At the Nara clan's compound, Nara Shikaku had already changed into his uniform and stood outside his yard.
He gazed into the distance at the towering, solemn Hokage Rock, staring at the black flames beginning to rise toward the sky. His mind was a whirlwind of thoughts.
"Shikaku, get up, something's happened—"
Just then, Yamanaka Inoichi and Akimichi Choza rushed into his yard, but when they saw Shikaku already awake and standing, they were momentarily speechless.
It was Choza who scratched his head and spoke with his usual straightforward tone.
"Ah, so you're already up. I was worried you were still sleeping."
"I was asleep, but after something like this, there's no way I could stay in bed."
Shikaku shook his head and looked at his two old friends with a serious expression.
"Have you figured out what's going on? The fighting is in a really sensitive spot."
Root's headquarters was beneath Hokage Rock, with the Hokage's office only a hundred meters or so in front of it.
From a distance, it was hard to tell whether the Hokage's office had been attacked or if it was Root's base.
Other shinobi probably couldn't tell or didn't know these details, but Shikaku understood exactly what this meant.
He wanted to get a clear picture. Unfortunately, both Inoichi and Choza shook their heads.
"All we know is that the Uchiha started it, but we don't know the details."
"The Uchiha, huh? I see."
Shikaku nodded, already making up his mind. He looked at his two old friends.
"Then let's go. Your clansmen are ready, right? Let's move out together.
Once we get there, we'll see what's really happening. After all, we don't know what the Uchiha actually attacked."
Choza and Inoichi both nodded. They knew exactly what Shikaku meant.
If the Uchiha had attacked the Hokage's office, that would mean they were attacking the Hokage—a declaration of war on Konoha itself!
No matter what excuses the Uchiha might have, they'd have no choice but to defend the village.
But if the Uchiha had attacked Root's headquarters, they wouldn't move—because Danzo wasn't the Hokage.
He was just the Hokage's shadow, a symbol of darkness!
Tonight, Konoha was destined for unrest. Not only the Ino-Shika-Cho trio but other clans as well were quietly gathering their forces and heading to observe the situation.
And in a show of unspoken agreement, they were all making the same choice.
Inside the Root base, Yuhara was already locked in fierce combat with the Root shinobi.
Danzo's retreat had been cut off by Yuhara. While there might still be other escape routes, Danzo's best move now was not to hide in the command room.
He needed to reach his main forces as quickly as possible to stall for time until the Hokage arrived.
Meanwhile, as Yuhara attacked the interior, the Uchiha forces led by Shisui were advancing rapidly through Root's main passages.
Though Shisui wasn't a Root member, he had once, like Itachi, carried out missions for Root, so he knew the base's layout fairly well.
If Danzo left, he'd have to face the main Uchiha force—and worst of all, Shisui with his Mangekyō!
"But Danzo's already called for reinforcements. Who knows how many Root reserves they've got, but it probably won't be a small number.
And most importantly, with all the commotion we've caused, the Hokage's definitely noticed. We need to wrap this up quickly!"
Yuhara thought as he picked up speed.
"Clang! Clang! Clang!"
Sharp, ear-piercing sounds echoed through the room as Yuhara's Mangekyō eyes spun, and his ninja blade swung continuously.
These Root shinobi weren't individually all that strong, but they were incredibly calm and coordinated.
In this cramped space, they were giving Yuhara some trouble.
But to him, it was no real threat—his eyes had already seen through all their moves.
Lightly leaping, Yuhara dodged two attacks and then swung his blade, cutting down a Root ninja.
As he landed, he heard the whistle of a blade behind him. He ducked instantly.
The blade passed over his head, and he shifted back, driving his elbow backward hard.
He heard a muffled grunt.
His ninja blade spun deftly into a reverse grip and thrust upward.
The blade pierced through the Root ninja's chin and out the top of his head, leaving him no chance to scream!
Without hesitation, Yuhara pulled his blade free and turned to dodge another Root ninja's attack.
For him, dodging or not didn't matter—his Spirit Shield could block attacks like that, but he hated standing there taking hits.
Besides, the shield required him to be using a technique to activate, and he couldn't guarantee it would always work.
The savage battle continued. Yuhara was facing at least ten Root shinobi—on paper, it looked dangerous.
But he felt no real pressure. They were strong and coordinated, but in his eyes, they had no secrets left.
Although it looked like Yuhara was outnumbered, he hadn't suffered a single injury. Meanwhile, the Root shinobi's numbers were steadily dwindling.
"Ah!"
Having read the attacks of several Root shinobi at once, Yuhara executed a deft maneuver that took him out of their kill zone.
His blade flashed, wind chakra forming at the edge, and he thrust it straight into a Root ninja's chest!
A chilling scream filled the room. Yuhara calmly withdrew his blade.
The scent of blood grew thicker in the room. In just a few breaths, at least five Root shinobi had fallen to Yuhara.
Looking at the remaining Root shinobi—though they were still calm—none of them stepped forward to attack.
Yuhara chuckled softly.
"Looks like you're not as tough as I thought. I'd heard that Root shinobi feared neither life nor death, but that legend seems a bit exaggerated.
But it doesn't matter now. Everyone fears death. No one is immune.
But you—yours is more than just fear of death."
With that, a surge of chakra erupted from Yuhara's body. A layer of bright blue chakra formed around him.
"Because you're about to face death—no, you're going to embrace it!"
(end of this chapter)