59

~~Outskirts of Konohagakure~~

"How about it, I believe the proposal is good enough?", The spiral-masked Uchiha Obito's figure appeared with the twist of space.

Danzo didn't care about the other man's purpose, these days no village is willing to take him under their care, what happened in Kumo had already spread across the five elemental nations.

Whenever Danzo finds a slight ray of hope and civilization, he was thrown out almost immediately. And the worst thing is that the tune does not stop playing even for a moment.

He was tired to the point where he thought it would be good enough to die than run like this for eternity; he could fight even the so-called monsters at this point, yet for some reason whenever that flute chimed, he felt a surge of insurmountable fear and for better or worse, he could not stop running.

His feet soles are long since started blistering, his breath ragged, Danzo knows that if he wants to see any kind of hope under this despair, he has to abandon everything...

Thus, when this person appeared as the life-saving straw, Danzo didn't care what the other party wants, he is willing to pay any price to drive that demon away.

Danzo knew there is no guarantee that the other will keep his promise, but what choice he has?

"I don't care, as long as you can protect me, I will give you whatever you want", Danzo said and Obito chuckled

Obito could very well understand Danzo's fear. Even he had to change his sense of chakra to the point where no one could sense him, even now he is covered in white Zetsu's skin for fear that Ghost would find him and then mark his chakra once again.

It's frustrating, to say the least. He is a nightmare that can follow you till the end of this world...

"Very well. How is your Impure World Reincarnation Technique?", Uchiha Obito asked playfully.

Danzo didn't care about Obito's banter and said, "Using this strange creature called White Zetsu as a sacrifice, I can summon past shinobis at their peak"

He looked at White Zetsu with some strange eyes, this strange creature does not need food and has no organs, but can move around freely. What in the world made it?

"However, ordinary shinobis of the past are no match against Ghost...", Zetsu intervened

Danzo nods, "I know, we need the strength of the first and second Hokage, but they are too strong, and since Tobirama sensei created the technique in the first place, he will be able to get rid of the Jutsu control quite easily..."

"Don't worry about that", Uchiha Obito pulled out a scroll, "There is first Hokage's body inside it..."

Danzo was surprised, "Why do you have these?!", he wondered if this mysterious masked man had secretly gone to Konoha to steal the corpse of Hokage.

"You don't need to know", Obito said coldly.

Danzo grits his teeth and continued to speak, "I can not bring out both of them at the same time, I don't have such capability or knowledge. I would need the help of either Orochimaru or elders who are sent to prison by that foul being..!"

Obito shudders when thought about going back to Konoha. With Ghost, if he goes to Konoha right now, the result is going to cost him either Izanagi and getting his chakra marked again or straight-up dying in that village.

He barely survived back then and he surely does not dare to fight that man head-on ever again.

That guy is such a freak that he can even sense White Zetsu!!! A feat that should have been impossible.

It might be okay to let White Zetsu spy for intelligence before, but now, letting Zetsu out of his body even for a bit is equivalent to getting hunted across the globe. The last time was so hard he couldn't even breathe for a moment, fearing that Ghost might appear anytime.

However, he has to weaken Konoha somehow, or his dream of eternal peace would never be a reality.

"Orochimaru is dead", Obito said and Danzo nodded his head.

"That's right he is dead. Though I believe he has a seal that can revive him after some time, that's why for now, we have no choice but the elders in Konoha prison..!"

"Very well. You only need to summon Hashirama Senju then leave everything to me..! As for the controlling issue, leave that to Zetsu", Uchiha Obito said without any fluctuations in his voice, "However, there is one thing I wanna know, why didn't you try to use Izanami on him? I know he is immune to Genjutsu but Izanami is no normal Genjutsu"

Danzo's face turned dark, "How do you know about Izanagi? It's Uchiha's secret, who are you?!"

"As I said, old man, you don't need to know", Clenching Danzo's neck, he lifted him up, "Now speak"

"Seal... he put a seal on my body, I can't break it... I... I can't use Izanagi", Danzo kicked his legs furiously, clenching Obito's hand and trying not to get choked.

Obito frowned, why did Ghost go through so much trouble to seal the eyes on Danzo, could Izanagi be his weakness? As everyone knows, Ghost does not have a weakness, that's why he is so terrifying, solely because no one can hurt him. But if Izanagi can do the trick... then perhaps.

He threw Danzo like a rag doll, thinking hard of some kind of a plan.

Obito said to Zetsu, "What do you think of that woman Zetsu..?! Mei Terumi, we can probably use her"

"It's no use. He has already infected her using his mutated Chakra, even going as far as touching her will notify-", White Zetsu stopped speaking

"What is it?!", Obito asked

"He is coming..!", White Zetsu said, "Run..!!"

Obito narrowed his eyes and opened Kamui's space to run but he could not, it was a moment too late as a barrier was etched, locking the space and time around the area. And in that decrepit forest, a flute plays.

"Damn it. Zetsu, do something..."

"Leave me, Leave me alone", Danzo said in despair, his legs shaking.

Even during the day, the aura of regret fills the air, and then suddenly night approaches. The once desolate forest becomes an area with the intent to devour all who tread its sacred grounds.

Gaseous fumes emerge from thin air to create an incredibly dense blanket that corrodes all within its reach

Ghost stood at the helm of a tree stump playing his flute, and as the song continues, Obito crouched on the ground as if he was about to vomit.

He felt terrible. It is obvious that Ghost will kill him here. This man is crazy to the point of no return.

As for Danzo, he suffers the same fate, the song makes him sick, and it feels like his guts are being torn apart.

"Zetsu...", Obito groaned in a hoarse voice.

"I am trying, this is getting tough with that song. Stop him from playing for a second-", Zetsu felt that his chakra-born body was boiling and threatening to burst.

If this is not stopped here, all three of them will die right now. Obito cursed in pain as he looked at Danzo who was vomiting blood in large amounts, including his organs.

The song never stops playing. That flute, those notes are like a virus, they just have to keep repeating to infect every single soul that listens to its tune.

"I have to stop him... Stop him from playing", Obito tried to concentrate, but his vision goes red as he vomits his organs up along with his blood. The dark fog engulfed them all, causing the area to fade into blackness.

It was a surprise that anyone could have such vitality that they could stay awake this long, obviously, this masked man has been injected with Senju's or Uzumaki's chakra, but to Ghost, it didn't really matter.

Obito weakly weaves through the hand signs with his trembling fingers as he spews a little spark of a fireball from his mouth hoping for Ghost to stop playing even for a bit. But it did not work. Even if it did, what could it do anyway...?!

"Damn... it", Obito said with heavy eyes. He knows if he does not do something fast, he will die along with everyone present here, when Obito thought of that, the despair in his heart grew worse and worse.

But no matter what they did. There was no escape from this prison. This is their end.

As if mocking the masked man's weakness, Ghost's tune played louder and clearer. The flute was filled with hatred, with hate and disgust for those who dared to challenge its majesty.

Obito feels himself floating away from the ground, he can hear that flute playing, but it feels so distant, he cannot reach it. His feet aren't touching anything, his mind is too confused. Everything is in complete darkness. Everything is numb. The world has fallen into silence.

He closed his eyes knowing that his end is nigh.

'It's done', Ghost glanced at Danzo's hand, Kagami's eyes responded to Danzo's despair and finally evolved. Kagami Uchiha's three tomoe eyes on Danzo's hand joined and turned into Mangekyou Sharingan, proof that Danzo has been pushed into despair beyond his capacity...

Following the flute's sound, the dark mist releases a torrent of twelve spear-like tentacles at Danzo, ripping Kagami Uchiha's eyes out of his body. Making him cry in mournful shrieks.

Blood dripped from his hand. Out of 6 he somehow managed to get for so many years. Two of the eyes are already snatched.

"I... cracked... the bar...", a weak voice entered Obito's ear, making him see hope for a bit!

Ghost smirked when he sensed his barrier having a small crack, he didn't care. Before this, he was just having fun torturing Danzo all over the world making him awaken Mangekyou Sharingan for Shisui.

Never in his dream did he think that he would come across the spiral-masked man once again because of this.

Now that he did, it was time for him to die, just as he was about to end the spiral-masked man's life. He sensed another emotion, it did not have a chakra either.

Out of nowhere Black Zetsu emerged from the earth and charged right at him from straight below. Ghost glances at the new arrival using the first Hokage's wood-style Jutsu with a slight interest.

The moment black Zetsu entered the dark fog, it was extremely injured, the dark fog takes all that comes in without any discrimination, and at an alarming rate, absorbs the chakra of the weird black being that dares enter its territory unannounced.

And before the black Zetsu could even use and complete the wood release Jutsu, it was already gone. It's chakra eaten by the dark mist that surrounds Ghost.

"What are these chakra-born creatures..?! First the white one and then the black one?!", He frowned when he saw the masked man and Danzo disappearing into the spiral.

This is the second time the mysterious masked man got away. And today, it was due to his overconfidence. If he wanted, he could have easily etched another barrier without any trouble. But his overconfidence got him.

He sighed, anyway, the masked man is not his priority now, he was just a side dish that was served to him during his mission unannounced. With Uchiha Kagami's eyes in his hand. Shisui could have the same power as before, his original eyes are already nearly blind anyway.

As the dark mist receded, Ghost vanished from his position. Next time, he won't make such a mistake. That masked man will die by his hands sooner or later...

...

~~In the separate space~~

Danzo, Obito, and White Zetsu lay on the white floor as they gasped for breath, they barely managed to escape hell.

Obito can barely move his limbs, but he is alive.

Danzo on the other hand has a horrible sight of his guts spilling out, but it doesn't matter much as his chakra is gone, there is nothing left in him but a husk. First Hokage's cells threatened to turn him into a tree. If he wasn't treated immediately he would just have the worst ending ever.

White Zetsu separated itself from Obito's body and crawled to a corner, seemingly mortally injured.

They are all almost dead. Danzo crawled toward the spiral-masked man like a wounded beast, not caring about his dignity.

"Save me! I... I will give you whatever you want", Danzo pleaded with tears in his eyes, "Please..!!"

Obito cursed seeing him so pathetic. The man was going to die anyway, but Ghost's terror is way bigger than this.

Right now, none can beat him, and only the shinobis from the past could do something about that monster, Obito tried to stand up with great difficulty.

He can see the despair in Danzo's heart. Well, who wouldn't?! The old man was hunted for many days across the globe, getting tortured again and again, and even now he is still being tormented by that melody wherever he went. Even the eyes on his arm were ripped off his body. It hurts like hell.

"I have to... change his chakra first... before going out", Obito stumbled towards Danzo and threw him into a machine he brought into his separated space long before. He fell to the surface as soon as Danzo was in the machine.

...

One month later, Danzo lay on the stone bed stunned, he couldn't believe it.

"Was that a dream? Did I really go through hell?", He murmured, trying to regain his composure. His wooden arm is gone; his Sharingans are gone as well.

Right now, Danzo could feel the despair in his heart ebb away with immense relief, as if a huge boulder that has been weighing him down has finally broken off.

"I-Is this real...", Danzo was speechless when White Zetsu emerged from the mist with its chakra completely intact, black Zetsu was fine as well.

"Danzo Shimura, it looks like you are awake", Danzo looked at the mysterious masked man looking at him with mocking eyes.

...

~~Konoha~~ Uchiha compound, Shisui's house~~

Ghost's hands moved skillfully on Shisui's eyes, and Itachi assisted to perform the surgery on his best friend. Itachi, being the genius he is, coupled with his cheating eyes, learned the basics of surgery in just one month. He even had the time to go through the medical books that Ghost lent him before the surgery.

"Where did you get these eyes?!", Itachi asked, his latex-gloved hand was now painted a disturbingly vivid shade of red all the way up to his wrist.

"Danzo!! Apparently, he stole Shisui's grandfather's eyes too", Ghost said pressing the gauze to Shisui's newly implemented eyes.

"Oh!!", Itachi nodded, as bandaged and dressed Shisui's wound on his eyes.

Ghost smirked when Itachi was not even fazed by the news, he was about to comment on it but he stopped because his senses tingled for a bit, "Itachi, can Sharingan evolve further?"

The 12-year-old shook his head, "I don't think so, but I can't be sure about it either, why?!"

"Shisui's eyes, I can sense it, they are evolving..."

Itachi looked at Ghost in shock who merely sighed at that, "Sharingan; they are truly something to marvel at"

"Is he gonna get stronger again?!", Itachi asked and Ghost nods as he steps back. The work on Shisui is done.

"Seems like it, at least his chakra is getting denser"

"Oh..!", Itachi nodded, happy yet sad at the same time. At this rate, he will never catch up with Shisui...

Ghost sensing Itachi's emotions smirked a bit, "You are gonna need a lot of training to be able to catch up to him but I can make it possible!!"

"You mean..?!", Itachi asked confused

"We have a vacancy in our squad...", Ghost said as he took off the blood-covered gloves, throwing them in the dustbin, "Wanna join us?!"

...

~~3 months later~~

The moon shines over the dark clouds. A damp wind blows from the north and from somewhere south there is a little rumble of thunder—a very slight one.

At first, there was nothing to be heard beyond the noise made by the insects. But then, with the series of footsteps, Konoha prepare to defend itself against the army of Iwagakure that for some reason chose to attack.

Sirens echoed throughout the village. A flare shot up high in the air.

Soon, Anbu came to report to Hokage, "Hokage sama, Iwagakue is here in a large number, they have passed through the barrier"

Hokage glanced at the Anbu in front of him with tired eyes, "what's their number?!"

"According to the Nara clan's estimation, it's about 1,000. they are not sure though"

"Go and notify all the shinobis present in the village, and at the same time, assist the villagers in the evacuation"

"Yes. Hokage sama"

"In addition, tell Ghost to deal with it!! Dismiss"

"Yes", The Anbu blurred out of sight.

...

On the other side of the village, Ghost stood in front of the memorial stone as he caresses the names of people close to him and smiled at those who could not have known.

"Leader, Hokage sama asked you to drive away Iwagakure", The shadow behind him kneel and said.

"It's not Iwa, it's that white skin creature, the chakra born. I guess it even has the ability to multiply itself and take forms of others", Ghost said while not caring about the battle at the gate, "Truly a magnificent creature..."

The sounds of battle are always different in various circumstances, but they all share something in common: a certain coldness and loneliness. No matter how fierce the clashes between combatants may be, one always senses an aura of emptiness around them.

"Pass my message to Shisui", Ghost said.

...

Shadows of Iwagakure charged towards the village from every direction with frightening speed. Their attacks were not aimed at any single enemy, but the entire village— the Konoha shinobis were caught off guard as they died under the barrage.

The sound of their cries and groans was like a continuous shriek that rang out with an ineffable terror. It sounded more like the death screams of all those who had perished at the hands of a raging typhoon than the cries of the living.

But that was not the worst of it. A fate far worse was awaiting them when they heard that voice.

"Wood Release: Great Forest emergence", A voice from the back yells loudly.

A man in red armor hits the ground and creates an area of instant destruction. All of the Konoha shinobis were caught in the sudden emergence of the forest. The tree branches were sucking everyone's chakra so fast that it was terrifying.

The man with the unique crack on his face had dark and empty eyes, everyone was very familiar with this wood Jutsu and its infamous user! Senju Hashirama!...

"Why is First Hokage here? He is dead"

"What is going on?!"

A group of Konoha Shinobi muttered in fear and more so in surprise.

"The Forbidden Technique from the Book of Seals. Impure world reincarnation", Kakashi muttered with a frown, his complexion changed dramatically, "It must be Danzo..!"

"How dare he blaspheme the soul of Hashirama sama like this", Anko yelled in anger.

Everyone tried their hardest to get out of this ever-expanding forest. Their chakra was getting sucked out so quickly that it looked like someone opened a faucet, and the trees were all getting bigger and bigger. There was no end in sight, even when they tried to burn the trees, it didn't work.

But in the midst of the chaos, a flute chimes through the battlefield. Everyone trembled when they heard the ghostly tune that echoed throughout the night.

And with just a few notes the trees around them become withered and desolate. The very earth becomes faded and lackluster; soon enough the green and lavish forest turned into a desert-like place of nothingness.

The air was suddenly filled with silence for a bit. It was clear that something terrible is happening right now. The light from the moon found itself covered by the massive amount of miasma esque gastric acid that covers the entire battlefield.

And in its wake, a terrifying aura spread out through the area just before the mist swallowed the entire world. As he made his appearance... a lone man in black stood alone on the plain.

The man with the scar on his face looked in shock and said, "He is finally here..!"

The dark miasma was so thick that one could not see through it; but one thing was for sure, it wasn't normal fog, it was the shape of something that had no meaning in reality. The flute sound made everyone tremble and shakes the very core of the hearts of everyone present.

It is obvious to Konoha that the Iwa army is not gonna win this one. It's been a losing battle since he made an appearance.

"Watch it, rookie. It's not every day you get to see the leader fight with full force", One of the masked Anbu said to Itachi in awe of his prowess.

Itachi nods, "He is strong! Very strong"

The Konoha shinobis stood their ground as they looked at the enemies trying desperately to get close to Ghost who was playing a tune without pause. Everyone present knew that if the man is not stopped, there will be no coming back from the shadows of death. It's a one-way ticket to hell with him...

A woman in black armor charges toward Ghost and yells, "Stop playing that demonic thing for a second will you?"

As her weapon is about to strike him, she screamed and her body was instantly dead, turning into a giant tree.

"Wood release?!", Everyone was shocked by this revelation.

Another tried to attack Ghost, but couldn't even get close enough, the sound felt like needles piercing through his brain.

His entire body shook violently. His eyes grew bloodshot as he fell to the ground with a thud, he was then turned into a giant tree as well.

"Nooo!!" The man with the scar on his face yelled as his chakra was drained completely. His body turned into a tree too.

Another kunoichi followed, her body became so thin as if her entire life was sucked out of her body, she dropped to her knees and continues to scream in agony before she vanished as well.

"What's going on?! This is wood release", Kakashi asked.

White Zetsu army started to panic as they all had their vitality and chakra sucked by the dark mist. Their bodies melted away in front of his very eyes; their weapons and armor fell apart. There was no longer any trace left. They were just turned into giant trees in seconds.

"This is no good...we've got to do something quick!!", One of the White Zetsu said frantically as the last of the clone had its vitality sucked under that sound.

Obito that was hiding in the Kamui sneered, "It looks like the sound and the mist does not have any effect on the dead bodies... interesting...!", He said as he stare at the First Hokage who was standing intact in all of this chaos, "Zetsu, First Hokage's body is alright. Use it as bait and attack him. That will give us enough time"

The White Zetsu nodded, Obito had spoken as the first Hokage slammed his hand on the ground and a large number of gigantic trees tears through the earth as they appeared from nowhere. Creating another dense forest in seconds.

With just a single sign, the giant trees exploded and created an area of instant destruction in one combo. Everyone that was caught in the blast of trees instantly had their flesh and blood spread around...

"Damn it! we need to get out of here!!", They tried frantically, but to no avail, it was a vicious cycle of death where only the strongest ones could survive for a few minutes.

A ninja jumped up at the tree that appeared in front of him, he used his ninjutsu to get out of the deathly forest but his chakra was being sucked before he could even reach halfway near the exit and he falls to the ground.

Others tried to fire Jutsu at the first Hokage but the forest absorb all the chakra of the Jutsu before it could even reach the first Hokage. The same goes for charging at him.

"This... what do we do?!", One of them asked in horror. Kakashi stood with his eyes closed, sweat pouring down from his forehead as he tries to think of something that can be done to stop the onslaught of trees.

Konoha shinobis dash around frantically looking for any sort of escape route in this maze. First Hokage is just too powerful, he is just slaughtering an entire army without even moving a single step.

But just as they were dying and running around, the flute sound became more clear, it was much more ominous than before. The dark mist became something far worse. It was like a creature that had been released into the world.

This time there are no cries of pain or agony; instead, there were screams and groans, all of which seemed to be coming from the very depths of hell.

White Zetsu on first Hokage's body shivered as if something inside him has turned to ice and shattered. This is the exact tune he played last time when he almost killed Obito him and Danzo.

He gulped, staring back at Ghost who continues to play his flute with no regard for the scene around him. The tree blasts stopped hurting people, It was clear to all that the vitality inside the trees was getting drained away extremely fast, so it wasn't a surprise that the attack failed.

...

In Konoha's prison, the space twists around in a whirlpool as Danzo and Obito appeared out of thin air. Their gazes met each other, right now Ghost is busy fighting Zetsu and Konoha's army is being held hostage on the battlefield. There is no better time to invade the village than this.

The two walked forward, checking each prison cell one by one. Suddenly, Danzo stopped because in one of the cells, the face of his former friend, Homura, could be seen. He was lying weakly on the ground. Looking withered more than he should have been.

"Homura!!", Danzo called with a yell but received no response. Breaking through the prison door, Danzo walked inside quickly.

The old man Homura heard the noise and stirred. A weak smile appeared on his face when he saw his old friend, "Danzo", He tried to get up, but his body suddenly felt heavy, and collapsed to the ground.

He was a little confused as to why Danzo appeared, everyone knows that Danzo successfully defected. Then why is he back?!

"I'm here to save you!", Danzo said with a cold light in his eyes, "This time I got some help, my friend help me against those who dare to resist us, and I promise, we will make a better village together"

Hearing this, Mitokado Homura's eyes gradually brightened. At the same time, a fit of unstoppable anger flooded Homura's heart.

This period of time in jail is simply the hellish and most miserable period of his life! In the blink of an eye, the advisory elder who was above thousands of villagers became a prisoner!

In addition to that, he has to hear that eerie sound every night. He was having nightmares these days. He felt his heart beating when his friend's face appeared again, he could not wait to get out of here.

Utatane Koharu heard some voices from the cell nearby, and in her excitement, she yelled.

"Danzo. Danzo"

Obito rolled his eyes when Danzo helped Homura out and blasted the prison door of Utatane Koharu's cell open.

Utatane Koharu finally felt free again, her tears could not be described in a few words.

"Danzo. Thank goodness you are here. You must take our revenge. You must destroy those who dared to betray us. Sarutobi was-

She stopped when suddenly, she noticed a shadow behind Danzo and the spiral-masked man, creeping up behind them, slowly approaching...

It was sensed by Obito as well; He pulled out his chain at once and swing it around with all his might, the attacker was already far away, and the chain did not reach him in time instead it landed on the wall next to them, making a loud thump and shaking the walls of the prison.

"Hello, Danzo san. And... whoever you are", Shisui said with his newly emerged eternal Mangekyou Sharingan.

Obito frowned, 'Those eyes...'

Danzo stare at Shisui for some time, "Shisui. I see that you are not helping on the front line and you got your eyes back as well even though they seem... different"

Shisui laughed, "It's because these are not my eyes. These are the eyes of my grandfather, remember him, the one whose eyes were etched in your arms?"

Obito didn't let Danzo respond, grabbing the old man's wrist they disappeared with a whirlpool twist in space. They are not ready to fight these eyes right now...

Even though Obito could not be hurt, it's a different meaning for Danzo. He still has a part to play in his plans. Homura got sucked inside as well.

"No", Koharu screamed when Homura and Danzo managed to escape but left her in this rotten cell.

Shisui shook his head a bit, "Do they really think they can run after stepping inside Konoha...", He then turn to the last remaining elder...

"I was hoping that you would into a leaf after this period of time but I guess it's a no. Anyway, you are of no benefit now so whatever happens to you, I hope you know that you could have done better"

With that Shisui blurred out...