"Very good!"
"Except for Shimura Danzō and those root ninjas who ran off to hide when danger struck, everyone from Konoha has gathered."
Lucas scanned the Konoha shinobi surrounding Sarutobi Hiruzen, a smirk playing on his lips.
"You have nowhere to run. Surrender!"
Sarutobi Hiruzen gripped his Adamantine Staff, his voice carrying an authoritative weight.
"Surrender? What a joke!" Lucas sneered, his golden eyes gleaming. "Do you really think I waited here just to let you all gather?"
Sarutobi Hiruzen's expression darkened instantly.
"Relax! There's no conspiracy, no tricks. I simply gathered you all here because it's more convenient for me to make an announcement."
Lucas paused, his smirk widening. "Now, I officially take over Konoha."
"Insolence!"
"How dare you!"
"You're courting death!"
As expected, his words ignited the fury of the Konoha shinobi. Some even turned to Hiruzen, waiting for the order to strike.
Sarutobi Hiruzen, naturally unwilling to let such an opportunity for a grand performance slip, furrowed his brows in mock concern.
"What happened to the two Konoha kunoichi beside you?" His voice was filled with suspicion. "I refuse to believe they would betray the village."
Lucas shrugged casually.
"They were under my genjutsu. If you want, I can release them."
With a snap of his fingers, Mitarashi Anko and Yūhi Kurenai blinked awake.
"What… What did you do to us?"
Kurenai gasped, immediately leaping back while forming a series of hand seals. A powerful illusion enveloped Lucas.
Behind him, a towering tree sprouted, its thick vines twisting around his body. From the tree, Kurenai emerged, a sharp kunai in her hand, lunging forward.
Break.
Lucas activated his Mangekyō Sharingan, his pupil power shattering the illusion instantly.
Then, he activated his Gold-Gold Fruit ability. The ground beneath his feet turned into liquid gold, swallowing Kurenai and Anko in an instant, solidifying around them like statues with only their faces exposed.
"Kurenai!"
"Anko!"
The Konoha shinobi hesitated, shocked to see their comrades restrained so effortlessly.
"What kind of bloodline limit is that?"
Sarutobi Hiruzen, who had been preparing to attack, halted momentarily, wary of Lucas' ability.
"You want to analyze my abilities and find a countermeasure?" Lucas scoffed, shaking his head. "Pointless!"
RUMBLE!
The earth trembled as a massive Wooden Dragon erupted from the ground, its golden eyes gleaming menacingly.
Lucas chuckled.
"Use jutsu to defeat jutsu!"
"Use Konoha's own power against Konoha!"
"It's time for a performance, Konoha shinobi."
"Are you ready?"
The Konoha shinobi stared in disbelief.
"Wood Style?!"
"This… This is the First Hokage's Wood Style!"
"How can an outsider use Shodai-sama's technique?"
Even Sarutobi Hiruzen looked stunned.
"Are you a descendant of the Senju Clan?" he asked cautiously. The idea seemed plausible, especially given Lucas' vendetta against the Sarutobi Clan.
Lucas smirked.
"Wrong answer. I have nothing to do with the Senju Clan."
Hiruzen let out a sigh of relief. But then, his face turned grim.
"Then you… Are you one of Orochimaru's experiments?"
Lucas burst into laughter.
"Trying to play the sympathy card now? Sorry, it won't work!" His eyes turned cold. "I told you—I'm taking over Konoha. If you don't like it, you can die."
With those words, the Wooden Dragon lunged at Hiruzen, forcing him to counter with his Adamantine Staff.
"I'll handle the dragon! You—take down the caster!"
Hiruzen shouted, struggling to parry the wooden beast.
"Yes, sir!"
The masked Anbu shinobi immediately charged toward Lucas.
Wood Style: Deep Forest Emergence!
Lucas didn't move. He simply stood there as the ground beneath him exploded with gigantic wooden roots, twisting and coiling like living serpents.
Anbu members who couldn't react fast enough slammed into the thick roots and collapsed unconscious. Some were impaled by sharp wooden spikes, while others were entangled, unable to move.
Zzzzt!
Amidst the chaos, a sharp sound crackled through the air.
"Raikiri!"
A fierce, electric-blue glow illuminated the battlefield.
From within the tangle of roots, Hatake Kakashi emerged, his right hand coated in blinding lightning.
With a shout, he compressed the energy into a single, concentrated sphere of pure lightning chakra.
CRACK!
The glowing sphere shattered the roots around him. Kakashi's eyes locked onto Lucas.
In a flash, he dashed forward, Raikiri tearing through the trees in his path as he aimed directly at Lucas.
Senju Tobirama: "Among all these Konoha Anbu, this one is a bit interesting."
Senju Hashirama: "Being able to tear through the trees from Deep Forest Emergence means that his jutsu is at least S-rank. This kid has the potential to reach Kage level. Konoha still has some promising talents."
Namikaze Minato: "That technique… Is that Hatake Kakashi?"
Senju Tobirama: "You know him?"
Namikaze Minato: "He's my disciple and the son of Hatake Sakumo, the one the group leader mentioned before."
Whitebeard: "He's Sakumo's kid? His father was forced into suicide by Konoha's higher-ups, yet he still serves them?"
Lucas: "Whitebeard, you underestimate the influence of Sarutobi Hiruzen and the others. When Hatake Sakumo died, even his own son believed it was justified."
Pirate King Roger: "Are you serious?"
Namikaze Minato: "It's true. Back then, Kakashi believed his father's death was his own fault for ignoring the mission's priority. The shinobi rule is simple—completing the mission comes above all else."
Pirate King Roger: scoffs "What a load of crap. So they sacrifice their own comrades just to get a job done? And this is what they call being a ninja? Disgusting!"
Namikaze Minato: "I don't fully agree with that rule, but I couldn't change the prevailing mindset of the shinobi world. Even though Kakashi convinced himself that his father was in the wrong, Sakumo's death still left a deep scar on him."
Lucas: "Exactly. The shock of losing his father pushed Kakashi to graduate early. He threw himself into missions, killing without hesitation, becoming a cold and emotionless shinobi."
Senju Tobirama: "Graduating early? That means he was a prodigy from the start."
Lucas: "Yeah. He had strong talent and received elite training from his father. It's no surprise he stood out at a young age."
Namikaze Minato: "It's a shame, though. He became too cold and detached. After his teammates died, I tried my best to pull him out of the darkness, but… I died before I could see the results."
Senju Hashirama: "Group Leader, did he ever come out of the darkness?"
Lucas: "How should I put it? He no longer prioritizes missions above everything else. His current philosophy is— 'Those who break the rules of the ninja world are trash… but those who abandon their comrades are worse than trash.'"
Senju Hashirama: "Hah! That's a much better mindset! This kid has a good heart!"
Pirate King Roger: "Not bad at all. He'd make a fine crew member."
Whitebeard: "The old man wouldn't mind taking him as a son."
Lucas: "Don't get ahead of yourselves. That quote? It's not even his own. He got it from his dead teammate, Uchiha Obito."
Lucas: "Back when Kakashi was still stuck in his 'mission over everything' mindset, Obito scolded him for it. And just moments after saying that line, Obito was crushed by a boulder while saving Kakashi. Their other teammate, Nohara Rin, later sacrificed herself by forcing Kakashi to kill her, to prevent disaster from befalling Konoha."
Whitebeard: "..."
Senju Tobirama: "..."
Senju Hashirama: "..."
Pirate King Roger: "..."
Golden Lion Shiki: "Damn… His life is a tragedy."
Golden Lion Shiki couldn't help but feel emotional.
His life had been filled with hardships, but at least it had been straightforward—he fought, he lost, he fought again. Kakashi, on the other hand, carried a past soaked in sorrow, betrayal, and loss.
Shiki glanced around the group. In terms of pure tragedy, perhaps only Doflamingo could rival Kakashi.
Namikaze Minato: "How… How could this happen? He never told me."
Lucas: "With experiences like that, who would even want to remember them, let alone talk about them?"
Senju Tobirama: "This child has suffered enough… Someone let him catch a break already."
Meanwhile, in the real world—
Kakashi sprinted through the forest of writhing wooden roots, dodging Lucas' relentless attacks. Sharp branches stabbed from every direction, forcing him to jump, duck, and weave.
Lucas smirked.
"Alright, let's end this."
Since the Second Hokage had spoken, Lucas decided to give him face.
A thick vine lashed out from the forest, striking Kakashi clean on the neck.
Thud!
He collapsed unconscious, bringing an end to his tragic game of cat and mouse.
Suddenly—
Gah!
A pitch-black shadow slithered toward Lucas, latching onto him. An invisible force locked his body in place.
Shadow Binding Technique!
Behind him, the head of the Nara Clan, Nara Shikaku, formed a hand seal, successfully restraining Lucas with his family's signature jutsu.
At the same time, another figure made his move.
Mind Body Switch Technique!
The Yamanaka Clan Head aimed both hands at Lucas, launching his consciousness forward, attempting to seize control of Lucas' body.
However—
"Get lost!"
Lucas' Mangekyō Sharingan flared to life, intricate scarlet patterns forming in his eyes.
A surge of pure mental energy erupted from his body, violently shattering the shadow connection beneath his feet and repelling the invading consciousness.
"!!!"
The Nara and Yamanaka clan heads staggered back, both reeling from the backlash.
Nara Shikaku: panting "W-What… What kind of power is this?"
The surrounding shinobi were frozen in shock.
"Not only does he have the First Hokage's Wood Style, but also the Uchiha Clan's Mangekyō Sharingan?! Who in the world can stop him?"
Shikaku's body trembled.
He had expected Lucas to be strong, but this was beyond anything he had imagined.
Lucas chuckled.
While he could use all of the Mangekyō Sharingan's abilities without visibly activating its pattern, he believed in keeping a sense of drama in life.
"A Mangekyō Sharingan without its glow lacks soul."
From the side, Uchiha Fugaku had been preparing to attack, but now he hesitated.
His initial plan was to side with Sarutobi Hiruzen. No matter how one looked at it, Lucas' overwhelming power meant he would soon take control of Konoha.
And an outsider ruling Konoha? Unacceptable.
But now—
Mangekyō Sharingan.
Only a true Uchiha should possess that power. And yet, Lucas had awakened it effortlessly.
Fugaku narrowed his eyes, his mind racing.
Even if an outsider transplanted a Mangekyō Sharingan, controlling it to such an extent was nearly impossible.
Case in point: Hatake Kakashi.
A well-known genius, but even he struggled with his Sharingan.
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