Naruto : Cruel Rebirth

After three days of travel, Naruto and his team finally reached the Land of Thunder. After crossing several mountains, they arrived at Thunder Mountain on the third night.

Thunder Mountain loomed into the clouds, with mist swirling and deafening thunder echoing.

At the summit, the mountain had a massive basin, and Kumogakure Village was located at the bottom of this basin.

The team stood on a ridge high above, looking down through the mist at the grand village below. 

"This is the Kumogakure Ninja Village, one of the five major ninja villages in the current ninja world, known for both its military strength and economic power. It truly lives up to its reputation..." 

Naruto murmured, activating his Rinnegan's observation mode. A faint blue glow appeared, shaped like an inverted bowl, covering the entire valley.

"Oh? This barrier is indeed special," Naruto said.

Although Konan couldn't see the barrier, she knew what it was: "That should be Kumogakure's village protection technique, the Heavenly Punishment Formation. Anyone who breaks into the barrier will immediately be detected and struck by lightning until they're completely wiped out. It's a flawless barrier technique."

Naruto turned to Orochimaru and asked, "Orochimaru, you once infiltrated Kumogakure and attacked the former Eight-Tails Jinchuriki. How did you get through this barrier?" 

At this point, Orochimaru didn't question how Naruto knew about the matter. He said, "That was many years ago. At the time, Kumogakure's village protection barrier wasn't the Heavenly Punishment Formation. It was a sensing technique, similar to Konohagakure's, with a coded signal. As long as you matched the code, you could avoid being detected. I did reconnaissance, stole the code, and then infiltrated..."

"After that incident, Kumogakure replaced their protective barrier with the Heavenly Punishment Formation. The method of identification is no longer through a code. They now mark their ninjas with unique identifiers, so they won't trigger the lightning strike..." Orochimaru explained.

Naruto sighed, "This setup is really troublesome." 

Orochimaru nodded, "Indeed. If I were to try infiltrating again, it would be impossible. But the Heavenly Punishment Formation is the work of the First Raikage. It's an unfinished product—it's powerful, but it also has its flaws. There's a very small chance of it being triggered by mistake, even with the identification mark. If that happens, you'd be unlucky."

"In Kumogakure, there are a few cases of accidental kills by the Heavenly Punishment each year, but they always cover up their own scandals..." 

Orochimaru continued with a knowing look, "Of course, the Raikage doesn't have to worry about being accidentally hit. His lightning armor protects his body well enough to withstand the Heavenly Punishment lightning strikes."

Naruto nodded, "I see. I didn't know about this..."

Orochimaru asked, "So, what will we do, Naruto-kun?"

"It's not as difficult as it sounds..." Naruto replied.

He raised his hand and formed a seal. 

Boom! A shadow clone appeared beside him.

The clone held a Kunai with the Flying Thunder God technique in its mouth.

Naruto turned to Kisame, "Kisame, use your strength and Samehada, and cooperate with my shadow clone!"

"I see, got it." Kisame grinned and took hold of Samehada.

Clang! Naruto's shadow clone jumped, stepping onto the large blade of Samehada! 

"Roar…!!" Kisame shouted, using his monstrous strength to swing the sword.

Whoosh! Naruto's shadow clone used the force to leap, slicing through the mist and charging into the barrier! Crackle!

A storm of thunderclouds gathered above, and a vicious lightning strike came down. The shadow clone immediately disappeared in the smoke, along with a large crater forming beneath.

Naruto laughed, "That was fast, I didn't even have time to cancel the shadow clone before it was taken out. Sneaking in without a sound is almost impossible."

Whoosh! He disappeared from his spot and appeared next to the falling Kunai with the Flying Thunder God technique. 

Swoosh! He caught the Kunai in midair and stowed it, his cloak fluttering as he landed steadily on the crater. His left Rinnegan gleamed with light.

"Now then..." he said, his hands forming seals as they pressed on the ground.

—Summoning Jutsu!

Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom! Five white smoke puffs rose simultaneously, summoning Konan, Orochimaru, Kisame, Suigetsu, and Jugo to Naruto's side! 

Suigetsu exclaimed in surprise, "It can be done like this?!" 

Naruto stood up and said, "As per the plan, create chaos in various places to draw their fire. Remember, do not kill anyone!" 

The others replied, "Understood!"

Naruto waved his arm, "Spread out!"

Swish! Swish! Swish! Swish! Except for Konan, the other four scattered in different directions, heading to the southeast, southwest, northwest, and northeast.

Konan advised, "Kumogakure has many powerful fighters, be careful." 

Naruto nodded, "You too."

With a rustling sound, Konan spread her arms, and her body, along with her robe, turned into countless beautiful paper butterflies.

"If it were me, I would keep the scrolls containing important techniques in the safest place..."

Naruto bent down and picked up a kunai, then looked toward the blue-roofed fortress in the distance... that was Raikage's residence.

Inside the Kumogakure barrier: 

A ninja wearing a headband said, "In that brief moment, the barrier was triggered. From the ripple of the barrier, it seems the intruders have a very specific purpose and entered at high speed..."

Another member of the barrier team, looking out the window at the clear sky, said, "The thunder strike from the divine punishment technique is supposed to eliminate the intruders upon identification. But since no follow-up strike occurred, it means the intruders have already been eliminated..."

The head of the barrier team said, "Let's conduct an on-site investigation before drawing conclusions. Also, for safety, send a large team to Raikage-sama's residence!"

"Yes, Captain!"

Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom! At that moment, loud explosions were heard from all directions. 

"What is going on!?"

Swish! A Kumogakure ninja flashed in, "The village is under attack. Attacks are happening simultaneously from multiple directions!"

"Hmm? There's more than one intruder? And they somehow managed to avoid detection by the divine punishment technique. Looks like these invaders are highly skilled. Immediately go to support the attack sites and use the Thunder Voice Technique to inform Raikage-sama to rush back to the village!"

"Understood!"

"No matter what, an attack on a large, organized ninja village is a foolish act. What could the invaders' true purpose be...?" 

Looking at the rising smoke outside the window, the person fell into deep thought, "Could it be...?"

A large number of Kumogakure ninjas rushed to the sites of the attacks.

Naruto, using a transformation technique, disguised himself as a Kumogakure ninja and approached Raikage's residence...

"It's going much smoother than I expected..."

"Your plan is clever, but it ends here, invader..." 

At that moment, a Kumogakure ninja, wearing a black eye mask and looking calm and composed, appeared in front of Naruto, accompanied by a large group of Anbu.

Uncle Dodai?

Recognizing the ninja as 'Dodai,' Naruto couldn't help but remember the nickname he had given him back in the Fourth Great Ninja War...

During that war, Dodai had repeatedly used his Lava Release defense to protect Naruto's shadow clones, and had shown exceptional combat skills and intelligence. He was one of the few outsiders who had left a deep impression on Naruto.

Tudai coldly said, "Your intentions have been exposed. The chaos you caused in all directions was a diversion, and your real target is this mansion..." 

Naruto remained calm and said, "Dodai-san, what are you talking about? I just returned to the village to report to Raikage-sama..."

Tudai scanned Naruto up and down, his voice low, "Stop playing dumb. Your transformation into 'Samui' was quite convincing, but Samui left three hours ago on an A-rank mission. There's no way she could have finished so quickly. Also, Samui always calls me by my full name, never using honorifics! Show your true face!"

Naruto lowered his head and looked at his transformed appearance, helplessly saying, "Is that so? I was confident in this disguise, but since I've been caught, there's no helping it..."

Boom! The transformation technique was dispelled, and Naruto appeared in front of Kumogakure wearing the Fire Cloud Mask.

Dodai's eyes narrowed, "That cloak... You're from Akatsuki...!" 

Naruto said in a low voice, "Light Akatsuki, remember this name, it will become famous in the ninja world from now on!"

Tsuchidai coldly responded, "What a joke! You and your companions won't leave Kumogakure Village alive... Attack!"

Crack!

Lightning flashed, and the Kumogakure Anbu used Lightning Release Body Flicker Technique to surround them in the blink of an eye! Swish! Swish! Ninja blades were drawn and thrust into the ground, forming hand seals with one hand, and completing the technique in one smooth motion. They shouted in unison, "Lightning Release: Lightning Walk!"

Naruto's left eye opened wide.

—Shinra Tensei! 

—

Shinra Tensei! 

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