Naruto: Fire-Release system

Chapter 77: Words Are Meaningless; Strength Is the Only Standard for Right and Wrong!

Seeing the figures emerging before him, Uchiha Yi raised an eyebrow. He wasn't particularly surprised, though he did feel a twinge of unease.

Since his shadow clones couldn't sustain the energy drain of Divine Blaze Repulsion, he was now operating as his true body. If he were to die here, there would be no coming back.

Had he not maintained his habitual state of elementalization, the sudden ambush just now might have ended disastrously.

From the nature of the attack, Uchiha Yi immediately recognized the Flying Thunder God Technique.

With that realization, he wasn't puzzled at all by the sudden appearance of these figures.

It also explained why Hiruzen Sarutobi and Jiraiya had vanished without a trace—they must have been rescued by these individuals.

But at this point, it no longer mattered because…

---

"Is this Konoha?"

A man clad in layered red armor scanned the area. His eyes darkened as he took in the devastation, the once-familiar village reduced to rubble.

Turning to the pale, snake-like man next to him, he asked coldly:

"This is the Hidden Leaf? What happened here?"

"I was too late to stop it," the pale man replied, licking his lips in a sinister manner. Then, he turned his gaze to Uchiha Yi and sneered. "Long time no see, Ah-Huo!"

"Orochimaru, I'm curious," Uchiha Yi chuckled, his tone sharp, "as a rogue ninja from Konoha, what grounds do you have to show up here now? Whose side are you even on?"

Uchiha Yi had long suspected Orochimaru's ulterior motives, and this confirmed it.

It was a good thing he had refused Orochimaru's earlier offers of collaboration, or he might've been sold out before even realizing what hit him.

"You misunderstand, Ah-Huo." Orochimaru's smile grew sly. "I'm merely here to test my latest research results."

Of course, Uchiha Yi didn't believe a word.

---

"Enough!"

"Uchiha descendant, tell me what happened here!"

The red-armored man, Senju Hashirama, could no longer suppress his anger and demanded an explanation.

"Hmph, Hashirama, hasn't Orochimaru already explained everything?" Uchiha Yi replied dismissively. "Why bother asking me?"

In the ninja world, being morally right or wrong means little. People side with power, not logic or justice.

Jiraiya was proof enough of this. He had long been aware of Sarutobi Hiruzen's transgressions, yet chose to turn a blind eye and even enable him.

It was no different with Hashirama and Tobirama. Trying to explain himself to them was pointless.

"Very well, I'll explain everything," Orochimaru interjected, sensing the tension. He then recounted the entire sequence of events leading to this moment, detailing Uchiha Yi's actions and motivations.

Once Orochimaru finished, both Hashirama and Tobirama fell silent.

The right and wrong of the situation were obvious, but the question was how they would handle it.

---

"Born evil, like all Uchiha," Tobirama finally broke the silence, glaring at Yi with disdain.

"Your clan's suffering does not justify the massacre of innocents!" he continued. "Countless lives have been lost due to your actions. How do you intend to atone for this?"

Unlike his brother, Hashirama, who leaned toward compassion, Tobirama's response was filled with condemnation.

"Born evil, like all Uchiha?" Yi sneered. "Tell me, Tobirama, what about your clan?"

"Your dear disciple, Sarutobi Hiruzen, managed to nearly wipe out the Senju, leaving only Tsunade alive. How does that feel? Do you regret training him? Do you wish you could strike him down?"

Yi's retort was sharp and mocking, his gaze burning into Tobirama's.

Tobirama flinched, his expression twisting. The jab had struck a nerve.

He truly did regret many of his choices—especially his failure to prevent the decline of his own clan. But there was no undoing the past.

"Enough talk!" Tobirama growled, tossing a kunai directly at Yi.

The time for words was over. The situation demanded action.

---

As the kunai soared through the air, Yi's eyes narrowed. He knew the kunai was laced with the Flying Thunder God seal, a technique not to be underestimated.

"Words are meaningless," Yi murmured, his expression calm. "Strength alone determines what's right and wrong!"

With that, Yi made his move.

---

"Awaken!"

Summoning the hidden power of his devil fruit, a fiery golden aura erupted around him. His black hair transformed into blazing gold, his body surrounded by flames so intense they seemed to reach the heavens.

The sky above turned a vivid golden-red, clouds evaporating into nothingness. The spectacle resembled the end of the world.

---

"This Uchiha is extraordinary," Hashirama muttered, his attention drawn to the apocalyptic display. The scale of Yi's power was enough to make even the God of Shinobi reconsider his approach.

"Impressive, truly impressive," Orochimaru whispered, his voice trembling with a mixture of fear and awe.

He had witnessed Yi's power before, during his research in the Hidden Mist. Even back then, the sheer devastation Yi could unleash was seared into his memory.

Back in the Mist Village, Orochimaru had observed Yi's catastrophic techniques, realizing he stood no chance against him. This prompted him to perfect the Impure World Reincarnation, summoning powerful shinobi of the past to level the playing field.

Now, seeing Yi in full force once again, Orochimaru felt both vindicated and unnerved.

"This is no ordinary opponent," Orochimaru said, turning to Hashirama. "First Hokage, I don't think your brother can handle him alone. You might need to step in."

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