The shinobi world—vast yet contained.
It is never lacking in breathtaking scenery.
Towering peaks shrouded in clouds.
Thunder roaring like a celestial drum, shaking the heavens and earth.
Standing atop the mountain, one could almost mistake the scene for an ethereal realm.
This is the Land of Lightning.
Among the Five Great Shinobi Villages, Kumogakure stands apart in its imposing grandeur.
"Not bad."
A voice, tinged with unspoken thoughts, broke the silence.
Turning toward the sound, one would see Uchiha Bai Ye standing at the summit, hands clasped behind his back.
Kumogakure's Raikage stood nearby, his expression dark. Beside him, the jinchūriki Yugito Nii and kunoichi Samui wore complex expressions, unsure of what was to come.
But Bai Ye paid them no mind. His gaze remained fixed on the scenery, as if savoring a private moment.
"Even before I became Captain of the Uchiha Guard, I thought about life after retirement."
"A place like this—where the mind and body can be at ease. A peaceful home, with a few devoted companions."
There was a rare softness in Bai Ye's eyes.
As though he could already feel it—the weightlessness of being unshackled from duty, from power, from the endless conflicts that dictated the shinobi world.
No more schemes. No more struggles. Yet, even in such a life, his very existence would make the world tremble.
A world where he need not concern himself with the mundane, yet his every action would ripple across the land.
That was the life he envisioned.
"What do you think of this place?"
Bai Ye turned his gaze toward Yugito and Samui.
His voice held a certainty—an expectation that they would follow wherever he chose to go.
"It's beautiful," Samui replied truthfully.
"But this is the Land of Lightning. This is Kumogakure."
Raikage's voice was low, his tone filled with warning.
Had it not been for his monstrous endurance, he would have been dead the moment he was thrown through the time-space rift.
Even Kumogakure's unique barriers had struggled to withstand the force that transported him here.
Yet, Bai Ye had done it casually—without effort.
That alone was terrifying.
Lord Raikage, please… just don't provoke him.
Yugito wanted to speak, but the words wouldn't leave her lips.
Unlike the others, she had a foreboding sense of what was to come.
Why here?
Of all places, why did he come to this mountain—the very peak that overlooks Kumogakure?
"Please… don't…"
Yugito clenched her fists, her voice barely above a whisper.
This was her home.
The place where she fought to prove herself, where she sought recognition.
A land filled with memories.
"There are some things best left unspoken."
Bai Ye reached out, tilting Yugito's chin upward.
"But as my maid, you should understand—your duty is to create new memories with your master, not cling to the past."
There was an unshakable finality in his words.
A difference between a master and a lover.
Some could be cherished. Others had their place.
And Bai Ye had no intention of blurring those lines.
"Do you know why I never took Uchiha Satoshi or Shisui's Susanoo seriously?"
He spoke suddenly, a faint smirk on his lips.
"Because…"
A low chuckle escaped him.
Bai Ye rolled his shoulders, as though loosening up for the first time in a long while.
Then, he opened his eyes.
A gleam of scarlet—Mangekyō Sharingan.
Boom!
The mountain trembled beneath him.
Golden chakra erupted, surging around his body in waves of raw power.
First—skeletal form.
Then—tendons, flesh.
And finally—armor.
The golden energy expanded outward, engulfing Raikage, Samui, and Yugito as they ascended into the sky.
Their surroundings shrank below them at an alarming rate.
Raikage's eyes widened in horror.
Are we flying?
No—this was no mere flight.
Bai Ye's chakra construct continued to grow.
The sheer pressure of it made the very air vibrate, sending shockwaves in all directions.
Only when the chaotic chakra stabilized did they see it—
A golden warrior, towering over the world like an ancient deity.
Full-Body Susanoo.
Bai Ye didn't know if his Susanoo surpassed Uchiha Madara's in sheer size.
But he didn't care.
At this moment, he exerted his full strength—unleashing his power without restraint.
The golden Tengu loomed over the skies.
He could have condensed the chakra further, refining the form into something more compact.
But why would he?
Power should be overwhelming.
A display beyond reason.
And at this scale—nothing in the shinobi world could breach his defenses.
This was Kensu Susanoo no Inochi—an embodiment of absolute destruction.
Even Kumogakure, built atop the highest peaks, was dwarfed beneath him.
Even if Madara stood in this very spot, his Susanoo would never reach this height.
One day, Bai Ye would compare himself to that legendary man.
But for now…
Golden light radiated across the heavens.
His chakra had stabilized, his full power unleashed.
Bai Ye stretched his massive golden wings, casting a shadow over the land.
Then, he looked down at Raikage and his subordinates.
"Because their Susanoo—"
He smirked.
"—is nothing more than something I could crush with a single step."
Below, Kumogakure lay spread out like an anthill beneath his gaze.
He lifted Susanoo's massive chakra blade.
"You called this your village? You claimed this mountain belonged to Kumogakure?"
Raikage stiffened.
Then, in an instant, realization struck him like lightning.
His body trembled.
No one—no force—could defy this power.
The golden chakra blade rose.
A violent gust tore through the sky, forming a hurricane around its edge.
A divine sword, descending from the heavens.
A single strike capable of splitting the sky itself.
Clouds severed in its wake.
The very air burned with friction.
The shinobi of Kumogakure had seen the golden light.
At first, they thought it a divine blessing.
But then, the blessing turned to judgment.
A punishment beyond comprehension.
The golden blade fell.
Crushing.
Unstoppable.
This is the end.
Countless shinobi collapsed under the sheer weight of the incoming attack.
Escape?
Resistance?
Futile.
Before an absolute force, all that remained was submission.
Power ruled this world.
And Kumogakure had none.
Perhaps one day, Bai Ye's Guard would extend beyond Konoha, enforcing a new order.
But for now…
He was merely the Captain of the Uchiha Guard.
Nothing more.
Did he intend to erase Kumogakure?
Was this the power of the man standing before them?
No.
It was never about what Bai Ye wanted.
It was about what they had to offer.
And Raikage understood, at last.
This was his fault.
He was the cause of this.
With the weight of an entire village on his shoulders—
Raikage knelt.
"I was wrong!"
"Kumogakure submits to the Captain of the Uchiha Guard—unconditionally!"
Bai Ye remained silent.
Fetters make men weak.
But only one truth mattered—
True power is when even your weaknesses dictate the fate of the world.
Boom!
The golden blade shifted—redirected.
Destruction still followed.
But Kumogakure was spared.
For now.
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