Chapter 18 The Divide Within(2) edited

The Moment of Ruin

"Fugaku, you traitor!"

The words ripped through the night like a kunai through flesh.

Then—

"Fugaku, you BITCH!"

The insult cracked like thunder, raw with grief, rage, and utter betrayal.

The Uchiha erupted.

Angry shouts, curses, and accusations filled the air. Some men clenched their fists so hard that blood dripped between their fingers. Others pointed, hands shaking, their faces twisted with pain and disbelief.

Women stood frozen, their eyes wide with horrified realization. Mothers clutched their children close, whispering frantic words of comfort to ears too young to understand.

Fugaku lowered his head.

He did not speak.

He could not speak.

Because what words could justify this?

The fury and sorrow burned into him. This was his clan. His family. And now, they looked at him as if he were lower than dirt.

"You were our leader!" someone shouted, voice cracking.

"And now you SELL US OUT?!"

Among them, his closest allies—those tied to Konoha—turned their backs on Kaito's faction. Their rage was equal, but directed elsewhere.

"YOU'RE the traitors!" one of Fugaku's loyalists yelled at Kaito's supporters. "You want to fight Konoha for your own greed! You would throw away your children's futures!"

"And what future do we have?!" a man from Kaito's side roared back, his Sharingan spinning wildly. "A slow death, waiting for them to kill us all one by one?!"

Obito watched from the shadows, his hands clenched.

"Pathetic."

This scene—this internal collapse—was the greatest humiliation of the Uchiha.

Some of them were begging for peace, even as they were being slaughtered.

"Some people are willing to compromise for a false sense of peace, even at the cost of their honor and freedom," Obito muttered, his voice heavy with disgust.

"While others abandon all principles for personal gain. I will be the savior of this accursed world... the only path to salvation is through the Infinite Tsukuyomi."

His hands trembled.

"Only then will the pain stop."

The Wrath of Kaito

BOOM!

The battlefield silenced.

Kaito's golden Susanoo had struck the earth, splitting it apart, sending dust and flames ripping through the courtyard.

All eyes turned to him.

Kaito barely acknowledged them.

His gaze was fixed on Fugaku.

Cold. Unforgiving.

"Let them believe Danzo," he said, his voice emotionless. "I don't care. They've already made their choice."

His eyes gleamed.

"And they will face the consequences."

Danzo took a step forward. His moment had arrived.

"Kaito," he called, voice sharp. "Do you really think that by leading this group against Konoha, you'll leave unscathed?"

Hiruzen stepped beside him. The Third Hokage, once hesitant, now felt emboldened. He wasn't alone.

With Danzo at his side—and the five strongest Konoha shinobi behind them—

They had a chance.

Danzo's confidence swelled, his mind racing. "I'll let Kaito destroy himself. He's powerful, but reckless. Once we trap him—"

Then—

A burning sensation in his eye.

Then—agony.

His body screamed.

His vision blurred.

And Kaito was already in front of him.

The sword sank deep into Danzo's chest.

Blood splattered across the dirt.

Danzo's mouth opened in a soundless gasp. I—

Before he could react, Kaito's other hand moved.

Rip—!

The bandages were torn away from his eye.

"Time and space ninjutsu?!" Hiruzen's voice cut through the moment, his body already moving to intercept.

Shuriken flew—deflected.

Kaito barely looked at him. He was focused.

Shisui's eye gleamed in his palm, still wet with stolen chakra. A stolen treasure, returned.

Danzo's mind snapped back into focus.

Izanagi.

Darkness.

Light.

He reappeared, gasping, alive once more.

But Kaito was already there again.

Another sword.

Another death.

Danzo staggered. His body reformed again. But the fear crept in.

"He knows."

Kaito's voice was mocking. "Six Sharingan in your arm."

Another step.

"Six Izanagi."

Another slash.

"Six minutes of invincibility."

Danzo felt it.

The pressure.

The reality that this was no ordinary battle.

Kaito wasn't just fighting.

He was playing with him.

The Confrontation with Hiruzen

Hiruzen clenched his fists.

Kaito was too dangerous. If they let him go now—there would be no stopping him.

"Kaito!" Hiruzen called, trying to regain control of the battlefield. "There must be a misunderstanding here. Let's sit down and talk!"

Kaito laughed.

It was quiet at first.

Then it grew.

"Misunderstanding?" he echoed, his tone sharp with disgust. "You think I'm a fool? You think I don't know what you and Danzo have done?"

Hiruzen tried again. "Kaito, listen. You are still part of Konoha. I don't want to see innocent people suffer—"

"Family?"

Kaito's expression froze.

Then—

"You talk to me about FAMILY?"

The word shattered the night.

His eyes burned. His chest ached.

Then, his voice softened.

"Let's talk about family, Hiruzen."

The Third Hokage tensed.

"Do you remember Tobirama?" Kaito's voice was calm. Too calm.

Hiruzen's body stiffened.

"He was my teacher," he replied, trying to keep his tone neutral. "Of course I remember."

Kaito smiled.

It was cold.

"Then tell me... when you see him again after you die—will you have the face to meet him?"

A ripple went through the Anbu.

"What do you mean?" Hiruzen demanded, unease crawling into his voice.

Kaito sneered.

"Let me remind you."

And then—he told them.

He told them of Tobirama's plan.

Of how the Senju were erased.

Of how Hiruzen, once in power, sent the last of the Senju to die.

Of how Tsunade fled because there was nothing left.

Of how the Uchiha had been next all along.

The Anbu were silent.

Not convinced. Not yet.

But uneasy.

And in that moment—

Kaito knew.

The Third Hokage's power was cracking.

And soon—

It would break.