Uchiha’s God of Muscle - Chapter 226

Half an hour later.

Konan led the three kids to a forest more than ten kilometers outside of Uzushiogakure.

With a series of hand signs, countless pieces of paper converged, quickly forming a lifelike tree.

Shikigami Dance.

This technique transforms paper into various objects, with such precision that even the Mangekyō Sharingan could be deceived. When Pain attacked Konoha, Konan used this technique to hide Nagato in a tree outside the village. Back then, Danzo managed to locate Nagato by tracing the chakra.

Konan instructed Naruto, Fuu, and Gaara to hide inside the tree and stay silent.

They would be safe there.

She then turned back and returned to the ruins of Uzushiogakure.

“Can she handle it alone? There are so many enemies…” Naruto’s eyes were filled with worry and confusion.

When he heard Konan speak about avenging the Uzumaki clan, Naruto’s young heart was deeply stirred.

“Don’t worry, believe in Konan-sensei. She will come back safely!” Fuu reassured Naruto, patting his shoulder, her usual cheerful demeanor showing her faith in Konan.

Gaara, on the other hand, remained silent and brooding, his thoughts unknown.

The Land of Whirlpools.

Over twenty years after its fall, this once desolate land welcomed a new group of unwelcome guests. The elites of the four great ninja villages crossed the sea and landed on the island.

Among them, Konoha had the largest contingent, nearly half of its ANBU, led by “Shadow,” the ANBU captain appointed by Danzo.

Other villages were also well-represented, with Darui from Kumogakure, Maki from Sunagakure, and Kitsuchi from Iwagakure leading their respective forces.

In total, there were over a hundred elite ninjas.

Such a massive mobilization was due to their target: three Jinchūriki—a force powerful enough to tip the balance of the ninja world and change the course of the war.

However, as the joint force quickly approached the ruins of Uzushiogakure—

Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!

Several giant lava balls suddenly fell from the sky, exploding amidst the group, and turning the ground into a sea of fire. Many were injured in the surprise attack.

Who?

Everyone looked ahead sharply and saw a red figure, like a beast on all fours, roaring as it charged out of the forest.

“That’s…”

Kitsuchi from Iwagakure was startled, recognizing the attacker by the four tails behind him.

The Four-Tails Jinchūriki, Roshi.

After a falling out with the Third Tsuchikage, Roshi had left the village to become a wandering monk. Iwagakure had searched for him for a long time, trying to bring him back, but without success. Unexpectedly, Roshi appeared here in such a manner.

“Look at his eyes; he’s under the control of the Sharingan. Could the Uchiha clan have arrived first?” Maki from Sunagakure tightened his grip on his ninja sword, sweating nervously.

“It’s not the Uchiha clan, it’s Obito,” Darui said, his eyes sharp.

Sure enough, the forest behind Roshi rustled as two more enemies emerged.

Kisame Hoshigaki and Kakuzu.

“Stalling so many enemies is quite a headache, tsk tsk,” Kisame said, carrying his Samehada sword, seemingly troubled.

Kakuzu, expressionless, said, “Obito wants us to buy him ten minutes. After that, regardless of the situation, we are to retreat immediately.”

“Then… let’s get to work,” Kisame grinned, showing two rows of sharp teeth.

With that, he quickly formed hand signs and spewed a lake-like torrent of water, sweeping toward the numerous enemies.

Kakuzu unleashed his Earth Grudge Fear technique, splitting himself into five masked monsters, and launching a barrage of ninjutsu at the enemies.

“Roar!”

Roshi roared, opening his mouth to release a small Tailed Beast Ball.

Boom! Boom! Boom!

The combined might of the three was astonishing, holding back the hundred-plus allied forces.

Meanwhile, at the entrance of Uzushiogakure, Obito appeared amidst a swirling space vortex.

To his surprise, Obito had discovered that the Uchiha clan, who had been hiding in the Kamui dimension, had moved out a few days earlier. Even the one he feared most, Dan Uchiha, was nowhere to be seen.

After confirming it wasn’t a trap, Obito used Kamui to reach Uzushiogakure as quickly as possible.

Walking through the ruins, Obito remained vigilant, soon sensing a familiar chakra from the center of the village.

It was Konan.

With narrowed eyes, he quickened his pace toward the village center.

From a distance, he saw Konan with her back turned, her delicate hand tending to a small white flower growing from a crack in the stones.

“Life is so fragile yet resilient,” she murmured. Hearing footsteps behind her, she turned calmly, unsurprised by Obito’s arrival.

“We finally meet again, Konan,” Obito said, stopping a short distance away. “You should be grateful I found you first. I’m a generous person. Hand over Nagato’s Rinnegan, and I’ll spare everything else, including… your life.”

As expected, he was after the Rinnegan.

Konan had anticipated this. Shaking her head, she replied, “The Rinnegan was awakened by Nagato, a gift from the heavens to Akatsuki. Why should I give it to you, a traitor to Akatsuki?”

“Heh.” Obito shook his head, chuckling.

“Why are you laughing?” Konan asked.

Obito’s smile faded, and he looked at Konan with pity. “I’m laughing because you’re a naive, ignorant woman. Fine, since you’ve chosen to refuse my kindness, I’ll tell you the truth before you die.

“First, I was the one who secretly encouraged Yahiko to form Akatsuki. From the beginning, the three of you were my pawns. Moreover, Nagato’s Rinnegan wasn’t his; it was given to him by Madara Uchiha before he died. Madara’s plan was for Nagato to be the vessel for the Rinnegan, to resurrect him one day.”

As Obito revealed the truth, Konan’s eyes widened, her expression growing increasingly shocked.

“No, that can’t be true…”

She whispered her heart in turmoil.

But quickly, Konan steeled herself, her eyes sharpening. “Whether what you say is true or not, I have followed Nagato’s wishes and entrusted his Rinnegan to someone trustworthy. And I can assure you, that person is not you, Obito.”

“Who did you give the Rinnegan to? Never mind, I’m out of patience. I’ll capture you and find out myself,” Obito said, frowning as he stepped toward Konan.

As Obito approached, Konan spread her arms, releasing countless paper sheets that surrounded her, forming an impenetrable defense.

The ninja world knew Obito’s Mangekyō Sharingan ability allowed him to phase through attacks, with his only vulnerability being the moment he attacked and became tangible.

Konan was ready to exploit this weakness.

Obito smirked, unfazed. “Even if everyone knows my ability’s weakness, only the Uchiha can truly counter it. Who do you think you are?”

In an instant, Obito accelerated, phasing through the paper sheets, and solidified just in time to grab Konan’s throat.

Then, a buzzing sound as Obito activated his ability, trying to pull Konan into the Kamui dimension. Once there, she’d be at his mercy.

But Konan met his gaze with a mocking look.

The next moment.

Boom!

Konan’s body lit up with a blinding white light as she self-detonated, engulfing Obito in a violent explosion.

When the dust settled.

“Hah… hah…” Konan panted, floating with only her upper body intact, paper sheets slowly repairing her form.

Obito wasn’t much better off; he had lost an arm in the explosion, his clothes in tatters, looking disheveled.

“I underestimated you, but I won’t make that mistake again,” Obito growled, acknowledging his mistake.

He had barely avoided being dragged down by deactivating his ability at the last moment.

As they both struggled to recover, a hundred figures suddenly burst into the ruins, surrounding Obito and Konan.

Clearly, Kisame, Kakuzu, and Roshi couldn’t hold back the elite forces of the four great villages forever.

“That woman is the Akatsuki remnant, codename Angel! And that’s Obito, too,” a Konoha ANBU identified them.

The Konoha ANBU captain, Shadow, noticed Obito and Konan were both injured, which presented a golden opportunity.

He signaled his men to prepare for action.

Konan surveyed the crowd, her cold gaze sweeping over the shinobi from the four villages. It was time.

Hovering above, she addressed the crowd below, her voice stern, “The five great villages have always wielded their power recklessly, bringing pain to smaller nations and villages without remorse. Look around you. This is Uzushiogakure, a village you destroyed, where countless innocent souls lie buried. Can you hear their cries?”

With her words, the ground of Uzushiogakure began to tremble, a massive fissure opening as if a prehistoric beast had awakened, swallowing the elite forces whole.

“What?!”

Only then did everyone realize the ruins of Uzushiogakure—the buildings, trees, even the ground itself—were all fake, crafted from countless paper tags by Konan’s Shikigami Dance.

Specifically, Konan had used her chakra over the past few months to create three billion explosive tags, disguising them as the remnants of the village and setting this elaborate trap.

“A terrifying woman.”

Even Obito felt a chill, his usual composure shaken by the sheer number of explosive tags surrounding them.

“Run! Get out of here now!”

The shinobi from the four villages were in a panic, desperately trying to escape the deadly “Uzushiogakure.”

But it was too late.

Konan coldly observed the shinobi below, who appeared like ants from her vantage point, and without any hesitation, triggered the detonation of her three billion explosive tags.

Boom! Boom! Boom!

A series of earth-shattering explosions began.

“Water Style: Water Formation Wall!”

“Earth Style: Earth Flow Wall!”

Many Konoha ANBU shouted in desperation, trying to use various defensive jutsu to withstand the explosive force.

However, they quickly realized their efforts were futile.

Encircled by three billion explosive tags, even the Nine-Tails would struggle to survive, let alone mere human beings.

“Ahhh!”

With agonizing screams, Konoha’s ANBU were swallowed by the explosions, one after another, leaving nothing but ashes.

The ANBU captain “Shadow” also ended with an unyielding roar.

The elite forces from the other villages suffered the same grim fate as the Konoha shinobi.

Maki, Kitsuchi, and Darui all fell to the relentless wave of explosions.

In less than a minute, the hundred-plus elite shinobi from the four great villages were completely annihilated, and not a single one survived.

The sole survivor was Obito.

The moment Konan triggered the explosion, Obito activated Kamui to phase through the attacks, avoiding the explosive shockwaves.

However, since he became tangible when absorbing himself, he couldn’t fully retreat into the Kamui dimension amidst the omnipresent explosions.

He could only maintain his intangibility, waiting for the explosions to cease.

Thus, amidst the endless detonations, only Obito and Konan remained, staring each other down from a hundred meters apart.

Over the years, Konan had secretly gathered information on Obito, analyzing his abilities. She knew that Obito’s intangibility, though seemingly invincible, had a time limit.

That’s why she prepared three billion explosive tags—to create a prolonged explosion that would give Obito no chance to catch his breath.

Now it was a matter of who would break first—Obito or the explosion.

Despite his invincibility, Obito felt the pressure of the relentless explosions and the strain on his chakra. He couldn’t maintain his intangibility indefinitely.

Konan, on the other hand, was confident in her plan. She knew this was her only chance to eliminate Obito and avenge Nagato.

As the explosions continued, Obito’s focus sharpened. He knew he had to act quickly.

When the explosions finally subsided, Obito’s figure reappeared amidst the smoke and debris. He was exhausted but determined.

Konan, though injured, was still standing, her resolve unbroken.

“You…”

Before Obito could finish, Konan made her move, unleashing a final wave of explosive tags directly at him.

“Die, Obito!”

In a last desperate effort, Konan poured all her remaining chakra into this attack, hoping to end it once and for all.

Obito, though weakened, managed to activate Kamui one last time, phasing through the final explosion and disappearing from sight.

Konan left with no chakra and severely injured, collapsed to the ground, her mission incomplete.

In the end, Obito had escaped, but Konan had dealt a significant blow to the forces of the four great villages, and her defiance against Obito would be remembered.

As darkness closed in, Konan thought of Nagato and Yahiko, her fallen comrades, and a faint smile crossed her lips.

“Rest in peace, my friends. I did my best…”

With that, Konan’s consciousness faded, and she fell into a deep, final slumber, surrounded by the ruins of Uzushiogakure.