Senju Haruto vaguely remembered that Naruto, the protagonist of the original story, once said that a ninja could sense one another's feelings through their attacks.
He wondered if Uchiha Itachi could feel the intense will he was projecting now.
…He probably could.
Standing atop the shoulder of the towering wooden golem, Haruto looked down at Itachi, who was crouched on the ground.
A simple physical attack like that wasn't nearly enough to knock him out cold.
As Haruto expected, Itachi quickly rose to his feet, tilting his head up to meet Haruto's gaze.
But his eyes… had changed.
He had never imagined that the one to come for him would be a Wood Release clone of Senju Haruto, while the real body remained hidden somewhere unknown.
Not only that—the clone had been avoiding direct eye contact the entire time, a clear sign that Haruto knew the dangers of looking into his Sharingan.
So he came prepared, Itachi thought grimly. Only now did he realize he had completely underestimated this man.
Not only had Haruto inherited the First Hokage Hashirama Senju's legendary Wood Release, but it seemed he had also inherited that incredible tactical mind.
And judging by the earlier exchange, Haruto hadn't even gone all out yet.
"You should realize by now," Haruto finally said when Itachi remained silent, making no move to attack. "I'm not talking about some unrealistic fantasy."
"Redirecting internal conflict outward, weakening the Uchiha's strength from the outside—that's entirely feasible. Whether it's the warlike Cloud Village or the Uchiha Clan with their Sharingan…"
"…Neither comes close to even a fraction of my power."
Itachi's fists tightened at his sides as he stared at the man before him.
"You think I'm bluffing, Itachi?"
Still, Itachi said nothing.
Ever since he had discovered the clan's plan to stage a coup, the crushing pressure on his shoulders had been unlike anything he'd ever felt.
Shisui's Kotoamatsukami could have rewritten everything—but on his way back to the clan compound, he'd been ambushed by Root operatives.
Losing one eye had left Shisui powerless to change the situation, forcing him to entrust his remaining eye to Itachi before leaping into the river below.
Shisui's death had only delayed the Uchiha coup.
No one understood him. No one stood on his side.
Until today.
Senju Haruto had come—with overwhelming Wood Release power.
And in this moment… Itachi hesitated.
"Itachi, the window of weakness in the Leaf has closed. From now on, I will stand at the top."
As Haruto spoke, his hands suddenly clapped together.
An overwhelming surge of chakra erupted, forcing even Uchiha Itachi to instinctively retreat a few steps.
It wasn't just him—Kakashi, and even the Root operatives secretly observing the Uchiha, were left stunned by what they saw.
The ground began to rumble violently. Countless massive roots burst from the earth, twisting together like a tidal wave and spreading in all directions. They grew thicker and stronger with terrifying speed.
In the span of a few breaths, they formed a boundless sea of green that blotted out the sky.
Wood Release: Deep Forest Emergence!
Unlike the previous time Haruto had unleashed this technique, he had no concerns now about damaging the Hyūga compound. He pushed both the power and range to dozens of times their former level.
He could clearly see the shock on Itachi's face—mouth agape, Sharingan wide, as he turned his head in disbelief to take in the endless forest.
"There is no enemy before us," Haruto said in a low voice, the wooden golem beneath him swelling to several times its original size.
(Man, Aizen's lines really do make you sound like a badass, Haruto thought with an inward smirk.)
He folded his arms, gazing down from above.
At this moment in the ninja world, anyone witnessing this sight could only feel one thing—
Shock.
Utter, unprecedented shock.
"…This…"
Kakashi stood frozen, eyes wide. He had always thought Yamato's Wood Release was already remarkable—able to construct a three-room house in seconds at full power.
But Haruto… had conjured an entire ocean of trees without breaking a sweat.
"I've seen Yamato use the same jutsu," Kakashi muttered, swallowing hard. "But in terms of scale… this isn't even one-tenth of Haruto's."
Before today, Kakashi had believed Yamato had the largest chakra reserves of any ninja he'd met.
Yet Haruto had casually gathered more chakra in an instant than Yamato could ever muster.
And even after that massive display, his expression remained completely calm, the breeze brushing lightly across his face.
If Haruto ever decided to burn through all his chakra in one go… the result would be terrifying beyond imagination.
Kakashi drew in a sharp breath. His chakra reserves… must be a hundred times my own.
Meanwhile, the Root operatives moved quickly. They had only one thought: this information had to be delivered to Lord Danzō immediately.
The Leaf Village had just gained a God of Wood Release.
"There is no enemy before us…?" Itachi repeated in his mind, forcing himself to maintain composure even as unease gnawed at him.
The roar of the trees would already have reached the Uchiha compound—clan security would be arriving soon to investigate.
But what unnerved him most was that Haruto didn't seem to be bluffing in the slightest.
Even after such an outrageous jutsu, there was no trace of fatigue on his face.
Just how vast was this man's chakra?
Comparable… to a tailed beast?
Fire Release, shurikenjutsu—none of those standard techniques would so much as scratch him.
"Susanoo."
The word came quietly from Haruto's lips, but it was enough to make Itachi's mind reel.
How much does he know?
"…Never mind," Haruto said suddenly, shaking his head as if he'd lost interest.
"You only need to understand this—I'm the only one who can help you."
"You don't have to answer me now."
With that, Haruto vanished, leaving Itachi alone.
There was still some time before Fugaku would make the final decision to stage the coup. Haruto was certain that after witnessing his power, Itachi would know exactly what choice to make.
Besides, he had already noticed Kakashi, the Root operatives, and even the Uchiha clan members alerted by the rumbling earth.
By tomorrow, tonight's events would reach the ears of every major faction in Konoha—
Uchiha Fugaku.The Third Hokage.Shimura Danzō.
That was exactly Haruto's plan—
To make it clear to all: the Leaf's window of weakness had closed.
From this day forward, the Land of Fire would stand at the very peak of the ninja world.