Hearing this, Sara couldn't help crying out in shock:
'It's actually Anrokuzan.'
Her expression became extremely complicated. There was deep disappointment in it, along with bone-deep hatred, and even a faint trace of fear she couldn't hide.
In contrast, Anrokuzan looked as though the entire situation was firmly under his control, calm and composed.
He leisurely bowed slightly toward Sara, and that posture of his looked unexpectedly unhurried and at ease.
"You actually dared to use the power of the Dragon Vein for war. That's nothing short of blasphemy against the Dragon Vein!"
"Here and now, in my capacity as queen, I order you to immediately stop the development of puppet weapons!"
Sara shouted righteously, then immediately added, "At the same time, release those innocent people who've been forced into hard labor at once."
However, at this very moment, Sara was clearly being far too naive.
At such a life-or-death juncture, with the situation so urgent, she still believed that her so-called status as queen could have any effect.
Anrokuzan gazed at Sara with a half-smile, the corners of his mouth lifting slightly into a chilling grin, and said slowly, "Oh? I didn't expect you to already know this much."
"If that's the case, then I can't let you keep living in this world."
"You should know that there are countless puppet dolls that can replace you."
"And now that my puppet army is complete, the Dragon Vein power you control is no longer of any value to me."
Hearing these words, Sara's face instantly turned paper-white, filled with a mix of regret and pain.
Her lips trembled as she murmured to herself, "How could I be so stupid, to have trusted you all this time, you sinister and treacherous man!"
Looking at Sara's despairing and helpless expression, the twisted smile on Anrokuzan's face grew even more ferocious.
It was as if he were drawing an indescribable pleasure from Sara's suffering.
"Hahahahaha! Thank you for everything you've done for me up to now, Your Majesty Sara."
"Thanks to your help, I've been able to take another step closer to that grand goal."
"But now, it's time to send you on your way. Heh! Heh! Heh! Heh! Heh…"
Anrokuzan let out a creepy, hair-raising laugh.
Immediately after, the satisfied look on his face abruptly twisted into something utterly distorted.
A sense of madness and cruelty shone through his eyes.
"You're useless now."
"Next, you'll die just like your mother did."
Hearing this, Sara's eyes went wide as she stared in shock at the cold-blooded man before her, Anrokuzan.
Realising the terrifying implication hidden in his words, Sara trembled, "Was it you who killed Mother?"
Anrokuzan lowered his gaze slightly, a barely perceptible cold smile appearing at the corner of his mouth, "So you finally realized it."
He slowly raised his head, looked straight at Sara, and continued, "Your mother truly was an exceptionally intelligent queen, but unfortunately, she was too smart."
"She quickly saw through my true intentions and refused to assist me."
"And you, back then, were also an excellent puppet, obedient and well-behaved, just like the ones I manipulate in my hands."
As he spoke, Anrokuzan shook his head, as if feeling a hint of regret for the past.
"However, now the time has come, and it's time to replace you with a real puppet."
With that, he confidently shifted his gaze toward Rengoku at the side, looking him up and down.
At that moment, Rengoku, who had been silent and expressionless all along, suddenly spoke, cutting Anrokuzan off, "Alright, that's enough. We don't have time to play these games with you."
Before his words had even finished, he casually swung his arm, and a powerful gravitational force instantly erupted.
Anrokuzan didn't even have time to react before letting out a miserable scream, "Ahhh!"
The next instant, his whole body was yanked violently toward the ground by the force of Bansho Ten'in, like a kite with its string cut.
With a dull thud, Anrokuzan slammed heavily into the ground.
But he was, after all, a battle-hardened veteran. His reaction was extremely fast, and almost the moment he landed, he flipped himself upright.
His eyes sharpened as he forcefully waved his right hand.
Those puppets behind him that had been standing still immediately surged toward Rengoku like a tidal wave.
"Who exactly are you?"
Anrokuzan stared wide-eyed at Rengoku, full of vigilance, secretly shocked by the other party's incredibly strange abilities.
However, faced with Anrokuzan's question, Rengoku seemed not to hear it at all, not even turning his head.
Instead, he calmly shifted his gaze upward and called out loudly, "What are you few sneaking around up there for?"
As Rengoku's words fell, Minato, Kakashi, and the other three slowly revealed themselves from an extremely well-hidden secret door in the wall.
Each of them looked rather awkward, clearly having never expected that their careful actions would still be noticed by Rengoku.
Among them, Naruto was the most carefree.
After being caught red-handed, not only was he unafraid, he even scratched his head openly and laughed cheerfully, "Ahahaha! Lord Rengoku, you're amazing! You spotted us right away!"
"It was Kakashi-sensei who said he wanted to see your real strength."
As he spoke, Naruto nudged Kakashi beside him with his elbow.
At this moment, Kakashi could only roll his eyes helplessly.
It turned out that after Minato found him, Kakashi discovered that the team his teacher was leading actually included a blond brat.
After some questioning, Kakashi learned that this mischievous-looking boy was actually Minato's biological son from many years later.
What shocked him even more was that, aside from Naruto and Minato, there was also a Fifth Hokage from another time-space present here.
On top of that, Naruto's mouth, which couldn't keep a secret to save his life, soon spilled everything in one breath, including confidential matters like how Minato's student would destroy the world in the future.
And that Rin and Obito were already dead, which Naruto had heard directly from the Kakashi of his own world.
All these changes filled Kakashi's heart with doubt and curiosity.
The corners of Rengoku's mouth lifted slightly as he cast a half-smiling glance at Kakashi.
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