Chapter 26: The Price of Salvation
Uchiha Izuna's murderous gaze locked onto the black-robed figure, but the man known as Mie only offered a strange, unreadable tilt of his head. The Chakra Sealing Technique he had just used was one of Stelle's own creations—an instantaneous binding that sealed a target's chakra in a flash.
It was simple, effective, and provided a convenient excuse for his actions. He hadn't anticipated it would dredge up old memories.
Izuna's memory was unnervingly sharp. Years ago, that exact sealing formula had appeared for no more than five seconds. Its structure was deeply complex; to the untrained eye, it was indistinguishable from any other fuinjutsu. But Izuna was not untrained.
"Stelle!" Uchiha Kagami roared, losing all composure as he saw his friend once again thrown into peril to save him. He surged forward, a kunai flashing in his hand.
Mie remained perfectly still, showing no intention of defending himself.
Instead, with a flick of his fingers, the chain binding Stelle went taut. He yanked her back, positioning her body directly in front of his own.
The move was utterly insidious.
Forced to choose, Kagami aborted his attack, the steel wires in his hand falling slack as the ninjutsu he was forming dissipated. Nearby, Izuna, who had been poised to strike, also froze. With Stelle in the enemy's grasp, any assault would be met with a human shield. They were paralyzed.
"Have you all misunderstood something?" Mie's voice, distorted and grating, echoed in the tense silence. "Your companion is still in my hands, yet you dare to strike at me."
As if provoked by their defiance, his hand clamped down on Stelle's shoulder. He squeezed. A sickening crack of bone splintered the air.
A short, sharp scream was torn from her throat, but she choked it back almost instantly, biting down hard on her lip until it bled, her eyes squeezed shut in defiance.
"Stop it, you bastard!" Kagami bellowed, his voice raw with fury.
Faced with their impotent rage, Mie let out a wild, cackling laugh. "Oh, I do so love seeing those angry eyes, knowing you can do nothing to stop me. Come now, give me more of that anger."
This time, his hand shot out and seized Stelle's wrist. He applied pressure again. Crack. He snapped it clean.
The sight of his companion, captured and tortured for his sake, sent a jolt of agony through Uchiha Kagami's mind. The two tomoe in his pupils spun violently, blurring into a crimson smear. In that moment of searing pain and rage, a third tomoe blazed into existence in each eye.
The hastily treated wound on Stelle's shoulder tore open once more. Blood flowed freely, soaking the fabric of her clothes in a rapidly spreading stain of dark red.
For Izuna, the scene ripped open a sealed memory. The world before him seemed to warp, overlapping with the horror of that day, his vision tinged with the phantom shade of blood. A chill seized him, so deep that it made his lips tremble.
That bone-deep terror, once buried, now amplified itself within his heart, weaving an invisible net that wrapped around his soul and squeezed. The agony was suffocating.
Was he truly fated to watch another person he cared for die right in front of him?
"You clearly could have killed me in a direct confrontation, but you didn't," Izuna said, his voice raspy but steady. "Tell me. What is your purpose? My eyes? Or my life?"
"Your life, of course," Mie replied, his tone chillingly light. "You should have died back then, but someone interfered and saved you. Now, I'm simply here to collect what is owed. As long as you die, I won't kill the other three."
Izuna let out a cold, humorless sneer. "And how can I be sure they'll have a chance to live if I die?"
"A fair point!" Mie clapped his hands in mock agreement, then pointed a finger at Uchiha Kagami and Akimichi Torifu, who stood protectively behind Izuna. "I can release those two first, as a sign of my sincerity. You let them go. I won't make a move until they are beyond my sensory range."
Izuna's mind raced, desperately searching for a flaw in the man's logic, a path to break this stalemate. There was none. He was being led by the nose, forced to dance to the black-robed man's rhythm.
He turned, his expression grim. "Go," he ordered his students.
Uchiha Kagami and Akimichi Torifu looked at him, their faces streaked with tears of frustration and grief. "Teacher…!"
"Go! Find reinforcements! Find Lord Tobirama!"
It was the only plan they had, a desperate gamble that might already be too late. If they could, they would have rather died fighting alongside their teacher. But for that single glimmer of hope, they had to obey. They turned and fled, their hearts heavy with the burden of survival.
Izuna watched them go, a small measure of relief washing over him as he confirmed the black-robed man made no move to pursue. The man's target was only him; he had no interest in a few chunin.
What an honor, he thought with bitter irony. An ambush by a hundred-man squad, followed by the appearance of this monster… such a grand production, all for him alone. He had always assumed that kind of treatment was reserved for his brother and Hashirama.
His body had reached its absolute limit. Even if this man didn't kill him, he was already dying.
The black-robed man raised a hand and tossed a small object. A syringe, filled with an unknown, clear liquid, tumbled through the air. Izuna reached out to catch it, but his trembling fingers fumbled, and it fell to the dirt. He struggled to steady his breathing before stooping to pick it up.
A fleeting thought crossed his mind. If it were that damned white-haired Senju in his place, he'd probably make the same choice—sacrifice himself for the sake of his subordinates.
The next second, he plunged the needle into his arm and, without a shred of hesitation, pushed the plunger.
Hidden deep underground, Black Zetsu watched the scene unfold, his entire being coiled with tension. He had orchestrated this entire, massive operation, and just when Uchiha Izuna was finally beyond saving, this black-robed man had appeared out of nowhere. What in the world was his game?
'He's not trying to take Izuna's eyes too, is he?' The thought was a spike of pure panic. That would be outright theft!
Those eyes were meant for Indra's reincarnation, for Madara to awaken the Eternal Mangekyo Sharingan. Once Madara had those eyes, Black Zetsu could finally alter the Uchiha stone tablet and guide him toward the Infinite Tsukuyomi. Izuna was Madara's greatest weakness; his death would plunge Madara into a despair so deep he would grasp at any hope offered.
Everything would proceed according to his ancient rhythm.
Therefore, those Mangekyo absolutely could not fall into this stranger's hands.
Suddenly, the black-robed man's head tilted, his gaze seeming to pierce through the very earth and lock onto Black Zetsu's position. A shudder ran through Black Zetsu's amorphous form.
He'd been discovered. This man was a sensor of unbelievable skill.
Quietly, Black Zetsu began to slink away, putting more distance between himself and the confrontation. The man was clearly a master of fuinjutsu; it was best not to provoke him. If he did take Izuna's eyes, Black Zetsu would simply have to plot a way to retrieve them later.
He glided through the soil, his body like a mass of thick, black sludge.
'What is going on?'he fumed internally.'Is this person's sensory range absurdly wide? I'm already quite far.' Even the current head of the Uzumaki clan didn't possess sensory abilities this potent.
Just as the complaint formed in his mind, he felt a terrifying eruption of chakra from behind. A dense, overwhelming power was condensing at an alarming rate.
He whipped around just in time to see a colossal black sphere of energy materialize in the sky. It pulsed with terrifying pressure, a malevolent twin to a Tailed Beast Bomb, and began its descent toward the ground.
The light from the sphere completely enveloped Uchiha Izuna.
Black Zetsu's non-existent eyes widened in horror. 'No! Izuna already surrendered! Why use a technique of that magnitude on him? What kind of hatred warrants this?!'With a blast like that, Izuna would be utterly annihilated. Not even a corpse would remain.'His Mangekyo! He hasn't given them to Madara yet! No!'
A silent, desperate roar ripped through Black Zetsu's consciousness as he stretched out a formless hand.
But no one heard his cry. The terrifying, black ninjutsu slammed into the earth.
A deafening explosion shook the world. The ground heaved, mountains trembled in the distance, and the resulting shockwave tore through the forest, distorting the very air.
By the time Black Zetsu scrambled to the epicenter of the blast, there was nothing left. The ground was a crater of molten glass and scorched earth. Of Uchiha Izuna, not a single trace remained.
All he found was half of a charred, twisted forehead protector.
Black Zetsu collapsed. 'Give him the Mangekyo before you die! Give me back my Mangekyo! Those were for Indra!'
Aaaaaah!
At that moment, Black Zetsu's ancient composure finally shattered. Why was this black-robed man always one step ahead? Always doing what he wanted to do, only to ruin his plans at the final, crucial moment? Was this man his nemesis?
[Ding! Mood value from Black Zetsu +20,000]
[Ding! Mood value from Black Zetsu +20,000]
The notifications chimed seven or eight more times before finally ceasing. It seemed Black Zetsu was well and truly suffering.
In the system space, the notifications were accompanied by a continuous stream of flattery.
[Black Zetsu must be dying of rage! Last time he wanted to kill Uchiha Izuna, you ruined it. This time, he wanted to kill Izuna and take his eyes, but you snatched both the person and the eyes in one fell swoop! He thinks Izuna has been vaporized. His mentality has completely collapsed!]
[As expected of Lady Stelle, you're incredible! You've gained hundreds of thousands from Uchiha Izuna alone. Add in Black Zetsu, the Konoha Military Police Force, and the incoming Senju Tobirama, and this trip has already earned over a million. And the fallout from this is going to be even more spectacular!]
Stelle ignored it. Having finished her performance for Black Zetsu, she materialized the unconscious Uchiha Izuna within her private space and began to assess his injuries.
The potion she had given him was nothing more than a powerful sedative. But now, as she examined him, she confirmed the grim truth: Uchiha Izuna was beyond saving. The fact that he had held on for so long was a proof of his sheer force of will.
Black Zetsu had truly calculated everything perfectly, targeting Izuna's weaknesses with relentless, successive waves of attacks designed to drain his chakra completely. He had even left ten jonin to cut off any chance of retreat. If not for her intervention, the only possible outcome today would have been total annihilation.
The system chattered on for a long while. When Stelle didn't respond, its voice grew weaker.
[Is the Host… feeling sad right now?]
Stelle's head remained bowed over Izuna's still form. Her tone was flat, unreadable.
[What's there to be sad about? It's not like he's actually dead.]
The system paused, stunned for a moment before a spark of realization flashed through its code.
[I remember now! Host, you've been researching the One's Own Life Reincarnation technique these past few days, and trying to figure out how to use it to truly revive those brought back by Edo Tensei. Are you planning to wait until your research is successful and the required lifespan cost is lower to revive them all—]
"System," Stelle interrupted, her voice sharp and cold. "You're talking too much today. Shut up."
'Oh.' The system sensed the Host's state was… off. As a program, it didn't quite understand the complexities of human emotion, so it wisely fell silent.
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