The earth trembled violently. The sheer force of the eruption distorted the surrounding air, kicking up a raging storm of dust and sand that swept across the battlefield.
"BOOM!!"
Like the deep roar of a dragon, the enormous blue phantom suddenly surged forward. Its massive body crashed through the battlefield with the unstoppable montum of a derailed train, sending every Iwagakure ninja in its path flying helplessly into the air.
The ground split apart beneath the impact.
A massive trench several ters deep tore through the earth before Kakashi's eyes, stretching forward like a scar carved directly into the battlefield itself.
Kakashi's gaze trembled slightly.
Almost unconsciously, he raised a hand toward his chest. He did not know when he would ever reach the point where he could unleash a technique with such terrifying destructive force.
But there was one thing he understood clearly—
No matter how difficult it beca, he still could not stop himself from chasing after Zoro's back.
Following behind Zoro, Kakashi soon arrived before a narrow cave entrance barely large enough for a person to pass through.
A heavy stench of blood drifted out from inside.
Kakashi's expression stiffened slightly.
Don't tell ...?!
A trace of unease flashed through his eyes. He glanced at Zoro beside him before silently following him into the cave.
What entered their sight was Uchiha Obito and Nohara Rin.
Only, Obito seed to be occupied with sothing.
He was digging.
"Zoro-kun... you're here..."
Rin forced out a smile as she looked toward him.
But Zoro could clearly sense the fear hidden beneath her expression. Her emotions were trembling uncontrollably.
What exactly was she afraid of?
Without speaking, Zoro slowly swept his gaze across the cave.
The space inside was not large. Broken ropes were scattered across the ground, but aside from that, there was almost nothing else that could provide useful clues.
"O-Obito... what are you doing?"
Zoro's lips trembled strangely as he spoke. Even his voice had begun shaking faintly.
His heartbeat—sothing that had almost never quickened from nervousness before—was now accelerating uncontrollably.
"Zoro-kun, let's go outside first. Obito still has sothing he needs to do."
Seeing Zoro begin walking deeper into the cave, Rin hurried forward and blocked his path.
The positions of the two were far too unnatural.
Rin had remained near the cave entrance the entire ti, while Obito stood at the deepest part of the cave.
It was as though they were desperately trying to hide sothing from him.
At that mont, Obito's arms shook uncontrollably.
Looking at the corpse before him, now mangled beyond recognition, his lips had already turned deathly pale. Cold sweat continuously dripped down his forehead.
He knew—
Zoro absolutely could not see this.
The mont he sensed Zoro's arrival, Obito forcibly suppressed the tears welling up in his eyes while his hands moved even faster.
"What are you doing?"
Those four icy words suddenly sounded beside him.
Obito's body instinctively trembled.
Slowly, stiffly, he turned his head.
And then he saw sothing he would never forget for the rest of his life.
That calm and mature boy, who always appeared composed no matter the situation, had finally revealed the side of a child.
On that sharp, resolute face, two streams of tears silently flowed downward.
Obito would never forget that expression.
Within those dark pupils, aside from their usual depth, there now existed an indescribable emptiness—
As though his soul itself had disappeared in that instant.
Those hollow eyes resembled bottomless black holes, to the point that Obito did not even dare et them for too long.
"Zo... Zoro, you..."
Obito lowered his head slightly.
At that mont, he desperately wanted to say sothing comforting. But he realized his throat had completely tightened shut.
Not a single word would co out.
Not far away, Rin had already covered her face with both hands. Her shoulders trembled violently as tears continuously poured from her eyes.
She understood exactly how Zoro felt right now.
She wanted to comfort him.
But she could not even suppress the grief surging through her own heart.
"You three... go outside first. I want to be alone for a while."
The hoarse voice forced its way out of Zoro's throat with difficulty, as though sothing sharp were lodged inside it.
A faint tremor still lingered beneath every word.
"Let's go."
Hatake Kakashi understood his feelings better than anyone.
Silently, he pulled Obito and Rin out of the cave with him.
Because Kakashi knew that pain all too well—
The pain of losing soone precious.
Right now, the sky over Zoro's world had probably turned completely gray.
Looking at Uchiha Muneyoshi lying inside the shallow pit, now partially covered beneath a thin layer of soil, Zoro found himself unable to say a single word.
The overwhelming emotions choking his chest left him completely speechless.
Inside his eyes, the Sharingan flickered violently out of control.
He did not even dare recall the past.
Because he knew that the mont he did, he would sink into endless agony.
"...Ah."
A trembling breath escaped his lips.
After taking a long, heavy breath, Zoro silently stared at Muneyoshi's corpse.
The body was still warm.
He had only recently died.
His clothes had long since been torn apart. Countless chaotic wounds covered the old man's body, making his already aged figure appear especially cruel and tragic.
Zoro did not know why Muneyoshi had suffered such horrific torture before death.
But he understood one thing clearly—
All of this had probably happened because of him.
Only when facing Zoro would Muneyoshi beco that stubborn old man.
For six entire years, he had resisted the clan's pressure just to buy ti for Zoro.
Even while enduring endless opposition from within the clan, he still forcefully passed the position of Second Elder to Zoro amidst countless doubts and criticisms.
Muneyoshi had done far too much for him.
So much that Zoro no longer even dared think back on it.
And now...
That old man who always smiled and joked with him was gone forever.
Zoro did not know how long he remained standing there.
For a brief mont, it almost felt as though he had returned to the past—to the days when Muneyoshi carried him on his shoulders as a child while taking him around the village.
Only when the sky outside gradually darkened into night did Zoro finally regain his senses.
The sharpness in his eyes remained unchanged—
But now, an additional layer of icy indifference had settled within them.
"You three should head back first. I still have sothing to do."
Zoro knew that Kakashi and the others had been checking the cave entrance from ti to ti, seemingly afraid he might do sothing irrational.
"I..."
Hearing the subtle change even in Zoro's voice, Rin still wanted to say sothing.
But Kakashi stopped her.
"Let's go."
The mont Kakashi heard the coldness within Zoro's tone, he imdiately understood—
Right now, Zoro did not want anyone disturbing him.
Only after confirming that Kakashi and the others had completely left the area did Zoro finally bury Muneyoshi properly.
Then, he slowly drew Enma from his waist.
Now that he had cald down sowhat, he had already roughly guessed why all of this had happened.
A blood debt had to be repaid with blood.
Danzo.
And the Third Hokage.
He would kill them both.
How could Iwagakure shinobi possibly infiltrate Konoha and abduct a highly respected elder of the Uchiha Clan without anyone noticing?
Even an idiot would know that was impossible.
"BOOM!!"
Sharp purple Ryuo erupted instantly from Enma, violently splitting apart the earth beneath the cave entrance.
At the sa ti, a concealed underground passage appeared before Zoro's eyes.
"You dared provoke ..."
"Then prepare to pay the price."
Like the whisper of the Grim Reaper itself, Zoro's cold voice echoed throughout the cave.
At that mont, the most terrifying killing intent he had ever unleashed in his life erupted violently from his body.
***
Advance chapters available on P@trè0n (Aki_sensei). Appreciate the support!
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