"Shisui, a big battle is about to start. Are you ready for it?"
After hearing this, Shisui didn't immediately reply to Byakuya. Instead, he focused intently on the distant forest, also sensing the tense atmosphere in the air.
After spending time together over the past few days, Shisui had come to understand that beneath Byakuya's harmless appearance, there was a hidden devil.
Byakuya was like a devil, manipulating both him and his clan, pushing the Uchiha step by step toward rebellion. His ultimate goal was to bring the entire Uchiha clan under his control.
If Shisui were the same as he had been a few years ago, he would have already used Kotoamatsukami on Byakuya.
Although Kotoamatsukami might not be able to completely solve the problem of this monster before him, it could at least alter Byakuya's will, stopping him from targeting the Uchiha clan.
But now, Shisui was hesitating. He wasn't sure if the Uchiha were on the path of destruction, just like the Uzumaki clan had been.
After all, the relationship between the Uzumaki and Senju clans had been far better than that between the Senju and Uchiha. When the Uzumaki clan was besieged, the wife of the First Hokage, Uzumaki Mito, had still been alive.
After a moment of silence, the two of them returned to the command center.
There, they found Jiraiya and the others fully prepared for battle. Jiraiya didn't waste any time with small talk and got straight to the point:
"According to the Hyuga ninja's intelligence, more than 3,000 Cloud ninjas are attacking our position. We have over a thousand defenders on the front lines, enough to hold off the direct assault. Your mission is to hunt down the elite ninjas roaming along the battle lines!"
After hearing the details of their mission, both Byakuya and Shisui nodded, then left the command room.
Not long after they left the camp, Byakuya stopped and pointed southeast. "Shisui, the enemy is here, just three kilometers away in the bushes..."
As soon as he finished speaking, Byakuya used the Body Flicker Technique and disappeared.
(AN: Just some heads up before anyone starts complaining. 80% of Chinese author's knowledge comes from other fanfics, not original source where Body Flicker Technique is common to use. I have seen this in 90% of Chinese fanfics and after some diggings, I found the same. So, if you find some inconsistencies, bear in mind that not many authors try to clear plot holes by going to their own investigation from original source.)
Hearing that the enemy was only three kilometers away, Shisui gained a new understanding of Byakuya's sensory abilities. A three-kilometer range was comparable to the Byakugan of the Hyuga clan. Byakuya truly had no weaknesses as a ninja.
Without thinking too much, Shisui followed Byakuya, and the two vanished into the forest.
It didn't take long for them to encounter the vanguard of the Cloud ninjas.
These vanguard ninjas were all elite Chunin. Though not particularly powerful individually, their teamwork allowed them to exert strength comparable to that of Jonin.
However, even Jonin-level ninjas stood no chance against Byakuya and Shisui. Although both of them were Jonin, their strength far surpassed that of most other Jonin.
After slicing through a kunai, Shisui swiftly slit an enemy's throat and, in the blink of an eye, appeared next to another, driving the broken kunai into the Cloud ninja's heart. While Shisui fought with a graceful and agile style, Byakuya's combat was simple and direct.
He either flew into the sky and bombarded the enemy with exploding tags or unleashed large-scale Water Release techniques to flood the surrounding forest. Cloud ninjas hit by Byakuya's attacks often didn't even leave behind a body.
Seeing this, the remaining Cloud ninjas realized they had run into a tough opponent.
The two young ninja in front of them were clearly not on the same level as the Cloud ninja. Only the elite Jonin from their village would be able to deal with these two monsters.
With this realization, the Cloud ninja exchanged glances and decided to retreat for now and wait for reinforcements. Due to the large number of vanguard ninjas, Byakuya and Shisui were unable to stop them from sending out a message.
After dealing with all the nearby enemies, Byakuya habitually started collecting spoils of war.
Seeing how calm Byakuya remained, Shisui's fear of him grew even stronger. This boy, who was even younger than himself, seemed almost as if he was born for war.
As Shisui marveled at Byakuya's composure, a sense of mortal danger suddenly welled up in his heart.
Byakuya also sensed something and looked into the distance. A pitch-black Tailed Beast Bomb shot out from a distant cliff, heading straight toward their position.
Seeing this, Shisui activated his Mangekyō Sharingan, ready to summon Susano'o at any moment.
However, Byakuya raised a hand to stop him, frowning as he said, "The Tailed Beast Bomb isn't aimed at us. Don't waste your chakra."
Before Byakuya had even finished speaking, the Tailed Beast Bomb streaked past overhead and crashed in the direction of the Konoha camp.
Boom!
With the rumbling of the earth and sky, a mushroom cloud rose in the direction of the Konoha camp.
Shisui's heart sank as he wondered how many Konoha ninjas had perished in that single attack.
Byakuya patted Shisui on the shoulder and said, "This is the power of a Jinchuriki. If you hadn't taken down Yugito back then, there would be two Tailed Beast Bombs falling on the Konoha camp right now."
Shisui nodded but then suddenly remembered something and looked at Byakuya.
Wait, since when was Yugito his kill? Wasn't it Byakuya who had forcefully subdued her with Wood Release? This was just part of their agreement; there was no need to pretend when no outsiders were around.
Noticing the strange look in Shisui's eyes, Byakuya chuckled quietly to himself.
This was exactly the effect he wanted. When a lie is repeated enough times, the truth no longer matters. It was just like the title of the "strongest Hokage." At first, it might have been a way to stabilize people's hearts, but eventually, even Byakuya started believing it himself.
Returning from his wandering thoughts, the two continued hunting Cloud ninjas in the forest.
With their highly efficient teamwork, they nearly wiped out the Cloud ninjas in the surrounding area, which naturally drew the attention of the Cloud's main forces.
After confirming their location, Killer Bee, in his Tailed Beast form, began gathering chakra in his mouth. Moments later, a Tailed Beast Bomb with an 80-20 balance of yin and yang chakra formed and was launched at Byakuya and Shisui.
As the symbol of destruction tore through the sky with a supersonic roar, even Byakuya sensed the danger within it. He quickly formed hand seals and shouted, "Wood Release: Wood Locking Wall!"
In an instant, a bowl-shaped wooden structure materialized, covering the ground like an inverted bowl.
With a deafening explosion, the Tailed Beast Bomb hit the ground, unleashing a massive wave of energy in all directions. Even the previously uneven terrain was flattened by the blast.
A few moments later, Byakuya and Shisui emerged from the wooden structure.
Surveying the now-leveled forest around them, Shisui's expression changed. He had thought that Yugito was already an incredibly powerful Jinchuriki, but the destructive power of the Eight-Tails Jinchuriki was on a whole different level.
Byakuya, however, wasn't paying attention to the landscape. His focus was entirely on Killer Bee.
For Killer Bee to dare attack him like this, it was time to teach this inexperienced Eight-Tails Jinchuriki the harsh realities of the ninja world.
With that thought, Byakuya grabbed Shisui, and they flew into the sky, heading straight for Killer Bee's position.