"Kaede Uchiha, you're truly cunning!"
A loud shout rang out as Hiruzen and Itachi arrived at the battlefield.
The two locations were only two or three hundred meters apart—a distance a Kage-level shinobi could cover in under ten seconds.
With the arrival of both sides' key figures, the fighting came to an immediate halt.
The opposing groups stood just over ten meters apart, each one eyeing the other warily.
"Hmph, since everyone's here, I'll just finish all of you together."
Kaede's lips curled up in a smile. The more people, the better.
He was going to let Hiruzen and the rest experience what it truly meant to be dominated by Kyōka Suigetsu.
But first, there was something he needed to do.
With a single thought, he took out the Hōgyoku and instantly gathered the souls of the fallen.
"This little bit is already enough to boost me quite a bit."
A blue glow enveloped Kaede's body—this time, he was going to enhance his spiritual power.
The last two battles had drained a significant portion of his spiritual energy.
If he wanted to cast Kyōka Suigetsu on such a large group at once, he needed more reserves.
Though the Hōgyoku could evolve his abilities to their limit or even trigger emergency evolutions in times of crisis…
As someone familiar with the plot, Kaede wasn't going to recklessly put himself in danger.
This method of killing while growing stronger suited him far more.
"Not good! Who knows what Kaede is doing now, we must stop him!"
Hiruzen might not have understood what Kaede was doing, but that didn't stop him from issuing the order.
At his command, the Anbu and Root forces immediately launched their assault.
A rain of kunai and shuriken, some tagged with explosive seals, came flying toward Kaede's position.
Naoto roared, "Protect Kaede-sama!"
Layers of earthen walls rose up in front of Kaede, intercepting the barrage of projectiles.
But Hiruzen and Itachi weren't about to just stand by and watch.
Hiruzen swung his Adamantine Staff, shattering the stone walls in an instant and charged at Kaede with unstoppable force.
Itachi didn't fall behind, instantly activating the first form of his Susanoo and hurling a punch toward Kaede.
They were determined to finish him off right there and then!
Naoto and the rest of the clan burned with fury when they saw this.
But when they laid eyes on Itachi's intimidating Susanoo, their pupils shrank.
This was the legendary power of the Uchiha, one that existed only in myth!
That a traitor like Itachi had learned to wield it… the heavens must be blind!
But faced with Itachi's Susanoo and Hiruzen's staff, they had no way of stopping them head-on.
Just as Naoto was about to order a desperate sacrifice to protect Kaede—
Kaede moved!
His own blue Susanoo snapped into its first form in an instant, and with one palm, he sent Hiruzen flying.
Then his Susanoo clashed directly with Itachi's!
Even while evolving, Kaede hadn't lost control of the outside world.
Both of their Susanoo were in their initial forms, and after a brief clash, they each retracted their arms.
The Anbu members—many of whom had never even heard of Susanoo—were utterly stunned by this terrifying clash of power.
"So this… this is the true power of the Uchiha?"
"It's horrifying… no wonder they were one of Konoha's founding clans."
"I used to think stories about the Uchiha suppressing tailed beasts were exaggerations. Now I know it's just that I was too weak…"
"Is this level of power even human?"
…
Naoto and the others finally breathed a sigh of relief seeing that Kaede was unharmed.
Then came a surge of pride!
This was the power of their Uchiha clan—the strength of the mightiest clan in the ninja world!
Even if they couldn't stand Itachi, his blood was still Uchiha.
At that moment, Kaede's evolution was complete.
The blue light dissipated, and he stowed away the Hōgyoku.
"All right… now we can have some real fun."
Instantly, Hiruzen and Itachi tensed up.
They had no idea what Kaede had just done, but given his confidence, it might be something catastrophic.
Under everyone's nervous gazes, Kaede slowly raised Kyōka Suigetsu.
Itachi's brow furrowed slightly.
Why did this feel so familiar?
Then it hit him—he'd seen this before!
And he remembered exactly what had happened afterward.
Itachi shouted in panic, "Don't look at his sword!"
But it was already too late!
"Shatter—Kyōka Suigetsu!"
Itachi's face turned deathly pale.
Hiruzen looked around at the unchanged surroundings and frowned.
"Does this technique… have some kind of trick to it?"
Itachi said gravely, "The last time I saw him do that, it was when Father, Danzo, and I attacked him together."
"After that, you saw it—Danzo couldn't land a hit, and Father mistook me for Kaede!"
"We're… already under the technique!"
Hiruzen's expression changed dramatically.
He had just cast a genjutsu strong enough to fool even Mangekyō users? That easily?
"Ah!"
"What are you doing?!"
"Stop! No—!"
Before Hiruzen could even turn to warn his subordinates, a series of agonized screams erupted behind him.
The Anbu and Root… had begun killing each other!
In the blink of an eye, over a dozen were dead—cut down by their own teammates.
Dozens more were injured.
Hiruzen's pupils shrank at the sight.
"This… what terrifying genjutsu!"
Itachi said sternly, "Be careful from now on."
"The Kaede you see may just be his illusion… it could even be me, or one of the Anbu!"
"This doesn't feel like genjutsu that targets chakra. It feels like it acts directly on the soul!"
Itachi, one of the greatest genjutsu masters, had quickly grasped the nature of Kyōka Suigetsu.
But… even he couldn't break it.
His words reached the increasingly paranoid Root and Anbu.
They immediately scattered, warily eyeing even their own comrades.
In an instant, Hiruzen's forces were thrown into complete chaos.
Naoto and the Uchiha couldn't help but burst into mocking laughter.
"Bwahahaha! These are Konoha's elite Anbu? What a joke!"
"Tch tch… they can't even trust their own teammates. Pathetic!"
"One technique from Kaede and you're all done for? Truly worthless!"
"You really thought you could exterminate the Uchiha? Go home and sleep it off!"
…
At that moment, not just Hiruzen and Itachi, but the faces behind every Anbu mask darkened with shame.
If word of this got out, their reputations would be ruined.
The entire Anbu, taken out by a single technique!
But no matter how furious they felt, none dared act rashly.
Kaede sneered and waved his arm.
"Kill them all!"
With that, Naoto and the others charged forward!
Like wolves descending upon sheep, they began slaughtering the Anbu and Root operatives.
Kaede supported from behind, manipulating the five senses of the enemy through Kyōka Suigetsu.
When they struck, all they hit were phantom Uchiha clones.
But when the Uchiha struck, their blades landed with deadly force.
Aside from a handful of experienced jōnin who narrowly dodged attacks through pure instinct…
The rest were quickly cut down in droves.
Hiruzen watched the slaughter with unbearable pain.
This had been his most elite fighting force—dead, before they'd even accomplished anything.
Damn you, Kaede Uchiha!
…
(End of Chapter)
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