Uchiha orphan, so what if I'm ruthless?

Mask fragments flipped in mid-air, making a soft clatter as they hit the ground.

Uchiha Obito stood in place, his right arm and a small part of his shoulder gone, yet little blood flowed from the wound.

His right arm was grafted from White Zetsu, including most of his shoulder, making it quite different from a normal human body.

The face exposed to everyone had a right half covered in scars, the skin shriveled and twisted. It looked as if it had been crushed by a heavy object and then haphazardly grown back together, a terrifying sight.

The left half of his face, however, was perfectly normal, young and intact.

The contrast between the two sides created a stark difference on a single face.

Uchiha Obito made no attempt to hide it.

At this point, hiding it was meaningless.

His mask was shattered, his identity exposed, and his arm severed. What else could he do? Would covering his face make it as if none of this had happened?

His gaze was dead-set on Uchiha Taiga.

The emotions burning in those eyes were incredibly intense.

Anger!

Resentment!

Humiliation!

And a murderous intent that wished to tear the other party into a million pieces.

If looks could kill, Uchiha Taiga would have been pierced through a thousand times over by now.

Uchiha Taiga completely ignored this glare. After landing, he simply stared back with a faint, mocking smile.

Whoosh!

The sound of rushing wind echoed.

Uchiha Fugaku's figure appeared at the edge of the battlefield. His three-tomoe Sharingan spun rapidly as he stared intently at the exposed face.

The twisted right half—ugly and unfamiliar.

The intact left half—young and familiar.

Something suddenly clicked in his mind.

This age was about the same as Taiga's.

These facial contours... these eyes...

Uchiha Fugaku's pupils suddenly shrank as a name was dug up from the depths of his memory.

"Obito?"

His voice wasn't loud, but it clearly reached the ears of many present.

"Are you... Uchiha Obito?"

Uchiha Obito shifted his gaze away from Uchiha Taiga and glanced at Uchiha Fugaku.

His mouth twitched, first pulling into a very faint smile, which then gradually expanded until it turned into a burst of loud laughter.

"Hahaha... Hahahahaha!"

The laughter echoed across the ruins, carrying a hint of madness, a touch of mockery, and something indescribable.

Then, the laughter abruptly stopped.

Uchiha Obito looked directly at Uchiha Fugaku, his eyes reflecting the figure of the Uchiha clan head.

Uchiha Taiga saw it clearly. The guy's eyes were both functioning normally at the moment, except the right eye was a Mangekyo, while the left was just a standard three-tomoe.

Thinking about it, he quickly understood. The Sharingan in his left eye was either obtained from Uchiha Madara or was part of Madara's original stash.

As the former-former Uchiha clan head, having a private collection was perfectly normal.

After all, he needed to use Izanagi, didn't he?

At this moment, Uchiha Obito spoke.

"Clan Head Fugaku, now that you've seen my true face, do you regret it?"

Uchiha Fugaku's expression turned extremely grim. He clenched his fists until his knuckles turned white and asked what was on his mind.

"The Nine-Tails incident... was that your doing?"

"It was."

Uchiha Obito answered crisply, without any hesitation.

Uchiha Fugaku took a deep breath, his voice trembling. "Why would you do this? You were clearly... clearly such a good kid before. Obito, what happened to you?"

"Why?"

Uchiha Obito repeated the question, as if savoring its absurdity.

"All of this is because of war, because of the stupidity of people like you, because of the twisted nature of this world itself."

His voice gradually rose, revealing an almost paranoid anger.

"War makes ninjas slaughter each other, makes families lose their loved ones, and turns friends into enemies. Rin died, Kakashi is ruined—everyone is struggling in pain, everyone is just barely surviving in this hellish world."

"So I am going to destroy it all."

He stared dead at Uchiha Fugaku.

"I will create a perfect world. A world without war, without pain, without tears. A place where everyone can find what they desire."

Uchiha Fugaku opened his mouth to speak but couldn't find the words.

He didn't know what Uchiha Obito had gone through to become like this, but he felt a chill run through his entire body.

The other party was an Uchiha, the one who caused the Nine-Tails incident, and was now appearing in the village with obvious malice toward both the village and the Uchiha clan.

Especially since... he also possessed the Wood Style Kekkei Genkai!

All these realities pointed to one thing: the Uchiha... were in big trouble.

Meanwhile, on the perimeter, Mitokado Homura and Utatane Koharu had completely abandoned any concern for saving face.

Their eyes were glued to the wooden spikes remaining on the battlefield—the sharp Wood Style creations that had grown from the ground and entangled the Susanoo.

"Wood Style..."

Mitokado Homura's voice was trembling. "That's Wood Style!"

Most of the color had drained from Utatane Koharu's face. "Impossible... Hasn't Wood Style been lost? Since the First Hokage, no one has been able to..."

Wood Style.

That was the power of the First Hokage, Senju Hashirama—the power capable of suppressing the Nine-Tails and pacifying a chaotic world.

And now, this power had appeared in an Uchiha.

The two exchanged a glance, both seeing the unease in each other's eyes.

This couldn't be allowed. Wood Style absolutely could not be let out, and it certainly could not fall into the hands of the Uchiha!

Even without saying a word, their years of tacit understanding allowed them to know exactly what the other was thinking. Their expressions grew heavy simultaneously.

The surrounding ninjas also had various reactions.

Some widened their eyes, mouths agape but unable to make a sound.

Some subconsciously took two steps back, as if those wooden spikes would suddenly come alive and lunge at them.

Others dropped their kunai with a clatter, completely oblivious to it.

Their shock was no less than that of Mitokado Homura and Utatane Koharu.

That was Wood Style—the legendary Kekkei Genkai wielded by the First Hokage, Senju Hashirama, a power that had dominated an entire era of the ninja world.

And now, Wood Style was displayed right in front of them.

How could this not be shocking!

At the same time, on the other side, Orochimaru, hidden in the shadows, had golden slitted pupils that were shining terrifyingly bright.

His body leaned forward involuntarily, his tongue darting out to slowly lick his lips, his breathing growing heavier.

"Wood Style, to think it's Wood Style... Hehehe."

His voice was so low it was almost inaudible, but the excitement and desire it contained were so intense they practically overflowed.

Shimura Danzo, standing beside him, had completely lost his usual composure.

He leaned forward sharply, one foot already stepping out of the shadows as if he were about to charge straight out.

"Lord Danzo."

Orochimaru reached out and grabbed his sleeve.

But Danzo seemed not to hear. His exposed eye was fixed on the Wood Style on the battlefield, his pupil dilated, his entire being falling into a state of near madness.

Wood Style...

This is Wood Style...

If this power could belong to me...

If I could be like that guy, possessing both the Sharingan and Wood Style at the same time...

His breathing grew heavier. The nails of his clenched fist dug deeply into his palm, drawing blood.

At this moment, everyone present had their own thoughts. In the center of the battlefield, Uchiha Fugaku wanted to say something more but was interrupted by Uchiha Taiga.

"Clan Head, don't deceive yourself in this situation, and definitely don't think you can change his mind with just a few words. This guy is a textbook Uchiha. How do you think he awakened the Mangekyo?"

Uchiha Fugaku's expression froze.

Right.

The Uchiha... isn't this exactly how they are?

At this moment, he felt inexplicably defeated.

Uchiha Taiga raised his hand, and his bright yellow half-body Susanoo mirrored the motion.

"Oi! Do you have anything else you want to say?"

Uchiha Obito sneered. "Do you think you have me beat just like this?"

Uchiha Taiga raised an eyebrow and glanced at Obito's feet.

There was an extremely faint chakra reaction there.

If it weren't for the abilities of these eyes being highly sensitive to space, it would have been almost impossible for him to notice something was there.

White Zetsu!

He had appeared in the ground beneath Obito's feet without anyone noticing.

"Stop!"

Just then, Mitokado Homura and Utatane Koharu arrived simultaneously. The former immediately spoke up, "He is the sinner who caused the Nine-Tails incident. He should be dealt with by the village."

No matter how wary they were of Uchiha Taiga's Susanoo, with Wood Style now revealed, they still chose the course of action most beneficial to the village.

To secure Wood Style in the village's hands.

Obviously, they did not want Uchiha Taiga to continue fighting.

Although they knew Uchiha Taiga's temperament, they were confident that under the watchful eyes of the public, he wouldn't go too far, which was why they chose to speak up.

Their various thoughts couldn't be called wrong, but Uchiha Taiga's expression was incredibly bizarre, looking as if he wanted to laugh but was holding it back.

He first looked at Uchiha Obito, then at Mitokado Homura and Utatane Koharu.

"Are you sure about that?"

Similarly, Uchiha Obito also looked at the two elders. As if thinking of something incredibly amusing, he burst into laughter once again.

"Hahaha... This is Konoha. Truly amusing."