Chapter 577: The Pure Eye
Land of Lightning. The battle between the 10,000-strong Kumo army and the Iwa army hadn't lasted long before Kumo suddenly collapsed.
Countless Kumo ninja fled toward Kumogakure.
Iwagakure sent 10,000 troops in a frantic pursuit.
Slow Kumo ninja were constantly being overtaken and killed by the Iwa army behind them.
In the early stages of the rout, a massive number of Chunin and Genin were slaughtered, and the Kumo numbers dropped rapidly.
Before long, the 10,000 Kumo ninja had been reduced to five or six thousand.
The missing thousands had either gotten lost, been killed, or been captured.
And the number of the remaining five or six thousand was still dropping as ninja continued to fall behind.
In this life-or-death moment, few Kumo ninja stopped to help their fallen comrades.
Secret units, special ninja tools... none of it mattered anymore.
Kumo's morale was broken!
Everyone just wanted to get back to the village. Some had lost the will to fight, while others hoped to rely on the village's defenses to make a last stand against Iwa.
However, just as these five or six thousand disorganized Kumo ninja were getting closer to the village, a massive barrage of attacks suddenly struck them from the front.
There were Fire Release, Water Release, and various single-element attacks, as well as combination ninjutsu and physical attacks like kunai, senbon, shuriken, and explosive tags.
But every single attack was a wide-range, area-of-effect jutsu.
This volley was completely unexpected. The Iwa army was clearly behind them—why were there enemies in front?
And the barrage was so dense, so massive.
The five or six thousand Kumo ninja were almost completely covered by the attack.
It was clearly organized and planned. The elemental combinations were logical, the timing perfect; everything screamed of meticulous preparation.
After just one round of attacks, Kumo's numbers were cut in half. Nearly three thousand Kumo ninja fell dead or dying on the spot.
What drove the survivors to despair was that, immediately after the attack ended, a giant demon god appeared in front of them.
The demon god took massive strides, rushing in front of them in moments, and ruthlessly swung the weapon in its hand.
The demon god's defense was astonishing. Whether it was kunai or ninjutsu, nothing the Kumo ninja threw at it had any effect.
Boom! Boom! Boom! Uchiha Izumi wielded her Susanoo's long blade, recklessly harvesting lives among the Kumo army.
After leaving the new Ninja Cat settlement, Uchiha Izumi had taken Karin and Kō to the nearest teleportation array and joined the Iwa decoy army on the coast.
She then led those 5,000 troops across the sea and into the Land of Lightning.
When she arrived, the Kumo army had just picked up Terumī Mei's group and was preparing to return to the village.
Using Karin's Kagura Mind's Eye and Kō's Byakugan, Izumi had set up an ambush on the only road back to Kumogakure.
Of course, she had encountered Kumo scouts along the way.
But with the sensory and visual prowess of her team, she had easily trapped all of them in genjutsu.
That was how the "divine soldiers from the sky" appeared before the Kumo army.
Uchiha Izumi's ambush with 5,000 Iwa troops completely extinguished the last spark of Kumo's fighting spirit.
The survivors didn't hesitate; they scattered and ran.
This time, it was every man for himself. They didn't regroup.
Many Kumo ninja decided then and there that they would not return to the village. They would rather become rogue ninja.
Even a fool knew that after losing five or six thousand troops, Kumogakure was indefensible.
More importantly, with 5,000 disciplined Iwa ninja blocking the road home, most of them wouldn't make it back anyway.
By the time Ōnoki and the main Iwa pursuit force arrived, Izumi's ambush was over.
Ōnoki estimated the corpses from the air. Kumo had lost at least another three thousand men.
And unlike the stragglers picked off during the chase, these three thousand were elites.
Only about two thousand Kumo ninja had escaped. Scattered across the Land of Lightning, demoralized and disorganized, they could no longer cause any trouble.
The Kumo army was routed and scattered. Kumogakure was practically defenseless.
Ōnoki didn't hesitate. He left half of the 10,000 pursuit troops to clean up the battlefield.
The rest, along with Izumi's 5,000 troops, marched straight for Kumogakure.
The subsequent battle had no surprises.
Killer B was nowhere to be found. He hadn't ambushed the injured Kawakita, hadn't reinforced the routed army, and hadn't returned to the village.
So, Iwa took Kumogakure with ease.
However, the few remaining combat ninja in the village showed shocking resolve.
Using the brief time Iwa was stalled by the village's defensive barrier, they destroyed almost all of the village's research facilities and data.
Even the non-combat civilian officials chose to die with the others.
Aside from things that couldn't be blown up and a large number of civilians, Ōnoki and his forces gained almost nothing of value.
After tallying the loot, Ōnoki's face was extremely ugly.
Mobilizing 20,000 troops for an expedition to the Land of Lightning had been expensive.
Their biggest source of compensation was supposed to be Kumo's decades of accumulated wealth.
Unlike Konoha, which had suffered multiple chaotic events, or Kiri, which had been ruled by an outsider, Kumo's wealth had been well-preserved.
Unfortunately, most of it had been destroyed by the defenders.
Ikura walked up to Ōnoki and smiled. "Lord Third, don't be angry. At least we accomplished all our pre-war strategic goals."
"Kumo is taken. The Fifth Raikage is dead. Their main force is annihilated. One leg of the Kumo-Kiri-Konoha alliance is completely broken."
"And although Mangetsu Hōzuki survived, Nagi Minazuki died in battle."
"Plus the massive casualties we inflicted on Kiri earlier... the goal of weakening Kiri has also been achieved."
"In the coming standoff, we hold the absolute advantage."
"If Ishiro has some pleasant surprises on his end, there will be no obstacles left to unifying the shinobi world."
Ōnoki nodded, his expression softening. "How is Kawakita?"
"I just contacted them. He's out of danger, but he needs rest," Ikura said. "Surviving a hit from the Raikage wasn't easy. He'll be out of action for a long time."
Ōnoki nodded. "The fighting is over. Quickly arrange our defenses. Send the ninja who need to return to their branches back."
"Stabilize the situation. Digesting a country as large as the Land of Lightning won't be easy."
Ikura nodded. "I've already arranged it. Most of the army will use the teleportation array in the Land of Moon to return to their branches."
"We'll abandon Kumogakure itself. It's too big, and the location isn't suitable for us. I plan to build a new Land of Lightning branch further south."
"Mm." Ōnoki nodded. He trusted Ikura's judgment on these matters.
As they spoke, a ninja approached to report.
"Lord Third, Lord Ikura, the Tsuchikage has sent someone."
Ōnoki and Ikura's eyes lit up. Is Ishiro finished on his end too? They quickly called the person in.
It was Akino Atsumi. After leaving Konoha, Ishiro's group had used her Flying Thunder God to quickly return to Iwagakure.
Upon arrival, Ishiro immediately sent her to Ōnoki.
Seeing them, Akino spoke before they could ask. "Lord Third, Lord Ikura, where is Chiga?"
"Sensei has an important mission for her."
Ōnoki and Ikura exchanged a look, suppressing their desire to ask about Konoha.
They both knew Chiga's ability. If Ishiro needed her urgently, it was important.
Is he tracking another enemy?
Led by Ōnoki and Ikura, Akino quickly found Chiga in the temporary command center.
Akino took out Hiashi Hyūga's leg and said quickly, "Chiga, locate this person immediately."
Chiga nodded, took some blood from the leg, and swallowed it.
A few seconds later, she opened her eyes. "Locked on."
Akino breathed a sigh of relief. She explained to the group, "This is the leg of Hiashi Hyūga, the head of the Hyūga clan. He was taken to Ryūchi Cave by Orochimaru. Chiga is now locating Ryūchi Cave."
"Sensei wants you to remember this location."
"Ryūchi Cave?!" Ōnoki and Ikura exclaimed in unison.
They hadn't expected Ishiro to be tracking that.
Ikura asked quickly, "Akino, is Ishiro planning to attack Ryūchi Cave?"
Ikura was very wary of the Three Great Sage Regions. No one knew how deep their foundations went after a thousand years. He didn't dare imagine what unknown methods they might have.
Akino shook her head. "No. Sensei said he's just preparing. Knowing the location early might be useful later."
Ikura relaxed. He was afraid Ishiro was going to start another war immediately.
Only then did Ōnoki and Ikura have time to ask Akino what had happened in Konoha.
Akino recounted everything she had seen.
Meanwhile, Ishiro was in Katsumata and Natsuki's lab in Iwagakure.
He had one important task left: collecting Fugaku Uchiha's soul.
Orochimaru hadn't summoned the Second Hokage, Tobirama Senju, because Ishiro had sealed his soul in the Reaper Death Mask.
Now, Ishiro was going to do it again.
He had set up the soul-sealing barrier and was waiting for Orochimaru to release the Edo Tensei.
Orochimaru didn't disappoint. After returning to Ryūchi Cave, he likely dealt with Hiashi first, but not long after, he released the jutsu.
And so, without any mishaps, Ishiro successfully sealed Fugaku Uchiha's soul into a Reaper Death Mask, just as he had done before.
Three days after the "Konoha Crush Plan."
Konoha, now restored to calm, held a funeral.
Konoha's losses were severe. Although they hadn't engaged in massive army battles like Kiri and Kumo, their casualties were likely higher than Kiri's.
They had been bombed twice by Kanako, causing the heaviest losses.
Beyond that, Danzō's Edo Tensei attack, the Sky Ninja invasion, and Sora's rampage had all inflicted significant casualties.
Ironically, the three "villains"—Orochimaru, Danzō himself, and Ishiro—hadn't caused much large-scale damage personally.
So, many new names were added to the Memorial Stone.
Notably, for some reason, Kakashi had added Hiashi Hyūga's name to the stone as well, despite his uncertain fate.
Aside from the mass casualties, the biggest losses were Hiruzen Sarutobi and Might Guy.
Especially Guy. To Kakashi, ten Hiruzens weren't worth one Guy.
Not just because Guy was his best friend, but because Kakashi believed Guy's potential was limitless.
Although it was painful to measure Guy's value by the Eight Gates, Kakashi couldn't help but wonder: if Guy had reached his peak and opened the Gate of Death, could he have killed Ishiro, the source of all this chaos?
Kakashi had never expected to lose Guy in a random event like the "Konoha Crush Plan."
Even more unacceptable was that Guy had died for a few Jinchūriki.
Ten years ago, Jinchūriki were strategic weapons. But in the current era, Kage-level shinobi were popping up everywhere, and the value of Jinchūriki had dropped.
This was why Nagi Minazuki had been willing to die to save Mangetsu Hōzuki.
To lose Guy for a few Jinchūriki... Kakashi's heart bled.
After the others left, Kakashi stood before Guy's grave, refusing to leave.
"Guy... you won this time. We competed ninety-one times. You won forty-six. So... in the end... you won."
Thinking back on their contests, Kakashi felt worse. I shouldn't have brushed him off with rock-paper-scissors when he asked to spar.
"A fake Nine-Tails Jinchūriki, our own Jinchūriki, a Suna Jinchūriki, a Sky Ninja remnant, and Orochimaru."
Kakashi listed the people Guy had attacked.
None of them felt worth it. To put them on Guy's record felt like an insult.
The only one worth mentioning was Orochimaru, and he hadn't even died.
Kakashi felt Guy should have unleashed the Gate of Death in a final battle against Iwa, taking Ishiro or five of Iwa's Kage with him.
That would have been a fitting end.
"Konoha Crush Plan... Danzō!" Kakashi had learned the name of the operation from the surviving Sky Ninja.
He also knew Ishiro had orchestrated it.
But Ishiro was an enemy; Kakashi wasn't surprised by his tactics.
He was furious at Danzō. A man of Konoha, a former Hokage... how could he do this?
Because of this, Kakashi felt no sadness for Hiruzen's death. He even felt a grim satisfaction.
Danzō was Hiruzen's creation. Hiruzen should pay for his mistakes.
Kakashi felt it wasn't worth it for so many Konoha ninja to die for Hiruzen's errors.
A long time later, Kakashi turned to head back to the Hokage tower. There was much work to be done.
But as he turned, he saw another lonely figure in the distance.
He knew her. She was one of his disciples. One of the three students he led personally.
It was Hinata Hyūga. She was standing before the Memorial Stone, just as he had been.
Kakashi paused, remembering he had publicly announced Hiashi's death.
Hinata must not know Hiashi was taken by Orochimaru. She must think he was truly dead.
Thinking of her life, Kakashi felt pity.
She was the eldest daughter of the number one clan, yet she had watched her clan be pulled down from its peak by her own teacher.
Now her father was dead. Even though he had always been dissatisfied with her, she still loved and respected him.
And most importantly, she was of the Main House.
The Hyūga's cruel system meant the few Main House members had no friends within the clan.
Now, the Main House consisted only of Hinata and her newly-enrolled sister, Hanabi.
And Hinata clearly hadn't inherited the Caged Bird seal.
How would she live among the Branch families now?
Kakashi couldn't imagine what he would do in her place, let alone the timid Hinata.
He wanted to comfort her, but he looked at the sky and realized he had been there too long.
I'll talk to her in a few days, he told himself. I'll tell her the truth about her father then.
He turned and left for the tower.
What Kakashi didn't know was that in the two days since Hiashi's disappearance, the Hyūga clan had already seen several shocking conflicts.
Not every Branch member hated the Main House, but none of them liked them. And there were plenty of ninja with... character flaws.
On the day Hiashi vanished, Branch ninja came to test the sisters, to see if they knew the Caged Bird seal.
Hinata and Hanabi were no match for elites.
The result was inspiring: the sisters didn't know the seal.
Then, a mob of Branch ninja stormed Hinata's home. They burned everything belonging to the Main House, including the house itself.
Still worried, they had kunoichi strip the sisters and burn their clothes.
They weren't trying to take revenge; they were terrified that Hiashi had left the Caged Bird instructions somewhere. They feared Hinata would learn it and enslave them again.
Fortunately, they still had some reason. Perhaps they didn't want to attack village ninja, or perhaps they feared Hinata's status as the Hokage's disciple.
They gave the sisters a set of clothes and left them to fend for themselves.
The adults might have been rational enough to spare them, but the children were not.
Previously, they had to bow to the sisters. Now, the sisters had fallen.
They felt they had to pay back the grievances of the past.
In the last two days, Hinata had been challenged dozens of times by her peers.
She didn't want to fight, but they bullied Hanabi. So Hinata fought.
Her clothes covered a body covered in bruises.
Long after Kakashi left, Hinata left the memorial. She returned to her temporary home.
Her home was next to the ruins of her old house—a tent.
Many buildings had been destroyed, so the village had issued tents to the homeless.
When Hinata arrived, she saw a dozen Branch children bullying her sister.
Hanabi was strong-willed, unlike Hinata. When they insulted her, she fought back.
For the past two days, Hinata had protected her. But today, Hinata wasn't there, so they took it out on Hanabi.
"Hanabi!" Hinata cried, running toward them.
One of the children, seeing Hinata, panicked and pushed Hanabi too hard.
Smack!
Young Hanabi was sent flying several meters.
Seeing her little sister fly through the air, landing motionless, Hinata's mind went blank.
"HANABI!" she screamed.
The children, realizing they were in trouble, scattered and ran.
So none of them saw that as Hinata reached Hanabi, her eyes had turned a pale blue.
(End of Chapter)
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