Forest of Flames Chapter 4 (Patreon)

I did it! I was able to finish it and get it out for you today like I promised! Sorry it's still technically a day late, but again I hope you can forgive me! Please enjoy!

Hello friends and fans, Kairomaru is here with a new chapter for Forest of Flames! This chapter we see the extermination of the Uchiha, except for the non-hostile ones, as per the Fire Daimyo’s orders. 

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Chapter 4 – Uchiha Ashes

Hidden in Konoha a secret meeting was taking place between the Sandaime Hokage his advisors and former teammates, Utatane Koharu and Mitokado Homura, along with Namikaze Clan Head Yamamoto and Anbu operative Weasel, Uchiha Itachi.

“So the Uchiha Clan will stage their coup d'état five days from now, Itachi?” Hiruzen asked for clarification as he read over the documents the Uchiha Anbu had delivered to him.

“Yes, Hokage-sama, the plan is to wait for the cover of night and assassinate key security forces around the village. Once the clan has control of the gates and the communications of the village they plan to quickly launch a strike against the Hokage Tower and eliminate all personnel attached to the current leadership.” Itachi informed the Hokage.

“Is every Uchiha in support of this plan, Itachi?” Koharu questioned as she looked over the report.

“The children are completely unaware of the plan, Utatane-sama. The children are going to be secured in the temple in the Uchiha compound for the night. My father has ordered Uchiha Izumi to keep them there for the duration of the coup.” Itachi explained.

“Why Uchiha Izumi in particular? She is a skilled Chuunin so it seems more practical to have her on the offensive.” Homura questioned Itachi.

“Izumi and I are…close…to one another. My father feels that putting her in a ‘safe’ position will ensure my compliance with the plan.” Itachi explained while keeping a blank face.

“I see, so he is providing safety for one that you care for to coerce you into actively participating in this coup. Fugaku is truly set on going through with this plan then.” Homura sighed sadly. He’d hoped that Fugaku might see reason but the Uchiha Clan Head was apparently too far gone for a peaceful solution.

“Then I shall carry out Daimyo-sama’s Imperial Order and eliminate all hostile Uchiha elements on the night they plan their coup.” Yamamoto stated with finality as he looked towards Hiruzen.

“We will comply with Daimyo-sama’s orders, of course. I’ll have the Anbu and the Barrier Corps. seal off the Uchiha compound just before the Uchiha leave their compound to start the coup. We’ll use two barriers to keep this mission hidden from the village. First the ‘Setsudan Sa Reta Sekai (Disconnected World)’ Barrier to keep the Uchiha from leaving the compound. Then further back we’ll set up the ‘Kakureta Tochi (Hidden Land)’ Barrier to cast the illusion that nothing is changing in the Uchiha compound.” Hiruzen explained the mission that would be carried out to assist Yamamoto in executing the Daimyo’s orders.

“Yes, Hokage-sama.” Homura, Koharu, and Itachi replied to their leader. Yamamoto nodded to show his compliance with the Hokage’s assistance in the completion of the Imperial Order.

“Itachi, I have another mission for you.” Hiruzen stated getting Itachi to stand at attention.

“I am ready to serve, Hokage-sama.” Itachi replied.

“According to the last records there are currently five infants, nine toddlers, and fifteen children below Academy Graduation age in the Uchiha Clan. I assume Izumi will be in charge of all of them?” Hiruzen inquired.

“Yes sir that is what my father has stated.” Itachi responded.

“Your younger brother, Sasuke, is going to be there as well?” Hiruzen asked.

“Yes sir, my father and mother are both ensuring that Sasuke will be in the temple and protected during the coup.” Itachi stated.

“Your new mission is to place all of the children in the temple under a Genjutsu that puts them to sleep. This will prevent them from leaving the temple and getting caught up in the elimination. You will then stay and guard the temple from any of your clansmen that try to take refuge there. Only you, Uchiha Izumi and the children of the Uchiha clan will be spared.” Hiruzen ordered.

“It shall be done, Hokage-sama.” Itachi bowed to his leader. Inwardly he was both saddened at his soon-to-be lost family and happy that Izumi hadn’t been forced to join the coup. As far as she was aware she was only looking after the children as part of a military exercise the Uchiha Shinobi were performing.

“Then we shall carry out the mission in five days. I will personally oversee the mission to completion. Dismissed.” Hiruzen ordered getting bows from Itachi, Koharu, and Homura. As the group dispersed Yamamoto spoke to Hiruzen.

“I thank you for your support in this matter, Hokage-dono. The Daimyo will receive notification of the mission I entrust?” Yamamoto asked.

“Of course, I will send it shortly with one of my summons to ensure secrecy.” Hiruzen promised getting a nod from Yamamoto as the two old men departed from each other to prepare for the mission in five days.

-Five Days Later ~ One hour after sunset-

Uchiha Fugaku looked over his assembled clan, all of them prepared to do what must be done for the honor of the Uchiha Clan. The Uchiha Clan’s full Shinobi force numbered in at three hundred individuals, not counting retired ninja who could no longer fight or Izumi who was keeping the children out of the operation. They were about to move out to begin when several of his clan members, all sensor type shinobi, suddenly stiffened up and looked around the area and even into the night sky with their Sharingan active.

“Fugaku-sama! A barrier has been erected around the entire compound!” one of the sensors spoke up.

“What?! What kind of barrier?” Fugaku demanded.

“From the structure it has to be the ‘Setsudan Sa Reta Sekai’! The village must have found out about our operation!” Another sensor exclaimed as they stared at the barrier that completely encapsulated the Uchiha compound.

“How could they have found out?” Fugaku muttered to himself.

“Who isn’t here? Whoever isn’t here must have betrayed our plan to the Hokage!” One member of the Uchiha spoke up from the front of the gathered group.

“You needn’t worry about that any longer.” The voice of an old man stated from behind Fugaku. All the Uchiha instantly turned to the source to see Yamamoto standing only a few dozen feet behind the Clan Head.

“What are you doing here, Namikaze?” Fugaku demanded disrespectfully.

“You already know they answer to that, Uchiha Fugaku.” Yamamoto replied as he stabbed his wooden walking cane into the ground. “You who’ve betrayed the Hokage and the Daimyo have been ordered eliminated by Imperial Order.”

Fugaku and the rest of the Uchiha present flinched at the news. If an Imperial Order had been created then the Daimyo already knew of their coup. They couldn’t claim command over the village if the Daimyo didn’t support them. Their carefully crafted story of how they’d had to take over the village as one of its Founding Clans was useless now.

“We are only doing what is right for the Uchiha Clan! The village is in the wrong for isolating us and deeming us less important than the Senju since Konoha’s founding!” Fugaku declared angrily as he activated his Sharingan. The rest of the assembled Uchiha all began to take out weapons, enter battle stances and prepare jutsu.

“Such foolish talk, you have no right to decide for yourselves what is right and wrong! It is your duty to serve the Hokage and the Daimyo!” Yamamoto stated strongly as he stared down the Uchiha Clan Head.

“The Uchiha deserve better than that!” an Uchiha roared out as he appeared beside Yamamoto in a Shunshin no jutsu and tried to stab the old man. He was met with a strong punch to the stomach. The blow was so strong the Uchiha instantly coughed up blood as he was sent flying backwards and crashed into a stone wall. The wall cracked from the force and the Uchiha crumpled to the ground dead.

“The time for words has passed.” Yamamoto declared as he shrugged off his haori, revealing a form-fitting black shinobi outfit beneath it. The old man’s arms were left uncovered and showed the results of a lifetime of training by both their muscle tone and the few scars that covered them. A fiery aura covered Yamamoto as he reached for his walking cane. The flame covered the wooden cane which lit up with a set of seals. The cane seemed to unwind and fall to the ground revealing a sheathed katana. Yamamoto grabbed the handle of the sword and unsheathed the blade before holding it in front of himself. “All things in the universe turn to ashes, Ryuujin Jakka!” The words seemed to trigger another set of seals to appear on the blade for a brief moment before they faded and the sword began releasing a massive torrent of flames.

“Katon: Goukakyuu no jutsu!” Five Uchiha called out as five large fireballs headed towards the old man. A swing of Yamamoto’s sword sent a wave of fire that collided with the incoming fireballs. The flames clashed and exploded into a conflagration before dispersing a few seconds later.

“Surround him, don’t stay in one place!” Fugaku ordered as he leaped off to the side and landed on a rooftop. The other Uchiha began to disperse around the old man surrounding him as they launched weapons at him.

“Such a waste.” Yamamoto spoke before disappearing from his position. The volley of weapons impacted the ground where he’d been standing as the multiple Sharingan of the Uchiha tracked the high speed movement of the old man. Unfortunately being able to see his movement didn’t save the group of Uchiha that he appeared above. A downward swing of his flame covered sword incinerated all five of the Uchiha and the building they’d been standing on top of.

“Suiton: Teppoudama!” Almost a dozen Uchiha called out as the launched huge spheres of water at the airborne man.

“Moeteirumon.” Yamamoto intoned as he waved his hand and the thick reddish-orange flame appeared as a large rectangle between him and the water jutsu. All of the water flashed into steam upon contact with the flame barrier. Yamamoto dispersed his technique before swinging his sword and unleashing a massive wave of fire in the direction of the attackers. The wave of flame incinerated several houses and three Uchiha who hadn’t been quick enough to dodge it. Yamamoto dodged another volley of weapons with his high speed movement before a bright blue ball of fire appeared in his left hand. “Souren Sokatsui (Twin Lotus Blue Fire, Crash Down).” The ball of blue fire exploded into a huge pillar of flame that decimated everything in its path. Multiple Uchiha had been caught by the unexpected attack and even more houses had been turned to ash.

“Doton: Tobi Tsubute no jutsu (Flying Thrown Stones)!” An Uchiha called out from behind Yamamoto sending a barrage of rocks at the old man’s back. This was at the same time that multiple volleys of weapons were launched at him and three more Suiton: Teppoudama were heading for him from multiple directions.

“Dai Kaen (Great Flame Eruption).” Yamamoto exhaled as a massive column of fire erupted from his position and rapidly spread out in all directions. The top of the column of fire actually struck the top of the barrier enclosing the Uchiha compound showing that the barrier’s ceiling was well over one hundred feet high. The column of fire continued to spread engulfing nearly a tenth of the Uchiha compound in flame and turning everything within to ash. Almost one hundred Uchiha shinobi died from the technique and all of the noncombatant Uchiha that were in the area were incinerated along with their homes.

“You bastard!” Fugaku growled from the distance he’d been forced to retreat to in order to escape the flames. As the Uchiha shinobi tried to regroup from losing one-third of their force Yamamoto walked through the scorched area he’d just created in the Uchiha compound.

“Suiton: Bakusui Shouha (Exploding Water Colliding Wave)!” Called out nearly a dozen Uchiha from Yamamoto’s left as a massive tidal wave of water formed and rushed towards him.

“Moeru Kouhai (Burning Desolation).” Yamamoto declared as he pointed his sword towards the tidal wave. An even more massive wave of flame erupted forth from the blade, but these flames were almost white in their heat. The tidal wave was quickly reduced to steam which released a large shockwave that devastated the area where the two attacks collided. But the almost white fire cut through even that and incinerated the attackers. Yamamoto kept the technique going and swung the column of near white fire in a three hundred sixty degree circle. The flames incinerated another large portion of the Uchiha compound, another large group of shinobi and the Uchiha adults that lived there. 

“Damn it you old bastard!” A lone Uchiha screamed as he rushed forward while forming hand seals. Yamamoto regarded the young man for a moment before disappearing and reappearing behind the man. The man was split in half at the waist before being consumed in flames. Yamamoto gazed around himself at the burning Uchiha compound and the still living shinobi before jumping high into the air. Flames appeared below his feet to keep him airborne and able to look down on the battlefield so that he could aim his next attack.

“Senju Kouten Taihou (Thousand-Hand Bright Heaven Cannon).” Yamamoto spoke as ten massive fireballs of blue-violet color surrounded him. Each fireball was almost twenty feet in diameter and gave off so much heat that Yamamoto could barely be seen amid the heat haze. With a motion of his hand all ten of the fireballs rocketed towards the ground in different directions. The impact was devastation incarnate. Each fireball exploded into a massive firestorm that incinerated wood, melted rock and metal, vaporized water and made any human caught in them disappear almost instantly. The Uchiha compound was now nothing more than a sea of flames. All except a single small area at the very edge of the compound. Yamamoto landed in this small area to meet the last remaining Uchiha shinobi. In total only seven people were left including the Clan Head Fugaku and his wife, Mikoto.

“Damn you, why did you have to interfere?” Fugaku growled as he stood before the others all of them, besides Mikoto, injured in some way.

“Treason against the Daimyo is dealt with by capturing the traitor and putting them to death. Thus their fate is sealed. You’re clan is no different in this regard.” Yamamoto replied as he stabbed his sword into the ground and stepped away from it. “I will end the last of you here and now. Come and maintain what little honor you have left.” He spoke as she shifted into a Taijutsu stance.

“You can’t have much chakra left after doing all of this. That’s why your switching to Taijutsu isn’t it.” One of the Uchiha behind Fugaku spoke up as he moved forward and performed hand seals. “I’ll kill you for what you’ve done to the Uchiha!”

“You fool back away!” Fugaku roared as he’d never deactivated his Sharingan and could see that, while Yamamoto had definitely lost a good amount of his chakra, the old man still had more than two-thirds of his total chakra left. Unfortunately the warning came too late. The Uchiha’s face had already been smashed in by Yamamoto’s fist sending blood flying as the body flew backwards several feet.

“Damn it!” screamed one of the remaining Uchiha as he tried to run away leaping towards the nearest rooftop only to find Yamamoto already in front of him.

“Such cowardice.” Yamamoto growled as he slammed a hammer fist down onto the man’s head crushing the skull and sending the body to slam down into the dirt.

“Kouji!” Yelled the largest of the remaining Uchiha as he launched himself at Yamamoto. The Uchiha shinobi’s skin darkened from the effects of a body hardening Doton jutsu as he threw a punch at the old man.

“Ikkotsu (Single Bone).” Yamamoto stated as he dodge the punch aimed at him and landed one against the Uchiha’s chest. The man was launched backwards from the force and everyone present heard his sternum and ribs breaking. The large Uchiha coughed up a mass of blood before he stopped moving clearly dead.

Mikoto tried to control her trembling as she watched Yamamoto kill her fellow Uchiha without much effort. The last two shinobi with them, Takeru and Shinta, both launched a Katon: Goukakyuu no jutsu at the old man only for him to walk through the fire with a bright aura of flames surrounding him. Her Sharingan let her see the moment Yamamoto moved forward in a blink and jabbed Shinta in the solar plexus with two fingers.

“Tsukiyubi (Thrust Fingers).” Yamamoto intoned as Uchiha Shinta was launched backwards and slammed into a stone wall. The sickening crack and the odd angle at which his head now lay informed everyone that his neck had broken. “Tesshou (Iron Palm).” The old man spoke again as his palm literally crushed Uchiha Takeru’s head splattering the ground with blood.

“Damn you!” Fugaku roared as he sped through hand seals before launching his technique. “Katon: Goka Mekkyaku (Great Fire Annihilation/Majestic Destroyer Flame)!” The massive wave of flames Fugaku spewed from his mouth engulfed Yamamoto and spread into the still blazing Uchiha compound behind him for a large distance. For a moment Mikoto thought her husband might have pushed the Namikaze Clan Head back only to see the truth a moment later.

“Sokkotsu (Dual Bone).” Yamamoto stated as he landed a punch with each hand against Fugaku’s torso. The sound of bones snapping was clearly heard before Fugaku was launched backwards and slammed through the stone wall that Shinta lay dead against. Mikoto instantly knew that her husband was dead and that she would be next as she faced the old man who had single-handedly wiped out the Uchiha Clan.

“What will happen to the children inside the temple behind me?” Mikoto questioned as she drew her shuriken.

“They are innocent of your clan’s crimes. The Daimyo has decreed that their lives are to be spared.” Yamamoto replied as he set himself in his stance.

“I’m glad, but I must fight for my clan’s beliefs. I am the Matriarch of the Uchiha Clan, Uchiha Mikoto; I will not go down without a fight.” Mikoto informed before launching her shuriken at Yamamoto.

“An excellent sentiment.” Yamamoto acknowledged as he dodged the shuriken only to notice that they were being manipulated with wire that quickly wrapped around his limbs and anchored into the ground when Mikoto threw kunai into the holes of each shuriken. A quick set of hand seals followed as Mikoto finished her combination.

“Raiton: Jibashi (Electromagnetic Murder)!” Mikoto called out as a powerful stream of electricity was sent down the wires towards Yamamoto.

“Impressive.” Yamamoto declared before erupting into a white blaze. The wires instantly vaporized and the electricity dispersed when it touched the white fire. “I can tell you’ve trained long and hard with your technique. If you hadn’t of taken this course I would have liked to see more of your skill. But alas your fate was decided the moment you betrayed the Daimyo. Be at ease, your sons will live on and your clan will rise from these ashes.”

“Thank you, Yamamoto Namikaze, Clan Head of the Namikaze. I will bear no grudge against you. Clad in Divine Flame, I’m honored to witness the pinnacle of Fire Chakra.” Mikoto smiled as she stood before the white fire.

“You will feel no pain, Uchiha Mikoto, the Kami no Hi will ensure that.” Yamamoto spoke before he stood before her and placed his hand on her head. In less than a second the Uchiha Matriarch was pure white ash blowing away in the slight breeze.

“Thank you for that.” Itachi spoke up from the steps of the temple. Yamamoto turned to the Anbu before he spoke.

“It was the least I could do, for someone so willing to accept their fate and retain their honor even in death.” Yamamoto replied as he walked over to his sword and picked it up. “I will look forward to having a reasonable Uchiha Clan Head at the Council Meetings from now on. I wish you and the new Matriarch well, Uchiha Itachi.” With that Yamamoto raised his sword and all of the fire within the Uchiha Clan compound quickly flew towards the blade and disappeared. Smoldering ground and the remains of buildings were all that was left behind as the old man walked towards the exit that he knew the Sandaime was waiting at. This night would come to be known as ‘The Uchiha Cleansing’ and a much different Uchiha Clan would rise up from this night; a much better clan in the opinion of most people.

-End Chapter-

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I hope you enjoyed this update! It has been a very long time but I’ve finally got an update for all of my stories in a single year! Hopefully I’ll be able to keep this up going forward. This chapter is a bit shorter than normal but it was all about the Uchiha Massacre so there was only so much I could write without making it a fairly repetitive series of fight scenes. Next chapter we’ll see some results from this event and a hint at something else going on when Naruto has some strange dreams. In fact he isn’t the only one having odd dreams but he won’t know that!

Until next time, later!