266-270

Chapter 266: Interlude – The Fall of Hell!

As a group of people who weren’t even supposed to survive to see the start of the original story stood by his side,

Shinji seemed to sense something. With great effort, he lifted his head.

What he saw was an old man, frail and resolute, stepping forward with a drawn blade to shield him.

"Great Elder..."

Shinji froze, an inexplicable wave of panic surging through his heart.

Without turning his head, Uchiha Setsuna suppressed his exhaustion and spoke calmly:

"Shinji,"

"You’ve already done more than enough."

"Wait..." Shinji couldn’t make out what the elder was saying, but he gritted his teeth slightly, staring at the old man in front of him, his eyes widening uncontrollably.

He awakened the Mangekyō Sharingan but had forgotten its unique ability, Amatsuno Jōritsu. Furthermore, having used Izanagi, one of his eyes was permanently blind.

Uchiha Setsuna couldn’t summon the legendary third force, Susanoo, not even in its skeletal form.

Even though the Mangekyō Sharingan enhanced his genjutsu, chakra reserves, and perception, it merely pushed him to the threshold of Kage-level. Even against a formidable opponent like Kakuzu, he struggled.

Yet this old man now stood before him, facing the pinnacle of Kage power—the Third Raikage.

The only technique left to him was that one.

"Great Elder, you..." Shinji wanted to persuade him,

**Just leave me.

Go.

If you wait a little longer, someone will come to save you all.**

But Uchiha Setsuna interrupted without looking back,

"Do you remember the words I spoke to you in the volcanic caves?"

"I said—"

"Your will is steadfast, your vision long-reaching. Compared to someone as mediocre as me, you are far more likely to reach the other shore, far more capable of bearing the clan’s future. You, above all, deserve to survive."

"And now, you’ve already proven you can do it."

"And the last thing I want to teach you is this—"

Uchiha Setsuna took a deep breath. His lone eye locked onto the Third Raikage. Gripping the blade tightly, he declared with determination:

"True victory is not defeating the strong. It is protecting what is precious to you until the very end."

"This is victory!"

As his words fell, flames and thunder roared simultaneously!

Blazing flames illuminated the night sky as Uchiha Setsuna ignited his heart and the blade in his hand.

*Fire Release: Chakra Mode, activate!*

He stepped forward, raised the blade to his chest, and thrust fiercely!

Boom!  

In an instant, the long blade transformed into a massive, hammer-like flaming sword. It extended wildly, aiming directly at the Third Raikage, who was charging forward with his Hell Stab: One-Finger Nukite!

During this clash, Uchiha Setsuna’s sword melted away. He immediately formed hand seals with both hands at lightning speed:

Hare → Goat → Boar!  

*Forbidden Technique: Izanagi, activate!*

Fire Release: Chakra Mode could unleash Kage-level power from an ordinary body, but it wasn’t enough to defeat a Kage. At its core, it was a forbidden technique that exchanged life for offensive strength, with clear limits.

Shinji had just demonstrated these limits.

The Raikage had obliterated the technique with only his Hell Stab: Two-Finger Nukite, enhanced by his signature Black Lightning.

Now, against the even more devastating One-Finger Nukite, Uchiha Setsuna’s flaming sword was pierced and shattered in an instant. It disintegrated into four streams of fire that streaked past the Raikage.

Raikage Ei barely flinched, his momentum only slightly slowed, as he charged forward again!

Thud!  

The lightning gathered at his fingertips pierced through Uchiha Setsuna’s chest in an instant!

Seeing this, even though Shinji knew the old man had activated Izanagi in advance and wouldn’t die from this blow, he couldn’t help clenching his fists tightly.

At that moment,

Uchiha Setsuna fixed his lone eye on the Raikage at point-blank range, his expression fierce and cold.

"Now!"

"Do it!"

The next instant,

using the moment he bought with his own flesh and blood, the Konoha ninja nearby launched their attacks without hesitation!

*"Eight Trigrams Vacuum Wall Palm!"*

Two Hyūga clan members simultaneously performed the Eight Trigrams Vacuum Palm, combining their chakra into a massive barrier capable of repelling even the Ten-Tails’ attacks.

The powerful air blast struck the Raikage, halting his charge again!

Immediately after,

Konoha ninja clad in flak jackets with black undershirts leaped into action.

*"Eight Trigrams: Mountain Crusher!"*

*"Konoha Dragon God!"*

*"Secret Technique: Bug Swamp!"*

*"Secret Technique: Bug Spear!"*

In an instant, Hyūga Hizashi led the charge with his Eight Trigrams Mountain Crusher. Using chakra, he unleashed a concentrated laser-like beam that struck the Raikage square in the chest.

"What is this? A pressure point strike? Gentle Fist?"

The Raikage was momentarily stunned. The blow penetrated his Lightning Armor, directly affecting his body. It struck the Tianchi acupoint near the left side of his chest, disrupting the armor in that area and significantly weakening its strength.

Next, Aburame Ryōma’s long-prepared Bug Swamp entangled the Raikage’s limbs tightly.

Finally, the Konoha Dragon God, delivered by Chen-sensei’s spinning kick, slammed into the weakened Lightning Armor on the Raikage’s chest!

The lightning shattered explosively, leaving a temporary gap in the Raikage’s chest armor.

---

"Make sure to hit the target!!"

"Go, my insects!"

Shino Aburame gritted his teeth, planted firmly on the ground, and formed the ‘Ram’ hand sign. With his nano-sized venomous insects, he created his secret technique: Insect Lance.

The Insect Lance, like a spiraling drill, pierced straight through Uchiha Setsuna's chest. Without losing momentum, it shot toward the heart of the Third Raikage!

The Third Raikage, A, narrowed his eyes as his heart suddenly skipped a beat, a heavy sense of impending danger rising within him!

This combination attack was executed too quickly, too precisely, clearly premeditated.

While he had been locked in combat with Shinji, this group had clearly been preparing, formulating a strategy capable of threatening even him!

However—

"Lightning Style: Black Panther Charge!"

A roared furiously as black panther-shaped lightning streaks erupted across his body, chaotic and menacing.

This was a transformation of lightning nature chakra at its peak—a technique reminiscent of the future Sixth Hokage Kakashi’s Purple Lightning, developed after losing his Sharingan. Its power far surpassed standard Lightning Style techniques.

In an instant, the black lightning spread indiscriminately, obliterating the Insect Lance as it neared the vulnerable spot on A’s Lightning Armor, scattering it into fine dust!

The attacking Leaf Shinobi were also blasted away in this moment, their bodies flung back violently!

However—

At that precise moment, the seemingly lifeless form of Uchiha Setsuna, impaled through the chest by A’s finger, suddenly became intangible and disappeared on the spot.

This was the forbidden technique: Izanagi!  

At the cost of one Sharingan, this forbidden ocular jutsu allows the user to rewrite reality for a limited time, nullifying any unfavorable events while retaining beneficial ones. It renders the user invincible during its effect.

Contrary to its depiction in the anime by Danzo Shimura—where one eye equals one life—Izanagi actually provides the user with unlimited "lives" for the duration of its activation.

Now—

Uchiha Setsuna, with a stern expression, emerged from the void between illusion and reality. Moving past the pillars of black lightning, he suddenly appeared before the Third Raikage, thrusting a blazing white sword directly at A’s heart!

"He's still alive?!"

A’s pupils shrank in shock. He had no time to ponder why this old man wasn’t dead.

Clap!  

A’s thunder-clad hands snapped together, tightly gripping the blazing white sword and halting its thrust. Twisting his body, he countered with a chopping hand, severing the old man’s head in one swift strike.

But the next moment, Uchiha Setsuna vanished once more, only to reappear nearby.

However, with no other Leaf Shinobi creating opportunities for him, Uchiha Setsuna, despite his ability to revive repeatedly, could no longer land a fatal blow on the Third Raikage.

At best, he could only harass his opponent.

Yet, for Uchiha Setsuna, this was enough.

His sole objective was to prevent A from approaching Shinji until the very end.

The battlefield reached a stalemate, with the Third Raikage forced to remain cautious of the endlessly respawning Uchiha Setsuna.

After all, the blazing white sword replicated from Shinji’s technique posed a genuine threat to his strongest Lightning Armor!

At that moment, a sudden flash of blue lightning illuminated the heavens—

Followed by—

“BOOM!!!”

Thunder roared across the skies.

The thick layers of storm clouds unleashed a sudden downpour.

Large raindrops cascaded relentlessly, pelting the charred ruins below. The rain fell with a sorrowful rhythm, evoking a profound sense of melancholy.

Witnessing the unfolding events, Shinji's eyes filled with despair.

The forbidden technique Izanagi had a time limit.

For different users, the duration of invincibility varied. In the future, Danzo Shimura, who implanted ten Sharingan and had Hashirama cells, extended Izanagi to one minute per eye. Uchiha Obito managed five minutes.

But Uchiha Setsuna, lacking the power of the Senju Clan, could his Mangekyo Sharingan sustain Izanagi for long?

When the time ran out, they would still die.

And Minato's promised arrival within thirty minutes was still over ten minutes away.

All of this—

Was futile.

He couldn’t understand why this old man would go to such lengths for what seemed like a hopeless cause.

Shinji silently counted the seconds in his mind, his gaze becoming blank, his expression numb.

Watching Uchiha Setsuna charge repeatedly, only to be swatted away like a fly,

At that moment—

What rose within him was not anger, nor sadness,

But despair.

An all-encompassing despair, cold and heavy, spreading endlessly like a suffocating fog. It left him feeling isolated, hopeless, and trapped in an empty void.

“Crack!”  

A sudden flash lit up the sky.

Pale lightning illuminated the battlefield.

Amidst the echo of thunder, the Leaf Shinobi heard the sound of approaching footsteps.

Step, step—  

Boots crushed the dust, raising faint plumes of ash.

Accompanied by a massive, fiery sword splitting the heavens,

Moonlight spilled through the breach.

The downed and battered Leaf Shinobi struggled to lift their heads—only to see—

Under the moonlight, a tall man with a Hidden Waterfall Village rogue ninja headband, a black mask, and a long black robe emerged slowly. His piercing, ghostly green eyes glowed eerily.

Seeing his appearance, everyone's hearts sank further into despair.

This man was none other than Kakuzu, the S-rank rogue ninja from Hidden Waterfall Village, once captured and imprisoned by the Uchiha clan at their camp. Known as the strongest bounty hunter in the ninja world, Kakuzu had now reappeared.

At that moment, A, who was locked in battle with Uchiha Setsuna, caught sight of the newcomer. His pupils constricted as he immediately recognized him. During the First Ninja War, the Hidden Waterfall had collaborated with the Hidden Cloud, with Kakuzu serving his village and assisting the infamous Kinkaku and Ginkaku brothers in conquering smaller nations. However, after the brothers staged a rebellion, Kakuzu slaughtered all the leaders of the Hidden Waterfall and defected, taking with him the coveted Earth Grudge Fear jutsu that even the Hidden Cloud had sought desperately.

Kakuzu became a truly formidable rogue ninja with Kage-level strength. After decades apart, fate had brought them together again—at the worst possible time for A, who was gravely injured from his fight with Uchiha Setsuna. Though confident he could still defeat Kakuzu, A knew he couldn't afford any more complications.

A furrowed his brow and locked his gaze on the approaching figure.

“Kakuzu?” he called out.

Kakuzu’s cold and indifferent eyes briefly scanned Uchiha Tsui, who lay collapsed on the ground. A sinister smile crept across his face.

As he continued to approach, he directed his first words at the Raikage in a chilling tone:

“Raikage—does the contract still stand?”

Hearing this, A’s lips twitched slightly as he recalled the details. A month and a half ago, Chiyo, an elder from the Hidden Sand, had hired Kakuzu through an underground bounty network to assist the Hidden Cloud in ambushing Konoha’s reinforcements. However, Kakuzu had been captured by the Uchiha. Yet now, seeing him in perfect condition with no injuries, A realized there was more to the story. This money-hungry rogue had likely been waiting for this exact moment to demand more payment!

Grinding his teeth in frustration, A squinted at Kakuzu while narrowly dodging another swing of Uchiha Setsuna’s massive flaming blade. He then bellowed:

“Kakuzu! I don’t need your help! Whatever the Sand paid you, I’ll match it myself. Now leave!”

“Ah, that won’t do,” Kakuzu replied, his footsteps steady as he drew closer, his voice dripping with mockery. “In our line of work, we have a rule: take the money, finish the job.”

He paused, then added in a haunting tone:

“Besides... this brat’s head is worth sixty million ryō. The bounty office promised me thirty million. Add that to this job, and we’re looking at ninety million. Quite a bit more than your sixty, wouldn’t you say?”

Kakuzu’s smile grew sharper. “Now, let me think... If I were to flee with this brat and offer him back to the Uchiha, how much would they pay me? Could it be... more than ninety million?”

A’s face darkened as he understood the implications. This bounty hunter, with no sense of loyalty, might very well act on such thoughts. Coldly, A shot back:

“If you value your life, try it.”

Faced with this threat, Kakuzu narrowed his eyes, seemingly weighing his options. After a brief silence, he spoke with a soft chuckle:

“Raikage, you must be joking. I’d never do something so dishonorable.”

Then, his tone shifted to one of icy calculation.

“But I can help you kill this brat. Once the job’s done, I’ll take the sixty million from the bounty office, thirty million from the Sand, and your sixty million.”

“All of it.”

He let the words hang in the air, eyes glinting ominously as he added:

“Otherwise…”

A gritted his teeth in frustration, letting out a low growl but offering no further objections.

Having secured the deal, Kakuzu’s lips curled into a faint smile. Without hesitation, he leapt into action.

The Konoha ninja, watching in horror, were powerless to intervene as Kakuzu dashed forward. The ground trembled under his rapid, thunderous steps, shaking Uchiha Tsui awake. He instinctively looked up just as the timer in his mind reached three minutes. What he saw next chilled him to the core.

Uchiha Setsuna, wielding a massive, flaming sword that seemed to touch the heavens, suddenly faltered. The Sharingan in his crimson eyes twisted and faded into a hollow white void. A sharp crack, like the snapping of a taut string, echoed through the battlefield.

Setsuna fell. Like a bird with broken wings or a hawk plunging from the sky, he plummeted to the ground—only to be caught by the iron grip of the Third Raikage.

Uchiha Tsui gasped, his mouth trembling. Warm, metallic-tasting tears trickled from his eyes, dripping to the ground below. His hearing dulled, his vision blurred, and a searing pain twisted his features into a mask of agony. His throat burned as though filled with smoke, and his head throbbed, his veins bulging from the strain.

Then, without warning, his dark, chakra-deprived eyes flared crimson once more. Two tomoe within his pupils spun wildly, emanating an almost otherworldly surge of energy.

Yet just as this newfound power began to swell—

A single hand suddenly grabbed Shinji’s head and lifted him off the ground!

In an instant, Shinji was forced to clearly see the owner of the hand—

Kakuzu!

Shinji froze for a moment, but before he could react, he saw Kakuzu's other hand rapidly approaching!

Squish!  

Blood sprayed everywhere!

Kakuzu’s thumb and forefinger pierced into Shinji’s eye socket. His diamond-hard fingers crushed the brow bone before digging deeper into the eye!

“AAAAAAHHHHHHHH!!!”

Half his vision disappeared instantly as an unbearable pain exploded in his head, forcing a harrowing scream from Shinji.

Terrified, he stared with his remaining eye at Kakuzu, who had pulled down his mask to reveal a stern and grim expression.

He watched, helplessly, as Kakuzu’s fingers pinched an eyeball, already bearing the shape of three tomoe.

In his final moments of vision, just before his right eye was gouged out, Shinji saw Kakuzu sigh.

Kakuzu gave a bitter smile, his mouth, stitched together with dark threads, moving silently as he mouthed two words:

“Jump.”

“Just like you did back then!”

And then—

Agonizing pain surged through him!

Shinji was plunged into a void of darkness and silence.

He could only feel countless sharp objects stabbing through his body, and the hand clutching his hair suddenly released its grip.

And then—

Endless, nightmarish—

The sensation of falling.

(End of Chapter)

*Chapter 267: The Incomplete Ten-Tails Body, Eternal Balance of Heaven*

"In this world, where there is light, there will always be shadows. As long as the concept of winners exists, there will also be losers. The selfish desire to maintain peace leads to war. Hatred is born from the need to protect love."

"Just like this moment!"

A piercing gaze fell upon the face of a young boy plummeting down the cliff.

His expression—twisted, grim, and terrifying—seemed bent on destroying everything in its path.

Standing on one side of the cliff, a stoic old man in a deep blue robe with long, ashen-white hair watched indifferently as events unfolded.

"Like two sides of a coin, to protect something, you must sacrifice another."

"When someone learns to love, they must also accept the risk of hatred."

"And the Uchiha... are a clan destined for vengeance."

In the night, a cold, malevolent crimson light suddenly flared.

"Shinji, your story ends here."

"And from now on—"

"You shall inherit my name, 'Uchiha Madara,' and bring true peace to this world!"

---

With the Zero-Tails ripped away, an immortal body broken, a deadly blow from the White Snake Sage tearing through his heart, and his throat pierced by his own hand, the forbidden technique Body Regeneration was no longer functional.

His body was riddled with fatal injuries!

In theory, even with the resilience of a Tailed Beast, Shinji should have been dead by now.

Yet—

Having his eyes gouged out by Kakuzu, his body pierced by countless Earth Grudge Fear tentacles, and thrown off a cliff...

Beyond the initial moment of pain, what Shinji felt instead was an incredible sensation of warmth as blood began to flow anew through his veins.

And then—

**Thump! Thump!

Thump! Thump!

Thump! Thump!**

A new heart, concealed by the Earth Grudge Fear's tentacles, was implanted into his chest.

It began to beat!

At that moment, Shinji finally understood the meaning of Kakuzu's final words to him.

Just as Shinji had once kicked Hidan off a cliff in Kakuzu’s presence,

Kakuzu, in an effort to save Shinji under those dire circumstances, resorted to this brutal method.

Kakuzu was unaware, unlike Shinji and the Konoha shinobi informed by Aburame Ryoma, that Minato Namikaze was on his way to the scene.

From Kakuzu’s perspective, with Shinji fallen, everyone present would soon be slaughtered by the Third Raikage. Even attempting to take Shinji away would likely bring death upon himself.

Thus, he could only save one person—using this cruel act.

What puzzled Shinji, however, was—

Why did Kakuzu save him?

---

At this moment, the Earth Grudge Fear’s tentacles piercing his body transformed into dense threads, binding to his wounds and stitching them closed.

Ultimately, they merged into the gaping hole in his chest, morphing and serving as flesh, blood vessels, and tissue. They carried the blood pumped by the newly implanted heart throughout his body.

Amidst the silence and darkness, it was as though a light had been born!

Soon, a cascade of system notifications began to refresh before Shinji’s eyes:

*Ding!*

*By courageously defeating Yugito Nii, the Two-Tails Jinchūriki who sought to kill you, you achieved a critical reward and acquired one of her random abilities: Fire Release: Fire Mouse Orb (A, Mastery).*

*Ding!*

*By courageously facing the Two-Tails Matatabi, who underestimated you, you acquired a random ability from her: Trait: Tailed Beast Physique (S-).*

*By courageously defeating Gyūki, the Eight-Tails Beast who sought to kill you, you acquired a random ability: Trait: Tailed Beast Physique (S-).*

*Critical reward triggered!*

*The duplicate Trait: Tailed Beast Physique (S-) has been upgraded through stacking, enhancing all aspects of its effects. You obtained a higher-level trait: Ten-Tails Body (S, Incomplete, 3/10, missing six Tailed Beasts and the Demonic Statue of the Outer Path).*

*Ding!*

*By courageously defeating the Third Raikage A, who sought to kill you, you acquired a random ability: Hell Stab: Four-Finger Thrust (B, Mastery).*

*Hell Stab: Four-Finger Thrust (B, Mastery): Known as the "strongest spear," this ability evolves as the number of fingers reduces, advancing to Three-Finger Thrust (A), Two-Finger Thrust (A+), and One-Finger Thrust (S) without changing its proficiency level.*

*Your Steel Will level has increased.*

*You acquired a new special item: Earth Grudge Fear Heart (Earth). Along with it, you unlocked additional Earth-Style techniques: Earth Release: Earth Needle Javelin (B) and Earth Release: Earth Spear (B).*

*You now possess mastery over all five nature transformations, upgrading the Earth Grudge Fear Heart (Earth) to: Earth Grudge Fear Heart (Five Natures).*

*Special Item: Earth Grudge Fear Heart (Five Natures): The ultimate form of the Earth Grudge Fear Heart, unlocking the skill: Earth Grudge Fear: Five Natures Ultimate Shot! (S-).*

---

In an instant, Shinji’s skill list was flooded with new abilities:

Fire Release: Fire Mouse Orb, Hell Stab: Four-Finger Thrust, Earth Release: Earth Needle Javelin, Earth Release: Earth Spear, and Earth Grudge Fear: Five Natures Ultimate Shot.

And—

The incomplete *Ten-Tails Body*!

The moment this physique integrated with Shinji, the march of death was abruptly halted!

However, it was immediately followed by an insatiable hunger and a deep sense of emptiness!

Exhausted from endless battles, Shinji finally lost consciousness.

*Thud!*

His body hit the bottom of Hell Valley, sending up a splash of blood and dust.

At that moment,

Clang, clang—

A series of metallic sounds echoed as blades struck the ground.

Amidst the fluttering of a blue robe,

an elderly man with hair as white as ash emerged, using a scythe as a makeshift cane. He stepped out from the cliff's edge and approached.

With his head slightly lowered,

his cold gaze landed on the shattered body of Shinji at the bottom of the valley.

“Hmph, how pathetic, kid.”

The old man let out a disdainful chuckle, raised his withered arm, and formed a single-hand seal for the "Boar" sign.

As the seal was completed, a white spore on his shoulder began to grow, swelling rapidly into a humanoid form.

This was the *Spore Technique*,

a physical clone technique unique to White Zetsu. Unlike ordinary clones, these spores do not vanish even if the original body dies. However, the clone’s death does not transmit its memories back to the original. Additionally, the technique is highly stealthy, capable of absorbing chakra from its host and transferring it to others.

“Lord Madara.”

Before the newly-formed White Zetsu could finish its greeting, a withered arm suddenly extended, gripping its throat. With a swift twist—

Crack!  

Madara Uchiha had no need for a living White Zetsu. What he required was simply the unique traits White Zetsu possessed:

A special ability known as *Impersonation Jutsu*.

After absorbing chakra, White Zetsu could transform into an exact replica of the host, mimicking their body, meridians, organs, and even chakra. To Madara Uchiha,

this was the perfect tool for the current situation.

Using White Zetsu’s tissue, he intended to repair Shinji’s body.

More importantly, Madara didn’t want White Zetsu’s original body to know about this.

After all, he had already chosen a specific candidate for his plans. Shinji was meant to serve as an even deeper contingency to ensure the success of his ultimate plan.

At this point, Madara trusted no one but himself.

He discarded the lifeless White Zetsu on the ground. Then, from beneath his robe, Madara retrieved a bottle filled with formalin.

Floating within the bottle was a pair of *Three Tomoe Sharingan*!

Next, Madara pulled down another part of his robe, revealing the pale skin on his chest.

It was the face of Hashirama Senju,

formed by grafting Hashirama’s flesh into his body during the Battle of the Valley of the End, just before Madara’s supposed death.

This face contained *Hashirama’s cells*.

By enhancing compatibility with Impersonation Jutsu, using the Three Tomoe Sharingan to activate *Izanagi* for risk mitigation, and integrating Hashirama’s cells into the body, Madara sought to cultivate Shinji into the ideal version he envisioned.

This was Madara Uchiha’s plan!

As he reached this step, Madara couldn’t help but shake his head. Glancing at the boy lying on the ground, he muttered:

“To awaken the Three Tomoe only after sacrificing that guy… Such mediocre talent.”

“Well, no matter. Once I reclaim the eyes and kill that Jashin cult brat and the girl from Kirigakure—”

“That should suffice to achieve the Mangekyo Sharingan.”

However, just as Madara approached, opened the jar, and prepared to remove the eyes and peel back Shinji’s eyelids—

His hand suddenly froze mid-air. His brow furrowed.

“Hm? This is… a Transcription Seal?!”

At that moment—

Shinji’s hollowed-out right eye abruptly glowed with a crimson light!

A phantom Mangekyo Sharingan, swirling like a vortex of space-time,

manifested in his eye socket.

Instantly, it unleashed its unique Mangekyo technique—

*Heaven’s Eternal Order*!

(End of Chapter)

*Chapter 268: Fusion of Ocular Bloodline! Rejection of Ocular Techniques!*

“This is… the Mangekyō Sharingan!”

Seeing the unexpected transformation in Shinji’s eye sockets, even someone as powerful as Uchiha Madara was momentarily taken aback.

“That kid’s eyes—I saw them being gouged out with my own eyes. Moreover, they hadn’t even evolved to the level of the Mangekyō Sharingan.”

He pondered for a moment, raising his head slightly to gaze at the mirror-like cliff face.

It was as if he saw a falcon falling from the sky—

He saw it—

The night forty-five years ago, before leaving the village. The choice that child, who once admired him, had ultimately made.

For a long while, Madara let out a sudden sigh and stopped his actions.

“That timid, conformist kid from back then… has he finally found his courage?”

Leaning on the handle of his scythe, he slowly stood up, gazing down at Shinji, who lay motionless on the ground. He gradually closed his eyes.

At that moment—

A deafening roar echoed from the top of the cliff once again!

A golden flash leaped from the edge of the cliff, a dark and furious spiraling wheel piercing the sky.

In a single strike, it shredded the endless dark clouds in the air!

The enormous full moon reappeared in the night sky.

Its descending moonlight was split in half by the shadow of the cliff.

The white line formed by the moonlight divided the two, distinct and separate.

One side shone softly on Shinji, lying on the ground, while the other side remained shrouded in the deep and dark shadows.

In the shadowy half, Uchiha Madara abruptly opened his blood-red Sharingan, the three tomoe spinning slowly. He carefully observed the boy lying on the ground.

Under the influence of the Mangekyō ability *Heavenly Constancy*, Shinji’s wounds, bloodstains, burns, and even the slit in his throat pierced by a kunai, as well as the transparent cavity in his chest wrapped in dense black threads—

At this moment—

Began to reverse and heal continuously!

*Mangekyō Sharingan Ability: Heavenly Constancy!*

A scripture once said:

> “When heaven and earth were first divided, the first divine being emerged. That god was called Heavenly Constancy, marking the beginning of time.”

Its effect is to reverse the caster’s state to thirty minutes prior, right at the moment before death, preserving only favorable outcomes for the caster while erasing any detrimental factors as if they never occurred!

This is an ocular technique manipulating time, similar to Izanagi, but fundamentally different!

First, in terms of cost, this ability surpasses Izanagi in priority. For instance, even if Izanagi had already caused blindness, this ability could consider that blindness a negative factor and revert the caster to their non-blind state thirty minutes earlier!

In simpler terms, this technique provides infinite respawn capabilities within a limited time, layered with a cooldown-refreshing buff.

When combined with forbidden techniques, it could be described as:

*Infinite Izanagi!*

It was precisely due to this ability’s god-like effect that Uchiha Setsuna was able to survive countless overwhelming battles from ancient times to now (including but not limited to the Valley of the End battle with Hashirama, chaotic fights involving dozens of Mangekyō Sharingan users, Indra’s battle against Ashura, and the Sage of Six Paths’ fight against Kaguya), until he escaped the gap between fantasy and reality.

The cost of this technique, besides the eventual blindness caused by Mangekyō use, is *forgetting.*

Additionally—

In preserving favorable outcomes for the caster, this technique possesses even more unique effects!

At this moment—

After clearly observing Shinji’s internal condition, Uchiha Madara raised an eyebrow slightly.

“Replacing false techniques with the forbidden art Earth Grievance Transformation, substituting this type of Mangekyō ability for Izanagi, and adding in factors even I couldn’t discern… this kid has developed a physique rivaling that of a White Zetsu hybrid?”

“Though still inferior to Hashirama…”

Madara exhaled slowly,

Looking at the white line of moonlight separating himself from Shinji like two worlds, a flicker of excitement appeared in his eyes.

“Still… can we continue the dance?”

“Interesting!”

After pondering for a moment, he shook his head slightly.

“However, it still lacks a bit of polish. It’s not yet enough to truly impress me or stir my expectations!”

Yet, at this moment—

“—Ouyashiro!!!”

“You beast!”

“I’ll kill you!”

A terrifying blood dragon, fifty meters tall, coiled in mid-air, descending with a roar of rage.

“—Boom!!”

Scorching geysers erupted, drowning out the massacre in the depths of Hell Valley, simultaneously overshadowing the events at the Hell Valley summit!

The screams, wails, and curses that had echoed endlessly in Hell Valley were brought to an abrupt halt.

Only the relentless roar of flames and the crackling sound of burning filled the air, reaching as far as the eye could see.

And—

The echo of the final moments, signaling the end of slaughter, reverberated:

“Hahahahahahaha!”

---

“Hahaha! It’s over! Finally over!”

“It’s all over!”

In the distance,

the fiery glow reflected on a figure, seemingly liberated at last, tears of blood streaming down his face as he laughed maniacally.

He roared into the infernal valley:

“From this day forward, I renounce this foolish surname. I shall be known as—En!”

“En Oyakajo!”

From this moment,

the clan of the Blood Pond, a bloodline limit family that once stood alongside the Uchiha,

was annihilated.

Soon, amidst the ensuing silence, a series of footsteps echoed,

step, step—

Crushing the wild flames, walking through pools of blood, carrying the weight of a mountain of corpses!

Hearing this desperate laughter of madness,

accompanied by the sound of staggering footsteps, as if dragging a heavy burden,

Uchiha Madara, who hadn’t smiled in a long time,

at this moment, found his eyes lighting up with a peculiar glint of interest, his lips curling into an amused smirk.

“Interesting.”

“The last heir of the Blood Pond Clan, who annihilated his own, meets the disgraced heir of the Uchiha Clan. What an intriguing coincidence.”

“Very well, let me hear it—”

“The tale of ‘Shinji.’”

Madara chuckled, picked up his scythe, and secured the jar filled with Sharingan. A translucent, ethereal blue skeletal hand materialized around him, crushing the White Zetsu on the ground into powder with a single strike.

Then, he turned his back and walked away into the shadows.

In this cliff-bottom, as smooth as a mirror, silence soon returned.

But not long after,

a figure appeared, staggering forward, bloodstained, gasping for breath.

One hand cradled a swaddled infant, the other dragging a corpse,

walking across the blood-soaked ground.

His face was blank,

as though nothing mattered to him anymore, as if he saw nothing at all.

Until—

As he drew closer,

he saw the boy lying in the pool of blood.

He saw the boy’s face, filled with unwillingness, regret, anger,

twisted in agony and pain.

En Oyakajo paused, stopping before the boy.

At that moment,

it was as though he saw a reflection of his former self through the boy.

That same expression he had worn when he sat paralyzed outside his wife’s door after her suicide.

After standing still for a moment,

he let out a breath, initially intending to ignore the boy and step over him.

But then,

his stumbling step caught on the boy’s tattered clothes, exposing the fabric beneath,

emblazoned with the red-and-white crest of the Uchiha Clan.

“This guy... he’s Uchiha?”

Gazing at the symbol of the clan that had imprisoned him for twenty years,

and at the boy’s hollow, empty eye sockets,

En Oyakajo sneered coldly without any particular reason.

And then,

as if compelled by some unseen force,

he dug out the pair of eyes from the corpse he was carrying,

and crudely shoved them into the boy’s empty sockets.

Those eyes were none other than—

the Blood Dragon Eyes!

After completing this, En Oyakajo discarded the corpse he had been dragging, picked up Shinji, and, with his infant daughter in his arms, continued forward.

Only now, a strange smile began to spread across his face.

It was a smile of madness, rage, liberation, and the ecstasy of vengeance all mingled together.

“Do you know?”

“When mortals dare to touch the domain of gods,”

“The gods shall deliver divine punishment!”

“And we call it—The Curse of the Bloodline Limit!”

“Uchiha, from this day forward...”

“You are nothing but a condemned man!”

(End of Chapter)

*Chapter 269: Kakuzu Is Not Happy*

Crushing coarse sand and grinding over gravel, Kakuzu, cloaked entirely in his black robe, walked across the Frost Country’s endless barren rocky plains.

Everywhere he looked was a lifeless, desolate wasteland.

Even the ocean in the distance, with its waves endlessly crashing against the shore, seemed devoid of vitality.

Yet, in this godforsaken land—a no-man’s-land wedged between the great nations, where even birds would be reluctant to drop their droppings—a peculiar group thrived: ninja driven by the lure of money.

Bounty hunters.

As Kakuzu approached a hidden underground exchange in the Frost Country's barren plains, voices from two bounty hunters enjoying their drinks reached his ears:

“Did you hear about it?”

“The big events from the other day?”

The other bounty hunter raised his cup, shook his head, and sighed deeply:

“Of course I did. The ninja world is getting crazier by the day.”

“In just one day, we had the Hell Valley skirmish, Orochimaru’s sneak attack on the Hidden Cloud Village, the sudden extermination of the Blood Pool Clan, and chaos in the Lightning Country’s capital! All in one day!”

“Especially that battle in Hell Valley. I heard they even deployed the jinchūriki—those strategic weapons—to the battlefield.”

“But for now, the details are still classified, so no one knows how it turned out.”

“Still, if someone could grab a bounty on one of the big players near the edge of the battlefield—wow, that’d be a jackpot!”

Hearing this, Kakuzu’s gaze flickered for a moment.

As if recalling something, a sneer appeared on his face, and he couldn’t help but chuckle coldly.

This war had no winners.

The Hidden Cloud tried to conquer Hell Valley, even deploying the Third Raikage and two jinchūriki, but their plans were foiled by that Uchiha brat, the arrival of the Yellow Flash, and the inexplicable extermination of the Blood Pool Clan. Left with no choice, they retreated.

On the other side, the Hidden Leaf attempted a surprise attack on the Hidden Cloud. However, the team led by Orochimaru was forced into a disastrous retreat after encountering the Cloud’s secret weapon.

Even the Uchiha Clan—

At this thought, Kakuzu’s expression grew even more disdainful. His mind wandered back to that night when he narrowly escaped the wrath of Minato Namikaze. He remembered the last words of Uchiha Hikaru, the man who had hired him:

“With your help and the Elder’s contingency plans, there might still be a glimmer of hope for Shinji after the fall.”

“We’ll dispatch a team to comb the cliffs thoroughly.”

A thorough search, huh?

In the end, they found only news of the Blood Pool Clan’s extermination. As for their young clan leader, he had vanished without a trace.

In a single night, the Uchiha Clan lost two of their strongest pillars, turning them into a laughingstock.

However, if one absolutely had to name a winner in this war—

*Bang!*

Two heavy chests slammed onto the counter.

The buttons on one chest were undone by the burly, bearded man behind the counter, revealing neat stacks of large-denomination bills.

“Kakuzu-san,” the man said, his voice tinged with respect.

“Here’s the 60 million from the bounty, an additional 30 million from the Hidden Sand, 60 million sent urgently from the Lightning Country, and a massive sum secretly sent from the Fire Country. After deducting the handling fees, it’s all here.”

The bearded man flashed a sly smile, his gaze lingering on the unopened, larger chest. Compared to the others, its contents were undoubtedly a jaw-dropping fortune.

“You truly are the greatest bounty hunter. This is the largest deal we’ve ever completed! The exchange looks forward to more business with you!”

“Oh.”

Kakuzu’s response to the enthusiastic welcome was a curt nod. Grabbing the two heavy chests, he turned to leave.

Indeed, the sole winner of this war was none other than Kakuzu himself!

By killing a brat he had already disliked, he managed to collect four separate, enormous bounties—from the Hidden Sand, the Hidden Cloud, the Uchiha Clan, and the underground exchange. A quadruple payday!

However—

“Kakuzu-san, aren’t you going to count it?”

The bearded man couldn’t help but ask when he saw Kakuzu walking off without checking the money. It was uncharacteristic of him. In the past, Kakuzu would spend half a day meticulously counting every note, verifying there were no explosive tags mixed in, and cross-referencing every transaction to ensure it was legitimate currency.

But today?

Stopping in his tracks, Kakuzu turned around and fixed the man with a cold, piercing glare.

“Is there something else?”

“N-No…”

The man gulped, beads of sweat forming on his forehead as he faced Kakuzu’s icy gaze—one that seemed ready to dismantle the exchange and annihilate everyone inside at the slightest provocation.

Forcing a nervous smile, the man ventured cautiously, “I just wanted to ask—”

“Are you selling the Sharingan from the Uchiha Clan’s young leader you have in your possession?”

Upon hearing this, Kakuzu furrowed his brows slightly and let out a mocking laugh.

“What’s the matter?”

“You dare to provoke the Uchiha clan again?”

“Do you think there haven’t been enough deaths among your people?”

The bald man chuckled.

“Times have changed. The decline of the Uchiha clan is already apparent.”

“First, their young clan leader went missing. Then, the highly respected elder, Uchiha Setsuna, was reported to have died in that battle two days ago.”

“They’re too busy with their own problems. Why would they care about us rats in the shadows?”

Hearing this, Kakuzu couldn’t help but sneer.

“You’ve done your homework.”

“Well, it’s my old line of work. Even though I haven’t been a spy for years, some habits are hard to break.”

The bald man smiled faintly and continued,

“Kakuzu, I have connections to nobles in the Land of Water. For these eyes, I’ll name my price—”

With a sly grin, he raised a finger and waved it in front of Kakuzu.

He was confident that this offer was something money-loving Kakuzu couldn’t refuse! And he, in turn, would earn nearly ten million ryō as commission from this transaction.

However, the next moment—

Bang!  

Crack!  

Kakuzu expressionlessly grabbed the man’s finger and twisted it backward!

The bone snapped, and blood spurted!

Hearing the agonizing sound from the bar counter, the bounty hunters nearby shuddered and instinctively glanced over with caution.

Only then did Kakuzu speak coldly,

“Not for sale.”

The bald man trembled in pain but managed to maintain a professional smile. Forcing a laugh, he stammered,

“Understood, Kakuzu.”

Kakuzu tossed the mangled finger into a corner where rotting garbage lay, letting out a disdainful snort. He then picked up the battered cash box on the ground and turned to leave.

However, just as he did, the bald man, enduring his agony, called out:

“Kakuzu, wait!”

“There’s another bounty you might be interested in.”

“In the capital of the Land of Lightning—”

“Just two days ago, after the daimyo of the Land of Lightning was assassinated, the bounty on the culprit has been increased again. It now stands at thirty million ryō!”

“And the target is—”

“The leader of the Immortal Cultists causing havoc in the capital to this day!”

“Shinji!”

Hearing this, Kakuzu narrowed his eyes slightly. After a moment, it seemed as though he was indifferent to the information. Without a word, he picked up his massive cash boxes and walked out of the exchange hall.

Only when the barren, rocky wasteland stretched out before him did Kakuzu lift his hand. Looking at the bloodstain on his black gloves, he exhaled deeply for reasons he couldn’t explain.

Yes, he had made a lot of money.

But along the way, witnessing groups of people celebrating wildly or mourning furiously over that Uchiha brat—presumed to have fallen off a cliff and smashed into a pulp—

For some reason, he didn’t feel happy.

Soon, Kakuzu pushed aside the strange emotions welling up in his heart. After orienting himself, he began heading southeast along the frosty coastline of the Land of Frost.

That direction—

Was toward the capital of the Land of Lightning: Cloudsong City.

(Chapter End)  

*Chapter 270: Sasori: "Master, the times have changed!"*

Only after Kakuzu left did the oppressive atmosphere in the underground exchange office of the Land of Frost ease slightly. The bounty ninjas, who hadn't dared to breathe, finally exhaled in relief.

"That scared the hell out of me! How does he walk without making a sound?"

"I didn’t even notice he arrived. Good thing no one said anything that might offend him, or we'd all be dead right now."

One bounty ninja patted his chest, speaking with lingering fear.

Kakuzu’s infamy was well-known among those in the bounty ninja world.

Teammates, passersby, even the stewards responsible for transactions at exchange offices—anyone who displeased him even slightly could end up dead.

"Tell me about it," replied another bounty ninja seated across from him, his face still showing traces of fear. "But what’s the deal with the young clan head of the Uchiha?"

"I heard that guy fell off the cliffs of Hell Valley."

"Yeah, and that’s Hell Valley! Even the lowest cliffs there are nearly a thousand meters high. Surviving that, even as a chakra-rich jonin, would be nearly impossible. Not to mention, they said he fought against a Tailed Beast jinchūriki, ran out of chakra, had his eyes gouged out by Kakuzu, and was left with fatal injuries.

"In that kind of situation, he should have been dead without question. Why are they listing him as missing instead of deceased?"

Another bounty ninja shook his head.

"The information came from Kumogakure. Who knows what really happened during that battle? Heck, maybe even the Third Raikage went to Hell Valley."

"Otherwise, how else would Kumogakure have ended up destroyed this time?"

"These rumors are too chaotic, but I hear a lot of people are heading toward Kumogakure's capital, City."

"I think everyone’s curious whether this so-called last surviving Uchiha, Uchiha Shinji, is the real deal or not."

In a corner of the exchange office, a figure cloaked in a high-collared black robe sat silently. His hood obscured his face, revealing only a few strands of red hair.

At this moment, he narrowed his eyes, gazing in the direction Kakuzu had departed, while eavesdropping on the whispered conversations of the bounty ninjas around him.

Then, his lips curled into a smile.

" City, huh?"

The flickering candlelight on the table illuminated half of his face.

This man was none other than the infamous genius puppeteer of Sunagakure, the one who had killed the Third Kazekage and sparked the Third Great Ninja War—Sasori of the Red Sand!

After traveling from the Land of Wind to the Land of Hot Water, Sasori had initially planned to join the battle in Hell Valley.

However, en route, he had stumbled upon a team of Konoha ninja behaving suspiciously. Out of curiosity, he had trailed them all the way to Kumogakure.

Then, just two nights ago, he had witnessed something truly spectacular in the village.

A display of art.

Three enormous cannons, with only one barrel firing, had blasted off two heads of the Eight-Tails serpent with a single shot!

These terrifying chakra cannons, activated only through the sacrifice of human lives, were a terrifying creation.

"Relying on traditional kunai and ninja tools, which inevitably degrade over time, is just too dull. Such things don’t align with the eternal beauty I seek."

Recalling the scene from that night, Sasori shook his head.

Then, from beneath his black robe, he produced an object far ahead of its time—a weapon resembling a flintlock pistol. The difference was that instead of flint, a crystalline blue chakra core, refined from human bodies, served as the ignition mechanism.

The firing pin struck the chakra core when the trigger was pulled, releasing chakra energy in the form of a luminous beam far more destructive than ordinary explosive tags or kunai.

At that moment, Sasori stood, aimed the pistol at a bald man behind the bar cleaning glasses, and pulled the trigger.

The chakra core flared brightly.

Bang!  

The gunshot shattered the silence.

The bald man froze, a bloody hole appearing in the center of his forehead before he collapsed, lifeless.

"As expected, this is much more effective than kunai or hidden weapons."

"At a range of seven steps, the beam is faster. Even within seven steps, the beam is still faster!"

He then turned the gun on the stunned bounty ninjas, pulling the trigger once more.

Bang!  

Purple smoke erupted, quickly filling the underground chamber.

"I can even infuse chakra toxins with wind-nature chakra into the beam, creating an area-of-effect attack."

One by one, the terrified bounty ninjas collapsed, coughing up blood after inhaling the poisonous mist.

Standing amidst the corpses, Sasori inspected the now dim and cracked chakra core at the gun’s end, shaking his head.

"The power can still be improved. Aside from being a bit resource-intensive, it’s nearly flawless."

"Still, if I could find a self-repairing chakra core made from human bodies, this would truly be a masterpiece of art."

Carrying a corpse in one hand, Sasori holstered his hand cannon and pulled a saw from beneath his black robe. With a single stroke, he sliced open the bounty ninja's abdomen, then reached inside. Using his Puppet Technique: Chakra Core, he drained the corpse of its fluids, reducing it to a dried husk. From the gathered chakra within the abdomen, he refined a potent new chakra.

Finally, he extracted a pristine, translucent chakra core, glistening with traces of blood.

The entirety of the ninja's life was now reflected within this beautiful yet sinister crystal. Ignoring the blood splattered on his face, Sasori gazed at it obsessively for a moment before pocketing it and resuming his work.

Next, he would process the remaining corpses into human-based creations to replenish his stock and then loot this underground bounty exchange dry.

After all, pursuing art could be quite expensive.

As for the infinite, self-healing chakra cores he could create using human refinement—although his original target, Uchiha Shinji, had disappeared—there was another Uchiha Shinji in the capital of the Land of Lightning.

After massacring everyone in the exchange and plundering it completely, Sasori stretched his sore neck and stepped out of the blood-soaked facility.

The sunlight along the Frost Country’s coastline was both dazzling and warm, prompting him to squint his amber eyes slightly.

A ninja wrapped in a headscarf, who had been waiting outside for a while, approached Sasori quickly, handing him a piece of intelligence.

“Master Sasori,” the ninja said.

“The investigation into the ‘Uchiha Shinji’ in City is complete.”

“Oh?”

Sasori took the report casually and examined it closely.

“I see. This ‘Uchiha Shinji’ was once a subordinate recruited by the real Uchiha Shinji in the Land of Hot Water. That’s why he’s been operating under his name,” Sasori mused.

“This prodigy, who endured the ultimate trial of the Evil God alongside Uchiha Shinji, also obtained immortality. His name is…”

“...Hidan, huh?”

Sasori paused in thought for a moment before nodding.

“While he’s not quite at the level of Uchiha Shinji, he’s still barely sufficient as a work of art.”

“Moreover, if the real Uchiha is alive, he won’t sit idly by when he learns about this.”

A faint smile crept across Sasori’s face, and his amber eyes glinted with determination.

“He will show up in City!”

The headscarf-wearing ninja hesitated briefly before looking up.

“So, Master Sasori, what’s the plan?”

“Spread this information and draw everyone interested in Uchiha Shinji to one place!”

Sasori sneered.

“I’ll turn this city into my hunting ground!”

Having missed the chaotic battle on that fateful night in the Hidden Cloud Village, Sasori still felt a tinge of regret.

But it didn’t matter. He would gather these people again, hunting them down one by one—turning each into a flawless masterpiece.

“Go on. I need to get moving.”

He tossed a wad of cash to the headscarf-wearing ninja, dismissing him to carry out the task. Then, after confirming his direction, Sasori began his journey toward City.

Meanwhile, along his route, in a dilapidated Frost Country village, a young man stood at the city gate.

One hand held a baby, while the other dragged a boy whose eyes were bound with black cloth, his lifeless body resembling a corpse.

At the gate, the young man came to a halt.

(End of Chapter)