Fugaku has gone mad; he's going to create a new Uchiha clan in Kirigakure.

Inside the tents at the Misty Camp, the air was so thick it felt like you could wring water out of it.

After all, the members of the ninja alliance in the room were about to target Uchiha Fugaku, who had just swept through the Konoha ninja army with invincibility a few days ago, and their former leader, Terumi Mei, to whom they had sworn allegiance.

"cough..."

A middle-aged man with a scar on his cheek cleared his throat, his voice dry.

"I'll ask one more time, are we really going to take action?"

"Not fight? Are we just going to wait to be turned into a walking corpse by 'Kotoamatsukami'?"

"But..."

An older ninja rubbed his hands together, his face full of struggle.

"Without her, our small clans would have perished in the blood mist long ago..."

Upon hearing this, the ninjas who had all received kindness from Mei Terumi seemed to waver once again.

"The problem is, if Leader Terumi Mei hadn't been controlled, we naturally wouldn't have betrayed her. But the one currently beside Fugaku Uchiha is just an empty shell controlled by the Sharingan. Clan Chief Mizuki Kiriko is the best evidence of that!"

In a corner, another representative of the ninja clan spoke, and as he spoke, everyone's gaze involuntarily turned to another corner of the tent.

There, Mizuki Kiriko was firmly bound to a chair by dark red lava-like substance, her eyes closed, her face pale, and she had lost consciousness. She had just tried to sneak away from the camp but was discovered and subdued on the spot.

Clearly, the intelligence was accurate; this woman was indeed being controlled by Kotoamatsukami...

"But..."

The scarred man licked his chapped lips and asked the question that everyone was most worried about.

"Can we win? Fugaku Uchiha, the way he looked that day..."

"This isn't a question of whether we can win or not."

The junior clan leader continued.

"It's not that we have no way out, but that we have no choice but to become his puppets..."

silence...

The tent fell silent again...

"and..."

He continued.

"If we fight normally, we definitely can't win. As ninjas, we need to be realistic."

"However, don't forget, Fugaku Uchiha's invincible figure comes at a price! It's an ability that requires the chakra of a combined ninjutsu from a thousand elite ninjas to unleash. If we don't use chakra-based combined ninjutsu on him, he won't be able to draw energy from it!"

"But if it's just a first-stage Susanoo, it's really nothing special. Otherwise, Konoha wouldn't have forced them to flee, and..."

He turned to the side and respectfully pointed to the silent man in his forties beside him.

"We also have Mr. Terumi Saburo here."

All eyes were focused on Terumi Saburo, a middle-aged man with a somewhat gloomy face. It was he who had just decisively used Lava Release to subdue Mizuki Kiriko, who was trying to report the news. Everyone knew this man; he was the cornerstone that supported the Terumi clan's tenacious existence before Terumi Mei's rise, and he was also an extremely strong person.

Terumi Saburo slowly opened his eyes, his gaze sweeping over everyone.

"I raised Mei Terumi myself, and no one has a deeper affection for her than I do. However, she has been controlled by Fugaku Uchiha. Everything you are doing is actually saving her, preventing her from continuing down the wrong path of harming the Shinobi Alliance. For this, I, Saburo Terumi, am willing to sacrifice my own family for the greater good and assist you in seizing that evil eye and destroying Fugaku Uchiha!"

He paused, then solemnly took out an antique scroll from his pocket. The surface of the scroll had dark red patterns resembling flowing lava.

"For this reason, I have brought the secrets of my Terumi clan, the Lava Release Technique Scroll."

"A lava escape scroll?"

Some people have doubts.

"Isn't that still ninjutsu? Just feeding Fugaku Uchiha his chakra?"

"No."

Terumi Saburo shook his head, carefully stroking the scroll.

"What is sealed inside is not simply Lava Release chakra, but a special solution released by the bloodline limit awakeners of our clan who were on the verge of death in the last moments of their lives. This special solution does not contain much chakra, but rather the bloodline of the Terumi clan. Only clan members who have awakened the Lava Release bloodline limit can barely guide and control it."

"Once activated, the massive amount of solution sealed within the scroll will erupt instantly, forming a unique, extremely viscous cage that will temporarily trap Uchiha Fugaku. At that time, we will all go all out to defeat the controlled Mei Terumi first, seize her eyes, and then join forces to deal with the trapped Uchiha Fugaku!"

"Once we obtain Kotoamatsukami, even if it can't be used continuously due to the Uchiha clan's secret technique, just one use—whether against Fugaku Uchiha or directly against the Fourth Hokage—will completely solve our problem. At that time, the entire Hidden Mist Village will submit to our Shinobi Alliance!"

"Phew~~"

Upon hearing this, everyone in the room gasped...

"Oh, and I'll add another top-secret piece of information here."

It was still that same little-known clan chief, his two hands clasped together, looking at everyone.

"I learned through some special channels that our Hozuki Mangetsu clan leader, the organization's second-in-command, and Mei Terumi's close collaborator, is suffering from a serious bloodline disease. He won't live much longer, so you don't need to worry at all. Right now, he's in the market, and after learning about this, he'll turn against the Ninja Clan Alliance..."

---Divider line

Somewhere outside the camp, in a cave.

A group of ninjas, their bodies reeking of blood, were hiding among them.

This is the assassination squad of the Hidden Mist.

The three leading figures were members of the Seven Ninja Swordsmen of the Mist.

Watermelon Mountain Pufferfish Demon.

Loquat has ten treasures.

Black Hoe Raiya.

In the distance behind them, dozens of elite members of the Mist Shadow Dark Guard, with their powerful auras, lay prostrate on the ground, waiting silently.

From here, they could clearly see the location of the camp, and even the ninjas of the Shinobi Alliance who were lying in ambush with Uchiha Fugaku, because the other side had no intention of hiding themselves at all.

Because Mei Terumi's retainer, Ao, possesses the Byakugan, hiding would be pointless. Therefore, the Shinobi Alliance placed their ambush at the camp built by Kirigakure specifically to provide support for negotiations.

This allows the ninjas to gather together in a reasonable way. Even if the Byakugan sees them, they will only think that they are defending Konoha. This is also why the Byakugan is so difficult to deal with. Three kilometers is a distance that even a Jonin cannot cross in a short time. This provides ample preparation time for subsequent counterattacks and defenses.

Of course, there are ways to deal with it.

Although the Byakugan possesses the ability to see through objects, the depth of this vision decreases with distance, obstacles, and other such conditions. Therefore, if the terrain is suitable and one is caught off guard, it is possible to evade the Byakugan's detection. Otherwise, how did Ao get his Byakugan?

Just like now, they are hiding in the cave, and with the help of the Water Release: Mist Concealment Technique, the entire cave is filled with mist, making it look like a whole. Even the Byakugan would find it difficult to detect any traces and would only think that this is a single mountain.

"Judging by the time, our target should be arriving soon. When should we make our move?"

The deep voice of the Watermelon Pufferfish Demon rang out. His huge body was half-crouched, and his eyes were fixed on the distant camp through the gaps in the branches and leaves.

Pipa Juzo wiped the blade of his Executioner's Blade without looking up.

"I think it's best to wait until they fight each other and both are severely injured before taking action."

"I agree."

Raiga Kurozuki played with the Raiga-katana, Fang, blue lightning crackling at his fingertips.

"Let those idiots from the ninja clan test Fugaku Uchiha's strength first, and we'll reap the benefits."

Then, he looked at Suigetsu Hobutsuki.

"And you?"

Suigetsu Hozuki slowly turned his enormous head, his gaze sweeping over the faces of Hiwa Juzo and Kurosuki Raiga. After a long while, he spoke in a muffled voice.

"Faced with an enemy like Uchiha Fugaku, any hesitation or holding back would be foolish. My opinion is to strike immediately and seize the eye with lightning speed. As long as the eye remains in Kirigakure, no matter how things develop afterward, our objective will have been achieved."

Black Hoe Raiya chuckled, and lightning crackled.

"He's really 'loyal' to the village, Big Watermelon."

"hehe."

Upon hearing this, the giant corner of the Watermelon Pufferfish Demon's mouth curled into a cold arc.

"Do you think I don't know? You two have been wanting to defect for a long time, haven't you? But you can't bear to part with your ninja swords, afraid that Hozuki Mangetsu will summon you back and turn you into stray dogs."

He pointed at the two of them with his thick fingers.

"You eat the food of Kirigakure, enjoy the power and status brought by the ninja sword, yet you turn around and curse Kirigakure every day, calling them worthless. You, a farmer's son, without Kirigakure Academy, you'd still be in the fields hoeing the earth!"

"you!"

"What do you mean, 'you'? And you rotten loquat, without the Hidden Mist Academy, could those few rotten fruit trees at home support your whole family?"

"snort!"

Pipa Juzo gripped the Executioner's Blade tightly.

"So, Fat Watermelon, you think the Blood Mist policy was right? It's been seven or eight years since the Third Shinobi World War ended, and the Seven Ninja Swordsmen of the Mist still can't gather all their members! Who do you think is to blame? So many talented young people have died at the hands of their own people!"

After a moment of silence, Suigetsu Hobutsu sighed.

"The Blood Mist policy certainly has its problems, but it did suppress the ninja clans and win benefits for ordinary people like you and me. If it weren't for the sudden emergence of Mei Terumi and Mangetsu Hozuki, the ninja clans would have been completely wiped out, and Kirigakure would have been completely unified. It would have been a good thing. We could have licked our wounds slowly in the future. Anyway, we are isolated overseas and have plenty of time."

"What about the messages coming from within the Ninja Clan Alliance?"

Raiga Kurosuki rubbed the ninja sword in his hand, which crackled with lightning from time to time.

"They say our Fourth Mizukage is the one suspected of being controlled by genjutsu! Don't tell me you didn't know this!"

"I know, but we can't believe it all. In fact, it's precisely because there's this possibility that we need to get our hands on that 'Kotoamatsukami' Sharingan! At least we need to keep it in Kirigakure and keep it under our control. If all else fails, we can use it to fight the Fourth Hokage again! It's a Sharingan, so maybe we can break free from its control."

At this point, Watermelon Pufferfish looked at the camp in the distance, his voice carrying a complex emotion.

"This village is filthy and bloody, but it's still a place to stay. Without it, we're nothing more than homeless stray dogs that anyone can kick at..."

In the mountains and forests, the rustling of leaves in the wind could be heard...

After a long while, Kurozuki Raiya spat.

"Damn it, you rotten watermelon, I'll trust you one more time, the last time..."

Pipa Juzo didn't say anything more, but simply slung the Executioner's Blade back onto his shoulder, indicating his acquiescence through his actions.

...

"They're here!"

On the watchtower within the Hidden Mist camp, the ninja on guard lowered his voice and gave a signal.

A few seconds later, at the end of the forest path, several figures were rushing toward the camp at an extremely fast speed. Leading them was Uchiha Fugaku, with Terumi Mei, Uchiha Mikoto, Ao, Chojuro, and more than a dozen elite ninjas with considerable auras beside him.

The members of the ninja clan gathered in the camp's plaza, looking at the gate, which had been meticulously prepared. Buried underground was a scroll containing the Terumi clan's secret technique, a lava trap specifically designed for Uchiha Fugaku.

How can we lure him into a trap?

Very simple.

A water clone, posing as Mizuki Kiriko, stood at the camp entrance to "greet" him. Logically, this made no problem. Of course, no one expected any clone to be able to deceive Fugaku Uchiha's Sharingan indefinitely, but as long as he could pause for a moment, even just a second, that would be enough...

The plan was a success.

A few seconds later, Fugaku Uchiha and his group arrived at the gate and saw "Minazuki Kiriko," who had been transformed from a water clone, walking out of the gate as if to greet them.

As expected, Fugaku Uchiha stopped in his tracks.

"Now!"

Under the watchful eyes of the Ninja Alliance members, Terumi Saburo, standing in the crowd, formed a hand seal with one hand and let out a loud shout!

"boom!!!"

The earth trembled violently! It was as if something terrifying was awakening from underground. All the members of the ninja alliance inside and outside the camp were on high alert, preparing to see the sky-piercing lava engulf and imprison Uchiha Fugaku.

However...

The expected crimson, scorching lava walls did not appear.

Instead, thick, viscous, pitch-black mud—looking so familiar—suddenly rose from the ground around the camp and the edge of the surrounding forest.

These mud walls rose at an astonishing speed, closing in instantly to form a huge, almost perfect cube that completely enveloped the entire Mist Shadow camp, along with the Mist Shadow assassination squad that had just rushed into the camp's territory, ready to stalk the prey!

The light inside the cube suddenly dimmed, but with a hissing sound, several flares shot towards the muddy dome, illuminating the vast space.

"Don't touch this mud."

Fugaku Uchiha's calm voice echoed clearly in the somewhat enclosed space.

"I think you should still have some recollection of this, otherwise you would have become like the Konoha ninjas before, unable to move and turned into clay puppets."

"Saburo Terumi! You bastard!"

If the people of the Ninja Alliance still can't react by now, then they're fools. It's obvious that this guy is one of Uchiha Fugaku's group. But at this moment, Terumi Saburo and Mizuki Kiriko had already taken advantage of the darkness just now to get to Uchiha Fugaku's camp.

"Look at the leader's eyes! They're not Sharingan!"

Someone shouted something, and everyone looked over again. They saw that Mei Terumi's face was not covered by an eye patch, and her eyes were still the same as they remembered!

"What...what exactly is going on?"

This statement represents everyone's thoughts...

Not only were the members of the Ninja Alliance bewildered, but even the Kirigakure assassination squad that had just rushed in stopped temporarily at the gestures of Suigetsu Hobuki and the others, looking at this completely unexpected situation with surprise and uncertainty.

"Alright, everyone."

Fugaku Uchiha clapped his hands.

"You are all aware of my information, so first of all, I want to thank the Konoha ninjas who are 'temporarily residing' in the East Coast Market. Their selfless dedication these past few days has been invaluable. Without continuously extracting chakra from them, I really wouldn't have been able to perform this ninjutsu."

"However, now that I have used this ninjutsu, it means that you cannot defeat me until it ends. You have to admit that, right?"

"What exactly do you want?"

Someone in the crowd shouted angrily.

"It's nothing much, just... I just want everyone to stand quietly where you are and watch a movie. The movie is called 'Unite All Who Can Be United'."