Amidst the thick fog.
Uchiha Yashiro's breathing was labored. He stood with a blade in both hands, his crimson Sharingan darting quickly as he searched for potential Mist ninja emerging from the haze.
For reasons unknown,
The fog had grown much thicker.
His vision had dimmed at the edges.
Yashiro used his blade to cut a gash at the corner of his eye, allowing the clotted blood to flow out.
This was an injury sustained during continuous battle, inflicted by White Ghost.
He had narrowly avoided being decapitated.
The fierce battle against White Ghost and the Mist ninja was far from easy for Yashiro.
As time went on,
He gradually began to lose hope of victory.
In the end, one person cannot handle an entire group, especially when there is a capable jonin among them.
"Was I ultimately overestimating myself?"
Although his strength had greatly improved, it was still limited.
A gust of wind sounded behind him.
Yashiro turned and swiftly parried with his blade.
"Clang!"
He blocked the blade that had emerged from the thick fog, White Ghost's figure flickering past.
Streams of water, transformed into sharp swords, attacked from all directions in the dense fog.
"Breath of Stone!"
"Third Form: Stone Skin!"
Chains made of rocky earth formed around his body, blocking the oncoming water attacks.
He used "Swift Step" to quickly leave his original position.
The sound of clashing blades echoed.
"I'm not particularly skilled at the Six Styles."
Yashiro glanced down at his leg, which now bore a fresh cut.
"You truly are the assassination squad of the Mist,"
Yashiro remarked with admiration.
If this continued, his defeat was inevitable.
For now, he was able to hold on, thanks entirely to the considerable chakra reserves built up through the basic internal energy technique.
"Are you still resisting?"
White Ghost's voice came from within the fog.
"How long do you think you can keep this up?"
Yashiro was silent for a moment, gripping his sword tightly.
"I can fight you all for a whole day!"
The chakra accumulated within him gave him the capital for extended battle.
White Ghost's sigh of impatience echoed from the fog.
"All forces, kill him!"
The echoes repeated within the fog.
"Hey, hey, are you kidding?" Yashiro's face turned grim.
They weren't even fighting at full strength yet?
He was already doing everything he could just to stay alive.
At that moment, a sudden change occurred.
A fierce gale swept through everything around them, and the fog had no power to resist against this force.
In an instant, the fog dispersed.
"What is happening!!"
White Ghost's face twisted as his form became visible, along with every hidden Mist ninja being forced into the open.
All eyes turned toward the source of the sudden upheaval.
A half-body giant skeletal figure, bright yellow, appeared in everyone's line of sight.
"What... is that?!"
One of the Mist ninja exclaimed in shock.
Yashiro was also stunned, staring at the colossal skeletal figure before him.
And at the person wrapped within that half-body skeleton.
Uchiha Fugaku.
The foundation technique granted Yashiro exceptional visual acuity, allowing him to clearly see Fugaku's Sharingan—transformed into a pattern he had never seen before.
Blood tears ran down the corner of Fugaku's eyes.
Fragments of memory flashed through Yashiro's mind.
Once, in one of the clan's secret scrolls, there was a record.
Yashiro murmured,
"The ultimate power of the Uchiha clan."
"The Mangekyo Sharingan!"
The bright yellow Susanoo's massive hand gathered a long blade and swung it powerfully at the Mist ninjas.
The yellow blade swept with the fury of a gale, the wind wrapping around the devastating slash.
Wherever it passed, every Mist ninja was torn to pieces.
Even the canyon bore a deep gash from the blow.
"That... that is not a power any ordinary ninja can possess!!!"
White Ghost's voice turned shrill with terror, his face twisted in fear.
He turned to flee without a second thought.
But... could he escape?
With the skeletal giant leaping high into the air,
The massive blade swung at a speed entirely disproportionate to its size.
Countless slashes rained down like artillery fire, bombarding the Mist ninja on the ground with relentless fury.
Yashiro saw White Ghost trying to escape, almost out of the canyon, but a slash caught him, reducing him instantly to dust.
In the entire canyon, only the ground beneath Yashiro's feet remained untouched.
Clearly, it was intentional on the user's part.
Yashiro struggled to find words for the emotions within him.
That colossal figure, its agile stance, the power to destroy everything.
"This is the ultimate power of the Uchiha," he whispered.
As countless Mist ninjas perished,
Blood filled the entire canyon.
And Yashiro truly witnessed it,
The incredible power that once allowed the Uchiha clan to dominate the world of ninjas.
An incomplete Gundam.
Susanoo!!!
Under Susanoo's onslaught, not a single Mist ninja escaped.
All fell to Fugaku.
As Susanoo faded,
Fugaku's legs gave out, and he almost collapsed.
Yashiro appeared just in time, catching him before he fell.
"Fugaku, that was...?"
Yashiro couldn't help but ask—after all, this was the kind of power that had once allowed the Uchiha to reign supreme in the Warring States period.
No Uchiha could witness such power without feeling something stir within them.
"The Mangekyo Sharingan."
Fugaku confirmed Yashiro's suspicion.
But Yashiro was overwhelmed by a rush of excitement.
Such power.
It could even make him Hokage.
Fugaku, however, clutched his eye, the physical pain overshadowed by the anguish in his heart. It was a power bought with Uchiha Shin's life.
Was it truly worth exchanging his friend's life for this power? Fugaku was consumed by doubt.
"Yashiro," Fugaku said seriously.
"Don't tell anyone about my Mangekyo."
"Huh?!"
Yashiro was puzzled—shouldn't such power be used to intimidate Konoha, paving the way for Fugaku to become Hokage?
"The clan cannot handle too much upheaval."
Fugaku sighed.
One Uchiha Jin was enough for the Uchiha clan.
And he truly did not like this power.
"I will respect your wishes."
Though Yashiro thought differently, he understood that Fugaku represented the future hope of the Uchiha clan.
Naturally, he would comply.
Fugaku looked at Yashiro's serious expression and nodded.
"Where is Shin?"
It was only then that Yashiro noticed Shin's absence.
Fugaku's expression turned somber.
Yashiro understood and fell into silence.
Recalling what was written in the clan's records, he said softly,
"If Shin knew his death had brought you this power, he would be happy."
Yashiro tried to console him.
Fugaku looked at him, a sudden chill washing over his heart.
Power gained through the sacrifice of comrades...
Was it truly worth it?
Meanwhile,
At Konoha's outpost in the Land of Hot Water,
Sarutobi To scanned the mass of intel in his hands.
"A large number of Mist Village ninjas are entering the Land of Hot Water."
"Mist Village has established a base in the Land of Hot Water."
"Konoha ninjas were ambushed by Mist ninjas and annihilated."
Konoha's forces in the Land of Hot Water had suffered heavy losses, shattering the intelligence network they had built there.
Many outposts had already been destroyed by Mist ninjas.
The implications were obvious.
"Mist Village has declared war!!"
Sarutobi To's face darkened.