"The Land of the Flower has its own difficulties." The branch family members speak after some hesitation.
"The Land looks prosperous on the surface, but the undercurrents are anything but peaceful. The Land of Flowers doesn't have any military might of its own but possesses a vast trove of wealth. This wealth inspires greed in several nearby nations, and the Land of Earth is no exception." The branch family member, Tatsuzo, adds.
"Three years ago, the winter in the Land of Earth was especially harsh. So much so that the entire food reserve of the Land of Earth was depleted, and many people died of cold and starvation." He narrates a moment from the past.
"Because of the Ishiyama Mountain range's protection, the Land of Flowers didn't suffer from the harsh cold. Having suffered a tragedy, the Daimyo of the Land of Earth couldn't hold back himself and declared war on the Land of Flower to annex its fertile land."
"Hmm… I do seem to remember such an incident!" Makoto nods.
"The Uchiha clan was busy building the Konohagakure with the Senju clan. So, we paid less attention to the international affairs."
Tatsuzo's expression turns ugly as Makoto mentions the Senju clan. The hatred for the Senju clan is still present in him, carved deep into the bone.
His father, brother, and friends all died in the war against the Senju clan. Even his lover fell at the hands of a Senju. It's because of these reasons, that he rebelled when the Uchiha clan joined hands with the Senju clan and left with the rest of the conservative faction.
Makoto also notices Tatsuzo's expression and shifts into the conversation.
"Then how was the situation resolved?" Makato asks.
"Facing the shinobis of the Land of Earth, we lent a part of our strength. However, it wasn't enough. The Land of the Flower was gradually losing to the Land of Earth. However, the situation took a drastic turn when the Kaminari clan of the Land of Lightning launched a siege on the Land of Earth with other shinobis clans. Facing a two-prong attack, the Land of Earth had no choice but to compromise." Tatsuzo sighs.
"Still, the Land of the Flower lost the Lavender Valley to the Land of Earth. The peace treaty between the two countries fell apart, and the trade was heavily affected. Now, the Land of Flowers has found an ally in the form of the Kaminari clan." Tatsuzo explains the situation of the Land of Flowers to the Konoha group.
Soon, the group arrives outside the mouth of a small valley.
"We are here!"
Tatsuzo turns towards the Konoha group with a smile.
"This is the rendezvous point set to meet with the rest of the team. From here, we will move towards the clan headquarters."
Tatsuzo takes out a strange whistle and blows it towards the entrance of the valley.
Whistle…
Suddenly, Madara's expression changes.
Whoosh…
He flickers in front of Tatsuzo and deflects a kunai with his own.
Swish… Swish… Swish…
Suddenly, several kunais with paper bombs attached to them appear around the group.
"Shimata!"
BOOM…
The several hundred paper bombs detonate, creating a powerful explosion that shakes the entire valley. Several birds and other animals quickly flee in the distance.
A cloud of dust, smoke, and debris covers the surroundings.
Rustle… Rustle… Rustle…
Suddenly, several figures flicker out of the valley and the surrounding bushes. The group quickly surrounds the Uchiha group. The hundreds of figures outnumber the small Uchiha group.
"They won't go down so easily. Get ready for the battle!"
A hoarse voice commands the group.
Swoosh…
The dust and debris settle down to reveal a thick rock wall. There are several craters and cracks on the rock wall, a sign of the paper bomb explosion.
Rumble… Rumble…
The rock wall shakes vigorously.
Swish… swish…
Suddenly, several rock bullets fly out of an opening and bombard the enemy group.
"Everyone, take cover!"
A tall, burly shinobi steps forward. He makes a series of hand signs and slams his palm on the ground
"Earth Release: Mud wall,"
A massive wall of mud rises from the ground and blocks the rock bullets.
"Above you!"
A shout warns the burly shinobi. The burly shinobi feels a burst of heat and raises his head.
A massive ball of fire enlarges in his vision, occupying his entire sight.
"Damn it!"
He curses and swiftly jumps back while making a series of hand signs.
"Earth Release: Mud Escape,"
His body slowly turns into mud and melds with the ground.
BOOM…
The massive fireball lands on the ground and explodes. A scorching burst of heat spreads through the entire battlefield, raising the surrounding temperature by several degrees.
The sight of the explosion turns into charred ground with remnants of raging fire.
Cough… Cough…
A charred figure jumps out of the ground while coughing. The left arm of the burly man from before hangs limply on the side with several festering blisters.
However, he grits his teeth and grabs his left arm with his right hand. A layer of mud slowly covers the burned wound and creates mud armor around the arm.
Ding… Ding…
He uses the solidified mud arm to deflect and block several kunais and shurikens.
Suddenly, a kunai with a paper bomb appears in his peripheral vision.
"Shimata!"
BOOM…
The paper bomb explodes, creating another cloud of dust.
Whoosh…
The figure of the Earth shinobi jumps out of the explosion.
Crack… crack…
Several cracks appear on his body.
"Earth Armor!"
The cracks expand and fall off as chunks of mud and rocks.
Whoosh…
Suddenly, the man raises his other hand and blocks a kick with his arm.
Bang…
The powerful impact of the kicks sends him sliding across the ground.
"So strong!"
The man shakes his numb arm and glances at the figure of his attacker.
Madara observes the Earth Shinobi with narrow eyes.
"Such strength! With skills like these, you aren't a nobody in the Land of Earth. Tell me, who are you?" He enquires.
However, a grin appears on the pale face of the burly man.
Shiing…
Suddenly, a pair of massive blue eyes appear behind Madara.
"What's this?"
Madara's body freezes in a spot. His surrounding turns dark and even his breathing becomes slow.
"My body!"
Madara attempts to move his body but to no avail.
"A powerful genjutsu!"
Shiing…
The tomoes in Madara's eye revolve rapidly.
"Genjutsu: Sharingan,"
Madara casts a genjutsu of his own to counter the enemy genjutsu. However, the darkness around him doesn't dispel. It gets thicker and even the Madara's heartbeat comes to a standstill.
"A genjutsu more powerful than the Sharingan?!"
Shiing…
The revolving tomoes merge to form Mangekyo Sharingan.
"Genjutsu: Sharingan,"
Madara casts a more powerful genjutsu with his Mangekyo Sharingan.
Crack… crack… crack…
Several cracks appear in the surrounding space, and the darkness slowly recedes.
"It's working!"
However, the next second, the huge blue eyes appear again. This time, Madara observes them closely and notices two concentric circles in the eyes.
Shiing…
A pulse of chakra flashes across the massive eyes.
Suddenly, the receding darkness converges again and envelops Madara's body, his arms, legs, and chest, and slowly covers his face.
"i… I can't move!" Madara casts another Genjutsu Sharingan with his Mangekyo Sharingan, but it has no effect this time.
The darkness consumes Madara's body and slowly crawls across his face, moving towards his eyes.
Madara's heartbeat stops for a moment and even the flow of his chakra becomes stagnant. A silent whisper echoes in the darkness.
"Give up all resistance and let the darkness consume you!"
Madara's vision turns blurry and even the last thought of resistance in his mind seems to fade away.
Jingle…
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