The two Anbu ninjas blocking Simu's path fell silently in the real world in an instant.
The other four Anbu ninjas hidden in the shadows immediately gave the order upon seeing this: "Attack!"
The mission given to them by the Hokage this time was to protect the safety of the Nine-Tails Jinchuriki. Therefore, they had to stop the man before them.
"Earth Style: Earth Spike!"
As chakra spread through the ground, sharp earth spikes erupted from beneath Simu's feet, directly impaling his body.
"Did we succeed?"
The four Anbu ninjas stared nervously at the scene. Although they didn't know how this guy had instantly taken out two of their companions just now, it would be for the best if they could resolve the threat this easily.
Unfortunately, the Simu who had been easily impaled transformed into countless black beetles in the next second and dispersed.
"Watch out, it's some kind of insect clone!" the captain of the Anbu squad quickly warned.
However, a question soon surfaced in their minds: if this guy was a clone, where was the enemy's real body?
"I'm over here."
Simu's casual voice rang out from behind them, a cold glint flashing across his glasses.
"Look out!"
The Anbu ninjas turned around immediately, only to be met by a crimson eye. Beneath the glasses Simu slowly removed, a three-tomoe Sharingan was emitting an eerie red light.
In just an instant, the Anbu ninjas who looked at the Sharingan fell into a genjutsu.
Those sent to protect the Nine-Tails Jinchuriki were all elite Anbu members with rich combat experience. They had undergone extensive training in breaking genjutsu. Consequently, the ordinary genjutsu Simu launched with his Sharingan did not obstruct them for long.
But within that single second, Simu had enough time to do many things.
Four crimson tentacles erupted from his back simultaneously. Before the four Anbu ninjas could wake up, they were firmly entangled. By the time they regained consciousness and tried to resist, they found the strength within their bodies being drained away bit by bit.
"Damn it, my chakra is disappearing fast. I can't even perform a jutsu..."
Despite being battle-hardened and having undergone various types of training, Simu's methods of attack were simply too bizarre. Furthermore, before the battle began, they never expected this guy to possess the Uchiha Clan's Sharingan.
If Simu had removed their masks at this moment, he would have seen their utterly hideous expressions. Unfortunately, under the frantic extraction by the tentacles, these Anbu elites only lasted a few seconds.
The four masked Anbu elites crashed heavily to the ground. The four strange tentacles retracted obediently beneath his clothes, and Simu returned to his original refined and elegant appearance.
He put his square-framed glasses back on and said plainly, "Time is running out."
Adjusting his clothes, Simu walked into the apartment like nothing had happened and quietly knocked on Naruto's door.
"Who is it? I'm coming, I'm coming!"
It was late at night. Although a violent conflict was erupting on the other side of the village, Naruto was not greatly affected due to the distance. Hearing the knock on his door, he hurried over to open it.
"Who is it?" Naruto asked with confusion as he pulled the door open.
As the "demon fox" in the villagers' whispers, Naruto had almost no friends in the village. Naturally, no one would come to visit him. Usually, only the Old Man Hokage would come to his home. However, even the Hokage wouldn't come looking for him this late.
Filled with confusion, Naruto saw an unexpected figure at the door.
"Uncle Kimura?"
Surprise was evident on his face, but he still offered a smile and asked, "Is there something you need this late, Uncle Kimura?"
Simu maintained a faint smile. He rubbed Naruto's head and said, "I need your help, Naruto."
Hearing this, the smile on Naruto's face became even brighter: "Whatever Uncle Kimura needs me to do, leave it to Uzumaki Naruto!"
He seemed quite excited. Perhaps helping others allowed this child to find a sense of belonging.
"I'm sorry, Naruto," Simu spoke softly.
Immediately, his black pupils turned crimson, followed by the appearance of a special black pattern.
Mangekyo Sharingan, activate!
The Sharingan was originally a "soul-reflecting eye" that specialized in the soul. Therefore, with the enhancement of Shisui's Mangekyo Sharingan, Simu's soul-level abilities reached an unprecedented height.
The moment the Mangekyo Sharingan activated, Simu's spirit drove straight in, penetrating deep into the depths of Naruto's mental world.
That dark world appeared before his eyes once again. The dim yellow light illuminated the surface of the lake beneath his feet. Within the deep darkness separated by the vermillion cage, an incredibly terrifying aura was hidden.
"Brat, you're back again."
A raspy and majestic voice rang out. Immediately, a pair of beast-like crimson eyes lit up in the darkness. A wild and fierce aura rushed toward him. Simu's trench coat fluttered in the wind, but he merely adjusted his glasses with indifference and said calmly, "The right time has arrived."
The giant beast hidden in the darkness took a step forward. The dim light finally outlined its entire body. Red fur, a ferocious maw, a fierce gaze, sharp fangs, and nine terrifying tails waving in the air!
This was the strongest Tailed Beast—the Nine-Tails!
"Tell me, what is happening outside?"
The Nine-Tails stared at Simu with its ferocious eyes. Though it wasn't angry, its casual gaze was enough to crush a normal person's psychological defenses.
As the symbol of hatred, the Nine-Tails was born with the ability to sense malice. However, this ability was greatly restricted by the Eight Trigrams Sealing Style that the Fourth Hokage, Minato Namikaze, had placed on Naruto. Even so, the Nine-Tails could still sense the hatred and fear permeating the air outside.
Combined with Simu's arrival, it could easily guess that the Leaf must be experiencing significant chaos. Otherwise, that old man Hiruzen Sarutobi would never allow anyone to get near it so easily.
Simu did not hide anything and said directly, "The Uchiha Clan has launched a coup."
Hearing this news, the Nine-Tails' eyes narrowed sharply. No one knew how broken the Uchiha's Sharingan was better than the Nine-Tails. Therefore, the moment it heard about the coup, the Nine-Tails knew its chance had come.
However, it remained as still as a mountain on the surface. Instead, it fixed its gaze on Simu's single, somewhat out-of-place eye.
"Brat, don't tell me you're also from the Uchiha Clan?"
Although there was only one eye, it was the terrifying Mangekyo Sharingan. This reminded the Nine-Tails of the fear of being controlled by the Mangekyo. During the Night of the Nine-Tails years ago, the masked guy also had only one Sharingan—also a Mangekyo—though the pattern seemed different.
Simu pushed his glasses gently, a cold glint flashing on the lenses. "I suppose I'm half an Uchiha."
It wasn't that Simu was intentionally being vague. This body did indeed possess the bloodline of the Uchiha Clan. He had transplanted the Uchiha bloodline mainly because he discovered during experiments that only those with Uchiha blood could freely open or close the Sharingan. To avoid wasting chakra and exposing his identity, Simu had modified this clone and transplanted the Uchiha bloodline. Calling himself half an Uchiha was not an exaggeration.
"Hmph, a brat who speaks in riddles."
The Nine-Tails expressed its disdain for Simu's vague explanation but immediately asked, "So, what do you plan to do?"
Hearing the question, the corners of Simu's mouth curled up. It was just as he expected. Having been sealed for so many years, the Nine-Tails was likely more eager to get out than he was.
"It's simple. I will break the seal on Naruto, and you will go out and help me destroy the Leaf."
Simu's words were concise and clear. The Nine-Tails understood perfectly but still stared at Simu with a scrutinizing gaze, as if observing whether his words were true. After all, such conditions were equivalent to helping it break the seal unconditionally. Given its grudge against the Leaf, it would definitely blast the village with a Tailed Beast Bomb the moment the seal was broken, even if Simu didn't ask.
After considering for over ten seconds, the Nine-Tails finally grinned and said, "Brat, I agree."
Simu nodded with satisfaction. Immediately, he floated up as if he had lost his weight and went straight to the cage sealing the Nine-Tails. In the center of the cage, at the junction of the two gates, was a paper talisman. Only by tearing off this talisman and then undoing the Eight Trigrams Sealing Style on Naruto's abdomen could the Nine-Tails be fully released.
Over this period, Simu had collected a lot of information left behind by the Hidden Eddy Village. Combined with his research on Shukaku's seal, Simu had made great progress in sealing techniques. He could even be called a sealing expert. Therefore, while breaking Naruto's seal was difficult, it was not impossible.
Under the Nine-Tails' expectant gaze, Simu reached out his palm and gently pinched the giant seal talisman in the middle of the cage.
"That's it, brat, tear it off!"
The Nine-Tails could hardly contain itself. Its body even began to leak terrifying Tailed Beast chakra. A frightening and horrifying aura leaked frantically from the gaps in the cage.
"The structure of this talisman seems a bit strange..."
Simu looked at the giant talisman in his hand, his brow slightly furrowed because he felt a special chakra presence within it.
Seeing Simu stop his movements, the Nine-Tails began to urge him impatiently: "Don't worry about that, brat, hurry up!"
Hearing the urge, a cold glint flashed on Simu's glasses. Just as he was about to tear the paper off, a hand firmly grabbed his wrist.
Someone is here!
Simu turned his head with surprise, and a flash of bright gold caught his eye. Before he could determine who the newcomer was, a massive force erupted from the hand on his wrist, actually throwing him backward!
The moment he was thrown, black demonic wings bloomed from Simu's back. He controlled the airflow to land steadily on the surface of the lake in Naruto's mental world. The figure that had suddenly appeared was standing on the vermillion cage with both feet, looking down at Simu.
Only now did Simu have time to look closely at the man who had suddenly appeared and successfully stopped him from breaking the seal.
Golden hair, a handsome face, and calm blue eyes. He wore the iconic Hidden Leaf headband on his forehead. He wore the standard Leaf uniform, but over it was a white cloak with a red flame pattern and the words: "Fourth Hokage."
Before Simu could react, the Nine-Tails imprisoned in the cage went berserk first. Terrifying chakra instantly poured out of its body. The aura of the curse frantically hammered the cage. Its mountain-like claws gripped the cage fiercely, causing huge ripples throughout the mental world.
"It really is you, Minato Namikaze!" The Nine-Tails' voice was filled with anger and hatred.
Because it was this man who had sealed it within this little brat and had used the Reaper Death Seal to take away half of its chakra before sealing it!
Minato glanced sideways at the Nine-Tails: "Oh, it's the Nine-Tails. I didn't expect us to meet again so soon."
This nonchalant attitude almost made the Nine-Tails snap. While pulling forcefully at the unmoving gate, it roared in anger, "Damn guy, let me out now!"
This time, Minato ignored it and focused his gaze on Simu. To Minato, as long as the seal was not officially undone, the Nine-Tails could not pose any threat to him. Therefore, his most important task was to focus all his energy on this unknown enemy.
This guy also possessed the powerful Mangekyo Sharingan!
Simu pushed his glasses gently and said calmly to Minato, "So it's the legendary Fourth Hokage."
Minato nodded and introduced himself: "I am the Fourth Hokage of the Leaf, Minato Namikaze. And you are?"
Since the other party had introduced himself openly, Simu responded in kind: "I am the head of the Spider Lily Chamber of Commerce, Kimura."
"The Spider Lily Chamber of Commerce? It seems it's a chamber established later." Minato quickly made a judgment, then looked at him with a serious expression. "I wonder why Mr. Kimura wants to break the Nine-Tails' seal?"
"As an Uchiha, you should know how dangerous the power of the Nine-Tails is. Once the seal is broken, it will definitely cause massive casualties to the village. Have you already forgotten the night of the Nine-Tails' rampage?" Minato emphasized sternly.
Unfortunately, these reasons did not hold up with Simu at all. The casualties of the Leaf had nothing to do with this spokesperson of Jashin.
"Lord Fourth, I think you've misunderstood one thing..."
"I don't care at all about how much damage the Nine-Tails will cause to the Leaf. What I want to do is..."
"Destroy this decaying world!"
As Simu's arrogant words fell, a terrifying aura of destruction radiated from his body. This made Minato Namikaze feel that the situation was quite troublesome.
Since he was only a portion of chakra left behind before death, Minato had no way of knowing what was happening in the outside world. At most, he could infer how much time had passed since his death by looking at Naruto's appearance. However, judging by this Uchiha's attitude toward the Leaf, the village must have encountered quite a serious problem.
Recalling the Sharingan he saw in the Nine-Tails' eyes during the chaos of his death and the past behavior of the village's high-level officials, Minato quickly realized something.
"What has happened to the Uchiha Clan?"
Hearing this, Simu was impressed: "As expected of the legendary Fourth Hokage. You've grasped the key point of the matter through just a few words?"
Of course, Simu didn't intend to hide anything from Minato Namikaze, nor was there any need to. So he said directly: "Under the long-term oppression of the village, the Uchiha Clan has embarked on the path of a coup."
"What?!" Even the always calm Minato Namikaze showed a shocked expression upon hearing this.
Because that was the Uchiha Clan! One of the two major clans that founded the Leaf, and now the undeniable number one clan in the village, had actually taken the path of a coup.
Seeing Minato's shocked look, Simu nodded slightly. "After the Nine-Tails' rampage ended, the village's high-level officials used the village's reconstruction as an excuse to move the Uchiha's clan grounds to the outskirts, sidelining the entire Uchiha from the village's center."
"Combined with the numerous conflicts and rumors involving the Police Force and the villagers, the distrust from the village and its people caused the Uchiha Clan to lose all faith in the Leaf. Therefore, they can only use violence to change everything."
Simu briefly described what the Uchiha had gone through over the years. But what he wanted to tell this Fourth Hokage wasn't just this.
"Furthermore, to cover up his incompetence during the Nine-Tails' rampage, the Third Hokage shifted all the villagers' resentment toward that incident onto the Nine-Tails. Which means, onto your child, the Nine-Tails Jinchuriki, Uzumaki Naruto."
"As a result, Naruto has suffered from the exclusion and rumors of all the villagers since he was a child. He is seen as ominous, a disaster, the incarnation of the demon fox. Shops are unwilling to sell things to him, and not a single child dares to play with him. He could only grow up in loneliness, relying on fishing and expired milk."
"To be honest, if the seal you left wasn't strong enough, the Nine-Tails probably would have gone berserk countless times already."
Simu spoke these words with a hint of sentimentality. By now, Minato's expression was already extremely grim.