.
However, his curse, filled with ominous intent and malice, still seems to echo in everyone's hearts.
The real "god"?
Uchiha Yōko, Uchiha Itachi, and the others couldn't help but frown.
What exactly did that old man see at the last moment?
However, on the throne, Uchiha Gen'yō merely curled his lip in disdain.
"Noisy."
He slowly stood up, opened his arms, as if to embrace the whole world.
His voice, filled with supreme majesty and absolute confidence, amplified through the Divine Kingdom's loudspeaker system, addressed the entire world, the vast desert he had just created, and the hundreds of millions of his "subjects" whose memories he had altered. He issued the first and most magnificent divine decree of the new era!
The old era has come to an end.
"Now--"
Are you ready to usher in a brand new myth that belongs only to the " Uchiha "?