*Chapter 195: The Cruel Reality of the Old Outliving the Young*

Hiruzen Sarutobi had already prepared himself for a significant sacrifice today. Facing such a formidable opponent, failing to put forth everything would be disrespectful.

However, if they could capture this monster and study its abilities, particularly the way it manipulates those strange fluctuations, the benefits for Konoha could be enormous. They might even create a being as powerful as Newgate.

Even if they can't figure out much, they could hand it over to Danzo for cloning. Alternatively, they could use it as material for the Impure World Reincarnation technique. Such a being could wreak havoc on the battlefield, unstoppable and immortal.

Corpses are highly valued by every ninja village because, during the Great Ninja War, collecting bodies was crucial to prevent intelligence leaks. Sometimes, the value of a corpse exceeds that of a living person.

Sarutobi already considered Newgate as his prize.

"Making this old man bury the young, you are truly cruel."

"You've succeeded in angering this old man, but I still have things to do."

Newgate's eyes burned with fury. He wanted nothing more than to storm through Konoha with his naginata and destroy the entire village. But he couldn't. Doing so would make Marco's sacrifice meaningless.

Marco's words echoed in his mind; he still needed to bury Marco's body at sea. Dying here wouldn't allow Marco's soul to return to its homeland. What if, when Newgate passed away, he couldn't find Marco?

"What is this guy planning?" Sarutobi wondered, thinking Newgate would charge at them.

But he was wrong. It seemed Newgate wasn't blinded by anger; he was still very rational, given the situation. However, Newgate's next move puzzled Sarutobi.

Why was he putting down his weapon?

"It seems this isn't a place to take risks. Next time, I'll come back alone to settle the score."

"Konoha, few dare to challenge the Whitebeard Pirates on the open sea."

"I won't forget this grudge so easily."

Newgate clenched the air with both hands, a sharp gleam in his eyes.

The next moment, his hands made a slight pulling motion, and the entire world seemed to tremble.

At first, the ground shook lightly, but soon it escalated into a massive earthquake.

The violent tremors rendered chakra-enhanced footing useless.

"What did he just do?" Sarutobi struggled to stay upright, shocked by what he saw.

It was as if an earthquake had ripped through Konoha, splitting the ground into several pieces!

The underground veins of Konoha erupted as fountains shot up from within the village, turning Konoha into a chaotic disaster zone.

Originally, they thought they could at least protect the village. But they hadn't expected Whitebeard's final attack to leave the village in ruins.

"This guy!" Sarutobi's face twisted with rage. This man had destroyed the legacy he'd worked so hard to build. The Uchiha clan was a small loss, but this would take Konoha years to recover from.

And Konoha wasn't in a good position right now; with several nations eyeing them like hawks, they wouldn't get a chance to recover.

Sarutobi quickly turned around, but the area where Whitebeard had stood was now shrouded in thick fog. By the time they went to confirm his presence, the man was long gone.

All that remained were corpses and their own failure.

"Curse you! Uchiha clan, and Edward Newgate!" Sarutobi roared at the sky in fury. His rage caused him to spit blood, and he collapsed to the ground, his face pale and drained of life.

He looked like a man whose time had come.

"Hmm?" In Orochimaru's base near Amegakure, a surprised expression crossed Raijin's face as something seemed to enter his vision technique.

Could it be that the Sage of Six Paths was preparing to make a move? Had he been discovered?

Was this a punishment for his actions?

But Raijin now had his own underworld, and he wasn't afraid to confront the Sage of Six Paths. If he could seize something from the Sage, that would be ideal.

Raijin's consciousness drifted into the River of Three Crossings, that void-like world where several chakra entities floated.

Some of these were spoils Raijin had gained in Iwagakure; Charlotte Linlin did the killing while Raijin reaped the benefits.

Raijin had gained quite a bit in Iwagakure, and he could extract chakra from these entities whenever needed.

But this time, Raijin noticed something different in the River of Three Crossings—a strange fruit with peculiar patterns floating in it.

Raijin paused, recognizing it immediately. After recalling the Devil Fruit encyclopedia, he understood what it was: the Bird-Bird Fruit, Mythical Type, Model: Phoenix!

But why was it here?

Before coming to the ninja world, Raijin had marked everyone with the seal of the River of Three Crossings. If they died in the ninja world, their souls would be drawn into the River of Three Crossings.

They had signed an agreement, so there was no going back on it.

"Who would've thought the River of Three Crossings could even claim Devil Fruits? When a Devil Fruit user dies, the fruit is sent here as well."

"But is this only effective in the ninja world or in both worlds? That remains to be seen."

"Wait, where's Marco's soul? Why did only the fruit come over?"

Raijin frowned. Could the Sage of Six Paths have a stronger pull on Marco's soul?

But the Devil Fruit had been captured, so where was Marco? Could something have happened in Konoha?

After some thought, Raijin took out his Den Den Mushi and contacted Kakashi directly.

Orochimaru glanced at the Den Den Mushi in Raijin's hand with some interest. Orochimaru was always intrigued by things he hadn't seen before, especially since Raijin often produced strange and unusual items. Orochimaru had grown accustomed to it, but there was a catch—Raijin never shared these things with him. He would bring them out, examine them himself, and then put them away without letting Orochimaru have a look. Sometimes, Orochimaru felt like calling him selfish—how could someone be so selfish at a time like this?

"Kakashi, has something happened in Konoha?" Raijin asked directly, not wasting any time.

"Uh, yes, there has been an incident—Marco is dead!" Kakashi replied as he stood at a distance, watching Hiruzen Sarutobi cough up blood in anger. This scene brought Kakashi no satisfaction, only a sense of helplessness regarding his father. Why hadn't his father rebelled against Konoha back then? Instead, he let Kakashi spend so many years tangled up in trivial matters like whether teammates or the mission were more important. Now, Kakashi wanted to go back and tell his younger self that he was a fool for worrying about such things.

But, of course, in those days, he really was that foolish, going so far as to sacrifice for Konoha...

No need to dwell on the past. It would all be sealed away as a dark history.

"Is that so? How did he die?" Raijin frowned. Marco was indeed dead, but he hadn't appeared in the River of Three Crossings.

"You have a sealing scroll in your possession, so you should be familiar with the forbidden jutsu inside," Kakashi explained. "One of them is called the Reaper Death Seal. The Fourth Hokage used this jutsu to seal away the Nine-Tails, which cost him his life. Hiruzen Sarutobi trained several death warriors specifically to use this technique."

Kakashi's gaze shifted toward Sarutobi's direction. As a ninja, Kakashi had long since come to terms with life and death, but Sarutobi's methods left him feeling a deep sense of disgust.

"I see. What about Whitebeard?" Raijin inquired. Now that Marco was dead, Konoha was likely in ruins.

"He took Marco's body and met up with Naruto Uzumaki. They're probably heading back to the Land of Springs," Kakashi replied. "Did you foresee this move from Konoha all along? Is that why you never confronted them head-on?"

Kakashi suddenly asked, having always thought Raijin was being overly cautious. With Raijin's nearly invincible dōjutsu and the power of the Susanoo, he was practically unbeatable. Yet, Raijin remained wary of Konoha. Had he predicted this all along?

"Heh, now that the job is done, come back! You can meet your new colleagues," Raijin deflected the question, not wanting to delve into his reasons. It wasn't just Konoha he feared; he also worried that the Sage of Six Paths might suddenly intervene, bestowing the power of Yin-Yang Release upon someone else, turning them into a meteor-like threat. For now, he might be too insignificant for the Sage to notice, but it was still better to be cautious when dealing with someone on a higher level.

"Oh, by the way, I encountered Obito," Kakashi said, detailing everything about Uchiha Obito to Raijin. He wanted to hear Raijin's explanation.

"It seems you've helped me deal with a major problem. Head to Amegakure right away," Raijin said, a smile spreading across his face. "It's unlikely that Obito and Black Zetsu will have the time to return. We might as well help them move out. As for everything else, we can discuss it when you arrive."

Raijin's smile broadened, feeling that luck was on his side. Whether Obito was dead or not, Raijin didn't know, but with Obito and Black Zetsu occupied elsewhere, they wouldn't be returning to Amegakure anytime soon. With that in mind, Raijin suddenly felt that he hadn't brought enough ninjas. He would need to recruit a batch of children to send to the sea; that way, Dressrosa would have more talent in the future. And these ninjas tended to be obedient. As long as the conditions were right, they would serve loyally for life, and Raijin was in need of such hardworking individuals.

"Orochimaru, I suppose you heard that, right? It seems your Akatsuki leader won't be returning anytime soon," Raijin said, turning his gaze to Orochimaru.