As Minato Namikaze finished speaking, the shinobi behind him immediately drew their weapons, one after another, their killing intent spreading through the battlefield.
Swish, swish, swish!
At the same moment, Leaf shinobi continuously appeared from the sky using the Body Flicker Technique, landing neatly behind the Hokage. In only a few breaths, dozens of elite ninja had gathered, forming a tight encirclement.
Ryūjin watched the scene unfold, utterly speechless.
What the hell is Obito doing? Where did all these Leaf ninja suddenly come from?
For a moment, he even wondered whether Obito had secretly placed this many Leaf shinobi under control without his knowledge.
"Hokage-sama, you..."
Yahiko froze in shock. The situation unfolding before him completely exceeded his expectations.
He had genuinely believed the Hokage accepted mediation for peace. Yet now it was obvious that this meeting had been nothing more than a carefully prepared ambush.
There had never been any intention of negotiation.
The goal was to eliminate the Mizukage.
No... how could the Hokage act like this?
"Minato Namikaze, I knew someone like you wouldn't come here honestly," the Fourth Mizukage, Yagura Karatachi, said with a cold laugh. "You planned to kill me using this opportunity? Hahaha... I was thinking the exact same thing."
Swish, swish, swish!
As his laughter faded, Mist shinobi descended behind Yagura like rain falling from the sky, quickly assembling into formation.
"Mizukage-sama... even you?"
Yahiko's voice trembled.
The Hokage intended to assassinate the Mizukage, and unbelievably, the Mizukage had arrived with the same plan. From the very beginning, neither side had come seeking peace.
Both villages only wanted blood.
"Hokage-sama, Mizukage-sama, please stop this war!" Yahiko shouted desperately. "Do you know how many civilians will suffer if your great villages fight? How many families will be destroyed? How many children will become orphans?"
His fists tightened as emotion filled his voice.
"Do you understand the pain war brings? Why must war exist? Why can't people live in peace?"
Even now, Yahiko refused to give up.
Ryūjin glanced at him silently. Idealistic to the end.
"Naive," Minato Namikaze replied calmly, his tone filled with disdain. "Without war, would Konoha stand as the strongest hidden village? Would the world know my name as the Yellow Flash? Would they remember Hanzō of the Salamander as the Demigod?"
"A shinobi gains everything through war."
"In this world, peace does not exist."
His gaze shifted sharply toward Yagura, killing intent flashing in his eyes.
"Today, the Mizukage dies here."
"Hokage-sama, what about the Akatsuki members?" Obito asked from among the ANBU at the perfect moment.
Minato did not hesitate.
"Kill them all. Leave no survivors."
"Minato Namikaze," Yagura added expressionlessly, "why don't we eliminate these troublesome outsiders first? After that, we can fight without distractions."
Yahiko, Nagato, and Konan felt their hearts sink instantly.
"Alright," Minato agreed without hesitation.
Their expressions turned pale.
Facing both the Hokage and the Mizukage along with their elite forces, escape was impossible. Even if every Akatsuki member were present, survival would still be unlikely.
"So... this is the truth of the world?" Yahiko murmured weakly, his face drained of color. "Everything Akatsuki believed in... was it all just a joke?"
Nagato and Konan shared the same crushing realization. Their ideals seemed to collapse before their eyes.
And the price of that naivety would be their lives.
"So the real target was the Akatsuki all along."
A calm voice suddenly broke the suffocating tension.
From Konoha's side, a young man wearing the uniform of the Konoha Police Force stepped forward and spoke toward an ANBU nearby.
Swish!
Everyone present turned toward him at once.
The controlled shinobi remained expressionless.
Yahiko, Nagato, Konan, and even Obito, disguised as an ANBU, showed clear shock.
"What do you mean?" Yahiko asked, confused as he looked at Ryūjin Uchiha.
Ryūjin shrugged casually.
"Still don't get it? Whether it's Konoha or Kirigakure, they're all under genjutsu. Every single one of them is being controlled."
Silence fell instantly.
"So... that's the truth?" Yahiko whispered, disbelief filling his face.
The Hokage and the Mizukage were peak figures of the shinobi world. Who could possibly manipulate both sides at once?
"Are you the one controlling everything?" Konan asked coldly while staring directly at the disguised Obito. "Who are you, and why orchestrate something like this?"
She trusted Ryūjin's judgment.
Ever since he exposed the truth, both leaders had stopped acting independently, subtly waiting for orders from that ANBU.
The answer was obvious.
"Impossible... you weren't affected by my genjutsu?" Obito finally spoke, his voice filled with shock as he stared at Ryūjin. "That can't be possible!"
He ignored Konan completely.
His Mangekyō Sharingan genjutsu could perfectly control even a Jinchūriki. Yet this man stood completely unaffected.
"In this world, nothing is impossible," Ryūjin replied casually.
"Who exactly are you?" Obito demanded, anger and disbelief mixing in his voice.
Ryūjin gave a lazy shrug.
"Someone you aren't qualified to use as a pawn."
His expression remained relaxed, almost bored.
"Since you decided to scheme against me, consider yourself unlucky."
Originally, Ryūjin had willingly walked into the trap and played along with Obito's plan. His only interest had been locating Obito's hidden base so he could complete a Sign-in there.
That was all.
But now things were different.
Once Obito finished using everyone here, the most likely outcome would be silence through death. Whether Minato survived or not was uncertain, but minor players like them definitely would not be spared.
Ryūjin had no interest in being someone else's disposable piece.
He certainly did not enjoy being made a fool of.
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