**Chapter 174: Shock and Rage**

"Tailed Beast Bomb!"

"Clang!"

Another row of chains appeared, blocking the Tailed Beast Bomb.

"Damn it!"

Two-Tails was furious.

On the battlefield, tailed beasts never worried about facing too many enemies. They had some attacks with immense destructive power… like the Tailed Beast Bomb!

No matter how many people were present, it didn't matter when facing a Tailed Beast Bomb.

But!

Facing Konoha, every attack from Two-Tails was effectively countered.

The enemy was restraining her!

Or rather, they were deliberately targeting her.

This infuriated her!

She wanted to perform well and make Itsuki take a good look when he came back.

To widen those Sharingan eyes of his and witness her power!

But who would have thought?

"Meow!"

Two-Tails roared angrily, growing more enraged, and charged fiercely towards the Konoha ninja forces.

"Two-Tails!"

Shisui shouted in surprise, reluctantly following her charge.

The other ninjas saw this and quickly pursued.

But!

The Konoha ninjas who stayed behind to cover the retreat had no intention of surviving.

They fought desperately, trading their lives if necessary to pin the Fire Hidden Village's ninjas in place.

All to protect their retreating comrades.

Even when Two-Tails charged with force, they fought so fiercely that they forced her back.

Suicidal elite ninjas could be just as threatening as tailed beasts.

For example, one of them, covered in explosive tags, rushed straight into Two-Tails' mouth, causing her to let out a painful howl when he detonated.

The entire battlefield had become a meat grinder.

Life was lost every second.

Finally!

The war ended!

Shisui looked at the devastated land, a trace of sadness in his eyes.

Yet he hid it well as the Fire Hidden Village ninjas approached.

He couldn't let himself feel this kind of negative emotion.

It was contagious!

"Lord Acting Mokage!"

A ninja knelt on one knee.

"How did it go?"

"Konoha sent a total of five thousand ninjas, about two and a half thousand died in this battle, while the remaining two and a half thousand retreated, most of them wounded."

"The Hyuga clan reported no sight of Danzo."

"That sly and shameless dark side of the ninja world!"

Shisui snorted coldly.

"What about us?"

"We had a thousand ninjas, two hundred died, and over four hundred were injured. This is a major victory!"

The reporting ninja's face was filled with excitement, and his words carried undisguised joy.

Even though their opponents were their former comrades—Konoha ninjas!

A major victory?

Shisui murmured, then immediately commanded, "Treat the wounded, collect the bodies, and return them to their families. Also, remain vigilant in case of any surprises!"

"Yes!"

The ninja left to pass on the orders.

Itachi walked over, gazing at Shisui, and said, "Shisui, this must feel awful, right?"

"Of course, so many people died, and they were once our comrades. I knew quite a few of them!"

Shisui murmured, "They had families, they were young, and they didn't want to die either."

"It's a pity for them!"

Itachi looked at Shisui but said nothing.

Shisui forced a smile and said, "Don't worry, Itachi. Even though I'm deeply saddened, I won't forget who I am. I'm the First Mokage's brother, the Acting Mokage, and I won't disgrace the Uchiha name."

Itachi silently nodded, gazing at the battlefield, his expression distant.

The first time he went to battle, he was four years old!

Fugaku believed that as the clan leader, Itachi was his successor.

In that environment, the sooner you went to the battlefield, the better.

So, at four years old, Itachi was taken to the battlefield for training.

That experience left a deep psychological scar.

"Itachi! Are you listening?"

Itachi snapped back to reality, looking at Shisui. "Sorry, I was a bit distracted."

Shisui calmly said, "It's fine. Please notify all the high-ranking members for a meeting."

"Yes!"

Itachi curiously asked, "The topic of the meeting..."

"I want to counterattack Konoha!"

Shisui said coldly, "Why should we always take the blows without fighting back? Twice now—are we going to wait for the third time?"

"Argh!!!"

...

"Damn it!"

Earth Walk City!

Itsuki's shadow clone was ultimately destroyed.

But.

It wasn't by his own doing.

Instead, it was taken out by someone.

The battlefield was chaotic.

Even with the Sharingan capable of seeing through everything, it was impossible to guard against attacks from every corner.

No way to defend against it!

Itsuki was hit by such an attack, and his shadow clone dispersed.

Though the explosive tag detonated, it didn't kill many people.

This was another difference between a Mangekyo clone and a shadow clone.

Shadow clones disappear once they're injured.

But a Mangekyo clone is like a living being; it gets injured and can die!

But!

The most surprising thing to Itsuki was Two-Tails.

This tailed beast played a very significant role in the battle.

Even seemed to have picked up some martial arts basics.

"Well, this is really..."

Itsuki shook his head.

He just wanted to mess with Two-Tails.

The thought of a cat learning martial arts, with all the "huffing and puffing," was amusing to him.

But it seemed she actually gained something from it.

Life is unpredictable!

Itsuki felt a little helpless.

"Lord Mokage!"

Hayate Gekkō approached, saying, "All the nobles have been gathered."

"Send out the declaration, announce the new law, and order them to comply!"

Itsuki said lazily, "I won't show up. They don't deserve it. Hayate, go in my place. Oh, and if there's anyone you don't like, just take them out. No need to inform me."

The nobles were unbelievably arrogant.

They believed they were born superior.

They saw commoners as ants, plundering and killing them for fun.

They even dared to order around the Hokage!

Yet they were the most incompetent group.

So, why not let them be the ants, the tools for a change?

Let them experience it!

Itsuki wasn't a saint. Though he knew the commoners of the Shinobi World lived miserable lives, he didn't intend to change that or ignite a revolution.

Too exhausting!

Besides, the commoners and even the ninjas themselves had no desire for change, so why should he interfere?

Doing a thankless job!

Therefore!

Itsuki incorporated three cities into Fire Hidden Village and issued a new law that didn't overly favor the commoners—just prohibited unjust killing of commoners.

A simple order like that had the commoners crying tears of joy.

That was good enough.

If he led a rebellion against the nobles, who knows, he might get betrayed.

These commoners—so reliable!

As expected!

After Hayate Gekkō replaced Itsuki in announcing the declarations and laws, the nobles started murmuring, then opposing, and the dissent grew louder and louder.

Itsuki had crossed their line.

Hayate didn't hesitate to take action. After killing a few of them, the rest quieted down.

But judging by their shifting gazes, Hayate understood.

These people were definitely thinking of escaping or plotting against Fire Hidden Village to drive them out of Earth Walk City.

Hayate Gekkō smirked.

A bunch of overfed fools—why did they always think they were the only smart ones?

Couldn't they see that Itsuki was toying with them?

As he gazed over the crowd, Hayate silently thought, "After a few rounds of purges, how many of them will be left here?"

Push, push, push—go ahead and push him over! 

(End of Chapter)