The terrifying sword technique, which incinerated people completely, stunned the Root ninjas. The remnants of their instincts made them feel an unfamiliar fear toward such immense power. For a brief moment, they were paralyzed by terror, unable to move. Normally, this short-lived stiffness wouldn't be an issue, as the Root ninjas, with their skills, could quickly dispel the fear.
However, at this moment, in this situation, even a moment of stiffness was enough for Shisui, Hiashi Hyuga, and the others to make their move.
Even Shisui, who had no hesitation or mercy, slashed through the air with his short blade, casting bright flashes of sword light and mercilessly taking the lives of the Root ninjas. Not even a Jonin could withstand Shisui's blade.
Shisui's **Body Flicker Technique** allowed him to cut down opponents almost as fast as the late Fourth Hokage.
Together with Hiashi Hyuga and the elite Hyuga clan bodyguard, the three took full advantage of the perfect opportunity created by Sougen. In just a moment, they killed more than half of the remaining five Root ninjas.
Only two were left alive.
Unfortunately for them, even with the numbers now even, they were no match for Sougen, Shisui, Hiashi, and the others. Their Jonin rank couldn't change their fate of defeat and death. As for the others who had yet to act, there was no hope for them.
When they began this mission, they knew it was a suicide mission.
The entire battle from start to finish took less than half a minute.
In that short time, three elite squads of Root were wiped out.
The speed of the fight made Aburame Ryoma, who was gathering information from the treetops, deeply frown. As expected of the Uchiha—so overwhelmingly strong, it was despairing. Despite the heavy sacrifices, they had not gathered much useful intelligence.
It was all information about Uchiha Sougen that had already been revealed.
His insanely powerful shuriken-throwing technique and the original Uchiha-style swordsmanship that could turn people into dust were not new. Sougen had already demonstrated these on the battlefield, and it wasn't difficult for attentive observers to collect this information. Given Root's power and influence, they naturally had access to such details.
Before the operation, Aburame Ryoma had passed on intelligence about their target, Sougen, to all involved.
Including the twelve at the front line, everyone knew some of Sougen's techniques.
However, knowing was one thing, but being able to respond was another. In simple terms, their minds understood, but their bodies didn't know how to react. They knew Sougen's shuriken-throwing technique could shatter rock and steel, but they simply didn't have enough time to dodge.
Then, there was that Uchiha-style **Flame Demon Sword**.
That technique was unbeatable—you either dodged it or endured it. There was no other way to counter it, at least as far as Aburame Ryoma could tell.
"Proceed with the original plan," a new order was given.
Aburame Ryoma knew he wasn't particularly clever or adaptable. He didn't have much confidence in his ability to make quick decisions on the fly. At this point, rather than giving random commands, it was better to stick with the original plan. After all, Root had mobilized most of its elite for this mission. Manpower wasn't an issue.
Even if they had to sacrifice lives, he would exhaust Uchiha Sougen to death.
In a blood-stained room, Uchiha Obito, wrapped in White Zetsu's body, silently emerged from a nearby pillar. He lowered his head, his scarlet eyes gleaming from the single opening in his vortex mask, filled with solemnity and seriousness.
"**Flame Demon** Uchiha Sougen, huh?"
Obito glanced at the humanoid ashes on the ground. His gaze traveled through the floor's gaps, spotting a still-steaming, half-melted famous sword. The intense heat hadn't fully dissipated. Then, his eyes shifted to the four bodies killed by shuriken.
He was using his own eyes to verify the accuracy of the intelligence on Uchiha Sougen!
"Obito, that guy is terrifying! His Fire Release techniques are definitely stronger than yours!" White Zetsu, as unreliable as ever, casually voiced his thoughts, not caring about Obito's feelings.
Fortunately, Obito nodded in agreement.
"In terms of Fire Release alone, I am no match for him."
"And his shuriken-throwing technique—seriously, Obito, is your clan's shuriken-throwing really that terrifying? Slicing through steel… that's unheard of! Though, to be fair, I've never witnessed it myself." White Zetsu continued his endless chatter.
Obito remained silent.
He was contemplating how to deal with Uchiha Sougen, the young clan leader seemingly destined to restore the Uchiha to their former glory. A powerful Uchiha didn't fit into Obito's plans for the future. Decline, downfall, even total extinction—that would be the best outcome.
"To take down someone this dangerous won't be easy. The best approach is to force Uchiha Sougen into a situation where he must exhaust his chakra and visual power. Once his Mangekyo Sharingan goes blind, he'll cease to be a threat," Black Zetsu calmly analyzed their options.
"You mean the Mist Village?" Thᴇ link to the origɪn of this information rᴇsts ɪn Novᴇl_Fire(.)net
"Is there a better choice?" Black Zetsu's smile was cold.
"If Root can help wear down some of Uchiha Sougen's visual power, that alone would be a good result for us. But from the looks of things, Root is no match for him! Instead of expecting a miracle from them, we should start preparing for what comes next."
"No rush. I still want to see if Uchiha Sougen will use his Mangekyo Sharingan techniques." Obito hadn't forgotten about Sougen awakening the Mangekyo Sharingan. More than anything else, he was most concerned with that.
"That's reasonable too."
At the mention of the Mangekyo Sharingan, Black Zetsu stopped trying to persuade Obito. Truth be told, he was also curious about what kind of visual powers Sougen had awakened. Having lived for a thousand years, Black Zetsu spent much of his life secretly observing the Uchiha clan, as well as the Senju and Uzumaki clans.
Over the centuries, he had seen many strange and powerful Mangekyo Sharingan abilities. While there had been instances of similar techniques, the Uchiha always managed to surprise him every few decades. Even Black Zetsu didn't know how many abilities the Uchiha's Mangekyo Sharingan possessed.